Kongor Studios has announced it will host the inaugural Heroes of Newerth: Reborn global esports tournament, handing out a $100,000 prize pool and opening registration via open qualifiers for all players. The studio published a release on Terminals saying more details about dates, format, and registration will follow in the coming weeks. For now the confirmed pillars are simple – open qualifiers, all players eligible, and a six-figure prize pool.
Heroes of Newerth’s return has been gradual. The title first relaunched earlier this year and entered an alpha phase in May before the studio released an open beta trailer on October 22. The trailer confirms the open beta will begin on November 11 and that the game will be free to play.
The MOBA has a messy, interesting history. Originally released in 2010 by S2 Games, it closed in 2022, only to be brought back by Kongor Studios and Garena. That partnership has slowly rebuilt the player base and, now, the competitive scene.
Tournament organiser Paradise League has already run smaller events this year, and historical peaks for the franchise still exis, the HoN Tour World Finals 2017 once reached a peak audience of 15,256 viewers, with 148,696 hours watched, per Esports Charts. A $100,000 purse gives the scene room to try and hold attention against bigger MOBAs.
Want a sense of how that prize pool stacks up in the current landscape? See the Delta Force Invitational’s $500K event for comparison, which pushed larger expectations for third-party tournaments.
Bold moves like a six-figure tournament are a quick way to get eyes, but the real test will be whether players show up and stick around after the qualifiers and open beta. For now, the roadmap is simple: open qualifiers, open beta on November 11, and more details to come from Kongor Studios.
If you follow the scene, expect the usual churn of community teams, returning veterans, and a few surprises from newcomers who play everything for the excitement and the cash.
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