Held at SM North EDSA (Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines), the Honor of Kings (HOK) Invitational Season 3 came to its grand finale with Malaysia's Nova Esports hailed champions.
James Yang, senior director of Level Infinite Global Esports Center, unveiled the Honor of Kings 2025 esports strategy before the HOK S3 Invitational grand finals, which calls for a USD 15 million investment to grow the global ecosystem. More details below.
Here are the HOK Esports 2025 roadmap highlights:
- 3 global tournaments - KIS3, KWC, KIC
- 7 regional professional leagues - KPL, PKL, MKL, IKL, WKS, KME, KMW
- Grassroots - Open Series
- Campus - KCS
3 Global Tournaments
KIS3 (HOK Invitational Season 3) has already reached its conclusion, taking place from February 21 to March 1, 2025. It introduced the Global Ban-Pick system, a groundbreaking concept launched by KPL in 2018. This format highlights the game's diverse roster of heroes and adds variation to each match. A total of 71 distinct heroes were played during HOK S3.
The upcoming two other major tournaments are KWC (Honor of Kings World Cup) and KIC (Honor of Kings International Championship). The KWC will happen in July during the Esports World Cup 2025, and the KIC will follow in November.
This year's KWC is special because global teams will compete against the champion of the KPL Spring Season for the first time in Riyadh.
7 Regional Professional Leagues
In addition to KPL (King Pro League, Honor of Kings Professional League in China) and CHOKBR (Honor of Kings Brazil Championship), six new regional leagues—PKL (Philippines), MKL (Malaysia), IKL (Indonesia), WKS (Wildcard), KME (Major East), and KMW (Major West)—will join the ecosystem. The additional Regional Professional Leagues expand the global esports system to more regions.
KPL, the first professional HOK esports league, has had a major economic impact. China Audio-video and Digital Publishing Association (CADPA) data shows that KPL and the Honor of Kings esports ecosystem in China have created over 100,000 jobs, and the KPL 2024 Grand Final in Beijing generated RMB 303 million direct and RMB 669 million indirect economic benefits. The Beijing National Stadium (aka Bird's Nest) will host KPL's year-end Grand Finals 2025.
Honor of Kings Esport is committed to working with stakeholders and partners worldwide to develop local esports industries with additional regional professional leagues.
HOK Open Series and Campus Series 2025
Over 150,000 players worldwide signed up for Split 3 through the Honor of Kings Open Series, which allows players without rank restrictions to compete.
The Open Series will return for Split 4 with more information on when and how to join up in summer to promote inclusivity.
Meanwhile, the Honor of Kings Campus Series (KCS) offers more grassroots tournaments and creates an open-for-all esports ecosystem for university students. KCS will be supported in 92 countries and regions with a USD 100,000 global prize pool.
For the latest updates, visit the league's official social media pages on Facebook (@hokglobalesports) and X (@HoKEsports).
from PinoyTechSaga | Philippines Tech News and Game Reviews Blog https://ift.tt/4eFlA8c
via IFTTT
