China’s $600,000 Overwatch Premier Series arrives this spring

Chinese Overwatch teams will be able to participate in a year long tournament series, the Overwatch Premier Series, leading up to the APAC Premier.

Blizzard and APAC Premier host Banana Culture will host the series, which begins March 16. Spring and summer seasons will feed into a grand final event. After that, the APAC Premier tournament will pit the top four Chinese teams against invited Korean, Asian Pacific, North American, and European Overwatch teams.

A prize pool of almost $600,000 will be spread across the tournament spectrum.

Registration for interested Chinese teams will be open until Feb. 28. All players must hold a Chinese ID card to register, meaning only Chinese residents will be permitted.

With North America and Korea dominating the Overwatch field, the Overwatch Premier Series places an important spotlight on often overlooked Chinese teams. No Chinese Overwatch team has seen the global success that North American and Korea teams have, but the APAC Premier is that chance.