Despite the controversy igniting over Hi-Rez and their apparent 'Overwatch clone' Paladins, the game has managed to scoop up so much player interest through its transition to Open Beta to warrant an impromptu invitational tournament at the Hi-Rez expo in the new year.
Thanks to the 100,000 accounts made in the first 24 hours of the open beta hitting Steam a few days ago, the company is looking to invite players from Europe, North America, Brazil, Australia, Latin America and New Zealand to take part in a $150,000 tournament. After seeing 'strong interest in Paladins from competitive players and esports organizations worldwide", they're also looking into creating more spots for even more teams in the future.
All across the world will see Double Jump, Level Up and Tencent (major partners in League of Legend's Chinese domination) oversee regional tournaments to determine which teams will be invited to the event in January.
Those unable to crack into the top 8 will be able to watch the championship finals through Twitch or by having tickets to Hi-Rez Expo itself.