The best pro gaming to watch this weekend
Dota 2, LoL, CS:GO and more!
It's summer. It's the weekend. It's time to stay up all night watching people be really, really good at computer games. You've got a wide selection to choose from this week, from Dota 2's thriller in Manila to LoL's NA LCS to CS:GO on TV. Enjoy! Don't go outside.
Dota 2: The Manila Major
Dota 2's third Major comes to a close this weekend, and it's shaping up to be a dramatic finish. Can Frankfurt champs OG become the first team to win two Majors? Will Newbee re-establish Chinese dominance? Will Liquid do it? And how high can MVP Phoenix rise? Games begin at 03:00 BST Saturday/19:00 PDT Friday and at the same time the following day. The grand final begins at 08:00 BST/00:00 PDT Sunday. Find the livestream at www.twitch.tv/dotamajor.
Hearthstone: Europe Spring Championship
The first of a run of regional events leading to the World Championship at Blizzcon, the Europe Spring Championship will see some of the best players in the world face off in a single-elimination bracket with $25,000 and a spot at Worlds on the line. Play begins at 17:00 BST/09:00 PDT on both Saturday and Sunday and you can catch the livestream at www.twitch.tv/playhearthstone.
CSGO: ELEAGUE Season 1
CSGO's first cable television league continues on Friday night in the US/early Saturday in Europe. You can catch Astralis vs. CLG at 03:00 BST/19:00 PDT and you'll find the livestream at www.twitch.tv/eleaguetv. Bonus CS:GO fact! Astralis are currently the leading European team heading to the Esports Championship Series in London later in the month, and you can win tickets right here.
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League of Legends: North American LCS
The LoL Championship Series is underway once again with a full weekend of play in North America. You can catch games from 20:00 BST/12:00 PDT on both Saturday and Sunday, and there's play on Friday night too if you're quick enough. For more on the storylines running through this season, check out Cassandra's writeup from earlier in the week. For the games themselves, check LoLesports.
Capcom Pro Tour: TWFighter Major 2016/Moscow Fighting Arena 2016
The CPT rolls on to Taiwan and Moscow this weekend. These are both Ranking events, not Premier, but you should expect high-quality play from the top finalists regardless. If you just want to tune in for the SFV top 8, the TWFighter finals begin at 11:30 BST/03:30 PDT on Saturday and you can find the livestream at https://www.twitch.tv/teamsp00ky. There's only a preliminary schedule available for Moscow Fighting Arena 2016 at the moment, which you can find here—the SFV top 8 aren't on until Monday, which probably doesn't count as the weekend, but there you go anyway.
Rocket League: Qualifier 2 Open
These open qualifier games in NA and EU won't be streamed officially, but keep an eye on Twitch for player streams throughout the weekend. The place to find more information about Rocket League esports is here.
Joining in 2011, Chris made his start with PC Gamer turning beautiful trees into magazines, first as a writer and later as deputy editor. Once PCG's reluctant MMO champion , his discovery of Dota 2 in 2012 led him to much darker, stranger places. In 2015, Chris became the editor of PC Gamer Pro, overseeing our online coverage of competitive gaming and esports. He left in 2017, and can be now found making games and recording the Crate & Crowbar podcast.