PlayStation launches esports hub: “Welcome to our home of competitive gaming.”

PlayStation is appealing to esports fans. The Sony-owned console has launched a channel called PlayStation Esports that will offer highlights and coverage from across the landscape of competitive gaming.

A trailer for the new channel depicts some of the games that will be featured in its videos and streams. There are plenty of fighting games on display, which makes sense given Sony’s activity in that community. The entertainment company acquired the fighting game competition Evo in 2021. PlayStation Esports viewers will also be able to dive into popular titles like Apex Legends and NBA 2K. “Welcome to our home of competitive gaming,” says a narrator in the channel trailer.

For more than two decades, Sony has been locked in a console war with rivals Nintendo and Microsoft. Both of those competitors have forayed into esports with mixed results: Microsoft shut down its Twitch alternative Mixer

in 2020, while Nintendo has made progress among competitive gamers by loosening its once-restrictive policy toward streaming.

Sony’s PlayStation is no stranger to YouTube, where it has experimented with original content and collected massive viewership in the wake of major announcements. Its primary YouTube channel counts 14.7 million subscribers compared to nine million for Nintendo and 5.1 million for Microsoft’s Xbox.

Beyond its trailer, the PlayStation Esports channel has uploaded one other video so far: A guide for gamers who want to play competitively on their PS5 consoles.

Outside of its PlayStation brand, Sony operates many digital channels around the world. Two of its Indian TV destinations finished in the top five in our ranking of the most-watched YouTube channels during March 2023.