By COLE REIF
Great Bend Post
Last spring, the Great Bend Recreation Commission hosted its first eSports tournament and 24 participants showed up, with half of them being college-aged.
With the growing popularity of video games turning into a spectator sport, Great Bend Rec Interim Sports Director Shane Sandberg said there will be an after-school program throughout the month of February for children to play video games.
"Last fall we did an actual league with an entry fee," said Sandberg. "We didn't get the turnout we wanted. We decided for February, we're going to do open, drop-in hours at the downtown Rec."
From 3:30 p.m. - 5 p.m. on Tuesday and Thursdays, the Rec will have PS5s and Nintendo Switches set up at 1214 Stone Street. The drop-in program will be free, and the Rec will look at creating an eSports league in the future.
"We also have some snacks available," said Sandberg. "We just want them to show up and get this ball rolling. We have a lot of equipment committed to it. We want some kids here to participate."
The Rec will have Rocket League, Mario Kart, NBA2K and Madden available for all school-aged children. A staff member from the Rec will be on hand to supervise the activity.