Copyright escapistmagazine
Over the weekend, the Honor of Kings Kings Pro League Grand Finals 2025 broke the record as the most-attended esports event ever with more than 62,000 fans packed into the iconic Bird's Nest stadium in Beijing. But interestingly enough, that's not really the only reason I'd argue that China is far more advanced than the Western world when it comes to esports. One thing that stood out to me during my time in Beijing was the JD Gaming home arena. The home arena is not only where the organization's Beijing-based matches take place, but it's a shockingly large building that also houses almost everything esports teams would need to practice, live, compete, and thrive. It was unlike anything you'd see in the United States or Europe when it comes to the passion and scale behind it all. The campus I don't think the outside of the JD Gaming home arena is officially called the "campus," but you can't really argue that it doesn't look like a really cool college campus with more color and style. The complex features multiple buildings, sculptures, and even a designated camping area. And this is just the beginning. During a tour of the gaming arena, which was built in 2023, I was told that JD Gaming envisions an entire "esports park," which would even include an esports-themed hotel. Home stadium This was insane to see. Inside the campus (or whatever you want to call it), JD Gaming has its own home stadium that has a capacity of over 2,000 attendees. During games, there will be banners of the competing teams hanging and other themed decor. While it's just for JDG's home games, it's actually exponentially larger than many championship tournaments I've attended. This is proof in itself of China's passion for esports. During the tour, I was told that there's also a special VIP area at the top that sells out almost instantly. Rest area When not scrimming or competing, the JDG players have a ton of areas for lounging, hanging out, and resting. This room was particularly quirky, with a very art deco meets board game club aesthetic. In the background, you can also see the top part of a massive mural on a wall of the dining area, which shows JDG players rushing toward a championship trophy. There were other hangouts with big, comfy couches, every instant ramen you could ever want, and a variety of activities. Here's one with table tennis and fooseball! Health and fitness What really emphasizes that esports means business in China are the rooms dedicated to fitness and health throughout the massive maze-of-a-building. It was clear that JDG officials really cared about the players' overall health on top of performance. In fact, the two go hand-in-hand. When it comes to the gym, the tour guide noted that the mental and physical well-being of the players is truly important. They will even take physicals in the gym to get a better idea of their overall physicality. Teams have a chef on hand as well. One thing to note? Even doctors in the JDG use gaming chairs. Motivational posters To further inspire a healthy mental state, you'll find posters with various team mentalities around the arena. This one is all about respect, which includes respect for the game, the opponent, the fans, the sponsor, and the staff. Noob testing While General Manager Fei Pan stated during a panel that veteran players don't need to take any tests to be signed, new players go trough a very challenging test that is meant to prove their accuracy, hand-eye coordination, short-term memory, and situational logic at a fast pace. Interestingly enough, the test didn't include playing Honor of Kings. Instead, it was a bunch of weird little mini-games. However, this would allow the organization to see a variety of skills rather than gameplay, meaning these young players would have what it takes to learn or improve at the mobile MOBA. We had the opportunity to try out the test, which had five parts. Unsurprisingly, I was terrible and came nowhere close to the scores required to be noticed by the organization. It makes sense, however, when China takes esports so seriously. If you want to live, train, and compete in one of these luxury arenas, you need to be the best of the best. For now, the rest of the world has yet to catch up to China's Honor of Kings scene, but as the game's popularity spreads, China will need home arena's like JDG's to maintain their incredible skill level.
