Before the release of the video game Fortnite, it was hard to imagine what could have brought NFL wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster, rapper Travis Scott and Twitch streamer Tyler “Ninja” Blevins together talking on headsets, watched by hundreds of thousands of viewers. That was before Ninja was joined by rapper Drake to play the video game, breaking several Twitch streaming records.
Video game company Epic Games changed the video game landscape in September 2017 when it released “Battle Royale” mode on their video game Fortnite. Since then, the video game has taken off and become a global sensation, and Esports LSU (ELSU) member and computer science junior Matt Landry is taking off with it.
Landry recently began competing in Fortnite tournaments with his ELSU teammate and information systems and decisions sciences junior Bryce Dartez. The duo took home $1,000 in prize money after losing in the semi-finals in a 16-team bracket in UMG Gaming’s Lenovo Legion Sunday Showdown on Oct. 7. The tournament featured multiple professional Fortnite players as well as popular Youtuber Vikram Singh Barn, known as “Vikkstar123,” who ended up defeating the ELSU members one round before the championship match.
UMG Gaming hosts this tournament on Sundays, and players have to be invited to participate. Ninja has competed in the tournament in the past. Landry and Dartez’s semi-final run, which was streamed on Twitch, was their debut in the competition, surprising the match commentators and many of the stream’s viewers.
“I’ve always strived to play

competitively, but just never got to a high level,” Landry said. “Once Fortnite came out, I’ve been obsessed like everybody else. [In the tournament], we expected to just be a filler team, and we wound up placing in the semi-finals.”
Landry and Dartez were asked to come back and compete again on Oct. 14, but were knocked out in the first round. They plan on continuing to compete together and are preparing to begin their Collegiate Starleague campaign, which is a year-long season of competitive Fortnite matches between esports members associated with colleges that leads to a 32-team bracket in the spring with a grand prize of $30,000.
ELSU has teams competing for almost every major video game title, including League of Legends, Overwatch and Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege. The team’s budget, which allows players like Landry to enter competitive tournaments and gain access to certain equipment, is provided through sponsorships and fundraising. They were recently sponsored by Red Bull.
“LSU esports has given me the avenue to compete at a high level and given me a chance to show my worth,” Landry said. “It’s been awesome. I’m hoping my connections with esports and LSU can [lead me to] work in the esports field. I love it.”
Thanks in part to the immense popularity of Fortnite, Esports has grown exponentially as a market. Professional video game competitors, streamers and content creators have become viable career paths for many worldwide.
Landry said being a professional video game competitor is his dream job, and he hopes competing in competitions with ELSU is just the beginning. He also said that while everyone is not going to be as successful as players like Ninja, he still thinks it is a big enough market to encourage other aspiring gamers.
“Everyone thinks differently, so there’s always something new to watch and something new to learn,” Landry said. “On top of that, you have the personality of the streamer themselves. Ninja, for example, is really good at the game but then on top of that he’s really entertaining. He’s got a friendly face and a lot of characteristics that build a community that people like being a part of.”
Landry also wanted to encourage people of all ages who may not have given video games, or watching others play video games, a chance.
“Most people need a break from reality,” Landry said. “Video games are kind of an escape. I used to play old games like Skyrim where I could escape into that world and explore a whole new thing. Now, video games aren’t just a pastime. It can draw big amounts of money and it can be a career option for a lot of people.”