ORANGE COUNTY, Calif. — Beverages targeting esports pros or enthusiasts have long been the domain of soft drink companies, pumping out sugary offerings with names like Red Bull, Rockstar Energy Drink, and Blue Bawls.
They come with caffeine too – lots of caffeine – enough to jolt a drooping gamer out of a late-hour energy slump.
Two companies with Southland footholds are looking to offer better options, targeting the specific needs of competitors needing a kick.
The first comes from Razer Inc., a tech giant known for building gaming laptops and accompanying accessories like mice and keyboards. The company, which has its U.S. headquarters in Irvine, launched its Respawn powder last year at the tech conference E3.
“There are a lot of companies that are starting to invest in gamers and what gamers need,” said Sean Driscoll, a marketing evangelist for Respawn. “We see this product as being perfect for someone spending long stretches of time focusing.”
Research firm Newzoo projects the esports industry will hit $1.1 billion this year, allowing plenty of room for other products to latch onto the large and growing audience.
Video game companies have attracted huge audiences through game sales and have increasingly earned gaudy revenues from streaming esports matchups.
Some companies, like Los Angeles-based Riot Games, have tried branding partnerships more common to pop icons. The company collaborated with Louis Vuitton last year to launch a line of clothing inspired by its ultra-popular game, League of Legends. The line featured such high-fashion niceties as a dress-shirt (a shirt that’s really a dress), platform shoes, and a camo pocket square priced at $485.
But companies like Razer are looking to expand offerings to people who already identify as gamers but haven’t found the right beverage for them. The company has answered with Respawn, offering a variety of flavors shipped in tubs holding 40 servings for $29.99. It has zero sugar, about 20 calories per serving containing caffeine about equal to a cup of coffee. The company recently began selling Respawn branded gum in three flavors: Tropical Punch, Cool Mint and Pomegranate Watermelon.
Atlanta-based JuJu Energy is going after dedicated gamers too. The company partnered with Valencia-based LiefLabs to formulate a product gamers would appreciate not just for the spark of energy it could offer, but the focus it could provide.
“100 percent of our products are powdered professional-grade gaming formula,” said Matt Konigsmark, a co-founder of the company.
JuJu Energy supplied Lief with its vision, and the lab engineered a powdered formula without the titanic amounts of sugar found in the classics.
“We wanted to ensure that a gamer would be able to enhance his focus, but a normal caffeine spike isn’t what a gamer wants because you don’t want to be shaky,” said Steven Valdez, a biochemist and product development coordinator with Lief.
The mixture instead aims to hold back the surge by adding ingredients that slow down how quickly the body absorbs caffeine.
The formula took several weeks to draw up, but months to perfect when Valdez tried to translate it from the page to the lab. He looked for different extracts of flowers and mushrooms that had the mind focussing nootropics he wanted but came with a ghastly flavor as well. After testing different recipes in-house, Valdez came up with a combination of ingredients he felt would go down easy and have a long shelf life.
The company has been selling its formula through online platforms like Amazon at $35.99.
Konigsmark has designs on creating the premier drink for gamers.
“It’s like this Tuscan cocktail specifically designed for gamers,” he said. “That’s why we call it professional grade because we wanted it to be best in class.”