Unfortunately, loadshedding is here to stay for some time in South Africa. As much as it frustrates us to have to deal with it, the very act of loadshedding is having a very real impact on all South Africans, their businesses and their livelihoods every single day.

We have a few solutions and options in place that we wanted to share with you, so we thought we'd do just that. The TL;DR is right below, or read on for more details.

  • Matchfinders: Best to use during loadshedding (or any other time) and when you want to rank up. 
  • Standard weekly tournaments: Continue as usual no matter the level of loadshedding. 
  • Qualifiers: Continue up to Stage 2. Postponed from Stage 3 and up. 
  • Finals: When affected by any loadshedding stage, will be postponed with potential lock-in date to be confirmed. 
  • Vox and Ecoflow provide some amazing solutions listed below, along with some other helpful options. 

As gamers who are affected by the frequent cuts and changes to loadshedding schedules, we should still remain conscious of the fact that it is not within any of our control. As a tournament operator in South Africa, the impact of loadshedding can be infuriating as it affects schedules and plans for clients and you as competitors. Even the best laid plans can be scuppered when Eskom 'regrets to inform the public' of loadshedding.

The ACGL team regularly discusses plans, back-up options and more to deal with loadshedding for all events we host online. We also want to ensure our users have opportunities to compete as often as possible.

Over the last few months, we have implemented a number of ongoing solutions and standard rules to deal with loadshedding. This article is intended to detail and offer solutions you can consider to ensure you are ready for loadshedding the next time it affects your gaming time in our tournaments.

MATCHFINDERS

We recently relaunched the matchfinder system on our site. The new version offers more games, formats and an open time format for competitors. Now you can set a challenge for any time that suits you, for a game that suits you. Other competitors can accept and you can compete. You may also wager your Embers in a matchfinder. All matches played track for the seasonal battle pass and Elo ranking.

With matchfinders offering the ability to play competitively between bouts of loadshedding, it makes for a great place to ensure your Elo rank keeps climbing for future cups...

LEADERBOARDS

A number of titles are more affected by loadshedding than others. Battle Royale games using custom lobbies are particularly adversely affected by loadshedding. With this in mimd, we have added (starting with Warzone) a new longer-format leaderboard system, allowing competitors to drop at a time that suits them and submit for the chance to win cash and more.

ONLINE CUPS AND QUALIFIERS

The regular cups and qualifier system will continue as always. However, we do have a policy on how loadshedding affects each at the various stages. We do request that if you are expecting to be affected by loadshedding during any cup or qualifier that you DO NOT check-in. This assists with achieving our goals below.

Regular Online Cash Cups:

  • Tournaments continue irrespective of loadshedding stage as long as minimum participant number is met.

Series Qualifiers:

  • Up to Stage 2: Qualifier continues as long as the minimum participant number is met. Waiting lists are usually in effect for all major events and if you are on the waiting list, remember to check-in as places may still be available.
  • Stage 3 and above: Qualifier will be postponed by at least one week. New event date will be communicated via social media and other means. To prevent ongoing delays in completing an event, we will however institute only one postponement of a qualifier. Players will be requested to make backup arrangements to play on the new date.

Series Finals

  • We want every who qualifiers for a major cash final to be able to compete after the qualifying stages. Due to this if loadshedding of any stage is announced for an event final, the final will be postponed by at least one week. To prevent ongoing delays in completing an event, we will however institute only one postponement of a final. Players will be requested to make backup arrangements to play on the new date.

RETAIL SOLUTIONS

While we know that it is not feasible or affordable to everyone, there are a number of options you can consider to keep yourself playing during loadshedding:

The Internet Solution

There are a number of retail options that will help keep your internet on during loadshedding:

The Hardware Solution

If you are looking to keep more than just your internet running, consider an inverter and battery solution. These come in a variety of options from a number of suppliers. We recommend considering these ready to go options or similar:

We have a few loadshedding options for you on our shop.

There are of course many more options including complete home solutions, but for those you should contact registered experts in the field.

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