Yesterday saw the announcement of the i39 Prize Tournaments. With many eager ears listening in for the much anticipated prize fund, especially for the Counter Strike Source Tournament. Multiplay has often been criticised about its prize funds due to the amount of sign-ups and the cost to attend the event. However this year we finally see a dramatic increase in prizes.

CS:Source (PC)

£2500 Guaranteed, or if 96 teams or more signup, an increase to £5000.

Call of Duty 4 (PC)

£2500 Guaranteed, or if 96 teams or more signup, an increase to £5000.

Heroes of Newerth (PC)

£1000 Guaranteed, or if 48 teams sign up, an increase to £2500, or if 96 or more sign up, an increase to £5000.

Team Fortress 2 (PC)

£1500 Guaranteed, or if 48 teams sign up, an increase to £2500, or if 96 or more sign up, an increase to £5000.

Halo 3: ODST (Xbox360)

£1500 Guaranteed, or if 48 teams sign up, an increase to £2500, or if 96 or more sign up, an increase to £5000.

As you can see a massive amount of money to be won, especially considering the current climate the UK see's itself in. What will be of interest is whether or not the event will be able to spark enough interest to grasp the 96 teams for each event to get the big prize money. Normally the CS:Source event easily manages 120 team signup in the spring event, so we can expect to see a healthy portion of teams competing for the big money prize.

The spring i-series will once again be hosted at Newbury, whilst i40 is expected to return to Stoneleigh for the larger venue. For more information you can visit the multiplay website.