Things are bad with the supply chain when a company has to use developer kits for an event. 343 Industries used Xbox Series X dev kits instead of a standard model at the Halo Championship Series. A rep informed players that they would be using the kits, which were configured to run in retail mode, making them function the same as the standard model.
Heads up open bracket players – you’ll be playing this weekend on Series X development consoles. They’re functionally identical and will be operating in “Retail” mode so it’s the exact same experience, they just look a little different.
— Tashi (@Tashi343i) December 15, 2021
Why? Global supply chain shortage is real.
The tournament was held at the Raliegh Convention Center in North Carolina. Day one started with the open bracket on December 17. Thirty-two teams are competing for $250K in prizes, with a $100K grand prize. It runs through December 19.
Local news coverage reported that around 5,000 people were expected to attend the eSports event. COVID precautions included proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test within 72 hours, a daily health-check form, and masks. Players were very happy with the support shown by the city of Raleigh.
Sources: Dexerto (via Kotaku), ABC11 News