Gamers converge on New Orleans for MLG World Finals

Bowe watched intently in the darkened New Orleans convention center as the four-man teams blasted away at each other on their game consoles, headphones covering their ears, until OpTic managed to pull out the win.

Bowe is one of thousands of people converging this weekend on New Orleans for Major League Gaming's World Finals to watch players from around the world compete in games like Call of Duty:

The event has many of the trappings of a major sporting event from broadcasters like Bowe who provide running commentary on tactics and strategies used by the players, areas backstage where players can warm up their hands before matches, and large screens that show images of the players for the audience.

Over the past decade, e-sports has grown from a relatively small market to a multimillion dollar industry that pulls in millions of spectators both online or in person to events like this one or the Call of Duty championships in March.

James Eubanks, 23, who is known in the e-sports world by the name "Clayster," is on track this year to make as much as a quarter of a million dollars through tournament winnings, YouTube ads and other revenue streams.