One Of Malaysia’s Renowned Esports Figure Has Created A Handy Malaysia Esports Database For All To Use

You may not see Muhammad “Flava” Farouq compete at a high level, but you have heard him in a multitude of esports, gaming, and tech events in an emcee role. Acer, Valorant, PUBG Mobile; he’s been around the block and is also helping out behind the scenes since 2018.

His latest work? A public Malaysian-tailored esports database in the form of a website, displaying names & companies from either the government side or private sector side.

The database, which is still being updated at this point in typing, features the following sections:

–Calendar (for current and upcoming events).
–Education, which lists colleges & schools that offer esports training and certificates (gaming, skill, etc.).

–Awards, which displays players and esports individuals who have received awards nationally or internationally.
–Career, which is a compilation of job opportunities for Malaysians within the esports ecosystem, from full-time to contract gigs.

–Licensing, which showcases esports event licensing guides for the country. Specifically, it also displays the Strategic Plan for Esports Development 2020-2025 (Esports Blueprint) and the National Esports Development Guideline (NESDEG) by the Ministry of Youth and Sports Malaysia.
–Talents, which showcases the esports talents Malaysia has to offer, like casting and emcee work.
–Facilities, which display the number of esports facilities in the country with the correct licensing for operations.
–English and Bahasa Melayu language options.

The Whys & Whats

Flava said the idea of the site is to showcase the awesome esports work done by both the government and public sector through one major portal.

“What drove me to make this happen? I felt that information pertaining to esports is all over the place. We have amazing esports initiatives in Malaysia, but they’re not noticed by the community and the mass public.

That led me to create this website to bind everything together and showcase the amazing work done by both the government and various stakeholders when it comes to esports.”

One major challenge Flava came across in getting the database and site up and running is finding the right person in creating all this.

“Finding a web developer that can create the site exactly as I envision it to be, engaging with different stakeholders for different segments within the site, and the lack of manpower to manage such a huge website project. Those are my major hurdles.”

As to what is planned for the website beyond Phase 1 (like upcoming features and milestones to hit), Flava said that is still a secret at this point. However, he is relieved to get the base website live and running smoothly so far.

“By having an organized system, I hope that we can all move towards development, and let’s make a healthy esports ecosystem together.”

Editorially speaking, it is rather perplexing that one person (and a couple of web designers) stepped up and managed to get a Malaysian-made database up and running, instead of the country’s national federation. Who should have done this sort of thing years ago instead of whatever they’re up to these days. Especially a federation with more than a 100 members running the thing.