Criminal justice major competes in global World of Warcraft competition for U.S. Army

Sergeant Frank Doone, a member of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard and a criminal justice major at Bloomsburg University, is part of a six-person nationwide team that is battling in a new way — in virtual reality. Doone and his teammates will participate in the Keystone Masters: Format Experiments, a live tournament for World of Warcraft against teams from all over the world.

Doone’s team consists of military personnel from all components of the Army, including members from the National Guard, Reserve and active duty. While the tournament typically is held in London, because of travel restrictions this year, it will be streamed live on the live-gaming platform, Twitch.

Keystone Masters is a community esports organization that strives to add value to World of Warcraft’s ecosystem.

Time trials for the event began on Wednesday, Sept. 2, and will run through Monday, Sept. 7. The time trials are a six-day long challenge to complete the assigned three dungeons as quickly as possible. The eight best teams will then compete in a “live” double-elimination tournament beginning on Saturday, Sept. 19, with the event concluding on Sunday, Sept.20.

Teams are eligible to win a part of a $7,000 prize pool, including payouts for the first through sixth place teams.

Joining Doone on the team are SGT Jorge Clavell Cruz, SSG Robert Douglas, SSG James Trigg, SSG Evan Watkins, and CPT Alexander Withenbury. The team is an independent team orchestrated, managed, and sponsored by the Army, but is not an official Army team.

Doone helped to bring the team together to connect with younger generations and recruitment and be the bridge between the millennials and older Army service members. Fans can follow Doone’s “Point of View” on his Twitch.