It's amazing how slowly traditional media have reacted to this extremely lucrative new business. Too many folk seem to be caught up in the "not a real sport" mindset. Funny that chess never gets that treatment despite being many times simpler than most e-sports.

Yeah I have been surprised it has taken so long for it to be picked up. 6.1m viewers for some of this stuff is no longer the niche that it once was.

Must admit I generally watch the replays rather than live on twitch just due to time differences mainly and watching when it's convenient to me but still it's getting bigger. I guess they can't really muscle in on it any more in terms of TV coverage as that's all sewn up with streaming services.

Much like Blizzcon and it's pay to view via streams it might even get to that level in the next decade.

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Clearly though e-Sports are actual sports. The reaction times, game knowledge, pressure etc. can all be compared to physical sports, it's not just the commercial side of it.

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comment by Adolf Wenger OUT! (U3245)
posted 29 minutes ago
reaction times, game knowledge, pressure?

thats all it takes to be considered a sport these days?

so the great british bakeoff means cooking is a sport?
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Are you seriously suggesting that eSports aren't as demanding as real sports? that it doesn't take dedication and training to reach the pinnacle?

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comment by Adolf Wenger OUT! (U3245)
posted 11 minutes ago
that it doesn't take dedication and training to reach the pinnacle?

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you could also say this for a master monopoly champion. is monopoly a sport?
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Didn't know there was world championships for Monopoly tbh but each to their own.

What's your definition of a sport then? Is it only physical?

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So Archery and Gun Shooting is an Olympic sport, which requires very little physical ability but eSports can't be considered? Do you know how high the skill cap is to be a player at the top end of the professional scene?

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Its a pretty blinkered view given the viewing figures, both at live events and online. Like it or not eSports is not the niche it once was. The top games draw pretty considerable figures, easily as much as some of the medium sized sports.

I'd also say that the view that these are some geeks sat in a dark room that never see the light of day is pretty outdated, which is what you seem to be alluding to.

Your comparison of Brain Surgery to eSports is so laughable it just doesn't deserve a response.

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"I seriously doubt anyone would consider chess a 'sport'."

I wasn't arguing that chess should be considered a sport, it's just that chess isn't immediately dismissed because it is not a sport.

I don't see eSports as "real" sports, although I would argue there is more justification to call them sports than something farcical like dressage.

"So Archery and Gun Shooting is an Olympic sport, which requires very little physical ability"

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"Funny that chess never gets that treatment despite being many times simpler than most e-sports."

All of that sentence is bizarre.

Why do gamers feel so determined to have it classed as a 'sport' anyway?

Why does it matter if they're just classed as gaming competitions, for prize money?

Genuine question, I don't see why it is important for either side to either say it is or isn't a 'real' sport.

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