It wasn’t too long ago that video games were fighting a taboo. Accused of leading to violence and low grades, the games belonged to a subculture of the “nerd” scene; for a long time, they were just that thing some guy sat in his mom’s basement doing while yelling racial obscenities into a microphone. Then, as with most sports, some guy, or group of guys, realized they could make money showing everyone how good these players were — and E-Sports was born. A call was sent out in the early 2000s seeking the greatest gamers from all over the planet to form teams and vanquish their foes in Mortal (virtual) Kombat, leading to the founding of Major League Gaming (MGL) in 2004.
Pushback was inevitable — how could gaming be called “a sport?” — but the argument was made that an online match of Call of Duty required some of the same skills as other sports, like soccer: communication, teamwork, quick reflexes, precision, etc. As video games have evolved and become more complex, they have moved further away from the button-mashing days of the Sega Genesis. And personally, whenever I watch a tournament, I get the same feeling that I do when I see a basketball player shoot a ball into a hoop while falling to the ground, or even a golfer putt a ball into a hole: I wish I could do that.
Whatever the designation, there's no denying E-Sports’ popularity. ESPN has an E-Sports section on its site, alongside tabs for every other sport they cover. Twitch.tv allows you to view past and current broadcasts of millions of games being played worldwide. Tournaments held for the competitive games usually have millions of dollars in prizes at stake. Locally, there's a tournament in Largo next month, hosted by Tampa E-Sports, in which the tournament entry fees go directly into the prize pool, guaranteeing a purse; it’s not as well-known as some higher-profile tournaments, perhaps, but if you’re nice on the sticks, it could be an opportunity to make a little money.
Video games have come a long way from the arcade. TVs are made with game modes to optimize enjoyment, and games are even mentioned in the same breath as the NFL and the MLB. I wouldn’t be surprised if, in the next decade, countries began searching for the best and brightest to compete for medals in the Olympic Games.
For now, though, I think I’m going to learn how to play League of Legends.
This article appears in Sep 15-22, 2016.