Weighing Benefit and Risk in the Emerging ESports Craze
As we move closer and closer to a new world of technology, we can see things that we had previously regarded as solely physical being played out in the game world. I very much doubt the world of sports will be the same as more overlap with the (relatively) new realm of eSports occurs. Games we would usually see in the comfort of our homes are played in matches and tournaments, complete with trophies and a captive audience of fans. To watch eSports, one might get the distinct feeling they are watching characters on the screen in the same way they’d be staring intently at the football team’s star quarterback. For those who already enjoyed sports, this is a fun offshoot. For those who avoided sports and conversations about sports, this is a new world of competition and adrenaline. ESports and gaming tournaments have enjoyed a sizable upsurge in popularity, and one could certainly argue that this new type of competition may come to surpass traditional forms of sport, or perhaps traditional forms will evolve to appeal to the coming generations the same way competitive video games do. While it would take a while to reach the level of influence that traditional sports have over our culture, I believe that they might come together and form a relationship of interdependence,
Something that must be mentioned regarding the rising popularity of eSports is that it is almost entirely inclusive. Regarding “real” physical sports, you may expect to find a certain type of physique, a certain type of mindset, even a certain type of race and gender. Though women and other social minorities are often excluded from gaming communities and this shows in how homogeneous eSports competitors appear to be, theoretically there are no barriers to who can become a professional aside from time and effort. Some games by their nature can attract a more diverse set of participants. In the article “Why Street Fighter Endures: Community” by Eric Allen of Waypoint, Julio Fuentes comments on how Street Fighter has captured a more heterogeneous audience that propels its popularity forward as a competitive game that you may see in eSports spaces “’It makes sense why it’s diverse, and it’s just interesting, you know? Because the other PC games, you need to build a whole entire PC, you gotta dump like thousands of dollars to even get started. So you’re obviously going to see a different crowd. You’re going to see more of like, the people who already have established families here, and have a wealthier background. Those games, you’re not going to see as much diversity’” (Allen p. 19). As we can see, economics play a role in what types of eSports are frequented by who. This is important because the demographics of eSports determine how popular they can be, and what kind of impact they have.
ESports bear a striking resemblance to the physical sports in the sense that while it requires persistence and talent to rise to the level of professionalism, it can often be a detriment to one’s health. In the article “The rise of eSports: are addiction and corruption the price of its success?”, author Simon Hattenstone details how the culture of eSports has played out in South Korea, where gaming cafes allow young men to play to their hearts’ content, stocked with all amenities. Unfortunately, many young men neglect their schoolwork and their academic lives in favor of playing and getting better at these games. The older generations can sometimes work around this new desire to invest their energy into games, such as a high school teacher who installed a “PC bang” in the school. This ended well for the students, who chose to focus on their academic work if it paid off in freetime. It is somewhat encouraging to see the drive to succeed in these young people, especially when youth are able to attain high levels of prestige in eSports through their determination. However, a notable League of Legends player, known as Faker, claims to practice 12–15 hours a day, with an interviewed classroom of young men agreeing that 10 hours was the minimum. This is highly concerning, as it is more than a professional sports player would practice, and it is spent stationary. Many of us are familiar with stories of deaths occurring when these game players won’t leave their seats, and it is even more detrimental long term as they may go long periods without eating, sleeping, or moving. Dr Kim Hyun-soo, interviewed in the article, agrees that eSports pose a dangerous threat to health: “‘In 1998, internet games were commercialised, and in 2000 I started seeing gaming addicts. Many of the glue and gas sniffers moved on to gaming. Since then, the top-ranked addiction among young people is game addiction and 90% of the addicts are male teenagers’” (Hattenstone p. 52). If game addiction is an issue even in private life, imagine how much worse the issue could be when an eSports competitor is under pressure to spend as much time as possible training for the next championship. Like our worries concerning football players and traumatic brain injuries, these competitors must also be on our health radar.
ESports offer a fun and competitive way for people of all different backgrounds, even those who don’t consider themselves very strong or active enough to pursue traditional sports, to experience teamwork and well-deserved success. It is often heartening to hear such motivation to succeed in something they are passionate about coming from younger generations, who are often pushed to succeed in only one area of their life, as if their own goals and interests were unimportant. To incorporate the level of competition found in physical sports into competitive games offers a benefit to game players, who may find themselves socially isolated. However, addiction and lack of self-care has the potential to haunt the ever-growing community of eSports competitors, who must practice as often as possible in order to win and reap the (often financial) benefits. A lot hinges on their success, and for that reason their health may be at risk. In order to continue our endeavor of competitions and tournaments brought into the game world, we must also be cautious and aware of the risk that inevitably comes with cultural decisions such as these.
