Caporegime
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That's just.....completely incorrect.
eSports - Not gaining comparitive traction / Too corporate?
- Thread starter Gimpymoo
- Start date
That's just.....completely incorrect.
Aka. the WCG? - which was years ago.
@OP
More people watch people playing games then ever, this has been proven by the huge increase in demand of Twitch etc.
The relation of numbers also viewing e-sports is hard to measure, but given the right environment, be that niche or not, they also seem to have seen in increase. Is this due / direct correlation to the first point? I can't answer that.
From the first point though, e-sports coverage has evolved to the more "accepted way" of broadcasting. E.g. overlays, studios, HD Cams, presenters, analysts etc. I actually sit in this world also as a past/present TF2 commentator
Could this new accepted format also be due to money being chucked into events, e.g. Overwatch is a good example. Would you expect an event with a $300k prize pool to be presented / hosted by someone wearing shorts and swearing?
From what I've seen the current promoters of said coverage / firms e.g. ESL hosting, do a very good job with assets available. Of course, some exceptions apply, e.g. ESL fairly big budget.
That said - depending on the commentator, presenter, the event, their approach will differ. Is it maybe you just get a bit bored and want to see more action?
In regards to eSports being healthy, ups and downs with everything. I personally don't see how some companies see ROI.
Will this change? Time will tell...all I know is that I won't be quitting my day job to take up eSports commentary.
I've actually found DOTA 2 to be the most entertaining. In fact, watching the international 4 years ago got me into the game. I felt the presenters were borderline professional and took great pains to explain what is going, something that i feel was lost this year.
In my (biased) opinion MOBAs (dota 2, etc) and RTS (starcraft 2) are the best e-sports to watch. While they may not be constantly exciting, in the way football or rugby could be, at the top level they are very finely balanced slow paced games and i find them similar to watching something like formula 1, tedious if you're not into the event but still interspersed with moments of excitement.
In my (biased) opinion MOBAs (dota 2, etc) and RTS (starcraft 2) are the best e-sports to watch. While they may not be constantly exciting, in the way football or rugby could be, at the top level they are very finely balanced slow paced games and i find them similar to watching something like formula 1, tedious if you're not into the event but still interspersed with moments of excitement.
Someone watching DOTA2 that has no idea about it will not find it slow paced and finely balanced. You just can't see whats happening, where its going and ultimately what the point of the game is and that makes it totally inaccesible as a viewing platform. In Olympic terms sailing is kind of a comparable equivalent.
I still couldn't tell today what equals a win in DOTA and have absolutely no interest in finding out.
In addition the game scenes and culture of DOTA2, CSGO etc are absolute gaming cancer further reducing the immediate accessability of them. Most sports that are immediately understandable have a simple structure, are easy to follow, not too busy on the eye and have defined and obvious rare events (goals as an example) and end points that outsiders can understand.
Gaming doesn't have any of this because all of them have been designed with gamer in mind not the spectator.
Fighting games are by far the best for spectators.
I think a big part of the problem is needing to jump between different points of view for FPS games and jumping all over the map for moba games.
I think RTS games are excellent too as a third person who can see both players can easily keep track of all the action.
It's no coincidence that they're both 1v1 games (not sports) too.
I think a big part of the problem is needing to jump between different points of view for FPS games and jumping all over the map for moba games.
I think RTS games are excellent too as a third person who can see both players can easily keep track of all the action.
It's no coincidence that they're both 1v1 games (not sports) too.
There was a TV show called Time Commanders I used to watch when I was younger, the players were versus AI but the camera angles in game were separate to their POV controlled by the studio and gave you a much better feel of what was going on.
Soldato
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i watch starcraft 2 all the time, but if you didnt know what was going on i can see how it wouldnt interest you
but that's where a good commentator steps in. one who can take you through what is happening, why it is relevant and guide towards the conclusion.
I don't disagree that these games are hard to penetrate for the spectator but the underlying concepts are simple. In DOTA you win by destroying the central structure in your enemy's base. That's it. There are a number of ways to achieve it, but that's all you need to do.
While I don't see these games appearing at the olympics, they do have their place in the world of competitive sports, as do driving events, darts, snooker, chess, bridge, poker, etc. They are all tests of skill against another person and can be exciting to watch if you have a good commentator or if you are "into the scene".
And the scenes are only "cancer" at the low end and let's face it, being a kid playing football for the first time when all your mates have been doing it for years is not pleasant. From social exclusion to physical and verbal bullying, it's all there. video games are worse, but that's only reflective of the anonymity of the internet. It will change. The average age of gamers is now in the 30s. And those video gamers who play at the highest levels do exhibit mutual respect.
I don't disagree that these games are hard to penetrate for the spectator but the underlying concepts are simple. In DOTA you win by destroying the central structure in your enemy's base. That's it. There are a number of ways to achieve it, but that's all you need to do.
While I don't see these games appearing at the olympics, they do have their place in the world of competitive sports, as do driving events, darts, snooker, chess, bridge, poker, etc. They are all tests of skill against another person and can be exciting to watch if you have a good commentator or if you are "into the scene".
And the scenes are only "cancer" at the low end and let's face it, being a kid playing football for the first time when all your mates have been doing it for years is not pleasant. From social exclusion to physical and verbal bullying, it's all there. video games are worse, but that's only reflective of the anonymity of the internet. It will change. The average age of gamers is now in the 30s. And those video gamers who play at the highest levels do exhibit mutual respect.
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I have friends that don't play but watch SC2. That's what needs to happen to make "eSports" a success.
Caporegime
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It's being rebooted soon!
i stopped playing SC2 years ago.. i honestly found it tedious having to keep up with changing meta and memorising build orders. watching it can still be exciting and i do keep an eye on a few youtube channels.
I started getting too stressed playing it about 3 years ago so I stopped. I had been playing SC since 2002 though!
probably same time as me then.. i stopped a few weeks into HotS. was never any good though... gold league was my highest!
Soldato
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Esports will never be mainstream while it's still presented by what most the world class as a stereotypical gamer. The commentary and hosting is embarrassing and nobody NOBODY should ever use the word clutch.
The whole lot is a cringe worthy affair.
Plus maybe get a few players who don't look like they live in a basement and haven't seen the outside in about 5 years. The whole lot backs up the stereotype that we are a bunch of no lifers.
Plus if I ever had kids and their idol was a pro gamer they'd be sent outside to play. Anyway it will all fall in its arse soon.
The whole lot is a cringe worthy affair.
Plus maybe get a few players who don't look like they live in a basement and haven't seen the outside in about 5 years. The whole lot backs up the stereotype that we are a bunch of no lifers.
Plus if I ever had kids and their idol was a pro gamer they'd be sent outside to play. Anyway it will all fall in its arse soon.
agreed.. it is incredibly cringeworthy. but to me it's not as bad as football commentators saying "worldy". bleh.
esports has a long way to go and i don't see it becoming as mainstream as most sports, but it will occupy a strong niche.
The truthful answer to this?
It's just about the most worthless and vacuous activity in mankinds history.
Computer gaming is a pastime, not a sport, you can stick as many Alienware desktops and light up keyboards in a conference centre in Norwich filed with as many blank faced borderline boilers in tight tops as you like.
It will NEVER be cool, it will NEVER be a sport, it will NEVER be taken seriously.
It's just about the most worthless and vacuous activity in mankinds history.
Computer gaming is a pastime, not a sport, you can stick as many Alienware desktops and light up keyboards in a conference centre in Norwich filed with as many blank faced borderline boilers in tight tops as you like.
It will NEVER be cool, it will NEVER be a sport, it will NEVER be taken seriously.
Personally I don't think they run it professionally enough and I don't think it gets the exposure or is co-ordinated enough to really take off. I think if a big tv company picked it up, co-ordinated all games and ran it a little more professionally it would fly.