Esports has grown with each passing year over the past decade.
In 2016 alone, monthly video game viewership through the Twitch.tv streaming service ramped up over 100 million views. As Twitch opens up their platform to extend their reach to around the world, that number is projected to breach new heights, with over half a billion viewers in 2021 alone.
With fans watching from all over the globe, players are dedicating a significant amount of time to improve their skills.
College scholarships for esports
Nowadays, more than one university offers college scholarships for talented gamers to play games like League of Legends and Dota 2.
The National Association of Collegiate Esports boasts more than 170 member colleges and universities and over 5,000 participating student-athletes.
Casual gamers became competitive with time, and now more than ever, players are capable of making a living from the scene. Professional players have been recruited from abroad to make their way to the United States or other European countries to join teams.
A global following
Followers will continue to accumulate, and as they do, players will advance in making strides to compete globally.
According to Duncan Thorin, eSports historian and journalist:
At their highest level, all competitive disciplines become vehicles for the expression of one’s human potential.
The way eSports has shot up in global acknowledgement is so crazy to me. As someone who does watch streamers on Twitch, there’s absolutely a growing community of gamers which makes it that much more encouraging to see acceptance of it outside of those streaming sites. Especially seeing colleges giving scholarships and offering spaces for students to participate and play together, it makes for a much more inclusive atmosphere rather than solely physical sports. Seeing the numbers on here is still just amazing to me.
I love seeing the global community present in the gaming industry being highlighted. There seem to be several media that transcend geographical and cultural boundaries, like art, music, and now, gaming. I’ve never even considered the growing Cross-Cultural populations in the world as a result of e-sports scholarships and programs. It’s great to see that the phenomenon has expanded from merely playing on servers with people from different countries to competitive gamers from different countries living and competing in new places and experiencing new cultures. Thanks for this article, and I’d love to see some showcases or profiles of competitive gamers and their experiences in the future!
To be completely honest, I had never heard of esports until recently. I was walking around a mall in South Korea, when I stumbled across a giant banner advertising an esports team. Although I never imaged that something like this existed, this article really informed me as to how big of a subculture it is. It is incredible that esports scholarships exist as well.
It is amazing that such as community can be formed through eSports games. Not only can gamers play with others around the world but being able to get scholarships shows how much our world has adapted to the increased use of technology. Now, the education system recognizes talented online players in addition to sports players who are recruited for college sports. Will our global community continue on this path? At some point in time, will eSports become more popular than real-world activities?
It is really interesting to see this new esports community is growing as the world advances with technology. What really caught my eye was that college scholarships are being provided. It appears that esports are being treated as physical athletics where there are competitions, practices, teams, and careers. I find that for many individuals that are more conservative with their thoughts on “sports,” there may be some hesitation to support this new up-and-coming sport, but it is providing opportunities for individuals that may not be as physically inclined. I appreciate that opportunities are being opened up for a widespread activity, that being gaming, that has previously been shunned by parents or older generations. It’s also amazing that this has a global outreach that is connecting everyone with a common interest.
I really enjoyed this article, it touches on how media and technological advancement has really changed the dynamic of entertainment over the years. I still remember playing on my brother’s old Nintendo 64 as a kid, and it’s pretty mind-boggling to think of how much video games themselves have changed too. I think it’s great that this advancement has opened up to become social and competitively, making a community. This is really needed in a society that loves to categorize itself.
I’ve heard many arguments against esports saying that they aren’t doing anything athletic to be considered a sport, but no one questions if golf is a sport. I would argue that chess is more of a sport than golf. Certain video games have more in common with chess than they do with golf.
This is a very pertinent subject, as Esports are on the rise in an explosive way. With PC’s becoming more accessible in general, and with the number of younger players flocking to the community daily, it might be safe to say that the dissemination of these high-ranking championships will continue to skyrocket. You touch on this theme in your article, making the astute observation that Twitch is starting to grow in size. I look forward to seeing where the scene goes in the future.
I am a little surprised by how fast esports seems to grow more and more each day. I think it is cool that many people can bond over a game from over the globe because they literally have a direct communication device already in their hands. I wonder where Esports will go in the future and more specifically what types of games Esports will focus on to do these competitions.
I found this fascinating because CSU actually has an esports team. It is something I didn’t really know about, and it is cool to see how competitive it actually is. Video games has always been a way for people all around the world to interact, and now it is a growing field where people can compete against one another.
Wow, I never knew Esports was such a big deal! I’ve never been much of a gamer, but it was really cool reading this article and seeing how much of an impact the Esport community is making, and will continue to make in the future. However, it makes complete sense; video games have always had a way of connecting people from all around the world, hence why the gaming community is so massive. In fact, I know tons of people who have made friends through online gaming. Some of them have never even met in person! It’s such a wholesome concept, and I hope that Esports will continue to grow and spread its much-needed positivity in the world.
It’s pretty cool how anyone with a computer and camera can make a career out of doing something they love. It’s also crazy to see how something that older generations considered ‘lazy’ and a ‘waste of time’ become a viable outlet for income. I don’t watch streamers or play video games too often, but it’s always amazing to see people doing something they love and are passionate about. I also don’t really play games competitively. It’s just something some friends and I do to pass the time so it’s also interesting to see people doing the same thing as I am but in a completely different way.