The Next Frontier of Sports: Videogames

Issue 13, Joshua De Bets, online gaming, StarCraft, Sports - By Joshua De Bets on Thursday, December 8, 2011 - 03:35

The advancement of technology has shaped and changed sports, such as the use of instant replay in football and baseball and the improvements of sports equipment. These improvements have also introduced another type of sport, one that is alien to the average sports fan –- competitive online gaming.

Competitive online gaming has become more prevalent in the past decade because of the availability of games, and the expansion and improvements of the Internet and wifi.
One of the most competitive and successful examples of online gaming’s prevalence is South Korea’s treatment of the StarCraft gaming series. “StarCraft is Korea’s Olympics,” first-year and casual online-gamer Tyler Greenup said. South Korea has one of the highest broadband penetration rates in the world, which has allowed a mast amount of Koreans to play games online.

The StarCraft series has developed a following of fans who are more committed to the game than to professional sports teams. An estimated 90 percent of South Korean households are connected to high-speed Internet and the nation has a plethora of Internet cafes, which took in $600 million in profit last year.

The basic goal of the StarCraft series is to beat your competitor with a home base, economy and military at your disposal. How the player develops his base and fights his competitor determines the outcome of the match. The player wins when he totally annihilates the opponent’s base and forces, but there is also an option to forfeit the match at anytime. Of course, there are varying strategies that each player develops has they play the game. Some gamers are more offensively minded and others more defensive.

South Korean video-gamers are offered contracts from professional StarCraft teams with corporate sponsorship and treated like celebrities. “If you can compete and make a [expletive]load of money –- it’s a sport,” junior and StarCraft II enthusiast Jonathan Pena said. Lim Yo-Hwan, known as “SlayerS_Boxer” is one of Korea’s most celebrated and successful StarCraft players. Deemed “The Emperor” by his fans, Yo-Hwan has a fan club over 1 million and has played in over 1,000 matches with an 56.8 win percentage.
The North American Star League (NASL) and Major League Gaming (MLG) are professional e-sports leagues that features StarCraft II. In the first season of the NASL, the league was made up of 50 players that were placed into five divisions. Division matches were played weeknights for nine weeks. The finals consisted of a sixteen-person play-off with the winner earning $50,000 out of a pot of $100,000.

Online gaming has become so popular that bars around the nation have been opened which air NASL or MLG gaming matches. The establishments serve alcohol and food and provides a social environment for important StarCraft matches.
Although the popularity of online gaming has expanded through the decade, it raises the question of whether video games, such as StarCraft II, are a form of sport. “I definitely think online gaming is a sport,” senior and casual gamer Roy Poblete said. “It is not a physical sport, but a sport of reflexes. A brain game, like chess.”

Other students do not view online gaming as a legitimate sport. “Sports need combined elements of mental athleticism and physical athleticism,” sophomore and Whittier College Women’s Lacrosse player Heidi Koeger said. “Online gaming does not require as much athletic ability as other sports.”

With unlimited exposure on the Internet and the development of leagues and bars around the nation, StarCraft II and competitive online gaming in general looks like it is here to stay. According to theescapistmagazine.com, a website that has official stats and upcoming online games, “More people watch online gaming than the NFL draft.” The NFL, arguably America’s newest pastime, may one day pass the torch because of the growing popularity of online gaming.

“Competitive gaming is here to stay,” sophomore and avid gamer Ben Thompson said. “And it is definitely the next big thing.”