Make Money Playing Video Games

[chemgear]

Originally Posted by MattyC

Some people find doing math to be entertaining.

I initially read this as meth.

[Anduril]

Originally Posted by RougeUnderoos

You could say the same thing for typing tests and Jeopardy, which also aren't sports.

Video game competitions aren't my thing, but go to town if you are into it. If these guys can get rich doing it, good for them.

But let's not go so far as to pretend that they are sports, and the people taking part are athletes. It should never have any place in the Olympics, which should be about actual sports and real athletes.

Of course knowing the money-hungry IOC, if they can make a buck off it, ya never know.

Why shouldn't we consider it an actual sport? We've already got the US handing out special visas to these eSports competitors, the same ones that are classified for the typical sport athletes when they're visiting for tournaments and such.
We've got China who's already recognized eSports as an official sport. South Korea is obviously way ahead of everybody building these eSports centers for training and community use. They've also got professional leagues including a governing body when it comes to proper rules and regulations including the safety of the players.

I can see why you wouldn't want to consider it a sport in the traditional sense but physical prowess isn't the only way we've come to celebrate talented individuals. Even then, the need for physical ability is extremely important for a lot of these individuals who choose to pursue a short career in competitive gaming. Anything after 23 generally means retirement as a competitor because the reflexes just can't keep up with those younger.

From there a number of opportunities open. Being a coach, commentator, background support or if they can, being a streamer. Surprisingly depending on the game, the most popular streamers can make more than top tournament winning players in a less stressful situation but I digress.

Personally, I find it kind of hard to accept as a sport but I've done research on the topic with a focus on East Asia and didn't really see anything that would argue against the classification of being a sport besides general public opinion on a relatively recent phenomenon. Even then eSport is a perfectly fine differentiation.

[ZedMan]

Originally Posted by RougeUnderoos

You could say the same thing for typing tests and Jeopardy, which also aren't sports.

Video game competitions aren't my thing, but go to town if you are into it. If these guys can get rich doing it, good for them.

But let's not go so far as to pretend that they are sports, and the people taking part are athletes. It should never have any place in the Olympics, which should be about actual sports and real athletes.

Of course knowing the money-hungry IOC, if they can make a buck off it, ya never know.

Dude, have you seen the complete list of sports for the Summer Olympics?

I think if shooting an air pistol is an olympic sport this could be too.

[undercoverbrother]

Originally Posted by ZedMan

Dude, have you seen the complete list of sports for the Summer Olympics?

I think if shooting an air pistol is an olympic sport this could be too.

Yeah shooting isn't a sport. Biathlon that is a fata'ing sport!


Just because some crappy sports are in the Olympics doesn't mean other crappy "sports" should be in the Olympics.

[chemgear]

Meh, I'm not overly worried about the semantics of "sport" or not. It's like the videogames is or isn't "art" thing. Old men like Ebert make silly old man comments not understanding what he's talking about to rile people up.

The whole esports thing will keep growing, hundreds of millions of people continue to play games and enjoy them while these old people with old notions pass on and fade away.

[Raekwon]

Well to be fair it is called the Olympic Games not the Olympic Sports

[CroFlames]

I'm pretty sure the guys who earn a salary from gaming aren't too concerned about whether it's considered a "sport" by traditional sports fans.

I have a hard time classifying golf as a "sport". I play golf, and I watch golf, and I love golf. But sport? I don't know. And nor does it matter. I'm pretty sure when Spieth collects his $10 million checks, he's not to worried if he's playing a "game" or a "sport".

If it's a question of mainstream, gaming is more mainstream now than ever before. It's probably outpacing some pro-sports like Lacrosse and womens' pro sports leagues.

[Coach]

Originally Posted by CroFlames

I'm pretty sure the guys who earn a salary from gaming aren't too concerned about whether it's considered a "sport" by traditional sports fans.

I have a hard time classifying golf as a "sport". I play golf, and I watch golf, and I love golf. But sport? I don't know. And nor does it matter. I'm pretty sure when Spieth collects his $10 million checks, he's not to worried if he's playing a "game" or a "sport".

If it's a question of mainstream, gaming is more mainstream now than ever before. It's probably outpacing some pro-sports like Lacrosse and womens' pro sports leagues.

Guaranteed more kids play video games than any traditional sport. By far.

[JohnnyB]

Originally Posted by MattyC

Guaranteed more kids play video games than any traditional sport. By far.

I would think that in developed countries or regions, there's a good chance you'd be safe saying that there are more kids who play video games than kids who play sports in general.

[RougeUnderoos]

Originally Posted by chemgear

Meh, I'm not overly worried about the semantics of "sport" or not. It's like the videogames is or isn't "art" thing. Old men like Ebert make silly old man comments not understanding what he's talking about to rile people up.

The whole esports thing will keep growing, hundreds of millions of people continue to play games and enjoy them while these old people with old notions pass on and fade away.

Yeah fair enough. I'm not overly worried about the semantics of "sport" either.

Hundreds of millions (dare I say billions?) (myself included, but I just play PONG) sit on their ass every day and move their fingers around and if they want to call that activity a "sport", it's no skin off my potato.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go watch some porn on my VCR. It's really cool -- I can get those chicks to pause, rewind, fast forward, and pretty much do whatever I want. I'm a real ladies man.

[Thor]

Well this is why its called "E" Sports. It seems clear to me they want to classify them all unto themselves since clearly in the future there will be a vast amount of E sports. Imagine virtual reality leagues, holodeck like call of duty!

Oh man someone freeze me and bring me back in a few hundred years.

[Pizza]

Originally Posted by habernac

"OOOOOhh, a thumb injury. What a blow for the young South Korean."

Yes, thumb injuries are serious in any sport

http://www.cfl.ca/article/report-cor...ill-not-return

CALGARY -- The Calgary Stampeders don't yet have a definitive result on Jon Cornish's injured thumb but Calgary head coach and general manager John Hufnagel said it could be six to eight weeks before last year's leading rusher sees the field again.

Hufnagel met with the media Sunday where he provided an update on the injured tailback.

"It’s a broken thumb so that has a six to eight week window," Hufnagel confirmed. "Whether or not they put a screw in it will be dertemined (Monday) when he goes to the doctors."