“What are esports?” some people might ask. Well, esports are a multiplayer video game played competitively for spectators, typically by professional gamers. Esports weren’t as popular in the past as they are now. There are a little under 400 million players in the world, and on top of that, there are 397.8 million people that watch livestreams and esports matches online and in person ( according to google).
In an article I read about esports it says, “Esports embraces students’ passion for competitive gaming to foster collaboration, creativity and inclusion. Participants build strengths in problem solving, teamwork and communication, as well as STEAM skills. And, they get to explore video and sound editing, graphic design, broadcasting, event planning and more” (Insight Esports: Where every student can fit in). Many colleges are now making programs so that people can go to school to become professional esports players. These colleges are: Maryville, Robert Morris, Miami (Ohio), California-Irvine, Utah, Ashland, and Harrisburg University. The esports programs create an extra opportunity for students to create lasting and meaningful friendships, because they will practice and compete with each other.
There are many types of esports games such as: fighting games, racing games, real-time strategy games, first-person shooter, third-person shooter, and multiplayer online battle arena. At this moment, esports are popular–with more than 84 million viewers, they reach more viewers than many other sports.
Cover image: First International Play Money Exchange, courtesy of Medium.
Inline image courtesy of Yahoo.