eSports: A Primer

What are eSports (also written e-Sports, or electronic Sports) you might ask? In a nutshell, eSports refers to competitive video gaming. While many would agree this simple description doesn’t even scratch the surface, we’ll begin with using that for the purposes of this blog.

eSports basics here.

ESports have seen an explosion of growth following the digital age and it’s new mediums of entertainment. Traditional sports are usually over-saturated or stagnating, and digital innovations like streaming have become commonplace, allowing anyone and everyone to spectate nearly anything. Streaming services such as YouTube and Twitch allow people to spectate, interact, and share experiences with like-minded individuals. Everything from peoples’ lives to their game-play and commentaries can be shared with people across the world in an instant. This new shift to digital has also created a whole new type of celebrity: the Professional Streamer. While streaming won’t be the main topic of the eSports section of my blog, it’s important to note that many professional players are also streamers, or switch to becoming streamers with established fan bases such as C9’s Shroud after retiring. It’s also important to note that many competitions for competitive games are streamed on sponsored channels for most eSports. Because of the widespread attention garnished by playing a competitive game at a high level, many professional players for established gaming organizations such as Team Solo Mid(TSM), Cloud Nine(C9), Evil Geniuses(EG), Fnatic(FNC), SK Telecom(SKT), and several others, become celebrities for their fans. In South Korea, the eSports capital of the world, these professional players have as much fame as celebrities in the US. Furthermore, these organizations also reach into several different games and brands, further cultivating their image, and expanding their influence on the eSports world.

This section of the blog will be focused on teaching readers the basics of eSports, and what to focus on in order to streamline their competitive experiences. I’ll be giving a rundown of what I think is important to focus on based on my own forays into competitive gaming, and what professional players and coaches believe is important. The basics will teach you the core parts of any eSport experience, and my advanced guides later on will help focus on applying those topics into appropriate situations, or recognizing edge cases where you might want to deviate from a set build or path. If there’s enough of a request for it, I might focus these topics down onto a specific game.