The topic of eSports has a great deal of interest for both fans of video games and fans of sports, providing an elusive bridge across two interests that might have been thought to be unworkable at one point in time. However, if you’re looking for a place to start your interest in eSports, you might not know where to begin or which games are going to be featured enough for you to get into.
Understanding where you’re coming from is a good place to start, as is getting a sense of what you’re looking to get out of this new frontier. Are you more interested in being engaged as a member of the audience? Or do you want to be in the thick of it?
Play Them Yourself
The obvious answer is that you can simply play the games yourself, giving yourself a multiplayer game for you to enjoy, a community to dive into, and a personal understanding of the game regardless of whether you want to end up as somewhat who watches the events or whether you want to be in them yourself. However, which game is right for you? You’ll likely have a sense of what appeals to you, from team game multiplayer online battle arenas (MOBAs), like Dota 2 or Heroes of the Storm, to fighting games, such as Super Smash Bros. Melee, which has been a fan-favorite for decades now. Looking at a list of what seems to be the most popular can help to guide your decision.
From a Sports Perspective
If you are familiar enough with games to get a positive viewing experience out of being a spectator for big gaming events, you might ask yourself if the experience as a whole bears many similarities to traditional sports. Well, it might. However, if you’re not familiar with gaming, you might be more confused. The medium of video games has widened to include experiences, such as those found through the best online casino no deposit bonus, but dipping your toes into that might not give you a sense of appreciation for the back-and-forth between a game of Overwatch, for example.
Similarly, if your background in gaming is mainly through story-driven games, eSports might not be for you either, and in this sense, familiarity with the sport as a whole might more appropriately prepare you for what to expect.
In a Casual Sense
With the kind of prize money that’s flaunted around at high-stakes eSports tournaments, it’s no wonder that so many people who enjoy the games that are played casually feel as though they can take a crack at it. As with any attempt to turn your hobby into a more dedicated career path, there is always a risk that this could heavily impact your enjoyment of the game itself. Therefore, just as a sports fan might prefer to keep a more distant eye on the games that they enjoy to avoid getting caught up in the discourse around it, you might prefer to loosely engage with these games in a way that allows them to remain fun.