Jump to content

Are eSports a real sport?


Evil G

Recommended Posts

Everything is a sport. Some things are just more sport than others.

"And then I remember to relax, and stop trying to hold on to it, and then it flows through me like rain and I can't feel anything but gratitude for every single moment of my stupid little life... You have no idea what I'm talking about, I'm sure. But don't worry... you will someday." 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 81
  • Created
  • Last Reply

I say this as someone who enjoys playing video games.

They're not sports.

Golf, bowling, and auto racing? Definitely sports.

Bowling is my cutoff. It's sporting as much as golf is. If bowling had been invented & still played outdoors on grass, it'd probably be more supported as a sport.

Darts... is that a sport? Archery is a sport...

Poker is not a sport. Chess is not a sport. StarCraft is not a sport. Sex is not a sport.

Yet women's sex could be considered a sport, because I would argue that certain kinds of footwear certainly enhance performance.

Welcome to DrunjFlix

Link to comment
Share on other sites

No, but I am mystified by their ascent and even their pro sports-like structure.

NCFA-FCS/CBB: Minnesota A&M | RANZBA (OOTP): Auckland Warriors | USA: Front Range United | IFA: Toverit Helsinki | FOBL: Kentucky Juggernaut

Minnesota A&M 2012 National Champions 2013 National Finalist, 2014 National Semi-finals 2012, 2013, 2014 Big 4 Conference Champions

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

No, but I am mystified by their ascent and even their pro sports-like structure.

I'm not. Gaming is more sophisticated now than it's been in the past. Tournaments have existed for forever. To me, the bigger surprise is how long it's taken to get them on TV.

There's a Dota2 tournament underway at Key Arena. The game is inscrutable to me, but lots of people are in the arena and it's a big enough deal to broadcast.

This to me is one more of those deals where people just have to accept that different people like new and different things. Plus anything that can be monitized will be (including a sports logo message board, of all things!), so here we are.

1 hour ago, ShutUpLutz! said:

and the drunken doodoobags jumping off the tops of SUV's/vans/RV's onto tables because, oh yeah, they are drunken drug abusing doodoobags

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This is the stupidest thing I've ever heard in my life. Pressing buttons is not a competitive physical activity. It requires no strength, no speed, no endurance. When you're competition literally requires no physical attributes besides working thumbs, IT'S NOT A SPORT.

Will we be seeing video games in gym class? Will ESPN start naming someone who broke a record in Donkey Kong the athlete of the year?

I love video games, but these people who try to add "legitimacy" to it make me ashamed I do. They act so high and mighty about these silly little games. Want to know when something's automatically not a sports. If the competitors are SITTING down.

I'd give 100$ to the person who can show me the line which defines sports that exists between playing video games competitively and a band festival.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

First, ESPN is not the barometer for what is or isn't a sport. In their originally advertised name, they are the "Entertainment and Sports Programming Network".

Secondly, there are sports, contests, and competitions. Sports require physical exertion and physical risk. Contests are simply matchups between two or more people for a prize (think Spelling Bee) and then there's competitions, such as the misnamed, e-sports, where your participation directly impacts the participation of your opponent (i.e., in golf, you can't affect your opponent's score, but you can in tennis, etc)

Hunting isn't a sport (the one team doesn't know it's playing... that's not a sport). Motor Sports is physically exhaustive and with the threat of death at every corner. A video-game player makes the wrong move, his avatar on scren may day or face difficulties. The physical 'player' is physically fine.

E-sports, to me, is no different than American Idol or any other TV gameshow. Rather than artistic talent or mental acumen, it's game strategy.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

First, ESPN is not the barometer for what is or isn't a sport. In their originally advertised name, they are the "Entertainment and Sports Programming Network".

This. A lot.

Secondly, there are sports, contests, and competitions. Sports require physical exertion and physical risk. Contests are simply matchups between two or more people for a prize (think Spelling Bee) and then there's competitions, such as the misnamed, e-sports, where your participation directly impacts the participation of your opponent (i.e., in golf, you can't affect your opponent's score, but you can in tennis, etc)

Hunting isn't a sport (the one team doesn't know it's playing... that's not a sport). Motor Sports is physically exhaustive and with the threat of death at every corner. A video-game player makes the wrong move, his avatar on scren may day or face difficulties. The physical 'player' is physically fine.

E-sports, to me, is no different than American Idol or any other TV gameshow. Rather than artistic talent or mental acumen, it's game strategy.

Opening up Pandora's box here, but what about competitive eating?

BigStuffChamps3_zps00980734.png

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think if you have to put "competitive" in front of it, it's not a sport.

It's just a thing you do for a prize.

1 hour ago, ShutUpLutz! said:

and the drunken doodoobags jumping off the tops of SUV's/vans/RV's onto tables because, oh yeah, they are drunken drug abusing doodoobags

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think if you have to put "competitive" in front of it, it's not a sport.

It's just a thing you do for a prize.

Fair enough. I don't have a strong opinion one way or the other (re: competitive eating), but my rebuttal to that would be: isn't track just "competitive running?"

BigStuffChamps3_zps00980734.png

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think if you have to put "competitive" in front of it, it's not a sport.

It's just a thing you do for a prize.

Fair enough. I don't have a strong opinion one way or the other (re: competitive eating), but my rebuttal to that would be: isn't track just "competitive running?"

Yeah, but it's also track. You wouldn't say "competitive baseball" or "competitive soccer," the way you would, uh, "competitive darts" or "competitive hopscotch."

I also don't have a strong opinion, other than I enjoy arguments over semantics.

1 hour ago, ShutUpLutz! said:

and the drunken doodoobags jumping off the tops of SUV's/vans/RV's onto tables because, oh yeah, they are drunken drug abusing doodoobags

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think if you have to put "competitive" in front of it, it's not a sport.

It's just a thing you do for a prize.

Fair enough. I don't have a strong opinion one way or the other (re: competitive eating), but my rebuttal to that would be: isn't track just "competitive running?"

Yeah, but it's also track. You wouldn't say "competitive baseball" or "competitive soccer," the way you would, uh, "competitive darts" or "competitive hopscotch."

I also don't have a strong opinion, other than I enjoy arguments over semantics.

True. When it comes to that, yeah, we're definitely just debating semantics.

How has competitive hopscotch not become a thing (sorry admiral) with the hipsters, a la kickball? (Don't get me wrong, kickball is awesome.)

I also just realized I have never played hopscotch.

BigStuffChamps3_zps00980734.png

Link to comment
Share on other sites

In Seattle people play competitive bike Polo on tennis courts. That's pretty close.

Is competitive Crossfit a sport?

1 hour ago, ShutUpLutz! said:

and the drunken doodoobags jumping off the tops of SUV's/vans/RV's onto tables because, oh yeah, they are drunken drug abusing doodoobags

Link to comment
Share on other sites

In Seattle people play competitive bike Polo on tennis courts. That's pretty close.

Is competitive Crossfit a sport?

I'm iffy, I hate cross fit personally, but I do feel it covers all the criteria needed to be a sport. But when I think about it, it does seem more like a competition where you are just showing you can work out better than another person. I could be wrong because of my overwhelming bias against crossfit though.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

In Seattle people play competitive bike Polo on tennis courts. That's pretty close.

Is competitive Crossfit a sport?

Bike Polo on tennis courts actually sounds pretty fun.

I'm iffy, I hate cross fit personally, but I do feel it covers all the criteria needed to be a sport. But when I think about it, it does seem more like a competition where you are just showing you can work out better than another person. I could be wrong because of my overwhelming bias against crossfit though.

Yeah, I think "competitive working out" is rather silly, but there's no doubt IMO that the CrossFit Games constitute a sport.

BigStuffChamps3_zps00980734.png

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.




×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.