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C- 2021
R- Yes
A- Gale Opposing Viewpoints
A- No
P- Informing

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About Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints

Find overviews, news, and opinions on hundreds of today's important social issues.

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About Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints Find overviews, news, and opinions on hundreds of today's important social issues. Don't know how to login? Depending on this location's preferences, the log-in process could include your library card number, a student or user ID, or another provided password.

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C- 2020
R- Yes
A- Gale
A- No
P- Informing

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About Gale In Context: Middle School

Explore the most-studied topics including cultures, government, people, history, literature, and more.

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Depending on this location's preferences, the log-in process could include your library card number, a student or user ID, or another provided password. If you don't know how to log in, please contact your library or school directly.

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About Gale In Context: Middle School Explore the most-studied topics including cultures, government, people, history, literature, and more. Don't know how to login? Depending on this location's preferences, the log-in process could include your library card number, a student or user ID, or another provided password.

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C- 2013
R- Yes
A- Andrew Mullen
A- No
P- Informing

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ANDREW MULLEN
Arts & Entertainment Editor

The question of whether or not video games are a sport has been surrounding the gaming community for years now, but has accumulated more interest in recent months with the emergence of new fans. The topic is widely talked about among news sources and bloggers around the world, and the gaming industry is reaping the benefits.
With over 60,000 viewers for any one game at a time, electronic sports, commonly referred to as eSports, have been gaining more and more followers with each passing month. At the top of the charts are the following games: League of Legends, Black Ops II, Starcraft 2 and Defense of the Ancients 2. The gaming events have gone worldwide, that have sparked national patriotism in particular teams and have fleshed out entirely new subcultures on and off of the internet. The phenomenon is catching like fire, and the self-acclaimed 'sports' are beginning to gain recognition.
The fundamental question behind whether or not something is a sport seems to be whether or not it is physically taxing. These athletes are a new breed. They may not run for miles and do hundreds of push-ups a day, but their exertion is of a different sort.
When looking at chess and checkers, which are both considered professional sports, the physical aspect is minor, but the mental strain is immensely large. What these athletes may or may not lack in physical prowess, they more than make up for in mental processing.
With reflexes like cats, decision making skills that rival military pilots and team-leading abilities that are similar to NFL football captains, these newly prolific E-Athletes have started to solidify their place in sports history.
Take League of Legends for example. The game is what is commonly referred to as a MOBA, or massively online battle arena, and is as mentally taxing as it is nerve-wracking. The athletes are commonly on stage for 40-60 minutes at a time and have the hopes of thousands of fans bearing down on them. There is a constant thinking process that goes into every aspect of strategy for the games.
The strategy involved is itself a feat of sports-like prowess. Each team has coaches, and most have at least one analyst as well. The coaches watch other teams and instruct their own on strategies, techniques, playing styles and everything in between. The analysts will go over every single game played by the athletes and pick it apart minute by minute, play by play. Just like those in football and baseball, these coaches and analysts perform many of the same duties to achieve the same outcome: victory.
The other question raised is how much money do these professional gamers make? Well, like any profession, it varies from person to person. If the team is doing well and wins events with money on the line, the pot can be anywhere from a few hundred to a few thousand or even a few million dollars. The biggest events are world tournaments and the smallest are private events. Some are for the fame, others for the prize. Each athlete does what is called 'streaming,' which is simply playing the game they are known for while broadcasting it live on the website of their choice, most often Twitch.tv. Their viewers can skyrocket, and with each advertisement they play between or during games, they receive revenue. Some athletes give replay commentary to players that want to learn and charge a small fee. Others will do private lessons with fans that want to improve their game, and charge an arm and a leg. One player, Michael "Imaqtpie" Santana has garnered an absolutely massive and somewhat crazy fan base, and his common fee per hour for lessons is $300. Another famous American player, Joedat "Voyboy" Esfahani, is rumored to make more than a doctor's wages each year.
With more than 32 million registered players and 12 million online players, League of Legends has taken the lead as one of the most popular video games of our time. The pro season has been raging on for months, and has finally culminated in the world championships. This is a series of games played out in bracket style by the best of the best from America, Europe, East Asia and Korea for a huge prize pot and eternal glory. This year's finals are being hosted right here in the United States at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. That is the same venue that hosts the Clippers, Sparks, Kings and Avengers, all of which are established professional sports teams.
With a massive fan base and a growing player base, the games show no sign of slowing or halting their climb to sports-dom. Recently, the United States government allowed a Chinese eSports athlete into the country on a professional athlete visa, the very same given to established sports veterans. The state of California recognizing eSports as a sport, and the government starting to accept it into their cold hearts, marks a huge step for fans and players of video gamers alike.
It is not a stretch to assume that when this generation has kids, they will grow up playing football, soccer, basketball and whatever video game may be in style at that time. The phenomenon is expanding, and will continue to grow until it takes over. It may be time to consider the keyboard the next backboard.

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ANDREW MULLEN Arts & Entertainment Editor The question of whether or not video games are a sport has been surrounding the gaming community for years now, but has accumulated more interest in recent months with the emergence of new fans.

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C- 2015
R- Yes, counterclaim article
A- Nicole Cocuy
A- No
P- Informing

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Anyone who has ever participated in a Super Smash Bros. Melee tournament, spent countless hours fighting a bunch of strangers online in Call of Duty or even challenged a friend to a game of Trivia Crack while waiting in traffic cannot deny the fact that video games are incredibly competitive. We yell at our screens, accuse our competitors of cheating and, in times of victory, boastfully dance like we just made the winning touchdown.

Video games used to simply be a hobby reserved for free time or for friendly rivalries. But, video games have evolved significantly from Pokémon battles and Mario Kart races. For some multiplayer online video game League of Legends players, video games are not just a hobby; they're a professional sport. Players from around the world are actually getting paid to join professional League of Legends teams, spend several hours a day training and compete against other teams in tournaments. Fans and wannabe professional gamers watch tournaments live on their computer screens and buy merchandise from their favorite teams. Universities are also catching on to the latest gaming trend; college campuses around the country have school-sponsored League of Legends teams, and a couple schools have even offered athletic scholarships to players.

It's easy to see how a game like League of Legends could be classified as a sport. On the surface, it's like a low-key NFL, but with an international appeal and an entirely different fan base. Just like how football teams train, strategize, cooperate and compete, League of Legends teams practice and plan every day with coaches and work together as a team to destroy the enemy team's Nexus. Games are broadcasted live with actual sportscasters, and fans host viewing parties on major tournament days like it's the Super Bowl.

Similarities aside, video games, even League of Legends, cannot possibly be classified as sports because, besides mashing buttons and clicking mouses, there is no real physical element. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary definition of "sport" is "a contest or game in which people do certain physical activities according to a specific set of rules and compete against each other." While definitions are malleable and change overtime, our society will always perceive sports as physical demonstrations of agility and strength. Even when we describe someone as "athletic," we refer to how muscular his or her build is and how well he or she throws a ball. Granted, video games require the same level of alertness, teamwork and hand-eye coordination, but it's impossible for a gamer to be considered "athletic" without actually running or picking up a ball.

The same goes for college athletics. While League of Legends teams are usually sponsored by universities, compete against other college teams and could possibly win campuses a considerable amount of money in tournaments, it wouldn't be fair to classify college players as student athletes. Student athletes are required to wake up at ungodly hours and spend a considerable amount of their time training. But, the dedication doesn't stop there; student athletes even maintain special eating and sleeping habits to perform to the best of their ability on game day.

This is not to say that League of Legends is by any means easier or requires less work than playing a sport does. Playing League of Legends does require a lot of skill and practice, and players train tirelessly to master their craft. However, the type of work and dedication required of athletes and gamers is so different that it's impossible to compare the two. Athletes require a constant maintenance of physical shape and ability, while video games are primarily mental.

It's premature to already shove League of Legends into the "athletics" category because, in reality, it's in a league of its own - pun intended. With our growing reliance on the Internet and the constant advancements of technology, there will certainly be other games in the near future that will seem to blur the line between hobby and sport. Until then, let's label League of Legends what it actually is - a hyper-competitive video game.

Follow the opinions editor on Twitter @CurrentNicole

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On the Bench: Video games are not a sport

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Anyone who has ever participated in a Super Smash Bros. Melee tournament, spent countless hours fighting a bunch of strangers online in Call of Duty or even challenged a friend to a game of Trivia Crack while waiting in traffic cannot deny the fact that video games are incredibly competitive.