Cautious support for e-sports
COMPUTER games are for kids. That’s always been the thinking, at least in Asia. But times are changing. Policymakers and business leaders in various nations have been increasingly supportive of video games, which have traditionally been scorned as wasteful and even harmful to children.
The world is seeing more organised “e-sport” events all the time, with rising attendance and prizes. The sports’ popularity is cheered rather than dreaded thanks to scientific studies showing that the young players grow up smarter, more innovative and efficient. That’s on top of the long-accepted claims that regular players develop superior handeye coordination. It’s generally accepted that kids who play video games a lot can work out computer programs faster than others. And no one’s going to argue that technological know-how is a huge advantage these days.
Before the boom began about eight years ago, e-sport tournaments appealed only to a niche crowd. Today we have game developers designing products specifically for the professional e-sport subculture. Where once it was a handful of clever youngsters sharing the big prizes, there are now opportunities around every corner. Mainstream broadcasters have muscled into the world of online game streaming.
Attitudes are changing in countries where e-sports are surging in popularity and challenging conventional sports, music and television in terms of entertainment appeal. The winners of e-sport tournaments have become national celebrities as well as stars of the international gaming community.
The success of e-sports has triggered serious concerns too. There is the worry that only a small percentage of enthusiasts become good enough to earn fame and fortunes, and meanwhile the majority wither away in front of their screens and lag behind in their studies. There is the growing likelihood that life might imitate art, as in a cinema thriller where, in a world obsessed with e-sports, the best young gamers are recruited to test and manipulate sophisticated weapons. The notion is not as far-fetched as it sounds. Drone-flying contests have attracted very young contestants, and they compete in arenas that are a tumult of sound and flashing lights. Flying a drone isn’t considered an e-sport, but drones are bound to become more technologically sophisticated – and another way for youngsters to shape their future.
The pros are clashing with the cons, and that clashing should prompt everyone to take a second look at e-sports. Just a few years ago, no one was paying attention to computer games apart from children and software developers. Now there are millions more involved, creating an intriguing phenomenon – and perhaps a situation that needs to be handled with care.