| 15 February 2010
The guys at Cadred have put out a commentary, in light of yesterday's Live on Three show, regarding what is an eSport. Perhaps before you read it you should ask yourself what makes an eSport what it is.
The commentary by Dr. Gonzo suggests that certain factors make up an eSport, and obviously money is one of them. But perhaps community hype is another. Also, he said the games we're playing now for big stakes might be a distant memory.
When e-sports does break big in the West – and believe me that is inevitable on a long enough time scale – the titles we are all so obsessed about now will be largely forgotten, or perhaps only remembered as pioneering games that paved the way for bigger and better ones. History teaches us that lesson. The gaming industry thrives on change and progress; new titles, new technology, new genres. It was a growth industry during a time of global recession and soon the gaming industry will likely be outbanking Hollywood. E-sports is the tiniest fraction of that, but only because of the resistance to change and a strange insistence on specification as opposed to diversification. You can’t do that in a fledgling industry that doesn’t yet have a clear sense of where it is headed.
