As another Summer Olympics comes to a close, it just gets me mulling over the fact that once again, we didn’t see any eSports on the world’s largest stage.
This is extremely upsetting to me, since I really do think that eSports should be included in the Olympics. Yes, the International Olympics Committee (the IOC for short) does have its own Olympics for eSports in Singapore, signifying just how big eSports are around the world. But, I really want to see eSports in the next Olympics proper, right alongside sports like swimming, track and field, figure skating, and luge.
Now, I’ve already talked about other sports I would love to see in the Olympics, and now I want to talk about eSports, and just how I would make them become a reality in the Summer and Winter Games.
Create 4 Broad Genres Of Sports, Those Being Fighting Games, RTS, Battle Royale, And Sports Games
Now, one reason why eSports haven’t made it into the Olympics yet is because the IOC is concerned about “violent games.” So, what this means is that actual “sports” are allowed into the Olympic eSports series, like virtual Taekwondo, or playing Gran Turismo (Just like in the fairly recent movie, which we enjoyed), but you won’t see anything like Doom Eternal deathmatches anytime soon.
However, while I’m sure there’s an audience for much “safer” eSports events, there would be a much bigger audience (some of which I’m sure wouldn’t be caught dead watching the regular Olympics) if more traditional eSport genres were brought into the regular Olympics.
As for the IOC not wanting any “violent games,” what do they think boxing is? What about Taekwondo? Judo? I don’t know, guys. Rugby seems pretty violent to me. Yes, sportsmanship is definitely important in all of these events, but one could argue that they’re all pretty violent contact sports. So, why not include “violent” video games as well?
For this, I’d suggest four popular genres that a lot of people would likely tune in for, given their popularity. Those genres would be Fighting Games (the IOC has already included competitive Street Fighter 6 into the mix), Real Time Strategy (RTS), Battle Royale, and Sports titles (like Rocket League).
Honestly, if these types of eSports were included, I’m pretty sure you’d have a substantial number of young viewers not only watching the Olympics, but also vying to one day be future Olympic champions.
Select The Top Games From Said Genres
If the IOC would actually move forward with including eSports into the actual Olympics, it should of course pick the most popular games in each genre. Currently, those games would be Street Fighter 6 (Fighting), Dota 2 (RTS), Fortnite…Or PUBG (Battle Royale), and Rocket League (Sports).
Now, the obvious reason for this is brand recognition and popularity. My students still play Fortnite religiously, and I’m sure they would all tune in to watch the Olympics if they saw the best Fortnite players in the world competing against one another for the gold.
Hell, I’m sure lots of people of all ages would watch competitive gaming, especially if it’s of their favorite game. I mean, I’d stay up all night to catch competitive Street Fighter III: Third Strike. Wouldn’t you?
Split It So There Are 2 Sports For Summer, And 2 Sports For Winter
Now, I don’t know if people would tune in for four different eSport games in one Olympics, nor do I think it would fit on any channel in a good time slot. So, I think eSports competitions should be broken up with two for the Summer Olympics, and two for the Winter Olympics.
Because, why not, right? The cool thing about eSports is that you don’t need the weather to be perfect. You also don’t need to produce fake snow, or make sure it’s not too hot so that people don’t pass out. For eSports, all you need is an indoor stadium, the console or computers of choice, and enough seating for the sure-to-be-packed crowds. (Who knows? Maybe Ryan Gosling and Eva Mendes might turn up.)
If I were to pick which genres should be for which Olympics, I’d pick Fighting games and Sports titles for Summer, and RTS and Battle Royale for Winter. The latter two just seem to be a better fit in a nice toasty environment.
Select The Top Players From Yearly Competitions, And Put Them On Teams Together To Represent Their Country
All year round, there are eSport competitions. The communities of these respective games compete against each other, and are then ranked as the best in the world. There are also competitions on platforms like Steam, where leaderboards are created based on skill level.
So, wouldn’t it make sense for the IOC to monitor these leaderboards, and then to reach out to the best, and ask if they want to be on a team together?
For team-based games, it would make sense to put the best players in respective countries on one team, but for something like Fighting Games, the best players of EVO could represent their country, and win a medal all by themselves. Come on, you know you want to see Justin Wong or Punk Dagod take home the gold one day (and make a lot of money in the process).
Color commentary is a huge part of any sport, and fans love to hear knowledgeable people discuss their favorite sports, ad nauseam.
I think adding eSports to the Olympics would be the same thing. If the IOC were to add eSports, they should get the biggest voices in the field.
Since I’m really not much into RTS, Battle Royale, or Sports games, I don’t really know the major players there, but I do know quite a bit about the FGC (Fighting Game Community), and it would be a blast to hear people like Yipes, Justin Wong, Maximilian Dood, or Long Island Joe doing color commentary.
Plus, it would add an authenticity to the events that you wouldn’t get from just any old Joe Schmo who has very little connection to the community. So, I’d definitely reach out to some of the biggest people in the medium if I were to make this a reality.
Go All In And Refer To Competitive Gaming As A Sport
Lastly, and maybe most importantly, regard eSports as sports, period. A lot of people will automatically give pushback, but stick to your guns. There is real athleticism to playing video games for long periods of time, as it takes coordination, stamina, and extreme skill.
For a comparison to events that are already in the Olympics, just look at something like shooting, or archery. You might look at some of the athletes, and they don’t resemble competitors you see on the balance beam, or those you might see on the pommel horse. Instead, they look a lot more average. That said, I don’t think that makes them any less as athletes. They are the best of the best in their specific field, it just might not require peak physical fitness.
Video games require very much the same. Yes, a lot of it is just sitting down, but there’s also intense concentration, and an extremely high skill level. So, the IOC should go all in and say, yes, eSports are sports. Do you got a problem with that?
What do you think? Hopefully, eSports will one day make the Olympics, but until that day, go home and be a family man.