What is Esports?

Esports is a market that is booming. It is estimated to cross $1.5 Billion by 2023 and shows no signs of slowing down. Games these days have also adapted to the requirements of the market and have become aggressively competitive. 

Many people find it hard to believe that there is an industry for professional video games competitions but, the hype is real and it is here to stay!

From the lure of Battle Royale’s gameplay to the intricate shooting maneuvers in Call of Duty or the tactical gameplay of DOTA 2, these games ,without doubt, garner a larger number of loyal fans! But Esports is bigger than that. Esports now has forged a completely new industry around itself and caters to a larger crowd.

You might think that we always play such games in a competitive spirit, I mean you obviously play to win even when you wanna have fun right? Yes but playing in an Esports league takes “playing” the game to another level

What started out as friends getting together and hosting LAN parties has now transformed into a competitive environment with insanely high cash prize rewards

A multitude of games are played competitively. Although any video game can be played competitively there are a few gameplay styles that garner a large watch and fan base. 

We take a look at some of these below

Multiplayer Online Battle Arena Games

The multiplayer online battle arena or MOBA genre of games is one of the most watched Esports genres online.

 MOBA games usually feature two teams that play against each other in an attempt to destroy the other team’s base or kill the members of the other team completely.

Each player from the two teams picks a virtual character from the game. Each character brings in different tactics and gameplay style making strategy a key player in these types of games.

Some really popular MOBA games that have a large Esports presence are games like, Dota 2 and League of Legends.

First-Person Shooter Games

First-person shooter games follow a simple tactic of a group of players controlling a character that wields a gun. The players can at any time switch to different guns for different scenarios and sneak from behind the enemy and produce a melee attack.

These games are usually played with two teams where the objective in most cases is to get more kills than your opponent team.

Counter-Strike Global Offensive is an example of a classic FPS game which debuted all the way back in 2012, but still has a dominant presence in the space.

Several games are played competitively and these were just examples of the most popular ones out there. There are other competitions such as the Capcom Cup which is a Street Fighter competition. Games like Super Smash Bros are also played competitively in leagues like the Apex Championship.

It is no longer a debate if video games have a market, and with the barrier to entry being low anyone can play these games competitively. Although reaching a high level of play requires great dedication and practice but, in this case, putting in the hours will be quite enjoyable.