eSports Part 5: The Final Game

This is the final part in a five part weekly series. If you have not read part 1, part 2, part 3, or part 4, click on the respective number of which part you wish to read.



The coveted trophy of the
League of Legends: World Championship

According to Vice, the Seoul World Cup Stadium is home to the "League of Legends: World Championship." The Seoul World Cup Stadium is the largest stadium in South Korea and can hold up to 66,806 people. At the League of Legends: World Championship, approximately 40,000 fans were screaming for their preferred team while cosplay teams displayed their amazing costumes that may have taken weeks, months, maybe even a year to create. All this happens while two teams battle it out in the world of League of Legends. The year Vice's documentary was shot, the two teams were Samsung White from Korea and Star Horn Royal Club from Hong Kong. Now, everyone may come for the actual gaming event, but that does not begin until late at night to obtain the full effect of the light from the screens. Due to this fact, the Stadium provides entertainment while the fans wait for the gamers to play. One such entertainment option that is commonly found at all eSports events is the amazing cosplay. At the League of Legends: World Championship, numerous cosplay teams find themselves on the opposite ends of cameras. Spiral Cats and CSL are just two of such cosplay teams that found themselves waving to fans and posing for pictures. CSL had a massive cosplay in their arsenal, however, due to the shear absurdity of size, the costume had fallen apart in front of everyone. Besides the cosplayers and professional gamers, there are other notable characters that have collected their own sizable amount of fame, such as "Cow Guy." Cow Guy is an individual who goes to eSports events dressed in a cow patterned suit and cow hat. There was also the leader of Cloud 9, who was still just as off-putting as he was the last time Vice reporters attempted to talk to him. ESports "swag" was still being thrown into the crown, similar to past eSports events, but this event had most of it and it was thrown much more frequently. The opening ceremony of the event was like no other. Korean drum ceremonies, an extremely excitable announcer, and a performance by the American band "Imagine Dragons" all created a massive celebration that all started before the gamers even started playing. However, after all the shenanigans were over, the competition for one million dollars began. After an intense competition, the home country, South Korea, ended up keeping their title and raising the trophy above their heads in victory. However, they did not get to go home and go to sleep after their four hour endeavor, as they still needed to speak with the press. At the press junket, Matt Shea, the reporter for Vice, decided to ask the one question that no one seemed to be asking the actual gamers, "Do you guys consider yourselves to be professional computer gamers or athletes?" Out of the five on the team, only one stated that he did not believe he was an athlete. All the rest of his teammates gave some sort of answer that said they believed they were athletes at some level. No matter what these people may consider themselves, the League of Legends: World Championship not only brought 40,000 viewers in a stadium, but also 27 million live online viewers. That number is greater than the NBA Finals. Just think, a year or two ago, these young individuals would be called nerds, but now they are called athletes and have millions of dollars to their name. At the rate which eSports continues to grow, the possibility of games being played at the Olympics is a very real one. Do not just take my word for it; one of the leading figures in the International eSports Federation, Alex Lim, stated, "The possibility that e-sports may be played at the Olympics one day is realistic." The United States has already recognized professional gamers as athletes, so it is only a matter of time until other countries join in and video games are competed right alongside the high jump in the Olympics. While I personally cannot find myself calling a gamer an athlete, there is no denying their fame throughout the world and the impact that gaming has on people's lives.

The final game of the competition.