The real reason e-sports can’t go mainstream anytime soon

^ That’s a link, btw.

It’s a salient point, really. Anyone with even the slightest presence in the online gaming world knows how incredibly inhospitable it is. The anonymity of the internet clashes violently with the fervor of competition and no one comes away unscathed.

Except in Korea.

It seems like every time I talk to someone about anything, this little country sneaks its way into my conversation somehow. I’m sure it’s annoying, and I really do apologize. But, you know, I live here and all that. The differences between here and back in the west are so pronounced at times, and I often find myself siding with Asia. Social acceptance of gaming? Yep, well established here. Universal healthcare? Works like a charm! Bus rides that remind me of Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride? Every time I get on one.

But there is a difference this article doesn’t touch on. Since viewers of competitive gaming are relatively few and far between, and they all have a presence on the internet, they often attempt to have conversations with the people playing, the actual “sports stars” themselves. I’m not saying a pro football player would be quite the ass a pro SC2 player is, but I doubt they’d be all that friendly, either.

So yes, I agree that the pro gamers and their toadies need to get off their damn high horses, but the fans also need to start talking to other people. Maybe next time you’re in a bar, see if they’ll let you pipe in the latest ladder match feed. Then talk to that leather-bound fella sitting at the bar about the drawbacks of an early zealot rush. Wink, too, they like that.