The crowd reaction at a League of Legends tournament in New York City (credit: Riot Games)

The challenge of viewership

Even as players, the learning curve of the three MOBA titles are way, way steeper than your average game (this applies to the other titles as well). There is no ceiling to the skill cap. You could play for years, and you would continue to find new ways of improving your gameplay every day. On top of that, the games themselves are constantly changing; new heroes/champions, new items, new mechanics, map changes and on, and on, and on (this is a discussion for another piece).

When you present the mind-boggling amount of elements and data to viewers, who have only the slightest idea of what the games are about, what do you expect them to do?

I can’t even understand the scoring system of aquatic sports. How can you expect the average person, who may or may not have heard of these games, to follow what’s happening in the 30 to 60 minutes of a foreign game that looks like a hodgepodge CGI concert, when even newer players of the games might not understand what’s happening themselves?

You might say: “so what, people who are familiar with the titles will enjoy the games, tell those who aren’t familiar to go watch gymnastics or something.”

I can empathise with that statement, and there will not be a shortage of enthusiasts enjoying these titles at the SEA Games I’m sure. But is that all there is to this?

Are we satisfied that our favourite esports titles are now featured in a prestigious world event, and that the best of players can now be called “athletes” and win medals to represent their countries? We don’t need that!

We have tons of events, plenty for non-stop entertainment throughout the year. Adding another event where the viewer base is not expanded beyond those who are already enjoying the games in the first place is not taking the esports industry forward. If anything, it might alienate those who don’t understand the games even more.

Exclusivity is overrated. We don’t want to be that “elite” group who understands what’s going on in a Dota 2 game, who knows a good play when we see one in Starcraft II, who memorised the full names of the best players in Arena of Valor.

Inclusivity is what we should strive for. I’m thrilled to know that my Dad watched a Mobile Legends: Bang Bang game on TV, knowing he was interested and was captivated by the game. I’m grateful, that my Mom is now more open to understanding what esports really is, when she confiscated my laptop for playing too much Counter-Strike when I was in junior high school. I’m amazed that my friends seem to be enjoying more of these esports titles, even if only casually.

We, the enthusiasts, know full well how entertaining playing and watching esports games can be. Don’t we want our parents, family, friends, and everyone else to enjoy these games with us? I vote yes.