Editorial: Why can't "competitive" and "casual" coexist?

Author's note: I will not be addressing the mods' response in this piece. I will likely mull it over for the next few days before responding, as I would like to consider all possible viewpoints beforehand.

A clear rift grew in the midst of the debate on Reddit regarding /r/Overwatch's ruleset. The two sides—termed "casual" for the fun-loving party and "competitive" for the tryhards—have laid out their opinions, and strangely only one theme resonated throughout the entire debacle. Every poster pointed towards the difference in interests between both the casual and the competitive community.

Let's get this straight: the notion that there are binary parties is bullshit.

There is absolutely no divide between competitive and casual communities. To insinuate that there is would be ridiculous; interests instead fall on a spectrum. Is it not possible to enjoy lighthearted, fun content as a professional player? Is it not possible to enjoy esports without playing ranked? Does no middle ground exist?

You can clearly see that this issue is multifaceted. I personally enjoy many of the creations that would be termed "fun." Katsuwatch is perhaps my favorite thing to come out of the main subreddit, and I enjoy every new addition to dinoflask's YouTube channel. In no way was I suggesting to remove fun from /r/Overwatch—and neither was MonteCristo! Nobody from the competitive community wants to remove fun from the game; I'd wager that they wouldn't even consider participating in the competitive side of Overwatch if they didn't have fun.

A large reason the rift between these two sides of the community formed was likely the use of the term "low-effort content." While I believe that it accurately describes the creation of GIFs and the like, I can certainly see why the use of this term might tick a few off—it's condescending by nature. Though the term has been used for ages, I must concede that it wasn't proper to use in a discussion, and perhaps an alternative would be more appropriate.

Regardless, I think it should be clear by now that nobody is trying to be the fun-police. One side of the debate wants more opportunities for content such as articles, videos, and other media to be visible, while the other prefers GIFs and clips to maintain their position. Both want Overwatch to succeed. Both love Overwatch. Both will continue to love Overwatch.

And while SkyLine might have you believe that this situation was the "one worst thing that could happen to Overwatch esports," I firmly disagree. The situation allows members of the community to come forth and present their perspective, and ideally a common ground will be found. I believe that esports fans, content creators, competitive players, casual players, and people who haven't even purchased the game should all get their deserved attention, and I believe that this petition was the first step in achieving this.