esports

E-Sports has grown big enough for the New York Times to report on it, unfortunately it's about growing drug use.

The world of the professional video game playing received a lot of attention this week after leaders announced an expansion of testing for performance-enhancing drugs. according to the New York Times:

In response to those comments, the Electronic Sports League, one of the most successful leagues in competitive video gaming, said on Wednesday that it would test players for performance-enhancing drugs starting at a tournament in August. E.S.L. said it would work with two international agencies — the same ones that help oversee anti-doping policies for cycling, the Olympics and other sports — to create anti-doping guidelines and a testing program for players.

The announcement is perhaps the clearest sign yet that e-sports, as professional gaming is widely known, is evolving into a mainstream form of competitive entertainment. This year, overall revenue from the global e-sports business is expected to surpass $250 million from more than 113 million e-sports fans worldwide, according to estimates from Newzoo, a games research firm.

The sport has never exactly endorsed drug usage, however players recently flaunting the use has brought the whole thing into a brighter spotlight.

E.S.L. has long had a general prohibition against doping, but its rules did not specify which drugs were not allowed, and the league did not police players. That changed, though, when Mr. Friesen, who plays under the name Semphis, was interviewed earlier this month and said that he had used Adderall during an E.S.L. tournament for the shooter game Counter-Strike while playing with a team called Cloud9.

"We were all on Adderall," Mr. Friesen said of his team, for which he no longer plays. "Tons of people do it."

With one of the biggest events in professional gaming, the DOTA 2's The International, starting Aug. 3, this definitely won't be the last we've heard about it.

This weekend at CEO 2015, the fighting game tournament got a little intense. Not the actual gameplay, mind you, but the pre-show.  Watch competitive player Kenneth "Stone Cold" "K-Brad" Bradley enter the, er, ring for an Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3 match. I kid you not, he knocks a dude out.


Another player, Dieminion, took a much stealthier approach to his entrance:


Dude's like a ninja!
 

Over the weekend, ESPN2 aired a Heroes of the Storm match, and a lot of traditional sports fans had their jimmies rustled:


(Based on that guy's TV, I'm gonna guess he's not exactly on the up and up with regards to video games.)  

Professional baseball player Clint Robinson didn't get it either:



But no one was more upset than Colin Cowherd.  Cowherd hosts a radio show on ESPN called "The Herd With Colin Cowherd" in which he spends three hours talking about sports.  He makes predictions, does play by plays, and apparently talks a lot of trash about eSports.  As you can see in the video clip above, Cowherd has some strong, ignorant feelings about gaming as a sport.  He goes for the stereotypical low blow, saying things like "somebody lock the basement door at mom's house and don't let them out," and expressing a desire to put a gun in his mouth rather than listen to more Heroes of the Storm coverage.  Ironically, he also wails on the enthusiasm of the announcers.  I don't know if he's ever listened to himself or any other sports announcing, but it all sounds like that.

This guy's got no fondness for games, and no respect for anyone that plays them.  I can tolerate people who don't agree with eSports, but I can't tolerate ignorance towards gamers. Sport or no, we're not a bunch of nerds who need to be locked in the basement.  But hey, we can all take some advice from his Twitter bio: "don't allow someone with no life to ruin yours."  Get a life, Colin Cowherd, and stop being such a jerk just because something doesn't appeal to you.

Robert Morris University offers a scholarship of reportedly 25% of tuition, around $6,000, to members of their video game collegiate sports team which plans to compete at the professional level in League of Legends. The school is building an eSports arena and training center, and has recruited famed pro gaming coach AGeNt as head coach of their esports program, which came to be when the school's women's soccer coach was reminiscing about playing Starcraft II in college and discovered esports. Apparently, teams will only practice for three to four hours a day, five days a week.

A story in the Wall Street Journal tells the story of one of those students, if you're interested, or you can check out Robert Morris University's site if you think you've got a shot.

I told you eSports was a real thing, mom!

Watch the full length documentary following professional Dota 2 players through the first Dota 2 international tournament.

What do you think about eSports?

Those of you hoping to become professional gamers, take note: above is a list of games Riot's professional League of Legends players are not allowed to stream during season 4. As unfortunate as a streaming restriction is, what's even more strange is the list of games included. Hope you weren't looking forward to seeing your favorite teams stream games that aren't even around anymore (looking at you, Warhammer Online)!

(Click the image to see a larger version)