Hello everyone, I wanted to discuss mobile gaming as an Esport model today. I've noticed that just like the debate about gaming in general being considered a sport, there are those that vehemently argue against mobile gaming being considered an Esport.
Before I dig into the argument, I'd like to borrow the words from Bill Mooney, Skillz Inc CPO, about the definition of what the word Esports encompasses. Esports is a combination of (fair) Competition, Organized Tournaments, and Spectatorship. The combination of those 3 things are what separate a video game from an Esport.
With Amazon's Mobile Masters turn out, it is undeniable that each of those games meet all 3 criteria. The titles were Vainglory, Critical Ops, Power Rangers: Legacy Wars and World of Tanks Blitz. The best example IMO is Vainglory since it is the most successful currently and easiest for me to break down.
If I compare Vainglory to the 3 criteria it would be:
Fair competition: the monetization in VG is based around purchasing champions, skins, and abilities for their fun mode. Similarly to league of legends, ask of these items can be gained through just playing and none of them give a direct competitive advantage in their ranked mode.
Organized tournaments: as I quoted previously in regards to Amazon's Mobile Masters, there are several other national/global scaled tournaments that VG is a part of.
Spectatorship: the easiest criteria to reach as you can watch people play just about anything you can think of between Twitch/YouTube/etc.
If you follow the criteria, there is almost no difference between League of Legends, CS:GO, or any other PC/Console Esport title and the afore mentioned Mobile games. The only real difference is the device you play them on.
What are your thoughts on mobile gaming as an Esport? Have I changed any of your minds on your previous opinion on them? What are some new/upcoming games that toy think could match all 3 criteria and become the next big Esport title?
Here is the video featuring Bill Mooney that started me on this crusade.
https://youtu.be/_GbG1Or1mls
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