Rob Pardo thinks e-Sports should be an Olympic sport

[johnhoftb]

http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-30597623

E-sports attract huge crowds - but can it become and Olympic sport?

Competitive video gaming - known as e-sports - should be included in the Olympic Games, the creator of World of Warcraft has told the BBC.

Rob Pardo, who until July was chief creative officer at Blizzard Entertainment, said "sport" now had a broad definition.

"Videogames are well positioned to be a spectator sport," he told Afternoon Edition on BBC 5 Live.

Professional e-sports events currently attract audiences of millions.

A recent major final held in Seoul, South Korea, filled a stadium of 40,000 people - with many more watching either online or at meet-ups around the world.

"There's a very good argument for e-sports being in the Olympics," Mr Pardo, who was also lead designer on Starcraft: Brood War, a game often credited with kickstarting the e-sports phenomenon.
Millions watch the most popular games, both at stadium-sized events and online

"I think the way that you look at e-sports is that it's a very competitive skillset and you look at these professional gamers and the reflexes are lightning quick and their having to make very quick decisions on the fly.

"When you look at their 'actions per minute', they're clearing over 300."

However, he conceded that video gaming faces a cultural battle to win other those who follow more physical sports.

"That starts getting into how you define sport," he said.

"If you want to define sport as something that takes a lot of physical exertion, then it's hard to argue that videogames should be a sport, but at the same time, when I'm looking at things that are already in the Olympics, I start questioning the definition."
'Mind sport'

Having new sports admitted into the Olympic roster is a long-winded process and, since the International Olympic Committee (IOC) capped the number of sports allowed in the Games, has become increasingly difficult.

Even if e-sports were to be recognised as an Olympic sport, that does not mean it will be included in the Games - it merely means a case can be presented to the IOC.


Take chess, for instance. Supporters of the game have long called for its inclusion the Games, but the IOC has been reluctant, considering it a "mind sport" and therefore not welcome in the Games.

Video games face the same hurdle, but has done its best to at least act like a sport, by adding measures such as an anti-doping programme.

Mr Pardo argues that e-sports could be visually appealing to a broad audience.

"You can do whatever you want with the graphics, you can make it be really excited and competitive," he said.

[minteK917]

Its why its called the Olympic "GAMES". More and more of the discipline shown are not what youd consider sport yet are getting included in the Olympics. Take for exemple Archery in the summer Olympics, its not a physical sport, its a discipline. Thats why the Olympic games call them sports and disciplines. Video game would fall under discipline. Chess was a good example to take, because its even less physical activity then video game, a case could be made that since video game requires discipline other then the mind, it could be included since chess was turned down for its lack of it.

It will probably eventually be included once video game reach an even more interactive levels.

[Heathy]

yeah i think the main problem is that its not a physical sport, any random joe can be good at gaming. you don't even need to be physically fit to stay awake for days on end grinding away at your favorite game.

then you'd have to wonder, what 'game' would be used for the Olympic event, imo they have to have a team of game devs create a game for the event so noone had an unfair advantage of countless hours of practice. since games don't require the finesse other physical sports do its simply a matter of learning the limits of what you can do. coupled with perfect timing/execution of specific actions.

also wow an olympic sport pfft, with its completely unbalanced 1v1 pvp yeah. no.

[Edge-]

yeah i think the main problem is that its not a physical sport, any random joe can be good at gaming.

This is not remotely true, especially given how much time and effort pro players spend practicing and training to stay on top of their game.

I could sink hundreds and thousands of hours into Starcraft 2, but I would still never be able to compete on the level the pros do, I just don't have the knack for RTS games. I was pretty good for a while (in Starcraft 1) and could do well for myself, but I essentially hit my skill ceiling because I simply didn't have the talent for it.

[Heathy]

specific games have their own tourneys though, if all of a sudden 'starcraft 2 an Olympic sport' well honestly i probably wouldn't bat an eye lid but who would take it seriously.

if chess didn't make it in then video games won't in this generation at least. at least chess is tangible.

[Zethras]

This is not remotely true, especially given how much time and effort pro players spend practicing and training to stay on top of their game.

I could sink hundreds and thousands of hours into Starcraft 2, but I would still never be able to compete on the level the pros do, I just don't have the knack for RTS games. I was pretty good for a while (in Starcraft 1) and could do well for myself, but I essentially hit my skill ceiling because I simply didn't have the talent for it.

Every single iota of this. Some people are naturally good at certain things, while others are better at others.

I could never, EVER get Grand Master in Starcraft, or Challenger in league, however, I could probably raid with a high end guild in WoW as a blood dk.

[Mirishka]

I'm sorry... but the suggestion that being really good at sitting on one's ass playing a video game is even worthy of being mentioned in the same breath as the Olympics, well that's just about the dumbest thing I've ever heard. Its mind-boggling levels of stupid.

[Schmilblick]

He should stop thinking.

[Heathy]

because simple fact being physically good at a sport takes a fuck ton more dedication than being good at gaming.

lets also just conclude that most if not all sports in the olympics are relatively simple, its jumping throwing, running, climbing, swimming other sports that combine some of those, ball sports are all quite simplistic in terms of rules and variables. gaming is packed with too many variables to create a fair contest, with things like RNG how the hell are you gunna know if guy A was better than guy B when it all comes down to random numbers.

the game is paramount, it would have to be simplistic like pong. which is basically digital table tennis on a 2d plane.

[Mirishka]

Ok...but why?

Because the Olympics represent arguably the pinnacle of athleticism and discipline over one's mind and body. It is a legacy that most believe to have begun in the year 776 B.C. Let that sink in for a moment.

The idea of people who are really good at clicking, macros, pressing hotkeys/moving an analog stick are somehow worthy of that legacy is an absolute joke. If you seriously can't recognize the difference between what is required to even qualify for the Olympics (much less excel in them) and what is required to play a video game... I honestly don't know what to say to you.

I love gaming, I am as passionate about it as I am nearly any other aspect of my life. But this is absurd.

What's next, someone suggesting an Olympic category for the people who can eat 50+ hotdogs in one sitting?

[obdigore]

I mean... do you add an entire new section, call it the 'Spring Olympics', and it is just video games?

DDR in hall 3, SC2 in hall 4, Street Fighter (10? I dunno, i don't keep up with fighting games) in hall 1?

Or is it 'best all around gamer' with you earning points where you finish in a series of 10 games spread over a week and how well your opponents place and stuff?

[Edge-]

because simple fact being physically good at a sport takes a fuck ton more dedication than being good at gaming.

While I'm in no way trying to detract from the work that olypmic athletes put in to train their bodies and prepare them for the olympics...have you seen the training schedules for many of the pro teams? They train all day 6-7 days a week many times, especially in Korea/China where esports is more of a thing than in the west. These are folks who spend hours working on strategies, practicing against each other, and working to improve and hone their abilities.

It's not a bunch of dudes lulzing around for a few hours a day (for the most part).

[obdigore]

Because the Olympics represent arguably the pinnacle of athleticism and discipline over one's mind and body. It is a legacy that most believe to have begun in the year 776 B.C. Let that sink in for a moment.

The idea of people who are really good at clicking, macros, pressing hotkeys/moving an analog stick are somehow worthy of that legacy is an absolute joke. If you seriously can't recognize the difference between what is required to even qualify for the Olympics (much less excel in them) and what is required to play a video game... I honestly don't know what to say to you.

I love gaming, I am as passionate about it as I am nearly any other aspect of my life. But this is absurd.

What's next, someone suggesting an Olympic category for the people who can eat 50+ hotdogs in one sitting?

Yes, but me going for a run is as far as 'being an olympic athelete' as you are from the people who win these game tournaments.

[Mirishka]

Does it really?

This is going to sound really snarky, but I can understand why people who only play WoW or other MMOs might think the way you do, because frankly MMOs are quite possibly the least demanding genre of game that exists.

But for players who actually try to play competitively in Fighting games, FPS, RTS, MOBA...they spend an absolutely massive amount of time and effort learning, practicing, preparing, and so on. It's not a small thing to compete at the levels that the top players do.

Go spend a decade+ training to be a gymnist. Or spending 15+ years perfecting your knowledge of a martial art. Then get back to me on how sitting on your ass clicking and wiggling an analog stick is in the same league.

[Arewn]

That's opening a whole new can of worms...
You aren't just bringing in one new thing when you add video games to the Olympics, you're adding in a category that contains an overwhelming wealth of individual items.
What game do you add? multiple games, one from as many different genres as you can cover? Well at that point you should consider making a separate category for it altogether. A summer Olympics, a winter Olympics, and a Digital Olympics.
Just one or two games? that's pretty specific, which ones should be chosen as THE officially recognized "esport" of something as monumental as the Olympics? LoL because it's popular? not exactly the peak of competitive, challenging, skill demanding gaming though. It's also pretty young. CS/Quake/etc, because of their older and more well established roots? do they have the viewership and popularity to justify their inclusion though?
Games are something tied to technology too. Unlike sports, they're updated and even replaced frequently. The Olympics only happen once every 4 years, will the chosen game(s) even last more than 2 or 3 Olympic cycles?
Video games as a medium in general are very young, especially compared to most of the sports featured in the Olympics. It feels like people are way too hyped about their recent (very recent) surge in popularity. That popularity will in all likelihood continue to grow, but I think people should wait for things to settle and get established before they start throwing "esports" into everything conceivable.

Not to mention sports are something defined as being physical in the first place. I'm perfectly happy to call it "professional gaming" or "competitive gaming", but trying to play up video games as a sport is something that I think will always sit ill at ease with me. It feels like senseless pandering and a cheap attempt to gain legitimacy. Video games are their own thing, and they're fine as such.
Not that I'm trying to "defend the sanctity of sports" or some-such nonsense. I'm (unsurprisingly) the nerdy-gamer type, I don't even like sports.

[Tech614]

How else is South Korea ever going to medal?

Honestly there is so many dumb events in the Olympics it's not that far fetched.

In the end though you still don't see X-Games type sports(most of them anyways) at the Olympics. Video Games will fall into this same category like skateboarding and motocross that will likely never touch the Olympics.

[Edge-]

Because the Olympics represent arguably the pinnacle of athleticism and discipline over one's mind and body. It is a legacy that most believe to have begun in the year 776 B.C. Let that sink in for a moment.

Curling, truly the most physically demanding sport in the olympics : 3

[Arewn]

Go spend a decade+ training to be a gymnist. Or spending 15+ years perfecting your knowledge of a martial art. Then get back to me on how sitting on your ass clicking and wiggling an analog stick is in the same league.

Oh, and this.

[Heathy]

well obviously if we take the most dedicated sportsman, and measure his dedication to the most dedicated gamer, we'll see a correlation in time investment. There is very little effort involved with being a good gamer is what makes more sense, unless you weigh 300lbs your not gunna be breaking any sweats getting good at a game. where as every physical sport requires physical effort.

[Fencers]

Chess was an Olympic Sport.

Sport doesn't strictly mean "physical" or "athletic".