E-sport is an activity during which you compete with other players by … playing computer games. And it may be hard to imagine, but esports tournaments have almost the same atmosphere as traditional sports competitions. However, esports is still a controversial topic with as many supporters as opponents. Find out more about this fashionable and growing passion!

Who would have thought that playing computer games over the Internet would one day develop on such a large scale? Investors saw a great potential in computer game players, and now esports tournaments are organized almost all over the world, gaining more and more fans and supporters.

However, this virtual passion is also quite controversial, as it strengthens a sedentary lifestyle and makes people addicted to technology that is excessively harmful.

E-sport is currently one of the most popular activities, although it is difficult to call it a typical physical activity. What does esport have to do with traditional and real sport that takes its name from it? The answer to this question may surprise you!

E-sport - what is it?

E-sport is about competition that takes place through computer games on various topics. The rivalry between players can take place on two levels: in the form of recreation and fun, and in the form of tournaments at pro gaming competitions, where players can try their strength individually or in a team.

E-sport - development of e-sport in the world

The development of e-sport in the world is associated with online games between players. They gained popularity thanks to games such as StarCraft, Counter-Strike, Quake, Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness and League of Legends. Great interest in Quake's multiplayer game led to the establishment of the Cyberathlete Professional League in 1997 in the United States.

"Quake" was the first multiplayer game with 3D graphics and chat for communication between players.

The game called "Quake", which started and popularized the multiplayer game, is nothing more than a first-person shooter released in 1996 by GT Interactive and created by the id teamSoftware. The game was one of the first to be built on the basis of a graphics engine displaying a three-dimensional image. In addition, a console has been added to the game to automate settings and conversations with other players by writing text in the chat.

E-sport in Poland

The development of e-sport in Poland coincides with the times when tournaments such as Quake and Counter-Strike were played in our country. The beginning of e-sport in Poland took place in the late 90's. It was then that Internet cafes appeared in Poland, where you could afford to play over the Internet. In 2001, information about World Cyber ​​Games - the largest esports tournament, appeared in Poland. The final of the elimination took place in Warsaw, the winner flew to Seoul.

E-sport - tournaments

E-sports games take place in specially designed halls with stands prepared so that all participants have the comfort of the game. Viewers can follow the actions of players live on large screens. Currently, the interest in esports is so great that the number of viewers is comparable to some competitions in real sports. An example is the League of Legends (LOL) World Cup, where at some points the number of viewers was over 100 million simultaneously.

E-sport tournaments are very popular. Thanks to companies that are also sponsors of this type of events, the prize pool is sometimes even several hundred thousand dollars.

The first major esports tournament was the World Cyber ​​Games aka Cyber ​​Olympics, held in 2000 in Seoul.

Was led by South Korea's International Cyber ​​Marketing in cooperation with the world-famous Samsung company with the South Korean government. At this tournament, participants had the opportunity to compete in four game titles: Quake III Arena, Fifa 2000, Age of Empires II and StarCraft: Brood War. Players participating in the tournament came from countries such as: China, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Canada, Mexico, USA, Denmark, France, Germany, Sweden, Great Britain and Australia.

Currently the most popular e-sport tournaments in the world are the World Cyber ​​Games (WCG) and the Electronic Sports World Cup (ESWC).
E-sport tournaments are of great interest not only to players, but also companies, who want to promote and advertise their brand. Thanks to companies that are also sponsors of this type of events, the prize pool is sometimes even several hundred thousand dollars.

The historic largest prize pool was $ 25 million in The International 2022. At the momentin the world today, many tournaments of this type are organized.

E-sport - the most popular games and e-sport stars

The most popular esports games are not only, as the name may suggest, sports games, but also strategy, racing and fighting games. However, when it comes to sports games, the most popular title is FIFA, in which we can play both the coach and the footballer. Other popular esports games are MOBA and FPS games.

MOBA genre- in this series of games we can play a specific character and move to a virtual world, where we fight alone or in groups. We improve our character by collecting various items. The most popular titles in this series are Dota2, League of Legends or Heroes of the Storm.

FPS (shooters) . This genre of the game is nothing more than a shooter in which we also create our individual character, which we can improve by buying additional weapons, items and armor. Popular games in this genre include Counter-Strike (CS), Halo, Battlefield, Call of Duty.

The most popular e-sports stars in Poland are, among others, Jarosław "Pasha" Jarząbowski, belonging to the Virtus.pro group and Piotr "Izak" Skowyrski.

E-sport - he alth risks

E-sport is not a typical sport and has little to do with exercise, but it doesn't mean that players don't get tired and aren't prone to overtraining!

This was recently investigated by the New York Institiute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine. The statistics on the ailments complained of by e-sports players include: eye fatigue - 56%, back and neck pain - 42%, wrist pain - 36%, hand pain - 32%. Moreover, the study found that over 40% of e-athletes do not exercise, which further weakens the body and may contribute to injuries.

The most common complaints about e-sports players are: eye strain - 56%, back and neck pain - 42%, wrist pain - 36%.

Another important threat resulting from long hours of playing on the computer is disturbed sleep. E-players who spend a lot of time in front of LED screens are exposed to lower secretion of melatonin - the sleep hormone, which may result in insomnia in the future. What's more, playing computer games for many hours weakens your eyesight and can cause permanent damage to the retina.

The above threats are nothing compared to what happens with our entire body from sitting at the computer for many hours. Not only is an incorrect, sitting posture perpetuated, but also significantlythe risk of developing the so-called civilization diseases. This can result in severe physical disability, joint and bone pain, and contusions when you first try physical activity. Moreover, after many hours of sitting at the computer, you can develop problems with the heart, circulatory system, muscular system and the nervous system.

Playing for hours on a computer weakens your eyesight and can cause permanent damage to the retina.

E-sport may be a tempting hobby, but taking an active part in it is certainly not worth the high risk and he alth complications it entails. It's safer to treat computer gaming as an occasional escape from reality, rather than a key goal in life that accounts for most of your time. Real physical activity is a much more challenging and exciting adventure.

E-sport - what does e-sport have in common with sport?

E-sport with sport combines the acquisition of specific skills to become better and better. E-players must show above-average reflexes and perceptiveness. In addition, they must have developed strategic skills and be able to cooperate.

E-sport is largely a passion in which we must be able to cooperate with other players, and fair-play rules are mandatory here. E-players, just like traditional athletes, must constantly train and train to win. At e-sport competitions, just like during real sports competitions, there are crowds of fans who follow the struggles of their idols live and enthusiastically cheer them on. The e-sport tournaments are also attended by commentators and specialists such as psychologists and physical therapists.

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