What is the first thing that comes to your mind when you think of a gamer? Face it; you think about a pale-skinned, antisocial guy who spends a majority of his time playing a video game like World of Warcraft--at least I do. It wasn’t until I saw a 2006 report on 60 Minutes, titled Cyber Athlete Fatal1ty, that my view of gamers changed drastically. Correspondent Steve Kroft of 60 Minutes introduces the best cyber competitor in America, a man in his mid twenties by the name of Jonathan Wendel, better known by his gamertag Fatal1ty. During an era when parents and experts discourage an extensive amount of video game playing, Wendel is making a living as a professional gamer. Over his six year career, Wendel earned over $300,000 in tournaments and was projected to make an additional million dollars from his “Fatal1ty” products. Wendel is one of many cyber athletes who are emerging from an increasingly popular sport: professional gaming.
As outrageous as that statement sounds, every sport has a beginning and its share of skepticism. Who would have thought that throwing a ball into a basket would become the global attraction known as basketball? The same can be said for soccer, which is basically eleven guys competing to kick a ball into a box. Professional gaming is an up-and-coming sport that has already hit its stride in South Korea, where Starcraft tournaments attract 100,000 viewers. Its top players make hundreds of thousands of dollars in addition to being some of the most adored people in Korea.
In 2006, 60 Minutes anticipated that the competitive gaming scene would hit America soon, just as extreme sports had done a decade earlier. Today, professional gaming exists on a much larger scale. South Korea is still home to some of the highest level Starcraft gamers, and the recent release of Starcraft 2 brought even more players and craze to cyber gaming. Major League Gaming, the governing body of cyber gaming in America, hosts tournaments attracting a plethora of cyber athletes.
This new perspective has been quite illuminating for me. I always thought that gamers were people who did not have their priorities in the right order, and I never thought that they could make a living from gaming. Little did I know that there was a world where people play video games for a living. I cannot help but feel envious of them; after all, is it not everyone’s desire to find a fun job that they love? As much as we’d like to deny it, Jonathan ‘Fatal1ty’ Wendel has fulfilled that desire.
List of Sources: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/01/19/60minutes/main1220146.shtml?tag=mncol;lst;6
4 comments:
I actually heard of Fatal1ty and the other "e-athletes" several years ago in a Sports Illustrated article, of all places. It's good to hear that they're still around.
As someone who has only ever played video games recreationally, I can attest to the competitive environment around the gaming world and can see how it could lead to professional players and the development of league management. However, I don't think that I will encourage anyone I know to persue a job as a professional gamer; it seems like it would be more difficult, time-consuming, and less healthy than the effort needed to take the "tried and true" route of becoming a professional or Olympic athlete.
It's nice to know that there is a job field for people who are extraordinarily good at video gaming. I think America has started supporting online gaming with games such as Halo, Super Smash Brothers and Madden. I wonder how stable this job will be for prospective gamers. Does age play an impact in their skill? Perhaps it is more stable than other physical sports.
On that note, at least there is less of a risk of major physical injury. You may gain some weight, but you won't break any bones!
Having followed the professional scene of StarCraft for over two years now, I can attest to how exciting the world of eSports is. It is exactly what you would expect, as you already mention, from other sports such as basketball. It is a scene with its stories, rivalries, underdogs and legends. And as for its players, many of them had to overcome their parent’s initial reluctance to begin their careers. For example, Lee Young Ho “Flash” is considered right now to be the God of StarCraft, holding an unheard of winning percentage. However, this could have all never happened. Before Flash began his career, he made a promise to his parents, telling them that if he failed to pass Courage (the rigorous tournament to become a professional gamer) on his first try, he would stop playing games and focus on school. It is interesting to think about had he failed, would he have been better off? I for one do not think so, as he has now become a celebrity within Korea while making more money via his tournaments, sponsorships, and contracts than many other jobs available. And most importantly he is doing what he enjoys.
@Ashley: Some of the better progamers become coaches or commentators as they get older. Sadly however, most progamers end up dropping out of the scene completely, and then are forced to make up for the time they have spent playing. However, this is extremely similar to Olympic athletes, as after their prime, many are forced to find a new career. I remember back in middle school, my teacher was an Olympic Gold Medalist for swimming. I wonder if she still teaches here in Davis.
I thought this blog was really interesting, I had actually never heard of professional gamers before (I thought it was joke). However, with video games being such a large part of our lives it's not surprising to see some gamers rise to the top. A few years ago my cousin got a job with an impressive salary testing video games. He was hired because he was so good at this company's games that he could progress to the hardest levels of new games and discover glitches. I was impressed and surprised that he could make a living off playing video games, but your article shows that more and more people are doing it now. (Also, I like your description of soccer)
Post a Comment