EPTOn January 21 2007 08:09 Physician wrote:
#ShcShc I think global e-sport is happening and will continue to happen with our without StaCraft, Blizzard etc.. StarCraft has played a huge roll though, it has showed the corporate world that it is just as viable as Basketball and soccer, if there is the interest, and can exist as a profitable professional sport; still it has been Counterstrike the leader in the pack when you talk global.
#ShcShc I think global e-sport is happening and will continue to happen with our without StaCraft, Blizzard etc.. StarCraft has played a huge roll though, it has showed the corporate world that it is just as viable as Basketball and soccer, if there is the interest, and can exist as a profitable professional sport; still it has been Counterstrike the leader in the pack when you talk global.
Exactly.
Currently there can be only two games which can really gain e-sport status: Starcraft and Counterstrike. Both games which are extremely good/fun but neither games are popular enough to be played globally. Counterstrike is the game which is the most popular globally but doesn't have a really well established e-sport channel for it.
Starcraft, while having a well established community in Korea and having potentital of expanding through China, it's popularity in North America (and Europe possibly) has diminished over the years. Everyone knows Starcraft, except they just stopped playing it.
If Starcraft 2 proves to be REALLY popular, there's a good chance of emerging as being THE global e-sport game. As you said, "if there is the interest, and can exist as a profitable professional sport" ; Starcraft 2 has this chance..
Especially with WoW's release, Blizzard is a company in which pretty much everyone has heard of. Starcraft can never emerge as global e-sport game because the game is simply too outdated.
As long as Starcraft 2 is a fast-paced, diverse strategy game (and being accessible to people's computer), global e-sport could gain rapid popularity.
Well, this is at least my views. I might very much be wrong.
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