Not long ago, news about an Olympic Esports tournament specifically for esports created quite a buzz in the community. In fact, this information was even published on the official IOC (International Olympic Committee) website, confirming the legitimacy of the tournament. Moreover, with the success of the Esports World Cup in Saudi Arabia recently, the establishment of a dedicated Olympic event for esports can be seen as a significant step forward. Not only will esports achieve a status comparable to traditional sports, but it will also have its own Olympic event. Additionally, audiences are curious about which esports genres will have the opportunity to participate in this Olympic event if it indeed takes place in the future.
Recently, representatives from the IOC shared additional information regarding the event. Specifically, the Olympic Esports event is expected to receive substantial sponsorship from Saudi Arabia. Furthermore, some of the games that may be included are League of Legends, Rocket League, Street Fighter, Tekken, iRacing, NBA2K, FIFA, and several mobile games. However, the disappointing news for fans of FPS or survival games is that titles like FPS/Shooter may be “wiped out” from the tournament.
In reality, this is entirely understandable. Despite being a legendary game genre in the gaming world, FPS/Shooter games are considered quite violent and not suitable to be competitive events in the Olympics. Moreover, traditional sports have never allowed actions that eliminate opponents to achieve victory. Therefore, the absence of FPS/Shooter games is quite reasonable. Not to mention, players of FPS/Shooter games would also find it challenging to experience their highest emotions when sensitive elements in the game are altered or changed to fit traditional sports standards.
After the IOC’s comments, the esports community is likely to feel more excited about the prospect of a dedicated Olympic event for esports in the near future. If this becomes a reality, esports will have taken an important step and can definitely look forward to achieving even more in the future.