As we know, ASIAD Hangzhou will be the first time that Esports officially becomes a medal sport. Although it has appeared since 2018, at that time Esports was merely a demonstration. Nevertheless, both representatives in the finals, China and South Korea, played hard and delivered an impressive performance. That year, the representative from the land of billions convincingly took the crown.
Returning to ASIAD Hangzhou at the end of 2023, with the status of a medal sport, the disciplines in the field of Esports here may also have to comply with some strict regulations. As known, electronic sports have quite a few differences from traditional sports, especially in high-stakes disciplines like League of Legends, DOTA 2… The language used in the in-game settings of these games is often quite sensitive, such as Double Kill (taking down 2 opponents in a certain period).
Recently, according to 957 (a former star of Team WE and currently a commentator at LPL), it is highly likely that the Esports discipline will be subject to special rules to minimize sensitive language at the upcoming ASIAD. According to 957, no other sport has elements like needing to eliminate opponents to win, except for Esports. Therefore, terms like “kill” may need to be replaced with “knock down” or “take point”.
According to many opinions after the information from 957 emerged, this could cause headaches for many publishers. If changes are necessary, publishers may have to issue urgent updates for the version used at ASIAD. Additionally, some opinions suggest that while edits are necessary, they will undermine the identity and familiar terminology for the esports audience in general and fighting games in particular.
Currently, this is just information from the media of LPL, and the ASIAD organizers have not made any statements on this matter. However, this information (if it exists) is completely understandable, and perhaps the audience will have to get used to these modifications at the upcoming ASIAD.