One of the ideas that struck me presented by a professor at MIT, T.L.Taylor, if eSports if going to grow it cannot be insular but must be more inclusive.
Right now the demographic is predominantly male and has the mindset of being the outsider or geek. The community is content with just being insular. If eSports wants to drop the e and become a part of main stream and just a sport. How do we bring non-gamers and a lot more women to becoming a fan of gaming? Wait, wait, why would non-gamers ever be a fan of eSports? This is crazy. How many women and non-football players do you know that are fans of football? Quite a few and I can guarantee that very few of them played high school or college ball. I am one of them. Never played but love to watch football.
So why do women and non-football players watch football? How can this be replicated into the eSports?
These sports do a great job at connecting to many types of people. The model that best describes this is the Herrman Brain Dominance Instrument . This model breaks people into their dominance of thought and what is easiest for them to understand.
The Olympics does a great job at connecting to all 4 types of people. For example our C's or interpersonal thinkers love to get to see the stories about the athletes. Their lives and struggles connect to this section of the audience. Seeing their parents cheering on the Olympians from the crowd.
On the other side of the spectrum there the A's or the analytically thinkers. They love the result, the win the world record. The want to know how fast, how high and percentage of accuracy. All easy to find in not just in the Olympics but any major sport.
Our third style of thinking is our B's the sequential thinkers. These people like to see the process of how everything works. What was the process to prepare for the Olympics? Not just for the athletes but organizers as well. What goes in to practices for team sports? In the Olympics this sometimes is training regime or the story of creating the Olympic experience.
The last style of thought is our big picture thinkers our D's. They like the big picture, the long term affect, and creativity. This can be the hardest group to reach but the Olympics does well with opening and closing ceremonies to hit the creative need of audience members. eSports currently hits the analytical(A), and imaginative (D). There is still is room for improvement.
The community is still missing that human element. Fans want to feel connected to their player and players that are relatable. Fan/ player connection is something every sport relies on. It is that connection that every fan feels when Kobe Bryant hurts his finger, worry when Peyton Manning takes a big hit, or the disappointment in learning Lance Armstrong cheated. This human emotion and connection to the players is the next step eSports needs. eSports has the excitement and energy. Just watch this ending from IEM Katowice Fnatic vs SK gaming. It does not get much better than this clip. This is the final moments of a match deciding which of these two teams will get to stay in the tournament. Hope you enjoy.
Connecting players and viewers eSports needs an ambassador. Other alternative sports had this; such as Tony Hawk for skate boarding, Lance Armstrong for cycling (until he cheated), and Dave Mira for BMX. Each made headlines and promote their individual sport. These were the poster boys that usually could be found giving back to the community through education, events or promotions. eSports needs to find their poster boy especially in the United States and Europe that can bring fans in the door to see and experience eSports. Without it eSports may just always retain the "e" in eSports and never enjoy the prestige of traditional sports.
Who could be this poster boy to bring eSports in to the main stream? My thought could be Snoopeh from Evil Geniuses but only time will tell.
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| Snoopeh and his famous stare |
Until next time.
Rule #3: Be nice in game. The community does not need a toxic troll.
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