Essay Video Games Should Be Considered A Sport

Practicing sports require more energy and physical movement than video games. Both are because both require concentration. For example, you will be mentally constrained if you were playing sports or playing video games alike. In the same way, both sports and video games require the individual to maintain a stable performance in playing them even if you are just doing them for fun. On the other hand, playing video games can be mentally draining because you will be trying to beat a

The youth of today have often been told or led to believe that an activity is not a sport. I beg to differ. As a young man and brother I was convinced that cheerleading was not a sport. My sister would argue anyone on that subject, and so would I after watching them perform. They not only cheer, but take gymnastics to another level of complexity. Cheerleading is definitely a sport with or without competitions. Once I concluded that cheerleading could be considered a sport, I began to apply those same concepts to other physical activities that I enjoy. This application leads me to consider a physical activity that I enjoy and feel I am an expert on; Motocross racing. It is a sport in all the elements defined above.

So that begs the question, what is a sport? Is it using a ball or scoring goals or running and kicking? Is it competing against others with the aim of winning a trophy, ribbon, or money? If a so-called sport does not include those things, does that make it not a sport? Here is my criteria for a sport: if it is in the Olympics, it is a sport.

One of the activities on the list that I thought was the furthest thing from a sport was Pigeon Racing. Even though I believed Pigeon racing to have incorporated many of the key components of a sport such as competition, a governing bodies, benefits, and strategy; it fails to meet the other requirements. One requirement that is not met is maintaining a certain level of physical and mental activity. In this particular sport the performer is completely dependent upon the pigeon to compete. By doing so this completely removes an athlete from the sport and eliminates any human chance in affecting the overall outcome. Instead of a sport I would categorize this as a recreational activity that is fun to watch and be involved in. I believe that an activity that relies solely on an animal performance cannot be considered to be a true sport.

To unearth the answer to the question, we must first learn what the definition of a sport is. According to the Webster Dictionary a sport is: a contest or game in which people do certain physical activities according to a specific set of rules and compete against each other. To justify that this is the actual meaning, we will also glance at the definition according to the Oxford Dictionary. The Oxford Dictionary states that a sport is: an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others for entertainment.

Video games do not meet the definition of a sport and there is a lack of “physical exertion” while playing video games. Third place winner of Tekken Tag Tournament 2 Unlimited Global Championship, Alexandre Laverez shows that there are no skills necessary to play video games and become a pro at it. There are health issues caused from playing video games such as sleep deprivation and lack vitamin D. From the rise of technology, video games are becoming more complex and strategic, but video games should stay as games, not

In order for a sport to be a sport it has to follow certain guidelines. So let’s see what these guidelines are. The first one is it must be a physical activity which involves propelling a mass through space or overcoming the resistance of mass. Secondly contesting or competing against/with an opponent is required.

“Should video games be considered a sport?” Well believe it or not, there’s are kids out there who actually claim it as one. And there is many reasons to why it should be called a sport. Video games is the only thing some kids are good at because not everyone is physically capable of playing sports such as basketball or football. So if they want to say it’s a sport, then why not? It consists of lot’s of competition at games, right equipment, and lots of hard work and dedication.

In fact according to the CNN, “ the eSports global audience grew from 204 million to 292 million between 2014 and 2016, a 43% increase in just two years and it's projected to exceed 427 million around the world by 2019”. Esports is a really big gaming industry in which it has tons of viewers each year making it no different from sports like tennis and volleyball. If those are considered sports then there is no reason for Esports not to be considered a sport. Since gaming is all digitized this doesn’t make it less entertaining for people, however most of the people around the globe would rather watch a group of people tapping and clicking on their keyboards than to watch two players fighting for the ball in a game of volleyball or tennis. According to Variety News, “22.3 million people watched NBC’s primetime coverage of the 2018 Winter Olympics from Pyeongchang, South Korea, on Monday”.

One of my first reasons why gaming should be considered a sport is because lots of young and old people play it. Especially in today's society technology is so advanced that the younger generation grew up with video games. Gaming is a form of entertainment and it’s made for all ages. You know how whenever you're at your grandparents house and you're all bored , well video gaming helps us , the younger generation connect with old people.

Should video games be a sport? The article I used is by Jessica Ravitz (CNN). I will tell you about University of Illinois’ video game program. In my opinion video games should be a sport. I will talk about the rooms they practice in, how parents react to their kids playing video games and how you can still get an education.

Video games are great entertainment for all ages, however they shouldn’t be considered a sport as they don’t provide any type of real effort of training and skill. Anyone can play a video game, all you need a pair of hands, maybe one if you have the right console, rather than traditional sports like football, basketball, soccer, and so on. These sports actually require intense physical exercise, skill, and training, while video game players just sit there and twiddle their thumbs to score points. You may believe this to be true but nevertheless video games actually require the same amount of skill as traditional sports. “A sport is an activity involving physical exertion and skill in

However, the lack of physical skill is made up by mental skill. Viramontes describes that by saying, “...video gaming requires so much mental training, focus, and the ability to read what your opponent’s next move is going to be” (Can Video Gaming Be Considered an Actual Sport?). A sport like chess is exactly interpreted as this; thinking about strategy and other major key points to win. Along with improving in the mental side of things, video games also increase hand-eye coordination. Robin Burks, an editor for Tech Times expresses that sensorimotor skills and hand-eye coordination improve while actively playing action games (Burks). Likewise, almost everything in life, including all the sports, require great hand-eye coordination to play. Furthermore, video games fall under this category. The term ‘sport’ can be differently interpreted among the general audience. Cerrudo stated that a professor, Dr. Ingo Froböse, explains, how just physical movements do not explain a general sport (Should “eSports” Be Considered As a Sport?). Different people think that a sport does not need physical effort for example, gold or chess. Therefore, video games are a sport.

Competitive gaming, also known as e-sports, is becoming a worldwide phenomenon. With huge events and tournaments that are watched by millions of passionate fans, many people are beginning to question whether playing video games can be considered a real sport. Even though e-sports may not be as physically demanding as traditional sports like football and basketball, the structure, strong fan base and the requirements to seriously contend in the competitive gaming scene legitimize it as a “real” sport.

A sport is defined as an athletic activity requiring skill or physical prowess and often of a competitive nature. Competitive. Competition is a rivalry between two or more persons or groups for an object desired in common, usually resulting in a victor and a loser. Something to argue would be if a competition could legitimately be considered a sport. The word ‘compete’ is in the definition of sport after all. So, should eSports, or Electronic Sports, be considered a sport?