MCV/DEVELOP News, events, research and jobs from the games industry
The world of eSports needs to improve its regulations to cut down on abusive and offensive behaviour from certain pro-gamers.
That’s according to Frank Elliott, community and PR manager at Mount & Blade: Warband studio Taleworlds Entertainment.
Speaking to MCV @ Gamescom about what is driving the growth of the lucrative eSports industry, Elliott said competitors are attracting as much attention as the games themselves.
“eSports really relies upon players with personalities,” he said. “That’s what creates the storylines around eSports. Twitch has really enabled that in a big way.”
However, internet videos of these players hurling verbal abuse at their opponents when they are victorious is holding the industry back, depicting the eSports sector as a breeding ground for abusive individuals.
“We need to do the same thing that normal sports does: regulate it,” said Elliott.
“We need to get more professional; we need coaches saying: ‘you can’t behave like that, because it’s embarrassing for us and our sponsors’. That’s how it gets resolved – people grow up.
“Videos like those from Call of Duty tournaments, they’re really awful. It’s humanity at its worst. It’s completely embarrassing for gaming in general – not just eSports – but it is being resolved.
“For example, Korea got a lot of criticism for its players being too bland and stale. But at least there’s some actual structure to stop professional gamers going off the hook and embarrassing everyone.”
