ESPN Discusses MMORPGs In eSports

As ESPN continues to make its move into the growing world of eSports, it has begun publishing columns about the state of eSports. Yesterday, it published an article that discusses the state of World of Warcraft as their example of an MMORPG that has failed to enter the eSports arena in a sense, stating that "World of Warcraft characters' health bars go up and down so quickly that it's difficult for the average viewer to tell if a particular play is important."

The article then cites Guild Wars 2 as examples of MMORPGs that are successfully entering the eSports arena. Both games equalize gear during PvP and feature a lower number of skills that are easier to read. Blade and Soul's interface even helps viewers understand what is going on as it happens.

ESPN underlines some of the problems various games have when attempting to become eSports. NCSoft Brand Manager Julianne Harty was quoted saying "Any sport-related activity needs to be easy to pick up but difficult to master, and your proficiency in the sport should not be reliant upon the type of equipment that you use." Players need to be able to understand what is going on, but at the same time, the game has to have depth. Going forward, it will be interesting to see how other MMORPGs tackle these challenges.