Chalk Talk - Professional Play for Pay

For this week's Chalk Talk assignment we touched on the subject of eSports and professional gaming. Despite it being a part of our culture since the 80's the concept of playing professionally is still very much a touchy subject amongst many gamers. Despite the clear split in opinion, tournaments like MLG, EVO, NASL and other leagues continue to gain momentum in prestige and popularity. Here's what GameSpotters had to say. Tazzman1000: As a child I always viewed myself as a competitive gamer. I would stay up at night thinking of tactics to win at Warcraft 3. I would be constantly chopping and changing my Pokemon line-up to get the most versatile fighting team. Id fight dozens of matches on Street Fighter and Tekken to find the characters who suited my style the best. …. read more.. Gelugon_baat: e-Sports is ultimately a product of hype - specifically one that feeds off the popularity of high-profile games with competitive gameplay. It has always been so when the first "league" or "club" was formed (usually from the more insular "clans") so that matches between seasoned players can be broadcasted over the Internet just to show how awesome a game (or its most ardent players) can be, even though what is shown is highly advanced play and is far from the experience that newcomers to the game would have. …. read more.. angelbless: Speaking of professional gamers could have been a joke 30 years ago when video games were just seen as a form of leisure and entertainment but today, its a reality that is growing so much that even associations that promote the development of professional gaming competitions were created, there are even the particular examples of countries like South Korea where video games have become a national sport. …. read more.. Additional Thoughts Here were a few other interesting points about eSports and Professional Gaming MrsViolence: As you all know, I attended MLG Anaheim 2012 Spring Championship back in early June! Not to compete, but to cover the amazing media that goes on all around us!! That Friday morning was extremely different for me, being as this was the first event I knew 100% that I wouldn't be competing in. …. read more.. TruedUp: Seeing the "NASL Season 3" image on the main page in the newsfeed rotation is great and I'm glad they are going this way. Professional gaming is definitely a thing, its fun to watch, its even better to learn, and should be given as much exposure as possible. …. read more.. The Peanut Gallery In addtion to the fantastic blogs on GameSpot we also took a quick Community Poll via Facebook and Twitter to find out what others had to say on the subject. Extra Credit Sometimes a good blog is simply a good blog, and these GameSpot members deserve recognition for their efforts and contributions: - Truth in Advertising By: Uesugi-dono - A Gamer's Guide to Back to School By: -Saigo- - The Retro vs Modern Debate By: dragonps A very special thanks to everyone who contributed to this week's Chalk Talk! To read all of the entrants, you can check out this link here. Next Week's Assignment - Video Game Music: In Perfect Harmony "Music is the strongest form of magic." - Brian Hugh Warner In this week's Chalk Talk Topic we're going to discuss one of the single most powerful and influential aspects of the games we love; the music. It is no secret that music in games can greatly influence the way we receive the game in question. Be it the simplistic notes from Legend of Zelda or the complex scores of Journey one thing is certain, video game music has a major impact on our gameplay experiences. Need some inspiration on how to get this blog rolling? Discuss the evolution of video game music from its humble beginnings to its now grand execution. Perhaps talk about the current trends regarding Video Game Concerts, or the creation of "Nerdcore". After you've created your blog make sure that you sound off in this weeks roll-call topic. &larr; Check here for more editions of Chalk Talk.