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[Mictlantecuhtli]

Unless they didn't expect to. Because it's a publicity stunt. That might be crazy to think about, I know.

[Darvi]

You're the only one I see implying they made a profit.

He's not.

Publicity is all about profit, too, anyway.

[Bauglir]

No, I'm implying they think they will make a profit.

Publicity stunts are about making profits. How can you possibly not be aware of that.

[Dutchling]

Unless they didn't expect to. Because it's a publicity stunt. That might be crazy to think about, I know.

Maybe profit isn't the best way of describing the effect of a successful publicity stunt, but it's pretty much the same thing anyway. Just a little more long term.

[Frumple]

Turkish oil wrestling is a sport. Playing DOTA2, or any video game, is not. Despite popularity.

That's a helluva' claim considering there's not really meaningful difference between them. Competitive game requiring practice and physical skill. DotA's as much a sport as target shooting. Moreso, I'd say.

[Darvi]

Apparently, chess is a sport, or so I'm told. Somebody's got a few screws loose.

[Mictlantecuhtli]

No, I'm implying they think they will make a profit.

Publicity stunts are about making profits. How can you possibly not be aware of that.

> They think they can make a profit off of video game tournaments
Implied, but not proven nor provable until a specific statement or filing digging. We are not sure what the ESPN management's idea behind it was. We have 15 years of video game tournaments to go by, so I don't think they started doing this one because *this* one makes money on views. Feel free to correct me whenever these facts are out.
> They think they can profit off of added publicity
I'm guaranteeing it's because of the anti-nerd pro-nerd pro-sport anti-definition cascading arguements across twitter. Anger, curiousity, confusion, 'what's playing on ESPN' 'ESPN x' is the motivation. ESPN does this from time to time.


These two are mutually exclusive. Which is why ESPN shows non-sports like this, kicking a hornet's nest is a good way to make buzz. Just because they used something to generate anger doesn't mean this thing is now sport-worthy. If that were the case then we must consider every competitive video game a sport. Unless, of course, this definition of 'sport' is limited by popularity. Which isn't how sports work.

That's a helluva' claim considering there's not really meaningful difference between them. Competitive game requiring practice and physical skill. DotA's as much a sport as target shooting. Moreso, I'd say.

Okay. Then every video game is now a sport. Happy? And yes, there's a large, large difference in the two. One requires you to sit and remember how to best build every hero, and is hardly even a strategy video game. One requires you to work out, train, practice techniques to not hurt people, build up your endurance.

The similarities are superficial, and anyone claiming otherwise disparages the work that real athletes do.

[Reverie]

Apparently, chess is a sport, or so I'm told. Somebody's got a few screws loose.

I draw the line at chess, personally. Poker is hovering near the line too.

[Bauglir]

These two are mutually exclusive.

They really aren't. You're just telling me they win either way.

[Mictlantecuhtli]

These two are mutually exclusive.

They really aren't. You're just telling me they win either way.

You still haven't explained to me what video games are and aren't sports now, I'd appreciate clarification on if it's just DOTA2.

[Sergarr]

Video games, compared to real life sports, are subject to patches which can completely change the meta-game. So I can see the problem with considering them equal to target shooting or something else like that.

Chess is a sport because it's rules change reeeeeally slow over the ages. The same can be said of poker.

DOTA 2, though? The game where the patches tend to add completely new heroes and change ALL THE THINGS? Nope.

[Willfor]

Please take this derail elsewhere because it's generating rage instead of solving it. God. Damn.

[Bauglir]

You still haven't explained to me what video games are and aren't sports now, I'd appreciate clarification on if it's just DOTA2.

Oh, that's what you're after? Sorry, I misunderstood.

I don't care enough to construct a good definition of what qualifies as a sport, so I'll leave you to it. It's a... really nebulous problem, given that it's a fairly arbitrary concept. Good luck!

[GlyphGryph]

Apparently, chess is a sport, or so I'm told. Somebody's got a few screws loose.

This generally refers to "sports" in terms of "organized skill-and-ability-based competitions", which has been a growing and (fairly) non-controversial use of the term since the 1990s or so with the rise of things like "mind sports", "e-sports", and the like.

Arguably, the popularity of vehicle racing being considered a "traditional" sport (which isn't really much of a physical challenge, though it's certainly a skill-based one) naturally leads to that sort of understanding of the term, and that happened well before the 1990s.

[Spehss _]

I'm unsure why the vague label of sport creates such argument. "This is a sport, this isn't a sport" does it really matter? It was a thing, that was broadcast, that people enjoyed watching.
And, I would say DOTA occurred first in this case because it was a rather large event, with a significant prize pool, and a large professional scene lending it credibility.

This. I don't see why it's so hard to believe ESPN decided to broadcast it because it's a one time event with a huge prize-pool. Plus it was put on ESPN2, which is specifically for "odd" sports like chess or poker or whatever.