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Fortnite Battle Royale is establishing itself as one of the most popular computer games of our era, with an estimated following of more than 250 million players globally.
It is a deviation from other popular games of the same genre; Counter-Strike or PUBG, because its graphics are animated more than realistic, and guardians are less likely to find offending content of violence, blood, or fighting.
Only recently, over 40 million competitors took part in a ten-week competition which had net prize money of $30m. American teenager Kyle Giersdorf won himself $3m after emerging top in the concluded World Cup event, with Jaden Ashman of Britain and his colleague securing $2.25m between them for emerging the runners up in the doubles category.
The event took place in the famous tennis arena Arthur Ashe in New York which has a seating capacity of 23,771. That only shows just how much it has grown over the last few years, and how much attention it is receiving from around the world.
Undeniably, esports is not only growing as an online leisure sport, but it is growing as a lucrative industry attracting numerous players from around the globe every new day. It is estimated that there are over 2.2 billion gamers around the world, out of the world’s population of 7.7 billion. Out of the 2.2 billion players, some 453 million are said to be regular and occasional esports viewers with the number divided among top esports channels like Betway88, for instance.
Understanding Esports’ Competitive Edge
Esports are of course competitions that involve electronic (video) games, and in many cases involving professionals. Players can either play for an audience or compete in organized leagues on livestreaming media in exchange for some payment.
It gets more lucrative for players as they go up the ladder where they can rake in millions of dollars in prize money. The recently concluded Fortnite World Cup is a testimony of how lucrative the industry is becoming. With a prize pool of some $30 million, enormous wins for winners, and prize bonuses even for lowly placed participants was no mean feat. It has been established that players ranking as low as position 65 to 108 took home $50,000.
Like physical sports, esports requires a fair share of training for fitness and endurance. On what some oddly call the e-platform, the prize money grows as you advance, and a player’s concentration levels can be aided by their fitness levels. Players in top channels such as Betway88 can attest to the importance of endurance.
The Projection
From the look of things, esports will of course be around for the unforeseeable future. However, the degree of prosperity leans on several factors such as governance of the industry, entertainment trends and regulation in different parts of the globe. There are significant revenues in esports, and everything is indicative of an even more lucrative industry in the future, recently likened to huge sports tournaments like the Super bowl.
If the industry is to remain relevant and healthy, it is suggested that it looks at better ways to gather data. For example, there is not much valuable or accurate data capturing info on the size of UK esports at the moment.
If industry stakeholders can find an effective way to collect consistent player and fan data to get a better understanding of their behaviors and ongoing trends, it could be the turning point in esports’ long-term credibility.
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