Esports is a thriving market and very soon we might encounter it taking over the world, thus becoming one of the essential traits of the 21st century. Simply put, eSports is a form of competition centred around video games. This would include organized events and tournaments with professional players battling against each other for glory, fame, or alluring prize pools. This allowed millions of GamStop fans to bet on sports, and at the moment several UK bookies at NonGamstopBets allow them to do so. These gambling sites keep track of all the popular tournaments and provide all options to the fans. Esports is the next most popular type of betting after traditional sports games.
The game that is referred to as the ‘grandfather of eSports’ came out in 1996 and was called Quake and the very first Quake Tournament was held the following year where Denis ‘Tresh’ Fong bagged a Ferrari 328. But it was only in the 2000s that eSport established itself. However, the oversaturation in the gaming industry makes it difficult to filter out the best in the lot. Three factors make a game an eSport:
- Skill Expression
- Viewing Experience
- Popularity
Esports games are available in several genres, such as:
- Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (MOBA)
- First-Person Shooter (FPS)
- Real-Time Strategy (RTS)
- Fighting Games
- Battle Royale
- Sports Games
It is believed that gambling is an innate part of any competition and hence, several betting sites act as sponsors for official players, teams, and eSports tournaments.
Top Games for eSports Betting
Here are a few of the most popular and sought after video games for eSports based on their viewership and prize payout:
- Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
Valve developed and released this first-person shooter (FPS) game in 2012. CS: GO is known to have a massive fan base and is the most played PC game, second to League of Legends. The game is a five on five one, where the attacking team or Terrorists attempts to plant bombs at either of the two bombsites and the other team, the Counter-Terrorists try to stop them. Competitive Counter-Strike has been around for nearly two decades and not for once has it faded in terms of its popularity and viewership. It is at its strongest point right now. the developer fronts million-dollar tournament prize pools and co-sponsors the ‘Majors’ events. Other third-party eSport organizers like the Electronic Sports League organizes smaller and regional events.
- Dota 2
Dota 2 was released in 2013 by Valve as a standalone sequel to WarCraft 3 mod, referred to as Defense of the Ancient (DotA). It is a free-to-play multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) that has successfully taken the e-gaming world by storm. The game requires two teams of five players to compete against each other to obliterate a large structure (the Ancient)that is being defended by the opposing team. Every player gets to play a different character with special powers. Dota Pro Circuit is a professional league organized by Valve, where players participate to qualify for The International, Dota’s premier tournament with a lot of gambling sponsors. It recorded the largest prize pool in eSports history with $34 million in 2019.
- League of Legends
The Riot Games developed the renowned League of Legends in 2009 which is a multiplayer online battle arena. It has a somewhat similar storyline as Dota. Two teams of 5 clash to destroy the other’s home base or Nexus while defending their own. It is one of the most played PC games in Europe and North America. Players more commonly place match bets (bets based on the outcome of a single match) on LoL. Some also place outright bets where bets are placed on the outcome of the whole tournament, which effectively increases the odds due to an increase in the variables.
- Call of Duty
One of the most popular game franchises the world has ever seen, Call of Duty was developed by Activision. It is a fast-paced FPs or First-person shooter game that was released in 2003. Since 2010, competitive CoD has existed in the market and the very first Call of Duty World Championship was held in 2013 with a prize pool of $1 million. The biggest CoD event is called the Call of Duty World League that is held in Latin America, the UK, North America, and Australia every year.
- Fortnite
In comparison to the other titles, Fortnite joined the party quite late in 2017 as a free-to-play battle royale. Epic Games developed a game that features cartoon graphics and quick and quirky games. The game requires players to gather material to build structures anywhere, survive fight battles. The competitive scene bloomed towards the 2018 summer when Epic Games organized a series of tournaments called Summer and Fall Skirmish. Again in 2019, Epic Games announced and held a World Cup with open online world cup qualifiers which experienced the participation of 40 million people worldwide.
Concluding Thoughts
Most of these games are available at multiple online gambling sites and are optimized for mobile and desktop play alike. The use of HTML5 and CSS3 technologies ensure that the games are perfectly responsive and compatible with iOS or Android-powered devices.
