I've been fascinated with eSports for most of the nearly seven years I've been writing for Kotaku.
I've interviewed famous pro-gamers, even played against a few of them... and lost terribly. I went to the first ever pro-gaming draft at the Playboy Mansion. I even pitched and wrote up a big package for the Rocky Mountain News about pro-gaming and Dish Network's attempt to turn it into the next NFL or perhaps NHL. That didn't pan out. In fact, none of those big corporate moves to make pro-gaming a household sport, ever seemed to work out.
Despite all of these years of coverage, I'm still personally baffled at the popularity of pro-gaming. Maybe it's because I don't watch sports either, I find them incredibly dull. In both cases, I'd rather be doing than watching.
But here is a take on eSports that reminds me why, despite my personal disinterest, I continue to be drawn to coverage of the fight to make eSports mainstream. Just look at those crowds, at that passion. It's the same thing you see at Gamescom every year. And it's amazing.
What does eSports mean to you?
You can contact Brian Crecente, the author of this post, at brian@kotaku.com. You can also find him on Twitter, Facebook, and lurking around our #tips page.