E-sports: A Medal-Winning Opportunity for India at Asian Games

Introduction 

We live in a world where we enjoy sports in all forms and formats, whether it involves playing the game, watching it live or viewing it from the comfort of our homes. The very aspect of the unpredictability of sports makes it more engaging and participative for the players as well as viewers, and now the same has been taken under the influence of technology. Technology meeting the spirit of sports is the basis of e-sports across the globe. Millions of enthusiasts spend nearly 3-8 hours in online gaming every day. As per statistics, it has been seen that in India, gamers who engage for nearly 5-15 hours of binge gaming account for over 54% of the total gamer base in India. This shows the massive potential India holds in terms of being a global competitor in all tournaments.

Asian Games: Hangzhou

The Asian countries are gearing up for the 19th edition of the Asian Games, to be hosted in Hangzhou, China. The games were declared open by Chinese President Xi on 23rd September, 2023. The Asian Games will be held from 23rd September to 08th October, where players from all the Asian countries countries will compete in 40 sports to bring laurels for their country. 

One of the major changes seen in this edition of the Asian Games is that e-sports has been given validation to be a permanent medal-winning event in the Asian Games from here on. The category of e-sports has been recognised as a permanent medal-winning avenue, and the following games will be the arena for competition between players from different countries: 

• League of Legends: This game is primarily a 5v5 MOBA (Multiplayer Online BaAttle Arena) where each player has a different role, and the target is to destroy the Nexus in the opponent team’s base. This is one of the most famous and most played games to be introduced in the Asian Games and was one of the first games to be incorporated into the category of e-sports. 
• Arena of Valor Asian Games Version: This game is very similar to League of Legends, as Arena of Valor is also a 5v5 MOBA, which has seen a significant rise in the gamer base since its inception. This current version deployed at the Asian Games has been specially crafted and created exclusively for the 19th Asian Games, with an aspect of increased competition level among the players. 
• Peace Elite Asian Games Version: This is another famous battle royal online game which is very similar to the famous game PUBG. The game has been developed by Tencent Gaming, the production house that gave us PUBG and BGMI. The game has been developed especially for the 19th edition of the Asian Games this year. Massive participation and cutthroat competition are surely expected for this game.  
• Dota 2: This famous game has also made it to the sporting events of e-gaming. Defence of the Ancients (DOTA) is a fast-paced multiplayer game in which players compete against other players to save their territories and capture the territories of their opponents. This is deemed to be one of the toughest online games as it requires tremendous hand and eye coordination and constant adaptation to new strategies and techniques. 
• Dream Three Kingdoms 2:  This is a 3D multiplayer online MOBA. The game has been developed indigenously in Hangzhou, China. This is an online challenge game which can be played in the following configurations. 
• Street Fighter V: Champion Edition: The legendary arcade game Street Fighter has also made its way into the e-sports competitions. One of the most long-lasting games since the arcade era has been revamped and recreated with requirements suiting the Asian games. This will be a 1v1 game and require excellent hand-eye coordination. 
• EA SPORTS FC Online: This is the only real sport being played in the virtual format in the 19th Asian Games. Since the deal with FIFA did not take shape, this game is a recreation of the Football game FIFA. This game is also prepared specifically for the 19th Asian Games and is one of the events where a large faction of countries will be participating. 

Meet the Indian Teams 

The Indian Contingent for the e-sports category has a lot of accomplished and significant e-sports players from our country with experience in both domestic and international tournaments. 

• EA SPORTS FC ONLINE (September 24 – 27)
  • India’s representatives: Charanjot Singh and Karman Singh Tikka
    • Charanjot topped the South Asia seeding event ahead of the Asian Games, while Karman finished sixth. Their event at the Asian Games will feature 21 countries, with each tie featuring a best-of-three (BO3) format.
• Street Fighter V: Champion Edition (September 26 – 28)
  • India’s representatives: Mayank Prajapati and Ayan Biswas
    • Prajapati and Ayan finished fifth and sixth in their South Asian seeding event ahead of the Games, which is expected to feature 15 countries participating in this event – which will also feature a BO3 format in each tie.
• League of Legends (LoL) (September 25 – 29)
  • India’s representatives: Akshaj Shenoy (captain), Samarth Arvind Trivedi, Mihir Ranjan, Aditya Selvaraj, Aakash Shandilya, Sanindhya Malik (five players and one substitute)
    • India has no local LoL servers, with India’s squad making do with the newly introduced SEA server. It makes their unbeaten run at the Central and South Asian seeding event ahead of the Games all that more impressive. LoL will feature 19 countries at the Asian Games, with the group stage being a one-shot contest, while the event will turn into a BO3 format from the quarterfinal stage.
• Defence of the Ancients 2 (Dota 2) (September 29 – October 2)
  • India’s representatives: Darshan Bata (captain), Krish Gupta, Abhishek Yadav, Ketan Goyal, Shubham Goli.
    • The Indian team finished second in their seeding group (top eight overall) ahead of the Games and faced stiff competition for a shot at a medal. A team featuring three of the five going to the Asiad recently lost 0-2 to Malaysia and Mongolia in recent GEG23 (Global Esports Games) qualifiers.

Conclusion 

With the increasing influence of technology, there is no doubt that we need to embrace the changing trends, and there can be no better example than e-sports. As the world gears up for the 19th Asian Games, let us all get together to support and cheer our players in the e-sports category. The Indian contingent is feared by all other nations, and we now have an opportunity to be the scoreboard leaders for e-sports globally. These sporting events bring out the best in the players, and they all perform at an exceptional level and capacity. 

References 

• https://indianexpress.com/article/technology/gaming/indians-spend-eight-and-a-half-hours-on-average-every-week-gaming-report-7229425/
• https://info.hangzhou2022.cn/en/results/all-sports/competition-schedule.htm
• https://www.espn.in/espn/story/_/id/38462505/asian-games-india-aims-high-esports-debuts-medal-event-hangzhou?platform=amp