GTL: Understanding South Korea's Esports Dominance
By Twin Galaxies Editorial Staff ·
South Korea has been the dominant region in the world of esports for many years. However, are Western regions beginning to catch up?
South Korea has long been the most dominant region in the world of esports due to a culture that has supported and created an infrastructure that led to the development of the best players the industry has ever seen, which in turn has spread to other regions of the world as they do their best to develop the same esports system. Host Mandie Roman discusses these topics on today's episode of Game Talk Live with expert guests that include Heroes of the Storm commentator Thomas Kilian, Flyquest League of Legends team manager Josh Kim and InvenGlobal journalist Nick D'Orazio.
Starting off the show, the panel discusses the acceptance of professional gaming as a career in South Korea and how the region's culture of extremely high speed internet and PC cafes has led to the creation of an infrastructure that has developed countless talented esports players. Discussion also covers how this infrastructure sets up professional players for success as they are able to gain valuable LAN experience and develop chemistry with their teammates.
However, each panelist also explains how the acceptance of professional gaming as a career in South Korea has created a very competitive enviroment, as many individuals pursure the dream of being an esports player.
"[Students] go to #PC cafes [after school] Your youth is surrounded by a community of likeminded people…that helps cultivate #competition at an earlier age." -@dzMins, on the #SouthKorean #eSports advantage
— GameTalkLive (@GameTalkLive) April 4, 2018
Watch Live: https://t.co/gtmOIp8vqc pic.twitter.com/9ievLWbKV0
The show then moves onto the production value of South Korean esports events and whether or not they differ from Western regions. While South Korea has dominated in producing esports talent, Western organizations such as ESL and Dreamhack have risen to the top of producing large scale esports tournaments, but each panelist explains how South Korea and its production of esports leagues is on an extremely high level no matter how small the game is.
Topics also included the popularity of PC cafes in South Korea and how they help cultivate talent, the differences between how South Korean teams are ran compared to Western ones and how South Korean culture encourages talented players to pursue a esports career, while talented players in Western regions may be pushed to pursue other paths.
"Comparing [#esports events], the west has eclipsed #Korea…when it comes to production value and the organization of big time events." -@Khaldor
— GameTalkLive (@GameTalkLive) April 4, 2018
Watch Live: https://t.co/gtmOIp8vqc #koreanesports #esport #gaming #league pic.twitter.com/gCwSY8rCD1
Finally, discussion involves the panelists explaining their thoughts on if Western regions will ever catch up to South Korea in esports talent and infrastructure. While it is likely that North America and Europe will soon be producing players as talented as many South Korean players, it is not likely we will see the same kind of infrastructure as the one in place in South Korea is deeply engrained in the region's culture. However, the United States is attempting to create a similiar infrastructure in a different manner with collegiate gaming.
Game Talk Live has wrapped up for today, but you can see the episode in its entirety in the video above. Be sure to check out the previous episode where panelists discuss the issues that have plagued Sea of Thieves since its release.