As our South Korean friends can confirm, video games can most definitely be a spectator sport. But will they ever catch on in a huge way in the good ol’ U.S. of A? Well, pro leagues already exist, but to know if they’ll ever reach the levels of March Madness and Superbowl Sunday, we need to take a closer look at traditional sports spectatorship to figure out the REAL reason we watch. It’s more than just winning and losing: there are characters, rivalries, histories, and a host of other background information that coalesce into an AMAZING story, and we’re dying to know the ending. Could eSports ever achieve this level of storytelling? Watch the episode to find out!
Special Thanks to Mr. AJ Mazur / HatPerson for assisting greatly with research on this episode.
Listen beautiful relax classics on our Youtube channel.
Check out some awesome eSports Leagues featured in this episode!
Major League Gaming:
http://www.youtube.com/user/MajorLeagueGaming
IGN Pro League:
http://www.youtube.com/user/IGNProLeague
Further Reading Links:
Jason Johnson Kill Screen Article:
http://killscreendaily.com/articles/articles/pro-gaming/
Is Math Real on BoingBoing:
http://boingboing.net/2013/06/22/is-math-real.html
Numberphile – Is it Math or Maths?
Extra Credits – Zombies
Idea Channel IRC!
http://bit.ly/138EHBh
Tweets of the Week:
@mikerugnetta @petezrioka i was also forwarded this take on zombies http://t.co/pG75Zr5p7N
— khalid watson (@lidowatts) June 20, 2013
@pbsideachannel Look what one your videos started: http://t.co/hittAtYcpS
— The Basic Witch of November (@twptwit) June 24, 2013
Music:
“Europe” by Roglok (http://www.roglok.net)
“Carry on Carillon” by Roglok (http://www.roglok.net)
“Bouncy Castle” by Roglok (http://www.roglok.net)
“:P” by Roglok (http://www.roglok.net)
Level 5: Room for the Homeless
http://www.jamendo.com/en/list/a101325/level-5
Chiptune – Kenzalol
Pocaille
Binarpilot
http://www.jamendo.com/en/track/661417/geeks
“Squarehead” by Roglok (http://www.roglok.net)
Clockwork – Titan (geometry remix)
https://soundcloud.com/wompworthy/clockwork-titan-geometry-remix
Let us know what sorts of crazy ideas you have, about this episode and otherwise:
Tweet at us! @pbsideachannel (yes, the longest twitter username ever)
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http://Facebook.com/pbsideachannel
Hosted by Mike Rugnetta (@mikerugnetta)
Made by Kornhaber Brown (http://www.kornhaberbrown.com)
Want some more Idea Channel?
Here’s Last Week’s episode: “Why Do We Love Zombies?” http://youtu.be/RSoIDJCY3r8
Want another one? Here ya go: “Is The Universe A Computer?” http://youtu.be/ws3XQo9MTA0
Here’s Some More: “Is Math A Feature of The Universe or a Feature of Human Creation? http://youtu.be/TbNymweHW4E
