For years, video games have been a large part of many people’s lives. However, as time goes on, gaming is getting more and more competitive. This competitiveness and drive to win has created esports, better known as professional gaming. As a result, many casual gamers are finding it incredibly difficult to get into a game without being bombarded with “tryhards.” Is the competitiveness of gaming getting too hard to deal with to the point of where video games are dying or is it a positive that games are getting more competitive? In order to find an answer, we need to research this question.

The first thing to keep in mind about competitive gaming is that the esports industry is worth $1.1 billion. Many people enjoy watching their favorite video games played competitively rather than physical sports such as football. This makes a lot of sense because, unlike football, anyone can play a video game, not just seven-foot-tall goliaths. This draws a lot of attention towards video games and perhaps makes them more competitive; however, for me at least, if it generates that much money, then it’s worth investing in. Video games already generate a large amount of profit per year, and in terms of the economy, esports are only going to make the gaming industry perform better. It also allows games to be more mainstream because more people are likely to watch esports and see if they want to try out the game in the first place.

Another thing that many people are saying about current gaming is that it’s very hard for new players to get into because of the overwhelming amount of competitive players. However, games that have an abundance of these players, such as League of Legends, which is the most popular esport in the world, are still seeing record amounts of new players per year. It isn’t necessarily a bad thing to have this competitiveness because it creates more room for players to improve their skill, and, in the eyes of some, it adds reason to play the game. If everyone was at the same skill level, then what would be the fun in trying to improve in a game? Personally, I like having a high skill ceiling because I get to see how I can improve rather than not knowing what my certain strengths and weaknesses are. It makes video games more fun knowing that I have things to improve upon.

Lastly, it’s hard to know what everyone means by “tryhard.” Some players refer to the people who might abuse game mechanics. An example of this would be crouch spamming, a popular tactic seen in many shooter games where you will repeatedly move your character up and down to avoid dying as quickly. However, other players might also use this term for anyone who is skilled at the game. In my opinion, this term isn’t a very good point because it’s just how they play the game; I don’t see a problem with using game mechanics to your advantage or simply being better at the game than other people. It’s okay to be mad about losing, but blaming it on them “tryharding” isn’t a good reason. After all, competitiveness in gaming is what has gotten the industry so far in the first place. Even back in the 90s, gaming tournaments were common among people; it’s only now with more mainstream access to them that people are actually noticing these tournaments.

Overall, I see no problem with how competitive gaming has gotten over the years. It’s completely okay that games are becoming harder than they were before because the players are simply improving. If everyone stayed at the same skill level, I don’t think anyone would still be playing these games today. It’s no different than saying the NFL is ruining the sport of football; it’s simply an excuse to be mad at those who are more mechanically gifted in the game than you might be. It’s about getting to their skill level that is fun about the game, and there is no dilemma with that. If we try to combat competitiveness in video games, the only thing that will remain with them would be a dead industry.