It has been more than 2 years since I started for my post here at IeSF HQ as the secretary general. As collecting the course we have followed for last 2 years, I still feel something wanting. We have invited 25 member nations in 1 and half years, and IeSF national qualifiers are operated from the beginning of each year, and IeSF HQ, also, host various events with hectic schedule, such as Euro and Asia Conferences, Symposium, Word Championship and General Meeting.
But why do I still feel a piece missing from the nook of my mind? Concerning the global standardization project, this emptiness drives me to even deeper abyss of agony. Can we make e-sports as sports for real? Is it appropriate that we benchmark the structure and pattern of sports without being critical?
As deliberating these issues, I assume that it is time to gather our senses again and con the steer as the 1st generation of e-sports. We need to look squarely with critical senses the abnormal growth of e-sports in past 10 years in which passed without long term cooperation of publishers, and crisis in present. e-Sports should fix itself up in its own way as e-sports. If we just move on with the moderate compromise, there may be no word for e-sports in next generation never more. The real objective which e-sports should pursue, as considering its backbone, the internet, is not the wicked imitation of the sports, but creating and establishing own territory only for e-sports. If we can say that the e-sports has been the off-line competition event which is delivered by physical ability and mind control, the e-sports in the future will be more like operation of integrate cognitive ability, instant judgment and concentration in cyber space such as online or mobile.
As seeking for an answer how Korea has stepped up as the global leader of e-sports field in past years, the most admitted answer is, ‘Korea is the country which has fulfilled the internet circumstance at the finest level in the world.’ Of course, in the flow of 10 years, the gap of information infra among nations has been narrowed, and the platform is also in the process of transfer from online to mobile. However, still, the background of beginning of e-sports and the generation of hegemony for e-sports filed are very obvious, and it may be able to lead us to the very simple answer for the matters that we are facing now.
If the ‘cyber stadium’ exists where all the players, spectators and organizers can interact in the cyber word based on internet, and if people can compete and enjoy at anytime, anywhere regardless of gender or race, then, it would be the real term of e-sports. Only when the unique characters of e-sports are differentiated from regular sports, the e-sports must be positive and competitive within sports filed where e-sports cannot help being the minor. In order to accomplish this mission, we shall brace up ourselves. In the situation when direction and vision of e-sports are not clear with all matters to be solved, simple benchmarking of other sports organizations would be premature. The priorities are more likely to derive long term practical cooperation with publishers to excavate new e-sports titles, and to foster more players and referees, so finally, to establish the cyber stadium in the cyber world based on global standardization.
Of course, this must require hard work, plenty of time and expense to be input. However, in order to hand over proper e-sports to our next generation, this is the time for taking the direction of the course and execution of the plans. In spite of all these obligations, I would like to challenge majestically with facing the gauntlet as the secretary general of IeSF.
