A hot new trend is sweeping youth worldwide: physical sports. Dubbed Psports to distinguish them from the more widely known Esports, or electronic sports. Young people are joining together in teams and compete using their own bodies instead of controllers of computers.
Psports is a revival of the kind of activity that was moved away from when video games first arrived on the scene in the 1970s and 1980s. Physical sports were abandoned in favor of the much safer video games, which were swiftly adapted into Esports leagues resembling their physical counterparts.
The dangers of Psports are one of the main points of criticism, with the risk of physical injury ever present when competing on an athletic field.
This is not to say that epsorts are harmless; repetitive stress injuries are common, along with issues caused by poor posture and players and trainers on professional teams.
However, these risks are comparatively low compared to the shattered bones, torn muscles and ligaments and brutal concussions common in Psports.
Local sculptor Karin Weiss ’99, was the captain of SLU’s StarCraft team during her time here. She refuses to let her son play Psports “even if he wanted to, it is just too dangerous and even if it was not, his time is better spent pursuing Esports.” Her son, Adam, 17, is involved in Esports through his high school. Adam has received an offer from Duke to play Counter-Strike: Global Offence for them as an entry-fragger. He is even more critical of Psports than his mother: “It’s not even real sports, just a bunch of yahoos running around on a field and hitting each other.
No communication or coordination. A point-take in Counter-strike requires the entire team to work together, not just have someone bigger or stronger than the other team.”
College athletic programs are still almost entirely devoted to Esports, but Psport clubs are popping up at many colleges and universities across America, including SLU. James Mayor ’21 started the SLU Psports Club as a way to stay active and have fun: “We don’t go too hard here, just throwing a ball or a disk around on the quad to get the blood pumping. Anyone is welcome to join us.”
Despite the laid back attitude at SLU, it is serious business at the fledgling professional Psports leagues. The Psport “football” has proved the most popular in America.
The game focuses on two teams attempting to move a ball into one end of a field to score a “touchdown” through a complicated system of attempts called “plays.” The National Football League, or NFL, already has dozens of teams across America.
Traditional esports teams are not shunning Psports organizations; instead, they are often buying into these new leagues. The Kraft Sports Group, owner of the Boston Uprising, a team in the Overwatch League, has bought into both the NFL and MLS (Major League Soccer), fielding the New England Patriots and the New England Revolution respectively. Patriots Coach Bill Belichick has often been compared to Chris “Huk” Loranger, President of Gaming for the Uprising.
Both have a reputation for finding underutilized talent and developing a game-plan around the strengths of the players available to them.
Despite this growth, the future of Psports is unclear.
This may just be a trendy fad that will die out in a few years once the money dries up, or it might one day grow to surpass Esports and you will find yourself cheering after homeruns and touchdowns instead of team-fights and headshots.