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So, as most of you know, I'm not very big on people who play fighting games and the like by tournament rules. Now, some will jump off the handle and say "WELL YOU'RE JUST A SCRUB AND CAN'T PLAY LIKE THE PROS" or some such bullshit.
However, from an onlookers standpoint, "competitive gaming" is probably the WORST thing to happen to the video game player base in modern times. I'm not saying competitive games are bad, not at all. The majority of "pro" players, however, are awful and may not (or may very well) be aware of how they're hurting the game community.
Now, you might say "how can playing a game at advanced levels hurt it?" Well, for starters, Super Smash Bros has become somewhat of a laughing stock, and competitive players have tried to make what started as a family friendly party game out to be some kind of serious 1 ON 1 TOURNAMENT BRAWLER.
That aside, competitive gaming weeds out everything in the game that isn't 'efficient' or 'guaranteed to win'. As such everyone uses the top items/characters in order to secure a win. Ok that's fine. But what crosses the line is when these "top ranked items/characters" dominate the charts. In this case, fighting games are big offenders. Sometimes, interesting characters are cast aside because they are "shit" or "worthless" and no one really puts the effort into using them to their full potential. It also makes it difficult because EVERYONE is using one of two (or maybe THREE) of the "top" characters.
The real issue with 'competitive gaming' is that it's actually driving a rut between players. People who choose to enjoy the game their way or challenge themselves by using "low tier" characters/tactics/items are scoffed at and mocked, driven away so everyone can continue using the same two things against each other in a repetitive, 'professional' cycle.
Meanwhile bad blood brews between "casuals" and "pros", further splitting the game world apart and causing more pockets of elitism.
In the end, it's not worth it. This competitive gaming shit needs to stop, and sadly, it won't. So next time you tune into some EVO stream, or hear some goons bragging about Halo online, remember. This is the problem with video games.
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