I Watched a Professional Video Game Tournament

Sunday morning I woke up at about 6am to drive over to a friends house to watch the finals of the Overwatch Atlantic Showdown. In case you didn't hear... after losing to them in an earlier round Rogue beat Reunited in the finals. Just look at how happy they are. They get some money and a shot at a bigger tournament in Germany later in the year.

I was confused during most of it. It didn't help that I was watching it with friends so we were talking over a lot of the commentating. Also most of the commentating was terrible.

I've seen professional gaming on TV before but I've never actually sat down and watched it. It was interesting. Being a team based FPS I can't imagine Overwatch is the easiest game to broadcast. It certainly isn't the easiest game to watch. The feed switched players quite often so just when you thought you were starting to understand what was happening on screen it would change. I guess that's good practice for playing Overwatch itself. Every once in a while there was a static camera that overlooked certain strategic points, I probably would have liked to have seen more of that camera. Still, it was interesting stuff.

My main reason for watching (other than an excuse to see my friends) was to try and pick up some tips or tricks to improve my game. The teams playing however were so out of my league I don't think I really learned anything. I took away a bit of info about the maps and the best spots to try and hold high or low ground but that's about it. It's funny, watching someone pull off a series of headshots doesn't actually help you aim any better. It's almost like I've been lied to by every Hollywood montage ever.

I'll probably check out another tournament if I get a chance to. I doubt I'll be replacing any of my other hobbies with electronic sports but maybe I'll free up a half hour every now and then. Maybe I'll stop watching Little People Big World or something. Ever since the Roloffs got a divorce that show has just been depressing.