Armchair Athletes - Are Video Games Sports?

Video games have come a long way since Atari broke on to the scene almost three decades ago. Back then, the most action you could get from a game was a frantic tactical move with a joystick. Today, the Wii actually brings your whole body into play, so that the level of skill and coordination you need to rack up the points involves more than just your hands and your eyes. And with a list of games that includes skiing, bowling, boxing, martial arts and even table tennis, you have to start wondering: Could video games become the newest events in 21st-century sports?

Before you can talk about including video games in sports, you have to talk about how a sport is defined. Of course, this conversation is probably as old as Rome, where gladiators were the professional athletes of the day. Back then, one of the key elements of a sport may have been a fight to the death, which would certainly not have as universal an appeal in today’s sports world. Cheerleading is only now starting to take a place of respect within the sports world, though this is due largely to the infusion of gymnastics and technical choreography. Clearly, the definition of a sport changes with time and society. However, there must be some basic, underlying principles that separate baseball from debate club. But what are they?

The Maine Center for Sports and Coaching (MCSC) says that some of the basic elements of sports programs are “Philosophy, Values and Sportsmanship, Sports and Learning, Parents and Community, Quality of Coaching, Opportunity to Play, Health and Fitness, and Leadership, Polity and Organization.” No where in those key words does it say that sports have to take place in reality (as opposed to virtual reality), or that a coach has to be a real person. So, in theory, if we could apply the principles above to a video game, we might be able to determine its viability as an actual sport.

Let’s take Wii tennis as an example

This game is based on a sport, and you have to learn it, those two qualities are satisfied. In theory, the game’s “Help” features probably offer some coaching tips, and there is no doubt that someone will eventually write a book on special codes or methods for getting higher scores.

If you own a Wii, you no doubt have every opportunity to play you could ask for. Since you are moving around, there is some physical activity that could contribute to health and fitness. If you play Wii tennis with a group of people, there is no doubt some semblance of leadership, polity and organization (to determine who plays who, etc.).

Since Wii is accessible, you could feasibly include your parents as spectators, or even as competitors, and there are already small communities starting to form around Wii playing. In situations where you are playing with others, you have to learn the philosophy, values and sportsmanship associated with sports, or else you’ll be stuck playing the computer over and over again (and it really knows its stuff).

So it seems like all the points for a sports program, according to MCSC, are potentially there with the Wii. So does that make Wii games candidates for becoming official sports?

Angela Bull

(photo credit: wijkerslooth)

April 9th, 2009 by Sports Fan | Posted in Sports Scandals | (0)