Video games are becoming more popular and competitive around the world, which has led to the assumption that video games are a sport. Competitiveness has been increased by the introduction of concepts such as online multiplayer. Online multiplayer has allowed users across the world to play against or with each other. Video games should not be considered a sport because they lack real athleticism.
There are professional video-gamers that play for a living. Professional gamers practice playing the game just like an athlete would do for a sport. Major League Gaming (MLG) was introduced in 2006 and it is an official video gaming tournament that is broadcasted on television channels. It features the best gamers in a competitive battle in games such as Call of Duty.
Video games enhances hand-eye coordination and strategy. They work out the fingers and the brain. They create more awareness for gamers because in shooting games, the user is looking around for enemies and they must be completely aware to notice them.
Even though video games involve competition, they lack the physical movement that sports involve. There are exceptions such as the Wii, but not all games played on the Wii involve physical activity.
A sport is an activity that involves physical exertion and skill where a person or team plays against another as a competition. Video games require skill, but do not require much physical exertion, other than the use of fingers.
People are exercising and staying healthy by playing sports, but video games are not helping people stay healthy. People that play video games are just sitting down staring at a screen for hours and are not seeing the sun as much, even though they are stimulating their brains.
Video games are more of a hobby than a sport, and not everything that is competitive and requires skill should be considered a sport. Board games are also competitive and require skill, but they are not considered sports because of a lack of physical movement. For something to be considered a sport, it must include physical movement along with mental skills.
