FPS gaming through the ages

Posted by: Veed

Never in their wildest dreams, did the first game developers think that professional gamers would be playing their games on stage, broadcast on live TV to millions of spectators. Esports has developed from humble beginnings to the semblance of a genuine sport, with fans cheering on their heroes as they game for millions of dollars in prize money.

It started with a gaming revolution called Doom, where players could join a Deathmatch game with up to three opponents. Only, it wasn’t quite as simple to set up as today’s multiplayer titles. Players had to join the game in dos before any action had started, and it was LAN only.

Despite the primitive technology, Doom and its sequel, Doom II, had a huge impact on gaming and it’s easy to spot the signs of Esports’ birth. Pretty soon, bulletin boards such as DWANGO sprouted up to let players dial-in and play opponents that weren’t on the same network. Later, software like Kali and iDoom let people play over the rapidly developing Internet.

Even at this early stage, competition reared its head and players found tricks and tactics to give themselves the edge, from timing armour respawns, to strafe-running, and even strafe-wall-running for incredible speed boosts. These tricks and more were employed in what was the first big Esports tournament: Deathmatch 95, where top Doom 2 players from around the world converged in Richmond, Virginia. Knowing the characteristics of the BFG weapon meant the difference between winning and losing, much as understanding the recoil of rifles is a fundamental part of Counter-Strike today.

The next game to dominate the scene was Quake, released in 1996. Quake was designed to be played on the Internet, and pretty soon servers popped up all over the world and players would be hopping to different countries for a quick game against local opposition. Quake also introduced the idea of team-Vs-team in its original form and the dreaded ping factor. It’s all very well going trans-atlantic with your gaming, but the competition soon realised that you need to play on a low ping for real competition.

Along came the CPL to the rescue. They set up what is commonly recognised as the first professional gaming events. Originally featuring Doom, then Quake, many players made their names and professional status from playing in CPL events – our very own Sujoy Roy and, of course, CGS commentator Jonathan “Fatal1ty” Wendel. Quake set the scene for Esports by creating celebrities and national heroes. The “Cyberathletes” who played in the events were featured heavily in the mainstream media, and also in the coverage websites that popped up to follow this new gaming scene.


While Esports in Korea blossomed with Starcraft becoming as popular as any of their other sports, in the West, the gaming scene was suddenly rocked by a new game released innocently by amateur coders as a mod for Half Life. This was the release of Counter-Strike, a round-based tactical team FPS. The idea was simple, but this new style of game-play was embraced by the masses, creating a solid gaming foundation for Esports to thrive on.

Very quickly, Counter-Strike overtook Quake in popularity and began to dominate competitive gaming events. More and more global tournaments appeared to satisfy the demand for events. The WCG styled themselves after the Olympics. ESWC had a football World Cup feeling to it. Others tried different formulas to achieve success. Despite the huge number of organisers trying to get themselves a piece of the ‘Esports pie,’ one thing was always missing: TV coverage.

Last year CGS went worldwide with their league, and 18 teams representing cities from around the world. They gave away over a million dollars in prize money and created teams that had the look and feel of real sports squads, with each player earning a salary for being a professional gamer. More significantly, matches between teams were broadcast live on TV and reached millions of people worldwide.

There’s still a long way for Esports to go, but with so much happening, the future looks bright.