Traditional live sports are changing as we know it with emerging technologies helping athletes improve their overall game, but what about the non-traditional sporting world? Welcome to the world of esports: where gamers and gaming enthusiasts across the world convene around their love of competition all through the lens of technology. As traditional sports rely on network television and a geographical-centric fan base, esports breaks international barriers and brings diverse and sizable crowds, dedicated esports arenas and drives millions of video streams. Professional AV solutions including cameras, projectors and displays are critical in bringing esports to life whether in a virtual or live format.

A Virtual World Made Possible by Streaming

In a virtual setting, esports relies on top streaming services to get the games out to the widest audience possible. Unlike traditional sports, being live isn’t vital to the success of esports. Accessibility, on the other hand, is of the utmost importance. Without having to work within the restraints of live broadcast networks, services such as Twitch, YouTube and Facebook stream gaming competitions at any time to any device across the globe and have the potential to reach 313,000 viewers per minute. Video solutions such as point-of-view cameras make the virtual world of esports possible where viewers can watch the game and the player within one production, creating a fully immersive experience.

A Live Experience Captured From Every Point of View

Panasonic’s suite of AV solutions transforms stadiums of up to 200,000 square feet, such as the HyperX esports Arena, for live audiences to focus in on two components: the players and the game. Think of an esports tournament like a battle of the bands concert, where the players come together to both perform and compete. To track the performance and emotion of each player to deliver a compelling visual experience, producers rely on the best AV technology to translate the excitement.

To create an immersive visual, the right camera technology is integral to the production of an esports event. Three examples of the technology needed to capture the full story of the gaming battle include POV cameras, robotic cameras and studio cameras. First POV cameras, similar to the setup of a webcam, monitor a player’s face throughout play and capture emotions every step of the way allowing the audience to track the intensity of the tournament through the expression of their favorite player. To encompass the full stage of the event, esports productions turn to robotics cameras. These cameras are placed throughout an arena to get the full picture of the esports experience from play-by-play shots, to audience tracking and full-body gamer reactions. Finally, teams deploy studio cameras, specifically in large stadiums, to offer long shots at a distance. With the different cameras in play, the esports industry relies on a variety of camera technology to bring the emotions of the game to life.

Just as concert-goers want to see their favorite guitarists get intertwined in the chords, gaming enthusiasts are excited to see up-close how the controllers quickly become extensions of the gamers’ hands. High brightness projection matched with small-pixel displays offer viewers an enhanced live esports experience by bringing the captured footage to life. Projection mapping capabilities provide in-game visuals throughout the esports arena from team logos to player stats overlapping the live game. While the projection tracks the game, the displays often track the players. Professional display technology allows esports fans to immerse themselves with the players and their emotions up-close, while from a distance in the audience. The combination of high-lumens projectors and small-pixel displays offers a clear-cut image avoiding any moiré, which can distract fans from the game at hand. With projection and display technology, Panasonic provides an outstanding, visual fan experience bringing the small stage to a larger than life gaming event.

Esports is more than just a game, it’s a full production. Panasonic serves as a one-stop-shop for all things esports related, where others might only offer technology to accommodate one component of the production. Video, projection and display technology work in tandem to transform the stage of individual players to a full band of gamers working off of the fans’ energy to create a fully-immersive concert that is esports. From state-sponsored training programs to big-time college programs, esports is gaining traction among its traditional sporting competitors with the backing of great technology and immersive environments.