Mindsport Mashup #1

You may know that eSports is a fast growing phenomenon, not only to play, but to watch. The headlines about the viewership rivaling the Super Bowl are probably just headlines, because the two things are so different, and how they are measured are so different. The measurement data is especially interesting when you break it down by age, gender, and country. Some things are clear: eSports is bigger every year, and the biggest eSport of them all is League of Legends.

While you may have known about the above, did you know that there is now a world of collegiate eSports? And further, did you know that the Missouri has become the mecca for collegiate eSports?

http://www.espn.com/college-sports/story/_/id/21130531/midwest-emerges-home-college-esports

And did you know that the world champion of collegiate League of Legends is none other than Maryville University?

https://na.leagueoflegends.com/en/news/esports/esports-editorial/maryville-university-your-2017-college-champion

What, you may ask, has eSports to do with student robotics? Well, first and foremost, they are both mindsports, and the sporting nature of student robotics is just as important as other aspects, such as STEM learning and team building. The sport is the flame that makes everything go; the more fun and passionate the competition, and the more fans watching and cheering, the more effective the learning. We can learn about how to make robotics more sporting by looking at other mindsports.

Beyond the commonality of sports, we find an overlap in fanbase: many robotics students enjoy eSports too. And by mashing the two activities together, we hope to increase the fanbase for robotics.

So here it is, our first ever Mindsport Mashup! On Dec 9, in conjunction with the FTC meet being held at STLCC Wildwood from 1 to 5pm, we will have an appearance by the collegiate champion League of Legends team from Maryville U. The team will be present from 3 to 6pm, overlapping with the meet, so fans of both can cross between, and robot teams can stay after the meet to visit the League of Legends action. We are planning a format that includes watching live professional League of Legends all-star matches, watching past matches of the Maryville team, and Q&A with the team.

The campus book store will be open, and other campus clubs and activities will be present, including the League of Extraordinary Blokes, a club which hosts the annual WildCon event, and they will be running a video game competition, raffling prizes, and promoting WildCon.

This event is open to the public, so if you like robots, like League of Legends, or like both, come join us!

Click here for a high-res version of the poster, and help us promote!