A Quick Guide to the Biggest Esports Games

Amid the impressive video game industry, competitive gaming titles used in esports competitions are responsible for bringing in a huge chunk of profit. In fact, the global esports market is estimated to be worth over $4 billion by 2030. This success has naturally led other mainstream entities to embrace esports. Most notably, gamers are buzzing with the news that esports will officially be an Olympic event. According to International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach, the first esports Olympics may be held as early as 2025 or 2026. This bodes well for gaming fans and participants as competitive sports grow in scale and popularity. In Mississippi alone, several learning institutions have even started assembling esports teams, with athletes competing in wide-scale competitions like the Esports Egg Bowl. 

That said, while the competitive gaming sector is well-populated, a handful of titles reign supreme. Considered some of the most popular and well-crafted games today, these titles are the ones that will most likely feature in the Olympics and continue to carry esports forward. Read on to find out more about them:

League of Legends (LoL)

One of the oldest competitive games still active today, LoL was first released in 2009. As outlined by a LoL betting guide, the game is a multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) set in the fictional realm of Runeterra. According to reports, it was inspired by the Warcraft III map Defense of the Ancients (Dota). Since its release, it has rapidly grown an international following, with legions of fans across the globe. As of 2023, there are multiple LoL leagues, with the four biggest based in South Korea, China, Europe, and North America. Annually, these leagues come face-to-face at the League of Legends World Championship. As per a Sporskeeda post, four of the five most-viewed esports championships were for LoL, with the 2022 finals raking in a record-breaking 5.1 million viewers. As of 2024, this Riot Games title has awarded around $105 million in total prize money. 

Valorant 

Another title from Riot Games, Valorant, is a relatively new game launched in 2020. Despite this, it has already made a name for itself as one of today’s most popular competitive games. Set in the distant future after the Earth has experienced a catastrophic Radianite event, Valorant is a first-person tactical hero shooter. A Valorant beginner’s guide notes that what sets this game apart is its emphasis on teamwork. Unlike other multi-player games, Valorant’s playable characters (called Agents) each have specific pros and cons, so a united front is required to balance out a team’s performance. In esports, the Valorant Champions Tour is one of the most famous today, with K-pop idols even participating in the festivities. To date, Valorant has been setting new internal records. In 2023, the game saw its biggest prize pool worth over $2 million, while the Madrid Masters leg of the Champions Tour in early 2024 had the highest viewership with more than 1.6 million. 

Dota 2

Dota 2 is a 2013 MOBA released by Valve. Unlike other competitive titles that first began as standalone games that later inspired mods, the opposite happened for Dota. Following the success of Warcraft III from Blizzard Entertainment, a community-made mod was created that would later evolve into Defense of the Ancients (DotA). After this became a hit, Dota 2 was introduced as a sequel. Dota 2 has hit incredible milestones as an esports title, including earning nominations and awards from IGN, The Game Awards, and the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences. Although its active monthly player base has gotten smaller following the introduction of other gaming titles, its esports influence remains substantial. Every year, the Dota 2 Internationals offer a huge crowdfunded prize pool. This pool totaled around $40 million at its highest, making Dota 2 one of history’s most lucrative esports games. 

Fortnite

Undeniably one of the most recognizable titles today, Fortnite has become so popular that even non-gamers know about it. Originally launched in 2017 by developer Epic Games, Fortnite has penetrated mainstream pop culture with several viral feats. For example, a few years ago, the dances that Fortnite avatars performed were trending online. While Fortnite didn’t actually create these dances, many of them, like the “floss,” are usually attributed to the game. Another example is Fortnite’s big-name collaborations with respected brands like Balenciaga. These are particularly meaningful for Fortnite as they signified their mainstream relevance. In the esports arena, Fornite sees millions of pro players, streamers, casual gamers, and even celebs partake in tournaments worldwide. In 2019, Epic held its inaugural Fortnite World Cup with a $30 million prize pool, celebrating the game’s success. 

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