In the past, the IOC had a strong stance against violent games, expressing worries about how they can encourage violence and discrimination.
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In a surprising announcement, Fortnite has been added as a late entry to the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) new venture into esports. The IOC has chosen to include Fortnite, one of the most popular games globally, as the tenth discipline in the Olympic Esports Series, focusing on the “sport shooting” category. This decision is a significant turning point for the esports industry, as it represents a notable U-turn in the IOC’s position on violent video games. Fortnite: The Surprising Addition to Olympic Esports Series
In the past, the IOC had a strong stance against violent games, expressing worries about how they can encourage violence and discrimination. 2018 IOC President Thomas Bach made the infamous statement, “We cannot have in the Olympic programme a game which is promoting violence or discrimination.” The IOC’s opinion may have changed as a result of Fortnite’s enormous popularity and cultural significance, as indicated by the game’s inclusion in the competition.
Despite being a shooting game, Fortnite is renowned for being a family-friendly title thanks to its lack of gore and inclusion of silly things. Even said, the game’s fundamental gameplay still revolves around defeating opponents in order to triumph, which poses some important questions regarding the ideals and tenets that the Olympics uphold. On the other hand, the inclusion of Fortnite emphasises the popularity and promise of virtual sports, which have grown in popularity over the past several years.
Given that the best 12 players from the 2023 Fortnite Champion Series will be invited to compete, the introduction of Fortnite in the Olympics may open up new prospects for professional players. This method of handling other virtual sports on the roster is compatible with how they are generally handled, which is by game creators. The final competition, which will include ten virtual sports including tennis, chess, baseball, sailing, taekwondo, and archery, will take place in Singapore from June 23 to 25.
Just Dance will stand in for the dance category, and Gran Turismo will be used for racing. The other sports will be represented by mobile gaming apps like Tic Tac Bow for archery, which blends conventional accuracy requirements with the gameplay of noughts and crosses.
The IOC took a risk when it decided to include Fortnite in the Olympics because it recognises how times have changed and how sports and entertainment have evolved. Whether this choice is wise or foolish will be observed by everyone in the world. One thing is for certain, though: the esports sector can be proud of its success that the Olympics have acknowledged the genre and added virtual sports to its list of events.
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