Did you know that esports games are expected to reach a global audience of 250 million people?
Esports has exploded in popularity, with new games being released every year. However, certain games are more popular and dominate the scene than others.
When we speak about the most popular esports games, we may refer to them in a variety of ways. Some games are more popular worldwide, while others are more popular in specific regions. Some have a lot more participants, while others have larger tournaments with a lot more money on the line.
In this article, we've ranked the most popular esports games by the amount of prize money they've given out for tournaments. The data for this was gathered from the Esports Earnings website. So, let's get this party started with a list of the most popular esports games.
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1. Dota 2
- 2013 is the year of release.
- $224.7 million in total prize money has been awarded.
- Tournaments of Note - The International
- Johan Sundstein, Jesse Vainikka, and Anathan Pham are among the best players on the team.
Valve Corporation's Dota 2 is a popular multiplayer battle arena esports game. Defense of the Ancients: All-Stars is a prequel to this game. North America and Europe are the two regions where it is most popular.
In most cases, the game is played in groups of five, with each player defending their own region on a map. One team wins by demolishing the “Ancient” building inside the opposing team's base.
2. Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
- 2012 is the year of release.
- $96.5 million in total prize money has been awarded.
- World Electronic Sports Games (WESG), ELEAGUE are two notable tournaments.
- Andreas Hjsleth, Peter Rasmussen, and Nicolai Reedtz are among the top players.
This is another popular esports game created by Valve Corporation and Hidden Path Entertainment in cooperation. It is the fourth installment in the Counter-Strike series and is a first-person shooter.
Terrorists and counter-terrorists are the two teams who play this game. Terrorists kidnap people and place a bomb. The counter-terrorists must rescue the captives while also disarming the explosives.
3. Fortnite
- 2017 is the year of release.
- $89.1 million in total prize money has been awarded.
- Fortnite World Cup, Fortnite Fall Skirmish Series, and Fortnite Summer Skirmish Series are notable tournaments.
- Kyle Giersdorf, Harrison Chang, and David Wang are among the best players on the team.
Epic Games created Fortnite, a popular multiplayer online game. Despite the fact that it contains three distinct game types, it is still considered one game. The following are the specifics for each game mode:
Save the World - This game pits up to four players against zombie-like monsters in order to protect themselves and fellow survivors.
Battle Royale is a player-versus-player game in which up to 100 people compete to be the last one standing. It may also be played in a group setting.
Creative is a sandbox mode in which players have complete creative freedom over the game environment.
4. League of Legends
- 2009 is the year of release.
- $75.5 million in total prize money has been awarded.
- Notable Tournaments - League of Legends World Championship
- Sang Hyeok Lee, Ho Seong Lee, and Jun Sik Bae are the top players.
Riot Games has created a multiplayer real-time strategic action game. In Asia, it is quite popular.
It is played by two teams of three or five players apiece, and the gameplay is identical to Dota 2. A team wins by demolishing a building called "Nexus" inside the opposing team's base, similar to Dota 2.
5. StarCraft II
- 2010 is the year of release.
- $33.0 million in total prize money has been awarded.
- WCS Global Finals, World Electronic Sports Games are two notable tournaments (WESG)
- Sung Choo Cho, Joona Sotala, and Byung Ryul Lee are among the top players.
Blizzard Entertainment created this real-time strategy game. It's a follow-up to the first Starcraft game.
The game takes place in a science-fiction world where three species—Terrans, Zerg, and Protoss—are battling it out. With the basic game Wings of Liberty and two expansion packs, it is split into three sections. The first section is about Terrans (humans), while the second and third parts are about Zerg and Protoss.
6. PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG)
- 2017 is the year of release.
- $22.2 million in total prize money has been awarded.
- PUBG Global Championship and PUBG Nations Cup are two notable tournaments.
- Jeong Yeong Bak, Jeong Wan Go, and Seung Hoon Cha are the top players.
UBG Corporation has created a battle royale-style game. Up to 100 people battle in this game to see who will be the last one standing. It may also be played in groups.
7. Overwatch
- 2016 is the year of release.
- $21.7 million in total prize money has been awarded.
- Overwatch League - Notable Tournaments
- Jae Hee Hong, Joon Yeong Park, and Ji Hyuk Kim are the top players.
This is a Blizzard Entertainment first-person shooter game that is played in six-person teams. The objective is to secure control points on a map or to transport a cargo from one location to another in a certain amount of time. The game is very popular in Asia, but it is also played in other parts of the globe.
8. Hearthstone
- 2014 is the year of release.
- $21.1 million in total prize money has been awarded.
- Hearthstone World Championship, GrandMasters, and Masters Tour are notable tournaments.
- Thijs Molendijk, Wei Lin Chen, and Pavel Beltiukov are among the best players in the world.
Blizzard Entertainment has created a free digital card game. It is a turn-based game that is played one-on-one between two players. Each player is given a deck of 30 cards and the option of choosing a hero with a special power. There are many game modes to choose from.
9. Heroes of the Storm
- 2015 is the year of release.
- $18.1 million in total prize money has been awarded.
- Heroes of the Storm Global Championship - Notable Tournaments
- Won Ho Jeong, Jung Hyeog Lee, and Jae Won Lee are the top players.
Blizzard Entertainment created this multiplayer game. Players and battlegrounds from Blizzard's other popular games, such as Warcraft and Overwatch, appear in the game. It's referred regarded as a "hero brawler" game rather than a "multiplayer online combat arena" or a "action real-time strategy" game because of its wider playstyle.
10. Arena of Valor
- 2015 is the year of release.
- $14.5 million in total prize money has been awarded.
- Tournaments of note include the Honor of Kings World Champion Cup and the King Pro League.
- Cat, NuoYan, and Alan are the top players in the game (original names not available)
It is a multiplayer online combat arena game created by TiMi Studios and distributed by Tencent Games, a more well-known gaming and media company. The game is played in five-person teams and includes many variations.
11. Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
- Year of Publication: 2000
- $13.4 million in total prize money has been awarded.
- Tournaments of Note - There have been no recent tournaments of note.
- Patrik Lindberg, Patrik Sättermon, and Harley Rwall are among the best players in the world.
Counter-Strike 1.6, also known as Half-Life: Counter-Strike, was the game that preceded Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. Valve Corporation was responsible for its creation.
The majority of CS 1.6 gamers have now switched to CS: GO. However, in terms of prize money given for tournaments and popularity, it remains one of the most popular esports games. In Europe, the game was very popular.
Conclusion
These are some of the most popular esports games available. You may follow esports influencers and players and watch their gameplays if you are an esports fan but not a player.