It makes sense that those who enjoy sport would gravitate most towards types of gaming that feature that same sense of liveness. Rather than just feeling as though they’re restricted to games that superficially resemble the sport that they enjoy – such as FIFA for football or Madden for NFL – the right kind of game can emulate the actual experience of sport much more closely.

To those who are yet to seek out what this kind of hobby can actually offer them, understanding what you might expect to find could help you to take that plunge – especially when gaming is more readily available and accessible than it’s ever been.

The Proximity of Esports

For some sports fans, the element of gaming that might feel most like coming home will be the field of esports. This is where select, popular multiplayer games are drawn into that familiar sphere of public entertainment, revolving around competitions that are much like those found in other sports. If you’re not sure where to start with gaming, this might be something that helps you to decide. Watching highlights from esports competitions can give you a good idea of which games you’re interested in and what kind of experiences call out to you the most; the only thing to bear in mind is the difference between what the game might be like at the beginner level and the esports level.

Live Service and Live Gaming

These kinds of experiences aren’t just limited to the big competitions; the games themselves are popular for a reason. The idea of ‘live gaming’ is one that can be split into multiple different meanings. It might be that someone is talking about watching someone play the game live – as is popular now through streaming platforms like Twitch. It could also be that they’re referring to live service games like Helldivers 2, which developers continue to support with regular updates and DLC, allowing them and their friends to stay within the community of a game for a longer period of time than what might usually make sense.

However, another type of live game could be an offshoot of another type of gaming entirely – live casinos. A regulated online casino in Canada can provide players with a huge variety of games, including access to live hands of poker, which can create both the immersion that gaming is known for and a link back to the physical form of the game.

Multiplayer Experiences

While live service games are almost always multiplayer games, that doesn’t have to be the avenue that you explore in order to get your ‘live’ fix from the medium. It might be instead that you’re more interested in the kinds of competitive landscapes that games have made famous over the years. Part of what you might look for could be something that feels similar to the sport that you enjoy – as in the case of a game like Rocket League – but it might also be that you turn your attention to shooters or MOBAs, or even fighting games, in an effort to try something new.