The Biggest Esports Games Every Gamer Should Know

The gaming industry is one of the largest entertainment sectors in the world—larger than the music and film industry combined. A large portion of the gaming industry’s wealth comes from esports. Esports is essential to the gaming industry, with over 200 million esports enthusiasts across the globe. There are more and more competitive gaming tournaments being held worldwide every year, which are either streamed online or held in huge stadiums at specially organised events. Since the beginning of the pandemic, many esports tournaments have completely shifted to be housed online. 

Esports is incredibly sought-after by brands within the gaming industry and those not; many non-endemic brands (including beauty, fashion, tech and beverage) have begun sponsoring the biggest esports games, the biggest esports leagues and the most popular esports teams. As esports becomes more popular, the prize money awarded to top players has increased dramatically, with some esports tournaments offering millions to their winners. 

There are various ways to rank the biggest esports games in 2021. The location and size of tournaments can help determine the biggest esports games across the globe. While some esports games may be played by more people, others offer a larger cash prize for a smaller pool of players. 

We’ve made a list of some of the biggest esports games in 2021.

WHAT ARE The top 10 esports games 2021?

1. Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO)

Release date: 2012 

CS:GO is considered one of the biggest esports games in the industry. It is arguably one of the most famous first-person shooter games today. The gameplay consists of two opposing teams—Terrorists and Counter-terrorists who complete a number of objectives such as planting and defusing bombs, as well as capturing and rescuing hostages.

2. League of Legends

Release date: 2009 

League of Legends is easily one of the biggest esports games by viewership. The multiplayer online battle arena video game receives millions of viewers during the League of Legends World Championships. The gameplay consists of two teams that battle against each other by attacking the opposite base.

3. Fortnite

Release date: 2017 

Fortnite is one of the most popular esports games in gaming history. It is a third-person shooter game that was developed by Epic Games. Fortnite players can not only use weapons but can also build walls and stairs with different materials. Fortnite also hosts one of the biggest esports tournaments, Fortnite World Cup, which has been held since 2019. Many of the top gaming influencers such as Ninja are known for playing Fortnite. The video game also had the biggest prize pool ever of $15.1 million in 2019.

4. Dota 2

Release date: 2013 

Dota 2 is a multiplayer online battle arena game that was developed by Valve. The video game is a sequel to Defense of the Ancients. Dota 2 is made up of two teams of five players, with each team defending their own bases. Each player controls a ‘hero’ character that has different abilities and styles of play.

5. Overwatch

Release date: 2016 

Overwatch is a first-person shooter game developed by Blizzard Entertainment. The multiplayer game revolves around securing control of points on a map or taking a payload between points on a map. Overwatch also has different game modes such as solo, team deathmatch and capture-the-flag.

6. Rainbow Six Siege

Release date: 2015

Rainbow Six Siege is one of the biggest esports games. The tactical first-person shooter game is played in two teams of five players, with each team being designated as either attackers or defenders. The Rainbow Six Siege 2020 world championship Six Invitational had the highest prize pool in Rainbow Six Siege history.

7. Valorant

Release date: 2020 

Valorant is a relatively new video game that was developed by Riot Games, but that hasn’t stopped it from rising quickly to rank as one of the biggest esports games of 2021. The game is made up of two teams of five players that battle against each other. The first ever international championship for Valorant was held in Hanoi, Vietnam in June 2020.

8. Playerunknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG)

Release date: 2017

Playerunknown’s Battlegrounds is a multiplayer battle royale game developed by PUBG Corporation. Gamers have the option of first-person shooter or third-person shooter perspectives. The last player or team standing wins each round.

9. Splatoon 2

Release date: 2017 

Splatoon 2 is one of the biggest esports games that was developed by Nintendo. The third-person shooter game is the second title after the release of Splatoon in 2015. The gameplay centres on a hybrid character of a human-squid named Inkling who fights other players. There are different battle modes that are used in the gameplay.

10. Rocket League

Release date: 2016 

Rocket League is currently one of the largest esports games today. The game puts a futuristic twist on soccer, where cars are playing soccer instead of people. Rocket League is made up of two teams of eight players, with the objective of the game being to score a goal against the opposing team, just like a regular soccer match.

FAQs

What are the largest eSports Games tournaments of all time?

1. Dota 2: The International

The International is an annual esports world championship tournament for the video game Dota 2, hosted and produced by the game’s developer, Valve. The International tournament has one of the biggest earnings and largest prize pool of any esports tournament, standing at a whopping $40 million. The International has always been a popular tournament since it started in 2011, but in 2013 it implemented a crowdfunding structure to help maintain its level of popularity and gob-smacking prize pool. The International helps Dota 2 remain one of the biggest esports games of all time. 

2. League of Legends World Championship

League of Legends is one of the biggest esports games in the world, and it has a tournament to match. The League of Legends World Championship is the most popular tournament, with a huge viewership of over 46 million concurrent viewers in 2020. This tournament is renowned for consistently smashing its previous year’s viewership, so the numbers this year are expected to be huge. 

3. Fortnite World Cup Champion

The Fortnite World Cup offers the largest solo prize pot of any esports tournament. Fortnite grew to be one of the biggest esports games incredibly quickly, so the popularity of its tournament is unsurprising. At the last tournament in 2019, the winner took home the grand prize of 3 million USD. 

What is the biggest eSports game of 2021?

The biggest esports game of 2021 is Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. Not only is CS: GO the biggest games of 2021, it is one of the biggest esports games in the industry. It’s popular gameplay of two opposing teams results in an addictive FPS strategic minefield. 

The top 3 esports games of 2021

The top 3 esports games in 2021 are Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, League of Legends and Fortnite. 

Who are the most popular esports teams?

1. FaZe Clan 

The FaZe Clan is considered one of the top Esports teams in the world as a result of its huge media influencers and wide player skills. The team consists of over 30 professional esports players, many of which are experts in some of the biggest esports games and win high-prize tournaments. The team’s top players compete in CS: GO, Call of Duty Advanced Warfare, Fortnite and Playerunknown’s Battlegrounds. The FaZe Clan teams have earned over $8.5 million in tournament winnings, in addition to highly lucrative sponsorship deals with popular gaming brands such as G-Fuel and SteelSeries. 

2. Team Liquid

Team Liquid is composed of some of the best performing gamers on the planet who compete in some of the biggest esports games globally. Taking home a huge $35 million in winnings in over 1,700 tournaments, Team Liquid has earned its place as one of the most popular esports teams. With over 60 high-profile players, Team Liquid has begun dominating the mobile gaming world—particularly in the Clash Royale League Finals.

3. Cloud9

Cloud9 (also known as Astralis Group) has dominated the biggest esports game in the world for the last decade, Counter Strike: Global Offensive. The team has earned nearly $10 million in just over 700 tournaments and has taken home the 1st-place trophy in many of them, and their success in tournament play only seems to be growing. 

4. 100 Thieves

100 Thieves is an esports team known for its content creation and competitive esports playing. Housing professional esports players from across the globe, 100 Thieves also support gaming streamers that play for entertainment purposes. 100 Thieves is best known for its League of Legends performances. Although not an aggressively competitive esports team, 100 Thieves has a constant presence in the esports community. Some of its esports entertainment streamers are within the most popular gamers on the internet. 

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