Viewers like you help make PBS (Thank you 😃) . Support your local PBS Member Station here: https://to.pbs.org/donateidea As our South Korean friends can confirm, video games can most definitely be a spectator sport. But will they ever catch on in a huge way in the good ol' U.S. of A? Well, pro leagues already exist, but to know if they'll ever reach the levels of March Madness and Superbowl Sunday, we need to take a closer look at traditional sports spectatorship to figure out the REAL reason we watch. It's more than just winning and losing: there are characters, rivalries, histories, and a host of other background information that coalesce into an AMAZING story, and we're dying to know the ending. Could eSports ever achieve this level of storytelling? Watch the episode to find out! Special Thanks to Mr. AJ Mazur / HatPerson for assisting greatly with research on this episode. Check out some awesome eSports Leagues featured in this episode! Major League Gaming: null IGN Pro League: null Further Reading Links: Jason Johnson Kill Screen Article: http://killscreendaily.com/articles/articles/pro-gaming/ Is Math Real on BoingBoing: http://boingboing.net/2013/06/22/is-math-real.html Numberphile - Is it Math or Maths? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SbZCECvoaTA Extra Credits - Zombies https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ohC10rUuuF4 Idea Channel IRC! http://bit.ly/138EHBh Tweets of the Week: https://twitter.com/lidowatts/status/347811988501585921 https://twitter.com/twptwit/status/349230246572199937 Music: "Europe" by Roglok (http://www.roglok.net/) "Carry on Carillon" by Roglok (http://www.roglok.net/) "Bouncy Castle" by Roglok (http://www.roglok.net/) ":P" by Roglok (http://www.roglok.net/) Level 5: Room for the Homeless http://www.jamendo.com/en/list/a101325/level-5 Chiptune - Kenzalol https://soundcloud.com/chiptune/kenzalol Pocaille https://soundcloud.com/pocaille/tachyon-pulses Binarpilot http://www.jamendo.com/en/track/661417/geeks "Squarehead" by Roglok (http://www.roglok.net/) Clockwork - Titan (geometry remix) https://soundcloud.com/wompworthy/clockwork-titan-geometry-remix Let us know what sorts of crazy ideas you have, about this episode and otherwise: Tweet at us! @pbsideachannel (yes, the longest twitter username ever) Email us! pbsideachannel [at] gmail [dot] com Idea Channel Facebook! http://Facebook.com/pbsideachannel Hosted by Mike Rugnetta (@mikerugnetta) Made by Kornhaber Brown (http://www.kornhaberbrown.com/) Want some more Idea Channel? Here's Last Week's episode: "Why Do We Love Zombies?" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RSoIDJCY3r8 Want another one? Here ya go: "Is The Universe A Computer?" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ws3XQo9MTA0 Here's Some More: "Is Math A Feature of The Universe or a Feature of Human Creation? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TbNymweHW4E