I realize that this pieces is a passive commercial and the filmmakers likely had to fulfill a contract, but it's good anyway. I have recently started binging on esports docs and this is one of the better ones.

With the newest eSports tournament having a prize pool of 18 million dollars, I thought it would be a good time to try out this documentary. Coming in, I wasn't sure what to expect. I had seen some graphics clips and it looked like it would center around how people experience gaming and how free to play games have changed the gaming scene. Nope. There was a few mentions to gaming's rapid development but that was it. In most, the film centered around 3 players going into the tournament. Each player was from a different nation (Ukraine, Singapore, USA) and we were able to see how each culture feels about gamers. Chinese managers also gave a good perspective on Chinese gaming culture. Don't be afraid to go into this film if you can't play DoTA or any game. There are some tournament clips but they aren't the center of the movie. In fact, the film does a great job of explaining the basic premise of DoTA and then getting onto the real meat- gaming. This film probably won't change someone's mind about gaming. If they hate it, they will probably hate it still after the film. But if you are curious about how people are actually getting paid to win at computer games, this is the right film for you.

I was so thrilled when I saw that this so specific movie is actually rated in IMDb!!! I only don't like that this movie is not much, much longer. I hope it will be useful for people who don't understand gaming. I hope that now they will found e-sports at least something normal, no very good either very evil. The movie shows the two sides of the coin: the success and fun of the players and also the struggles and the hard time in life for all main characters. It's very nice to see pro-athletes supporting the e-sport players and that they actually have time to play and have fun. As for the scenes and the actual highlight of the tournament games I can't want more! I'm glad someone did this movie after so many years in e-sports. I'm glad that companies now are willing to invest in gaming, and also fans are supporting their idols in every possible way.

I play Dota myself occasionally and only through this game have I become introduced to the E-Sports scene. I have never accepted and recognised the sacrifices that these E-Sport players really make. When I thought of pro-gaming, I imagined a normal teenager juggling his social life, studies and gaming separately with ease. It is only through this documentary that I have come to come to terms the real sacrifices that a gamer in the pro scene makes, the life changing decisions they make and the struggle to get to where they have become and to break out into the scene. It does stir some emotions within you and you really start to appreciate the decisions they have made to pursue a career that has not been well recognised by modern society, a career that has been stigmatised with addiction and just plainly being a 'waste of time'. The documentary delves deep into these issues and the shows the attempts made by pro gamers to break free from these false views to truly make this career something they love doing and a career that others can appreciate. It shows how the prize pool for DOTA 2 International laid the foundations for the strong E-Sports community that is present today and the establishment for a much bigger scene in the future.