Esports documentaries have boomed in the last few years, giving rise to young talent. Gamers who have spent hundreds of hours perfecting their craft with their team are featured in esports documentaries to encourage children and teenagers. These documentaries focus on particular video games and mention the top teams and international tournaments that have helped esports become a sizable industry.
With thousands of gamers taking up new video game titles as a profession, esports is paving the road ahead for a magnificent journey. The brightest players from esports teams are regularly interviewed by the media to support their claims of being the best in the business. Esports documentaries are receiving millions of new viewers as passionate players win competitions to earn enormous amounts of money. You can gain a ton of insights from esports documentaries before giving the lucrative career a shot.
Here are the best documentaries about esports that you can watch.
Free to Play
Free to Play is a documentary about 3 of the top Dota players on the planet. It is widely believed to be the ultimate esports documentary for Dota 2 beginners and fans of the strategy game. Produced by Valve, Free to Play focuses on the lives of Benedict “hyhy” Lim, Danil “Dendi” Ishutin, and Clinton “Fear” Loomis.
The documentary begins by announcing a million-dollar prize for the winners of a Dota 2 tournament. Excited to win the tournament, Benedict “hyhy” Lim convinces his team Scythe Gaming to participate in the international esports event. There are various details about Benedict “hyhy” Lim at his home and of his family. His father works at a shipping company and provides for his family with his profession. Benedict’s mother and aunt live at home and disapprove of him spending countless hours playing Dota 2 with his online friends.
Clinton “Fear” Loomis is an American professional gamer from Medford, Oregon. He is raised by a single mother, and practices his skills on an aged computer. The Dota 2 player would win matches on his computer to support his gaming career. The $1 million reward for the Dota 2 tournament filled Clinton with hope that his mother would respect him for his abilities.
Danil “Dendi” Ishutin is a Dota 2 player from Ukraine. He is a member of the esports organization Na’Vi and plays Dota 2 to lift up his spirits. The esports documentary becomes more intense after these 3 teams play in the tournament.
Eventually, Na’Vi is announced as the winner of the competition, taking home a grand prize of $1 million. However, after placing third in the tournament, Benedict “hyhy” Lim manages to win back his girlfriend, making him happy for standing by his decision to play. Clinton “Fear” Loomis won $25,000 from the tournament and bought a new computer to amplify his gaming sessions. He would return with his team, Evil Geniuses, to win first place at The International 2015.
Free to Play was a critical hit, gaining massive responses from reputed magazines. Maximum PC and Wired magazine have praised the esports documentary for striking the right chords with the gaming community.
Memories of CS:GO – The Early Years
Memories of CS:GO – The Early Years is an outstanding film. It focuses on the perspective of professional Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) players and their daily routines. Many of the legends from CS:GO like Henry “HenryG” Greer, Olof “olofmeister” Kajbjer, Patrik “f0rest” Lindberg, and Richard “shox” Papillon have shared their opinions of living and breathing CS:GO for their fans.
The esports documentary has several clips of the most played maps in CS:GO. It includes videos of gameplay from classic CS:GO maps like Dust II and Inferno to highlight the features of the FPS game. Memories of CS:GO – The Early Years was launched in March 2024 and has over 500,000 views on YouTube. It is among the most anticipated esports documentaries of 2024.
The Smash Brothers
The Smash Brothers is a documentary series about the most dominant players of the video game, Super Smash Bros. It has more than 14 million views across various streaming platforms. The nine-part series covers the rivalry of Super Smash Bros players and their progression on international stages and tournaments.
Newcomers to the action game can start with the introductory episode, Show Me Your Moves. It entails the development of early techniques in Super Smash Bros that helped elevate professional gamers from beginners. Christopher “Azen” McMullen and Ken “Ken” Hoang are 2 of the most competitive players featured in the first episode of The Smash Brothers esports documentary.
Jason “Mew2King” Zimmerman, Joel “Isai” Alvarado, and Joseph “Mango” Marquez are a few of the players that are a part of The Smash Brothers series. It also has several snippets of battles from the esports event Evo2K13.
Ecstasy of Order: The Tetris Masters
Ecstasy of Order: The Tetris Masters is an American documentary about esports players taking part in the Classic Tetris World Championship in 2010. Held in Los Angeles, California, the Classic Tetris World Championship reveals the story of Tetris gamers and their claim to fame.
It was screened at over 15 film festivals, debuting at the 2011 Austin Film Festival. At the time of its release in 2011, Ecstasy of Order: The Tetris Masters made more than $100,000 from box office sales. Jonas Neubauer and Harry Hong have been pivotal to the esports documentaries, attributing to their unbeatable high score of 999,999 in Tetris. Henk Rogers, the CEO of The Tetris Company also has a special appearance in the esports documentary.
