Esports: Team Style Impacts Results

As we follow the fictional (but fact-based) exploits of our esports team, let’s take a look at team bonding and cohesiveness and it’s impact on esports. For teams and players that live and work together, what else can they do to optimize the team experience? (If you miss any installments in this series, you can read them all at here.)

Team Otherworlds’ manager, Hyun Park, had a penchant for treating his players to something special right before each tournament—something to give them a little boost before they engaged in a grueling day of competition, something that might give them just the edge they needed to be the best of the best.

In the past, they’d gotten team hats and team hoodies emblazoned with their logo. He’d given them power packs and protectors for their smartphones and tablets—but today’s announcement had Tomas Cordona and his teammates really excited. Mr. Park had gone above and beyond. Truly.

Now Tomas understood the significance of unofficial team captain Zach Reynold’s new gaming backpack and his association with its prototyping and promotion . . . and why he’d brought it along to today’s tournament.

The full-featured CORE Gaming Backpack from Mobile Edge was in the midst of a Kickstarter campaign to launch production of the product, and Mr. Park had taken advantage of one of the Kickstarter’s biggest perks in grand style. Not only had he backed the project to get each Team Otherworld player a new CORE Gaming Backpack, but he’d backed the Kickstarter at the “CORE Custom – Personalized TEAM Package Level,” which meant the team got four CORE Gaming Backpacks—one for each player—with custom trim colors and custom team logos, plus Mobile Edge power packs and CORE t-shirts and hats.

The backpacks wouldn’t be available to sometime in the fall, after the Kickstarter completed in late September—but that was OK with Tomas. Good things were worth the wait, and from what he could see of Zach’s prototype bag, the CORE Gaming Backpack was more than just a good thing.

Zach had arrived at the Gamesync Gaming Center in San Diego with his CORE Backpack that morning, showing it off to his teammates—and rightly so. It wasn’t just cool and stylish, and the envy of many of the other gamers in the arena (many of whom had come by to kick the tires and give it a shakedown), but it was the epitome of organization, access, and function. No other bag Tomas had ever seen even came close. The CORE Gaming Backpack seemed to have a compartment for everything, from your gaming laptop, tablet, and assorted cords and power supplies, to a special place for your keyboard, headphones, gaming mouse, and even water bottles, snacks, and personal items.

If Mr. Park hadn’t done the deed, Tomas had already planned on checking out the CORE Kickstarter after the tourney and getting one of the bags for himself—and maybe even gifting a few to close friends.

In making the announcement to the team, Mr. Park had explained his rationale:

“Team cohesiveness is important. You all play together, you eat together, you practice together, and you interact with fans and the media together,” he said. “With this CORE Backpack team package, now you’ll be able to demonstrate that cohesiveness and coordination to an even greater degree—and that’s bound to lead to good results and even better game play.

“Plus, from what Zach tells me and from what I can see from checking the bag out myself, the CORE Gaming Backpack truly is a game changer. It keeps you organized, it keeps your gear protected, and it makes it easier than ever to transport what you need for tourney time or practice. It’s hard to argue with that kind of efficiency.”