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Every year without fail, hundreds of thousands of gaming fans across the world head to major stadiums to check out live eSports tournaments.It’s really not hard to see why there is such a pull to these sorts of events: the atmosphere is electric, the professional gamers are lightyears ahead of anyone else, and you just know you’re on the cusp of greatness, as eSports is still relatively young but increasing in popularity all the time.

毫无例外，每年都会有成千上万的电游爱好者前往各大体育场现场观看电子竞技锦标赛。这些赛事的超强人气确实显而易见：气氛热烈刺激，职业玩家水平超常，你可以清楚地意识到自己将见证伟大，因为电子竞技虽然相对年轻，受欢迎程度却日益提升。

[2]Even if you can’t actually make it to the arena to watch these eSports tournaments, many of the matches are streamed live via Twitch, which has been a literal game-changer for the eSports industry.It’s now a beautiful cohesion of fans wanting to see these games being played live and having the means to do it.

[2]即使无法亲临电竞现场，你仍然可以通过Twitch 看到许多比赛的直播，该平台对电竞行业影响巨大。目前，它将渴望观看游戏直播及有渠道看直播的粉丝很好地凝聚了起来。

[3]But, of course, certain games rise above others when it comes to a worldwide following, so according to Newzoo’s list of hours spent watching on Twitch from December 2017, we’re going to discuss the top 5 most popular eSports games.Let’s begin the countdown.

[3]不过当然，从全球范围看，总有一些游戏会比其他游戏拥有更多追随者。Newzoo统计了自2017年12月起用户在Twitch平台观看游戏直播的时长榜单，下面我们将按该统计榜单，倒序介绍五大最受欢迎的电竞游戏。

Call of Duty: WWII

《使命召唤：二战》

Call of Dutyhas been an incredibly popular FPS franchise for several years,but many fans were beginning to tire of the direction the games were heading in,primarily due to the fact that it was going very sci-fiwith Infinite Warfare and Advanced Warfare, in particular.However, with WWII, the franchise has gone back to its roots, so to speak, and we’re back to fighting Nazi Germany in World War II.The guns might be a bit heavier and slower than we’re used to in modern times, but they still pack a punch and it’s nice to move away from jetpacks and wall runs to real-life combat.

近几年，《使命召唤》系列一直是超级流行的第一人称射击游戏，但是，由于这一系列游戏越发凸显强烈的科幻色彩，尤其是在“无限战争”和“高级战争”中，很多粉丝开始厌烦这一发展方向。不过，随着“二战”的出现，这个系列可以说已经回归本源，玩家又回到第二次世界大战中去对抗纳粹德国。游戏中的枪支可能比我们所习惯的现代枪支重一些、慢一些，但它们仍然威力十足；而远离喷气背包和飞檐走壁，回归活生生对决场的感觉真好。

Hearthstone

《炉石传说》

Although you might raise your eyebrows at the sheer popularity received by Hearthstone due to the fact it’s basically an online card game, if you know the rules and find it interesting, then who’s to say otherwise? Hearthstone is a great example of a game not needing huge set pieces and cutting-edge graphics to be enjoyable.The game has a well-documented steep learning curve and is merciless to new players, but if you endure, then you’ll find yourself a hardened player in no time.Using characters from World of Warcraft, Hearthstone is a surprise hit and is actually more fun to watch than you might think.

你可能会惊讶于《炉石传说》如此受欢迎，因为这不过是一款在线卡牌游戏，但如果你了解规则并发现它趣味盎然，别人又有什么可说的呢？《炉石传说》是一个强有力的标杆，它证明没有恢弘布景和高端画面的游戏仍然可以非常好玩。这个游戏上手很难，对新人不太友好，但如果能坚持，你很快就会成为厉害的玩家。令人惊喜的是，《炉石传说》沿用了《魔兽世界》中的角色，其观看乐趣实际上超乎你的预期。

League of legends

《英雄联盟》

League of legendsis a veteran in the eSports scene and it’s actually quite surprising that it came in at number three.The gameplay is frantic and intense from start to finish (common with MOBA games), but if you can work out what’s happening, then you’ll see that there is a lot of strategy and incredible execution going on amongst the battles.Many of the world’s most famous eSports gamers areLoLplayers,including several from South Korea,where the game is incredibly prevalent.The characters are hugely entertaining and each one has a unique set of skills,meaning that any way you playLeague of legends, you’re playing it in a way that suits you.

《英雄联盟》是电竞界的老牌游戏，排名第三其实相当出人意料。游戏设置从头到尾都疯狂而激烈（这是多人在线竞技游戏的共性），但如果能弄明白竞技场上发生了什么，你会发现在战斗中有很多策略和令人惊叹的技术。世界最著名的电竞选手很多都是此游戏的玩家，其中好几位来自韩国，《英雄联盟》在那里极其流行。游戏中的角色十分有趣，每个角色都有一套独特的技能，这意味着无论如何玩《英雄联盟》，你都能找到适合自己的游戏方式。

Counter-Strike: Global Offensive

《反恐精英：全球攻势》

Facebook is now rivaling Twitc h in terms of broadcasting live eSports matches, and one of the major games it will show is Counter-Strike: Global Offensive.This should come as no surprise to anyone familiar with eSports, as the game is simply thrilling to watch.The gameplay is very different from that of other FPS games like Call of Duty or even Halo, but it still involves working together as a team and using a vast array of weapons to take down your opponents.It’s very frustrating some of the time, but always enjoyable as a spectator or player.

目前，在直播电竞比赛方面，脸书与Twitch展开了竞争，《反恐精英：全球攻势》就是它即将播放的主要游戏之一。对熟悉电竞的人来说，这应该不足为奇，因为观看这款游戏的电竞实在令人兴奋。游戏设置与其他FPS游戏——诸如《使命召唤》，甚或《光环》——完全不同，不过它仍然需要团队配合并使用大量武器来击败对手。游戏有时让人极度挫败，但也让观众或是玩家始终觉得令人愉悦。

Dota 2

《刀塔2》

Whilst many argue over which MOBA game is more popular when comparingLeague of legendsandDota 2, it’s clear as day that the latter absolutely takes the crown.The gameplay is fairly similar toLoL, but the prize money for matches is a lot higher, the amount of tournaments across the world is bigger, and The International—the gaming version of the UEFA Champions League—is simply epic in scope and regularly pulls in a staggering viewership every year.If you can become an elite player forDota 2,then you could easily have a career in eSports.

虽然有许多人争论MOBA游戏中《英雄联盟》和《刀塔2》哪个更受欢迎，但事实很明显，后者占据绝对优势。《刀塔2》的游戏设置与《英雄联盟》非常相似，但是比赛的奖金要高得多，世界各地的比赛场次也更多，而国际邀请赛——即电竞版本的欧洲足球冠军联赛——规模恢弘，每年的收视率都高得惊人。如果你能成为《刀塔2》的精英玩家，就可以在电竞行业里轻松成就一番事业。