Military Esports: How Gaming Is Changing Recruitment and Morale

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(FORT KNOX, Ky) --- Staff Sgt. Jesse “Neon” Benjamin, a Calvary Scout for the Active Duty Army and a member of the U.S. Army eSports team, competes with one of the gaming rigs located at the eSports Center at Fort Knox, July 16, 2022. Benjamin and the rest of the team played the MMORPG World of Warcraft during the three-day, multinational, joint event benefiting Walking with the Wounded and Hire Heroes USA charities. Every branch of the U.S. Military competed against each other; also competing were the U.S. Coast Guard, British Army, and the Royal British Airforce (U.S. Army photo by Staff. Sgt. Jaccob Hearn).
(FORT KNOX, Ky) --- Staff Sgt. Jesse “Neon” Benjamin, a Calvary Scout for the Active Duty Army and a member of the U.S. Army eSports team, competes with one of the gaming rigs located at the eSports Center at Fort Knox, July 16, 2022. Benjamin and the rest of the team played the MMORPG World of Warcraft during the three-day, multinational, joint event benefiting Walking with the Wounded and Hire Heroes USA charities. Every branch of the U.S. Military competed against each other; also competing were the U.S. Coast Guard, British Army, and the Royal British Airforce (U.S. Army photo by Staff. Sgt. Jaccob Hearn).

January 24, 2023 | Originally published by U.S. DoD on January 3, 2023

As the esports industry continues to grow exponentially, nearly every branch of the military now has an official service-sanctioned gaming program.

For some of these service members, that means it’s actually their job to play video games.

For instance, soldiers on the Army’s eSports team are assigned to the unit, much like soldiers are assigned to the Army Marksmanship Unit. The esports team has 11 soldiers who compete full time; however, there are nearly 200 more soldiers who could get called upon to compete if needed — as long as their participation doesn’t interfere with their unit’s mission requirements.

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