Good mental health is one of the biggest factors affecting professional gamers, with eSport pros (36% in the Middle East, Turkiye, Africa region) most worried about their mental condition than other gamers, according to a new survey commissioned by Kaspersky.
Pro gamers pay strong attention to healthy habits and lifestyle – 35% take care of proper mental preparation and 26% don’t forget to get enough sleep. Only 48% of eSport pros would rather keep playing to improve performance than take more breaks for sleep or eat healthier food.
According to a recent study, devoted to the predictors of mental ill health in eSport amongst competitors, conducted by University of Winchester, it is highly prevalent with eSports athletes at a level comparable to other professional sports, such as football. Results also show that pro gamers can face sleep issues, burnout, and social phobia anxiety.
The Kaspersky survey proves that professional gamers – more than others – worry about mental health, and 88% of eSport pros agree well-being is essential for top performance in gaming.
In addition, professional gamers treat their health more responsibly. In particular, eSport pros mostly pay attention to healthy habits – 26% think about getting enough sleep, 35% don’t forget about their mental preparation, and 26% take breaks to move around when possible.
Also, 48% of eSport pros wouldn’t agree to keep playing, but instead will take more breaks for sleep or eating healthier food to improve their performance. In comparison, 64% of top gaming influencers would prefer playing than have healthy breaks.
“The competition level in gaming championships is extremely high, and sometimes is even like a real sport,” says Marina Titova, vice-president, Consumer Product Marketing at Kaspersky. “To fight for leading positions, professional gamers spend a lot of time thoroughly preparing. In addition to the hard skills within specific games, soft skills play a big role in winning. Our survey research shows 82% of pro gamers agree that for them it’s mental well-being.”
Within the report, Kaspersky defined the following gamers’ categories:
• eSports Pros
See gaming performance as extremely or very important; have taken part in tournaments at least once in the last two years; are either building an income from gaming, or value making some money from it.
• eSports Amateurs
Have taken part in tournaments at least once in the last two years and like taking part in tournaments and competitions; do NOT look for money-making opportunities from their gaming.
• Hardcore Gamers
Play at least 20 hours per week.
• Gadget Gamers
Invest a high or very high sum of money to improve their gaming performance (hardware / training / nutrition, etc).
• Gaming Influencers
Stream at least once a month; have a minimum of 1 000 followers.
• Top Gaming Influencers
Stream at least once a week and have at least 10 000 followers.