Tekken champion

Arslan ‘Ash’ Siddique – a 27-year-old e-sports player from Pakistan – has successfully made his name as one of the best Tekken players in the world. He has won the Evolution Championship Series (EVO) – an annual e-sports event focusing exclusively on fighting games – becoming a four-time champion. With his latest 3-0 victory and the fact that he is the only player in the world who has won the prestigious championship four times, he can now easily be called the GOAT (Greatest Of All Time) of Tekken. Arslan Ash has won around 22 Tekken 7 tournaments and earned $123,169 in prize money alone. This makes him cross the earnings of legendary Tekken player Bae ‘Knee’ Jae-Min from South Korea. But the latter has been in the field for over 13 years, and Arslan entered this gaming world only five years ago. Arslan also runs a bootcamp to train aspiring gamers. But his remarkable victories and achievements should not become a reason to ignore the problems e-sports players face in Pakistan. Arslan himself has missed out on quite a few tournaments because of the lack of interest shown by the government in helping him obtain a visa. The situation is not better in other parts of the world. For the longest time, the US did not recognize e-sports gamers as professional athletes, which made it difficult for them to obtain the P1 visa and participate in tournaments.

Factors like bureaucratic red tape, officials who proudly embrace their rigidity, and lack of information about the rapidly changing digital world have made it difficult for e-sports players from this part of the world to carve a legacy of their own. To promote e-sports, the government has to make adequate investments. But Pakistani authorities rarely look beyond the glitzy world of cricket. After world events like Tekken 7, some people try to get the government’s attention to this neglected field. But soon all such voices disappear.

The government must come with a proper strategy to provide assistance to our young players who mostly struggle on their own to win championships and other titles. If a fraction of the public and private funds spent on cricket is used for other games, Pakistani players can claim victories in almost all games. With e-sports, there are two income streams. First, the players themselves can earn a good deal through their YouTube channel and sponsorship deals, and second, there is a community of reviewers who upload their reaction videos where they provide live commentary. People interested in e-sports should be taught how they can monetize their skills and earn good revenue. In a highly digitized world, traditional games and professions have taken a backseat. It is time the Pakistani government paid attention to it.