A local government unit in the Philippines banned the "Defense Of The Ancients," or simply known as "DOTA," from being played in Internet cafes at a small town in the country.
Banned from cybercafes under the local ordinance, "DOTA" cannot be played online or offline. Those who will incur three offenses will see their Internet cafes shut down permanently and will not be given a new business permit, When In Manila reported.
The reasons given by the local authorities for banning the popular MOBA (Multiplayer Online Battle Arena) game include violence, gambling, fraud, thievery and even murder. The ordinance was pushed after a recent incident involving two youth deaths that were blamed on the video game.
The local authorities believe that the video game was to blame for the incidents and unruly behavior of the youth. However, they have failed to research more on the positive side of MOBA video games and the E-Sports community as a whole.
Banning "DOTA" from being played does not seem to be the best solution, however. It must be considered that there are more sources of media that are more violent, including action and horror films, but they do not get banned. Even TV series have bloodier images, such as "Dexter," a series about a murdering psychopath and yet it was not banned from being shown to millions of viewers.
Moreover, the local authorities have failed to distinguish that "DOTA" is not the video game itself, but rather a map that can be played. It did not also mention other MOBA games including the famous "League of Legends" and the sequel "Dota 2," which are both more popular recently.
Instead of demonizing video games, guidance and support should be given to players. The E-Sports industry in the United States is good evidence alone.
In the United States, E-Sports has developed significantly from being just pub games. It has evolved into million-dollar championships and university scholarships. Robert Morris University is now offering scholarships for "League of Legends" players, Huffington Post reported
The prize pools for E-Sports championships have even increased to as much as $10 million for the "Dota 2" video game. This indicates that the support for MOBA games and E-Sports has largely increased. Brand giants have joined in and invested in the E-Sports industry, including Coca Cola, Nissan, Red Bull and even porn website YouPorn, who sponsored its own team.
Instead of banning "DOTA," the local government in the Philippines should look more in the benefits MOBA games may give not only to the youth but also to the economy, as well.