ABSTRACT
We will examine esports based on Merleau-Ponty’s phenomenology, which has not yet been explored in depth in discussions on esports. Merleau-Ponty’s concept of embodiment is often used, but it has been conflated with other ideas such as “virtual embodiment,” and this leads to confusion. Also, Merleau-Ponty’s important distinction between concrete movement and abstract movement, which are two fundamental kinds of body movement, is applicable to the case of esports/sports. This chapter argues that every bodily movement in playing, whether in esports or sports, can be developed into “concrete movement,” though not every movement has to be of the concrete kind. Nevertheless, “concrete movements” in esports playing also simultaneously manifest similar features to Merleau-Ponty’s “abstract movements,” so they are better described as “semi-concrete movements.” We argue that bodily movements in esports can only be developed as far as “semi-concrete movements,” which fundamentally differ from the concrete movement potential in sports.
