As fellow fighting game enthusiast, I have always wondered what does being sponsored actually offer?
Martin “Marn” Phan recently written his experiences about it.
“a person like me can’t just talk to someone high up and expect results so you just have you’re team do it because that’s what you’re there for… Right? But if you just sit down and look at the facts, it’s all nonsense. Teams are sponsored because they promise views, they promise videos, they promise just content for the sponsors to get exposed. If you could do the same, why go through basically a talent agency?”
From this clip it sounds like the current state for sponsorship is an talent agency where they do the best they can to promote the you as a gamer.
But a Different Story told by DMG’s Jason24cf.
“I do all in my power to promote him [PR BALROG] and other players on DMG. Can he do the same? Yes he can, does he want to spend that time and effort that it takes to contact companies and go through countless hours of back and forth talks with no results at the end?”
From Jason24cf’s point of view, it is not a rise against the corporate sponsor machine, but service given to the player.
At this point in time, one can not determine the current state of FGC sponsorships. At the moment FGC sponsorships are alot like Super Turbo T.Hawk. No one knows the true potential of FGC sponsorships until it is placed in the right hands (Like Damdai did with T.Hawk). I do believe the best possible path for gamers to gain the most out of a FGC Sponsor is to build a bridge of communication between the player and the sponsor. Both parties must set aside certain goals and meet a middle point where both parties are can achieve what they both want.