ESPN just canceled a video game tournament broadcast in response to the mass shootings in El Paso and Dayton
- A video game tournament broadcast scheduled for this weekend on ESPN is being canceled "out of respect for the victims and all those impacted by the recent shootings."
- The game being played on the broadcast, "Apex Legends," is a cartoonish first-person shooter set on an alien planet.
- In the wake of shootings in El Paso, Texas and Dayton, Ohio last weekend where 31 people were killed, President Trump and other politicians have pointed to violent video games as a cause. He cited "gruesome and grisly video games that are now commonplace," as a societal cause.
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A video game tournament scheduled for broadcast this weekend on ESPN is being canceled due to the recent shootings in El Paso, Texas and Dayton, Ohio where 31 people were killed.
"The decision was made out of respect for the victims and all those impacted in the immediate aftermath of the shootings," a statement from ESPN sent to Business Insider said. "It seemed the prudent thing to do given the swirl of that moment."
The cancelation comes just days after President Donald Trump pointed to "gruesome and grisly video games that are now commonplace" as a cause of real-life violence. His statements were made in an address following the two mass shootings over the weekend.
The tournament broadcast was scheduled to run on ESPN, though the tournament itself took place last weekend. An ESPN representative confirmed that the broadcast will still run in October on ESPN2.
The tournament - known as the ESPN EXP Invitational - features the game "Apex Legends," a popular Battle Royale first-person shooter on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC that features pseudo-realistic, fictional guns.
In the game, teams of three take on the role of either a human or a robot in a battle for survival. Though the game features guns and shooting, it's a far-from-realistic depiction of gun violence.
See the game in action right here: