E-Sports - My Experience

[MetalLobster]

An e-sports section, aw yeah!

I’ve absolutely love just the concept of playing a game at such a high level, where players practices hours perfecting just one element of the game or creating elaborate strategies to fight the odds put against them.

My very first e-sports that I’ve watched was Starcraft 2. I was introduced to the professional scene when I was going on Youtube to look for new multiplayer strategies. I first bumped into the Youtube channel of HDStarcraft, watching this match after just merely watching one of his tutorials.

After this match, I got addicted. I wanted to see more army clashing, more tactical strikes and guerilla tactics in unfair situations, so I looked for more and found more Youtube channels that had Starcraft 2 cast. Husky, Psy, Day[9], I had to watch them all! I eventually started watching live streams, from the ones featured on Team Liquid to GOMTV’s GSL. I couldn’t stop!

Watching game to game eventually introduced me to other e-sports as well. From watching one of the GSL’s, I went exploring and found Starcraft: Brood War. This sparked some excitement because it brought back memories of me playing SC:BW as a kid on my uncles computer. Needless to say, I was really bad back then xD. Anyway, despite the ten year old graphics, the strategies used by Korean players were exciting to watch and you can always feel the tension when the games reach late-game. It makes me really jealous I have to watch from home and not within a stadium with a full crowd.

As of this day, I occasionally watch e-sports. School has really eaten my time to watch and explore e-sports as I did a couple years ago, which makes me really sad because I miss out on so much. I feel completely disconnected from the SC2 e-sports scene now, but I still love the games when I do have the time and energy to catch a view on one of them. Regardless, I still love e-sports and thought it would be great to share my experiences in the hopes that others who haven’t been introduced to e-sports, enjoy it too.

I’ve added a few professional games below. E-sports is just not limited to Starcraft! *Please don’t be offended if I didn’t add X or Y game. Like I said, I haven’t had the time to explore all the games out there. Feel free to share a VOD in a post!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1sBNzkh1lI&feature=c4-overview&list=UUpFcHE36IoySjYj1Rytxyog

Starts at 0:4:21

Starts at 0:0:20

 

edit: Some of the URLs don't work (but work during Preview). Read that it was a bug. FUUUUUUUUUUUU

Edited August 16, 2013 by MetalLobster

[hayse]

starcraft 2 is my favorite to watch but i think league of legends is the most popular overall and has the most viewers consistently.

[MetalLobster]

starcraft 2 is my favorite to watch but i think league of legends is the most popular overall and has the most viewers consistently.

 

I've wanted to check out LoL, but I had a friend who recommended I play it first to know the characters, builds and such. I don't really like playing games like LoL, Dota or HoN, so I never got around to it. Doesn't LoL have an embedded stream?  

[Lynchkin]

LoL and DOTA have embedded streams. ie. watching professional games right from the client. 

[MetalLobster]

LoL and DOTA have embedded streams. ie. watching professional games right from the client. 

 

Well, that explains the popularity of some of the streams. Would be nice to have that for Starcraft and CS...

 

BLIZZARD! VALVE! GOT ON IT 

[Lynchkin]

Well, that explains the popularity of some of the streams. Would be nice to have that for Starcraft and CS...

 

BLIZZARD! VALVE! GOT ON IT 

Surely, you know this is impossible... and plus I don't think it explains popularity. Starcraft used to be #1 in terms of viewership, LoL and Dota got ahead because loads more people played it and got more interested into the whole eSports thing.

[MetalLobster]

Surely, you know this is impossible... and plus I don't think it explains popularity. Starcraft used to be #1 in terms of viewership, LoL and Dota got ahead because loads more people played it and got more interested into the whole eSports thing.

 

Really? If both LoL and Dota have embedded streams, then everyone who logs in will see a stream. Whether they watch it or not is up to them, but they were exposed to a stream nonetheless. Anyone playing Starcraft 2 don't see a stream and are introduced to e-sports some other way. A lot of SC2 fans "gateway" to e-sports are from Youtube VODs, not from the game itself.

 

Also, LoL and Dota are free! More people play it just for that fact.  

[Lynchkin]

Really? If both LoL and Dota have embedded streams, then everyone who logs in will see a stream. Whether they watch it or not is up to them, but they were exposed to a stream nonetheless. Anyone playing Starcraft 2 don't see a stream and are introduced to e-sports some other way. A lot of SC2 fans "gateway" to e-sports are from Youtube VODs, not from the game itself.

 

Also, LoL and Dota are free! More people play it just for that fact.  

Blizzard can't make viewers watch the game through the client, but they post links to WCS on the front page of the client. Like when you load up sc2 there would be a sick background picture and in the foreground it says WCS LIVE NOW <insert stream link>. So it's a click away to a stream link instead of watching it in game.

and you are reiterating what i said about more people = more viewers. -.-

[MetalLobster]

Blizzard can't make viewers watch the game through the client, but they post links to WCS on the front page of the client. Like when you load up sc2 there would be a sick background picture and in the foreground it says WCS LIVE NOW <insert stream link>. So it's a click away to a stream link instead of watching it in game.

and you are reiterating what i said about more people = more viewers. -.-

 

I'm glad Blizzard is advertising WCS on the game. If only they did that for SC:BW.. 

 

 

[LogicalDrm]

I really like this section I watch Csgo and dota2 tournaments. I've started also checking out new games from twitch.

[Kira0172]

League and dota esports is pretty fun to watch.
I like LCS: League of legends championship series. It's pretty cool.

Gotta get into it. but yeay play the game first, wich might take a while to learn the champions n stuff. But its fun.

[MetalLobster]

League and dota esports is pretty fun to watch.

I like LCS: League of legends championship series. It's pretty cool.

Gotta get into it. but yeay play the game first, wich might take a while to learn the champions n stuff. But its fun.

 

I might give DOTA a try if I find a couple friends to help me out. 

[Seldszar]

I wish I had time for LCS but I just can't find the time. If I watch anymore things, I won't have time to play anything at all myself.  I stick with Starcraft since I know the players a lot more and have been following it since SC2 came out.

[MetalLobster]

I wish I had time for LCS but I just can't find the time. If I watch anymore things, I won't have time to play anything at all myself.  I stick with Starcraft since I know the players a lot more and have been following it since SC2 came out.

 

I think many people are on the game boat as you, where they have to carefully allocate time to playing and watching. 

 

That's awesome that you still watch SC2! I should really get back to watching SC2, especially now that a bunch of BW players how switched over. That's how far behind I am!  

[NazzzF]

I don't really like playing games like LoL, Dota or HoN, so I never got around to it.

 

Go checkout Smite. Moba games on 3rd person camera, pretty cool

[MetalLobster]

Go checkout Smite. Moba games on 3rd person camera, pretty cool

 

That's interesting, never heard of it. Are there teams playing? 

[TheMrBeb]

That's interesting, never heard of it. Are there teams playing? 

There is already quite a large competitive scene. Mostly America and Europe at the moment

[Biased Opinion]

i have always thought that mobas and rts games looked incredibly chaotic and i do not enjoy watching them, the only competitve scenes that i have ever really given a damm about are pre reach halo, BF3 and some pokemon stuff everynow and then

[MetalLobster]

There is already quite a large competitive scene. Mostly America and Europe at the moment

 

Nice! I'll watch a game or two If I can find it on Youtube. I don't know if I will get the chance to play the game though, so hopefully I don't get lost or confused when I watch a match. 

 

 

i have always thought that mobas and rts games looked incredibly chaotic and i do not enjoy watching them, the only competitve scenes that i have ever really given a damm about are pre reach halo, BF3 and some pokemon stuff everynow and then

 

There's competitive Pokemon?! Where? 

[Biased Opinion]

Nice! I'll watch a game or two If I can find it on Youtube. I don't know if I will get the chance to play the game though, so hopefully I don't get lost or confused when I watch a match. 

 

 

 

There's competitive Pokemon?! Where? 

it exists, there are the VGCs and loads of comps run out of smogon so simulator and some on cart