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This is something I’ve wanted to get off my chest for a while. I hope my words are not misunderstood as hurtful or offensive. Rather, I intend for them to be helpful in a sort of tough-love manner.
This post is directed towards those of you that own SC2, are equipped to play it, and yet, quite honestly, miserably waste too much time forumcrafting, watching streams, chatting, etc.
Afraid to ladder? I’ll just watch IdrA play and learn something. Brain hurts from losing? I’ll read a strategy thread and get some insight. Our options for ‘supplemental improvement’ SC2 media are overwhelming and ultimately counter effective in our goals for improvement. Yes, this method is a crock of shit.
The best lesson we can learn from pros isn’t a guide, a stream, a build, a style… it’s their practice philosophy: mass gaming. I guarantee you even the pros who admit they’re not mass gamers played a shitton at one point to get those mechanics.
The people in bronze-plat/diamond complaining about imbalance … makes me sick. You haven’t played enough to warrant complaints about imbalance. Your mechanics are not capable of playing the theoretical game-situations of which you speak.
Now, I realize the vast majority of us can’t realistically put in the same hours of practice that the pros do. That’s not what I’m saying here.
Think about the numbers of viewers watching GSL and NASL every night… good God. Even justin.tv pro streamers consistently get 1000+ viewers. And don’t even get me started on the people in stream chats. In a decade when you look back at your Starcraft history/experience, what do you want to remember? All of the posts you made on team liquid? I hope not. I want to remember the time I won that LAN... the hours of training and the results that came out of it... my growth/improvement as a player. The fact that I put my mind on something and got it done. Do work.
I hate to use the sport-to-esport cliché, but I now think of teamliquid as a sports bar… washed up old guys spectating and talking about the game, and the occasional bar fight. What’s so wrong with that? Nothing. But TL doesn’t need to be so similar. Unlike the old man at the bar stool, you are capable of playing the sport (and being good at it, for that matter). Most of us don't have a full-length football field in our backyard. SC2, on the other hand, is just a click away.
We lost the correlation between playing and success. "The more you play the better you get" - this statement roughly applies to all games. Why not starcraft? We're overexposed to supplemental media that preaches instant results. Somewhere along the line, the actual playing of the game got lost as our vital improvement mechanism.
This quote from the SlayerSBaekho post comes to mind:
Being grandmaster league, or top 50 NA do requires talents, but being top 500? its not about skill, its about amount of time and thoughts you put in the game. In fact, if bronze player comes to me and says "omg i suck at this game, no talents" I would deny his proposal unless he played 2k games and worked so hard to get better.
source: http://www.teamliquid.net/forum/viewmessage.php?topic_id=207275
I shall address one counterargument…”it’s just a game, I enjoy playing it casually.”
My response: You probably spend time on TL that could be spent playing the game. Stop being a bitch. You’re a gamer, it’s time to get serious and bash nerds. The feeling that comes from winning, because you know you trained, far overshadows the giddiness and quasi-social acceptance of a Day[9] Daily chat room.
So click that "find match" button and start practicing.
-Nairul
(P.S. I realize in taking the time to write this blog I’m a hypocrite. I am only a high diamond zerg, and I recognize that my mechanics are shit. Granted, I felt this needs to be said)
Poll: Agree/Disagree?Disagree (32) 56% Agree (25) 44% 57 total votes Your vote: Agree/Disagree? (Vote): Agree
(Vote): Disagree
  
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If I ladder 1v1, I want to be able to committ to it and play for at least ~2 - 3 hours a ladder session on top of reviewing my replays. With other stuff going on I haven't been able to find the time to do so. I dislike going on for 1 or 2 games then leaving because it's not fun on top of not being that productive. Hence, I spend a lot of time watching streams / games when I don't have enough time to ladder as much as I want to (which is quite a lot). That's just my experience anyway.
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So because not everyone enjoys starcraft the way you do, that means they must be "washed up old guys being bitches?" Should i also stop watching sports at all and get my ass down on the field until i make it into the nfl?
Makes sense
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No, stop projecting your own ideals and goals on the rest of he community. Personally I have come to terms with the fact I don't enjoy playing massgames of sc. I just do not find it enjoyable. I love to get in a few rounds at a LAN with my friends, but I don't want to ladder all day by any means.
I really enjoy watching the best of the pros play because it is entertaining to me to see people performing such a difficult and strategic feat at such a high level. I harbor no feelings of inadequacy doing this. I'm a smart guy and I know incould be very good if I put in the time, but I'm consciously choosing not to because I don't enjoy it.
I prefer to keep my SC mostly as a fun viewing experience. I focus my competitive and serious efforts on other activities (rock climbing).
I would say it's unhealthy to have no serious outlet where you are committed to excellence and improvement, but it certainly doesn't have to be SC, and it doesn't have to be everything you do.
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On June 13 2011 09:58 Louuster wrote:
So because not everyone enjoys starcraft the way you do, that means they must be "washed up old guys being bitches?" Should i also stop watching sports at all and get my ass down on the field until i make it into the nfl?
Makes sense
With SC2, the field is just a mouse-click away.
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On June 13 2011 10:00 Nairul wrote:Show nested quote +On June 13 2011 09:58 Louuster wrote:
So because not everyone enjoys starcraft the way you do, that means they must be "washed up old guys being bitches?" Should i also stop watching sports at all and get my ass down on the field until i make it into the nfl?
Makes sense
With SC2, the field is just a mouse-click away.
It may just be clicking a mouse, but becoming a top progamer requires every bit as much work and commitment as becoming a pro football player.
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On June 13 2011 10:03 sob3k wrote:Show nested quote +On June 13 2011 10:00 Nairul wrote:On June 13 2011 09:58 Louuster wrote:
So because not everyone enjoys starcraft the way you do, that means they must be "washed up old guys being bitches?" Should i also stop watching sports at all and get my ass down on the field until i make it into the nfl?
Makes sense
With SC2, the field is just a mouse-click away. It may just be clicking a mouse, but becoming a top progamer requires every bit as much work and commitment as becoming a pro football player.
Nairul wrote:
Now, I realize the vast majority of us can’t realistically put in the same hours of practice that the pros do. That’s not what I’m saying here.
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On June 13 2011 09:45 Nairul wrote:
(P.S. I realize in taking the time to write this blog I’m a hypocrite. I am only a high diamond zerg, and I recognize that my mechanics are shit. Granted, I felt this needs to be said)
This kind of nullifies your entire post.
I don't understand why you think anyone who has SCII and can play it should play until their fingers bleed and can play no more.
Why can't they enjoy watching pros, full well knowing that they'll never be able to execute gaming at such a high level? Most would love to be the best at something, but a lot of us know AND accept that we'll never hit that level. A game is called a game for that reason. It's for enjoyment, it's not meant to be grinded out like a job.
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For the people who sit around and theorycraft/whine about imbalance who aren't playing the game? Sure I agree.
For the people who simply enjoy spectating and being part of the casual community (aka general forum and stuff like that)? No, I disagree.
If you're gonna talk like you know what's going on-- play the damn game. If you just want to watch because you enjoy watching, I really don't think there's anything wrong with that either.
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How do you explain bronze players with a thousand games? There are ways to learn more effectively than others. If I watch pros, learn build orders and try to build a frame work of how games should go, I'll learn much more, much faster, than if I just mass game.
Learn what is good, practice right, then mass game. Don't just throw yourself at the ladder.
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On June 13 2011 10:06 MeteorRise wrote:
How do you explain bronze players with a thousand games? There are ways to learn more effectively than others. If I watch pros, learn build orders and try to build a frame work of how games should go, I'll learn much more, much faster, than if I just mass game.
Learn what is good, practice right, then mass game. Don't just throw yourself at the ladder.
Watching pros and learning build orders+strategy is a good supplement. But some people do it too much, and treat it like "replacement" to practice.
Edit: If there are bronze players with a thousand games, they should talk to SlayerSBaekho xD
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On June 13 2011 10:04 Nairul wrote:Show nested quote +On June 13 2011 10:03 sob3k wrote:On June 13 2011 10:00 Nairul wrote:On June 13 2011 09:58 Louuster wrote:
So because not everyone enjoys starcraft the way you do, that means they must be "washed up old guys being bitches?" Should i also stop watching sports at all and get my ass down on the field until i make it into the nfl?
Makes sense
With SC2, the field is just a mouse-click away. It may just be clicking a mouse, but becoming a top progamer requires every bit as much work and commitment as becoming a pro football player. Show nested quote +Nairul wrote:
Now, I realize the vast majority of us can’t realistically put in the same hours of practice that the pros do. That’s not what I’m saying here.
Why can't we? You think the pros are all rich inheritees? They aren't.
So how much do you think we should play before we are satisfied? Plat? GM?
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1. I don't have the time to become an SC2 pro.
2. I prefer watching high level games to playing myself a lot of the time.
3. it’s just a game, I enjoy playing it casually.
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On June 13 2011 10:19 redFF wrote:
1. I don't have the time to become an SC2 pro.
2. I prefer watching high level games to playing myself a lot of the time.
3. it’s just a game, I enjoy playing it casually.
At no point in my post did I recommend that everyone ought to become an SC2 pro. I apologize for any misunderstanding.
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I've long been aware of my spending too much time on the forums. I wanted to improve, but I was too scared to ladder, and got frustrated when I made stupid stupid mistakes in games. I've accepted that I'm just plain not good at this game, so now I only follow the pro scene (because I love it so much) but don't worry about trying to improve at TL.
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On June 13 2011 10:23 ClysmiC wrote:
I've long been aware of my spending too much time on the forums. I wanted to improve, but I was too scared to ladder, and got frustrated when I made stupid stupid mistakes in games. I've accepted that I'm just plain not good at this game, so now I only follow the pro scene (because I love it so much) but don't worry about trying to improve at TL.
Being scared of the ladder is like being afraid of weights when you want to workout.
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On June 13 2011 10:24 Nairul wrote:Show nested quote +On June 13 2011 10:23 ClysmiC wrote:
I've long been aware of my spending too much time on the forums. I wanted to improve, but I was too scared to ladder, and got frustrated when I made stupid stupid mistakes in games. I've accepted that I'm just plain not good at this game, so now I only follow the pro scene (because I love it so much) but don't worry about trying to improve at TL. Being scared of the ladder is like being afraid of weights when you want to workout.
It's more like being afraid of getting punched when you spar for boxing.
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Training/practicing for Starcraft is absurd for most casual gamers. I like to play other sports like basketball and soccer. Does that mean I train for those? No I just play for fun. I don't care about getting better. I will get better inevitably from playing but my motivation for playing isn't to get better. It's to have fun.
I find laddering to get boring after a couple of games, so I don't play that much. I like watching pro games and streams for fun. I browse TL because it's fun to interact with the community, not because I want to improve at Starcraft. In fact, the SC2 strat section is the part I read the least.
Also, past a point, just playing games will not help you get better if you don't know what you need to improve. That's why tons of terrible masters players claim imba lol.
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I agreed with you until you said:
On June 13 2011 09:45 Nairul wrote:
I shall address one counterargument…”it’s just a game, I enjoy playing it casually.”
My response: Stop being a bitch. You’re a gamer, it’s time to get serious and bash nerds. The feeling that comes from winning, because you know you trained, far overshadows the giddiness and quasi-social acceptance of a Day[9] Daily chat room.
-Nairul
Wtf does that mean? Someone likes to play Starcraft, (because it's a fun game), but doesn't want to become a grandmaster or an MLG champion, and they are a bitch? And they are wasting their time because they should get better so they can bash nerds?
You go a little overboard here dude.
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On June 13 2011 10:35 Darclite wrote:I agreed with you until you said: Show nested quote +On June 13 2011 09:45 Nairul wrote:
I shall address one counterargument…”it’s just a game, I enjoy playing it casually.”
My response: Stop being a bitch. You’re a gamer, it’s time to get serious and bash nerds. The feeling that comes from winning, because you know you trained, far overshadows the giddiness and quasi-social acceptance of a Day[9] Daily chat room.
-Nairul
Wtf does that mean? Someone likes to play Starcraft, (because it's a fun game), but doesn't want to become a grandmaster or an MLG champion, and they are a bitch? And they are wasting their time because they should get better so they can bash nerds? You go a little overboard here dude.
Understood. Thanks for your input.
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EPT
