EPTI managed to miss both my 1k and my 2k. I intended to do something special for both, but they just slipped past me (actually I blame Mafia. I wouldnt be surprised if over fifty percent of my posts are in that subforum). Since I'm taking a break from Mafia due to my current schedule, I've realised that I'm not going to hit 3k for quite a long time. In the meanwhile, I'm making this stand-in milestone post for both my 1k and 2k.
Part 1: GGQ
My history of gaming goes back quite far. My oldest gaming memory is playing a very basic mousetrap game on a very old computer. You pushed walls in certain patterns to trap mice, and I loved it. My family's first system was a Super Nintendo when it was quite new. I stuck with Nintendo through the years, mostly out of fandom of the Legend of Zelda series, of which I've beaten every game except the first two. There are a lot of games I could talk about, but I want to get to the one this website is all about, so I'll move on. On the computer, my brothers and I stumbled into the world of RTS.
We dabbled into a number of RTS games, Red Alert and Warcraft 2 among them. The one we settled on, though, was Age of Empires II. We played endless hours of that game, watching each other when we had only one computer and then LANing up when we had more. We always played cooperative against the computer, though. We never once played against each other. Also, we only ever played on Black Forest so we could wall our bases in every single game. We were pretty terrible but we certainly didn't think so. When I went to University, I finally had the internet connection to start online gaming, and I jumped right into it with Age of Empires III, which was still a recent release at the time. I played Dutch (my parents are from a Dutch background), which was one of the weakest factions at that point, and it was in this crucible that my competitive gaming spirit was forged. I never became great at the game, but I reached the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, and 2k elo rating in 1v1.
My first experience with Starcraft was, in fact, a very disappointing one. I came home from a camping trip to find that my brothers had rented a game while I was gone; the oft-ridiculed N64 port of Starcraft: Brood Wars. I didn't get to play at all because it had to go back that same night. I watched my brothers finish the game they were playing though, and just by seeing the three races I knew that I was Protoss for life. I later borrowed the game for computer and played through the campaign. This was long before I started playing competitive RTS so I was literally unable to win 1v1 random maps against the computer. Once the campaign was done I was pretty much through with Starcraft for the next five years or so.
I was introduced to Professional Broodwar while browsing gamereplays.org looking up strategy discussion for Age of Empires III. There was a link to the GomTV Star Invitational. I had never watched any esports before; the games played in the West were FPS and fighters and didn't interest me. The RTS games were largely only casted in Korean or Chinese. But the GSI gave me a chance to follow an entire RTS tournament casted in English by Tasteless. I quickly realised that I loved professional BW, and it was time to pick a favourite player. There were only two Protoss who could compete for the spot: Stork and Bisu, and only one had the flair, the style, the looks, and the zerg-destroying skills to be my hero. Bisu it was.
It was actually a pretty awful time to become a Bisu fan. He had already won his first two MSL golds, and was just coming off his bonjwa-crushing loss in the MSL finals to Mind. He would hold out as a strong player for a while, but was headed into a bad slump for several months. I remember a prominent TL mod proclaiming that Bisu would never win another individual league. When Bisu finally made his comback in late 08 to tear through the ClubDay MSL I watched ecstatically as he advanced round after round to the final. Waking up early one morning to watch the final remains a fresh and intense memory in my mind. I love playing and watching SC2 -and I'm better at SC2 than I ever was at BW- but that finals remains by far my favourite esports moment. Bisu went 3-1 to take his third title and MSL golden badge. Unfortunately, he fell from grace again a few months later, entering a much longer and more severe slump than his previous one. It has only been in the last season of Proleague that Bisu has arisen again with the fire of his former glory. It is only recently that Bisu fans have had a real hope of seeing a fourth trophy in his hands.
In honour of Bisu's resurgence, I've decided to assemble a small walk-through for the new SC2 players who might never have experienced BW, showing what makes Bisu such a hero: his unbelievable PvZ. The name of Bisu is almost synonymous with PvZ in BW. He is the Revolutionist who turned an impossible match-up on its head. He is the only Protoss to defeat a Zerg in a league finals in 10 years. His overall PvZ winrate sits at 71%... and the next highest Protoss winrate is Movie's at 60%. I'm going to link just a few games that demonstrate Bisu's style and skill; most BvZ games are worth watching but I don't want to scare anyone off with too many links. Watch, enjoy, and marvel at the man who defied an entire race!
Part 2: BvZ
Exhibit A: The Beginning
This is the first BvZ that TLPD has a VOD link for, so it's the first glimpse we get of Bisu's style. What we see in this game has some recognisable elements from his future, more refined play. He opens with a forge fast expand, and quickly starts massing corsairs to scout and kill overlords. What's painfully lacking in this game (and what makes it the most boring of the games I'm linking in this post) is the lightning fast aggressive harrassment that Bisu is going to become known for. In fact, Bisu plays a very defensive game and only goes for drops quite late. Luckily for everyone, Bisu is going to get much much better.
Exhibit B: The Revolution
Thats right, ladies and gentlemen, Day[9] and NonY (Liquid'Tyler) bring you the Revolution itself. Way back in 2007, Day[9] was at the height of his skill (he's going to win the Pan-American tournament shortly) and NonY is just a few short years away from winning the TSL 2 and establishing himself as the best non-Korean BW player on the face of the planet. A protoss and a Zerg, they give you in-depth analysis on Bisu's 3-0 drubbing of the greatest Zerg ever on the way to his first Starleague gold. There's not much to add to their thoughts on the game, just compare Bisu's aggressive play in this game to his defensive play in the previous game.
Exhibit C: The Stompings
http://www.gomtv.net/classics2/vod/505
Sorry, you have to click a link for this one! It's worthwhile, though; prepare to hear the beautiful combination of Tasteless + lilsusie in the commentating booth. I link this game just to show how Bisu's withering multi-task harrassment and aggression allowed him to routinely dispatch zergs. This game looks like a rare work of genius as Bisu strikes here and there at the same time over and over, but it's more like a commonplace example of BvZ at its best.
Exhibit D: The Rival
Oh Lord, this game... watch it, glory in it. Lee Jaedong comes prepared for Bisu, and it's just barely enough. The harass, the aggression, so relentless. So much damage, but Jaedong just keeps holding on and weathering the storm. One of the best and closest games I've ever seen, this is one to remember forever. Bisu's style is finally defeated by the new best Zerg, the heir to Savior's throne.
Exhibit E: The Return
Bisu's recent resurgence has been marked by a new PvZ style that seems just as ruthless and imbalanced as his old one. I could have linked any one of the games from the last Proleague season where Bisu thrashes a helpless Zerg but since I've already shown a game of Jaedong beating Bisu, why not the other way around? Watching this game reveals that Bisu's style still involves the forge fast expand and the mass corsairs, but instead of the heavy dark templar and reaver harrass, Bisu now uses early zealots and simply micros them like a god. Watch Bisu's constant pressure and aggression melt away the Zerg, and marvel at the fact that not one other single Protoss is capable of doing what this man does. It's nothing short of inspiring.
Well, I'm really tired, and this took a really long time, so I'm going to bed. Hope some readers will enjoy and appreciate! Feel free to ask me any questions about myself or Bisu or whatever, and I'll do my best to answer unless I just don't fucking feel like it. Thanks for reading!
