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Hey guys, this is EGSuppy here and I just wanted to write a little bit about MLG and possible ways that they could improve the production value. I just got back from Dallas actually and it was a ton of fun, another great event held by MLG and I was very ecstatic to participate and show my parents / brother around the eSports world. They were quite impressed as well! However, although I didn't see for myself, I did hear from quite a few people that the stream was a bit lacking - that there was a lot of downtime that may have reduced the quality of the stream. Additionally, I myself have felt for a few tournaments that sometimes it is quite difficult for players to get exposure even if performing very well at MLG.
For example, goswser had a hell of a performance at MLG, unfortunately getting Rain in R4 but then beasting it up and proceeding to beat qxc, ToD, KawaiiRice, Caliber, making it into championship bracket where he defeated ThorZaIN (one game with a proxy hatch apparently) and almost taking down Polt too in a 1-2 score. However, I feel like he hasn't gotten a ton of attention for his run in MLG, and I don't think a single one of his games were streamed at all. Binski also had a pretty awesome tournament, taking down a lot of strong NA ladderers in SniXSniPe and PulseKitty, and then went on to face four EG members consecutively before finally falling in the LR8 right before championship bracket. I feel like that is a very cool storyline with great potential to be milked, giving fans a stake in rooting for either side and giving much needed exposure to lesser known players who have strong performances. Another great example of an awesome game that I heard about (and that viewers missed due to it not being streamed) was Scarlett vs HerO, game 3 championship bracket round 2. The game came down to 3 remaining buildings for Scarlett (she had 3 spine crawlers left) that she had to spread creep and walk with her army in order to prevent elimination, and she did it.
Perhaps it was because there were less of the "community casters" (I think there were less than normal this event or something) that created a scenario in which many games were not casted, but that is one way to increase the amount of exposure that can be provided/produced. What other ways can we increase exposure for these kinds of players? And how can we reduce the downtime on the stream? I think these go hand-in-hand with one another. Certainly it is not feasible to have all potentially exciting matches casted main stage. However I have a few ideas that I think are logistically quite easy to incorporate.
I think it would be a great idea for MLG to get one guy to be sort of an "open bracket reporter." This guy's job will be to follow the open bracket results, ask players if there were any awesome/exciting games, and to take notes on everything that's going on. He can be the perfect filler for the downtime on stream as he can come on and basically tell some of the important results that occurred. In addition, he can go through the replays of the good games (think Scarlett's 3 spine crawler or goswser's proxy hatch win) and have a short clip created for each interesting game, and this he can show on stream while waiting for the next match. I think this is a much better and detailed way to present tournament results compared to having viewers rely on Twitter MLGSC2Scores or Liquipedia. Instead of simply going to Liquipedia, seeing a notable player dropdown or be eliminated and being left wondering why or how that happened, we can get a short overview of what happened, maybe with a short clip or two of the games, and a nice filler that reduces the amount of down time in between main stage matches.
Another cool idea that I think would be awesome and easy for MLG to incorporate is to learn from HomeStoryCup Production. Instead of simply showing a blank screen with some music playing in the background or whatever it is on stream that leads to down time, they can take a handheld camera and basically just film anything. Film players eating, talking, fans interacting, people going to the bathroom, *whatever*! (Honestly I think just showing people going to the bathroom randomly would be pretty funny, and at least a pleasant change from the streams just having a camera permanently hovering over the same audience the entire tournament.) You can do short little mini-interviews that can correspond to the above mentioned "open bracket reporter" and get some of the player's opinions on the matches. Short little 30-45 second things that you can put in between each main stage match that helps people learn what happened on non-casted matches. Instead of the live audience sitting down simply staring at a picture of themselves for however many minutes it is before the next match, they get to see a little bit of what else is going on in the player pit behind them. All viewers get to see the players and learn more about them, see perhaps a bit of their personality, and start really rooting for someone if they are doing well in open bracket. It reminds me of when Scarlett was doing amazing at IPL 4(?) but got little to no coverage - if there was just a little bit of coverage after each one of her matches that was played in between the main streamed matches, for example a short clip or a short interview, it could really build up to produce an amazing storyline that people will REALLY want to see, and lead to great upcoming matches to put on stage. It's totally a win-win situation, as players get more exposure, viewers get a more dynamic viewing experience, and MLG gets a higher viewer count from people being more inclined to tune in at all times due to a higher entertainment value. At the very end of the day, MLG could do a HomeStoryCup-esque summary of the day, the ones with the awesome music and cool footage that is just super entertaining to watch. I remember looking forward to watching the end of the day footage every time from HSC, just because they were always so awesome! MLG already has some interactive polls and stuff, something that I think they could do even more of to give viewers more interaction, and I think this kind of extra coverage is possibly a great way for MLG to improve the viewing experience for everyone.
And if MLG is reading this, the short footage things are also an EXCELLENT way to promote sponsors as well. For example, you can just get live clips of those pretzel girls handing out the pretzels and interacting with the people at the event, and get some sweet shots of people enjoying the snack. Or, for example, get some clips of pros checking out the booths. For example, I went to go try out some Shootmania with my brother on Sunday and I think perhaps other pros might have gone and tried out some of the other games as well - you could get some really cool shots of pros and fans trying out games and visiting the booths, something that is interesting for viewers to watch and also makes them get some real interaction with what the sponsor is rather than simply a name/logo on the side of the stream.
In a nutshell - MLG was great as always and an awesome event. I think there are ways to make it even better, which is a win-win situation for everyone. There should be maybe one guy dedicated to following and creating content regarding open bracket progress - he can present this content in between main streamed matches. They could also intersperse that with some HomeStoryCup-esque handheld footage of players simply chilling out, eating, doing short interviews, going to the booths, fans doing stuff with the sponsors, etc. All of this can help increase exposure for players who get barely any coverage even if they perform very well, helps reduce downtime for the MLG stream (thereby giving viewers a better experience), and gives MLG a higher viewer count due to the higher entertainment value.
I wrote this basically because I kinda just thought about this throughout the past few MLGs, and thought I should spend a little bit presenting this idea in the hopes that perhaps MLG might take some of the suggestions to make a great event even more amazing. I remember when I worked a bit for ESEA coverage and I really wanted to increase the production value of ESEA (since to be honest, it was absolutely horrid) as well as increase the exposure for all the deserving (but lesser known) teams out there. I think MLG can also serve that purpose. Anyways, this is all just my 2 cents, and I wrote it pretty quickly so some parts might not be too cohesive, but I'm definitely curious to see what other people think! If you've got ideas as well I'd love to see them and I think this sort of discussion could help improve eSports for everyone 
 
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United States15275 Posts
Ah, so modest. ^_^ You had a hell of a run yourself cowboy.
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^^
Revival nbd.
All good ideas. Althoug htere are costs associated, I think there would be decent return, and your point about the sponsors is dead on.
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How about fixing that shitty connection so the people that paid can actually watch starcraft 2 instead of a powerpoint presentation of starcraft.
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agree with the down time, agree with camera crew running through the tournament area. IPL did a great job with this during IPL4 with Lanibot running around interviewing players/managers/fans/crew/staff.
Go SUPPY!!!!!! Great write up 5 stars!
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Nice write up! I think that as far as streams go, MLG just was a little bit hectic Saturday morning. The last few events haven't had that much down time, and later in the day and most of championship Sunday content was at least being moved.
Better organization by MLG will ultimately help reduce downtime, and it would also go towards helping avoid situations where certain players forfeit, which also seemed to happen more this MLG than in the last few.
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I was thinking this exact thing yesterday! I was almost lucky that the 'blank' time on streams occurred, because it allowed me to study for my exams. But I thought "surely they must have *something* to show in this spare time - there are 200+ players in the event and we got to see 10-15% of those on stream? Be it highlight clips, games shown just as a replay, or footage from last year/last MLG, people will love it!
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I doubt many would disagree with your idea. It was indeed a bit strange that their were no community casters for Dallas to cast open bracket games.
I mean I think MLG knows that covering more games would the experience for people, but I'm not sure if they know if its worth hiring that many extra people. If they gave the idea a chance, I believe the positive response would really blow up over the course of the MLG weekend.
As much as I was a bit annoyed that not a lot of open bracket games were broadcast, I do realize their are logistical restraints to trying to pick out games.
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Ah, as a huge fan of streamed events (I have no money to travel or anything of the sort, so SC2 event streams offer me the maximum amount of pleasure of travel and SC action), I couldn't agree more with your ideas and less down time. Even if a majority of it was for premium, nothing felt longer than the waits between games, and even with cameras panning over the large audience I couldn't help but feel there was lost potential.
That lost potential was excellently put here, Suppy. Very good points, and I sincerely hope MLG comes up with/implements some of these ideas, especially with some games only being seen at the event directly (*cough* HerO vs. Scarlett *cough*) which could easily make for more great content at practically no cost! Viewers and sponsors (and thus indirectly, the players and teams) have lot to gain when maximizing the usefulness of air-time. Once again, well put you brilliant man!
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I bet they could get casters to work for free, to be honest. Maybe not top tier, but tolerable. Or even pros after they get knocked out.
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This issue and these points have already been discussed with MLG for about a year. I know because I was the one presenting similar ideas and solutions, along with others. It all comes down to budgets.
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Why not just have 4 streams all free? That way we can choose which games to watch and continue to have commercials.
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Remember, Sandy stranded a lot of MLG staff and those "community casters," audio, and camera crews could have been among them. I think it was amazing that MLG managed to put on any production with like 1/3 of their staff still in NY.
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On November 06 2012 15:44 Brutaxilos wrote:
Why not just have 4 streams all free? That way we can choose which games to watch and continue to have commercials.
Greater incentive to pay.
Seriously, it's all about the money here. I for one am surprised that anyone bought a HD ticket on purpose to watch 2 SC2 streams in HD. The 480p was just fine and watchable, and there was no "premium content" this time around.
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On November 06 2012 15:41 Clutch8 wrote:
This issue and these points have already been discussed with MLG for about a year. I know because I was the one presenting similar ideas and solutions, along with others. It all comes down to budgets.
Sure it does, but I mean how much can it cost to get some guy to do what Suppy suggested? The open bracket reporter thingy. I'd bet you'd find a ton of people who would be willing to do this. How about yourself Clutch? Just don't ask for too much money ;P
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It's hard for random scrubs in the community to know what the actual costs would be, although I'm sure there are people that would be willing to do it only for the attention.
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What about allowing players to stream their open bracket matches (with some delay)? What if all open bracket matches were streamed automatically? Just a random thought I had.
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Completely agree!
I would love to see those ideas implemented.
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Hi Conan! I agree with a lot of your suggestions as a spectator - as someone that basically followed around team LighT all this weekend I was surprised at the low amount of exposure for players that performed reasonably well in the open bracket in general. I especially think that the open bracket reporter could be implemented, but moreso as a backstage presence than someone on the floor.
Having some experience in production I can understand why MLG wouldn't do some of these things, and they all essentially boil down to logistics and cost. For example, roaming cameras: they're a great idea in theory for the stream, but the wrangling hundreds of feet of cable out onto the tournament floor is unlikely without creating some safety issues, let alone adjusting for lighting/sound/etc. (as opposed to the controlled stage environment) to ensure the footage recorded is still usable in some way.
While adding a reporter + camera crew for one game might not cost too much, you do have to remember that MLG isn't just an SC2 event; it's an eSports event for multiple games. Increasing coverage in this way for one game might warrant a similar plan to be implemented for parity (just imagine the backlash if LoL got additional coverage and SC2 didn't), and suddenly you're adding 20 staff and 3-4 additional cameras + equipment. Granted, what's needed for one game isn't necessarily needed for other games, but that it asks the question of what should be done for other games is enough to give pause as far as budgeting is concerned. So, there are these particular challenges that need to be met if they do want to do this sometime.
What I think would be ideal is if MLG could crowdsource this extra exposure, similar to the way they brought on community casters. While they probably can't pay TL or ESFI to provide on-stream coverage/interviews, I think they could ask for teams to submit short media before the event that could be featured on stream as part of a community spotlight segment. On top of that, they also have an option for more well-to-do teams with players in pool play to submit bios to be played before their matches to establish an appropriate balance. Both of these segments could be made completely optional, but I would think that teams like EG and TL might take the opportunity to promote their players even further. (The only issue would be with Korean players, who aren't the best at promoting themselves...)
MLG doesn't necessarily want to bend over backwards to do this, but providing a small platform for which smaller teams to get some exposure might be a reasonable step towards improving this issue.
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Great ideas everyone In regards for budgeting, I think that it is quite likely that an up-and-coming community caster would gladly accept exposure as payment for his/her services. Also, for the cameras, the many issues you brought up Peter definitely might be a problem. I was thinking that perhaps handheld cameras could be used however, to avoid the cables and stuff? The footage would then be transferred to a computer for some short editing before putting it on stream. Lighting I think does not have to be too big of a deal, as I don't think HSC has controlled lighting everywhere I think. However the issue about other games maybe needing more as well is definitely a valid argument. I think that in the future, ideally all the games should be getting this kind of pervasive coverage however
Your suggestion for player submitted bio's is one I think it great, it could be a small self-interview introducing someone to the crowd, or just a little written stats thing that can be shown on stream. Perhaps there could be some GSL style facts listed. I'm thinking some cool thing where the player's little interview is shown, and then kinda like in the World Series of Poker where they zoom in on that table, afterwards the camera could zoom in on the player pit if that person is playing and show him playing his match just for a few seconds, and later they could update the score or whatever.
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On November 06 2012 17:38 Superiorwolf wrote:
Your suggestion for player submitted bio's is one I think it great, it could be a small self-interview introducing someone to the crowd, or just a little written stats thing that can be shown on stream. Perhaps there could be some GSL style facts listed. I'm thinking some cool thing where the player's little interview is shown, and then kinda like in the World Series of Poker where they zoom in on that table, afterwards the camera could zoom in on the player pit if that person is playing and show him playing his match just for a few seconds, and later they could update the score or whatever.
Now the problem with this self-footage is, it costs money, also. The quality in those contents would differ greatly and its more likely that better known teams with probably more money could produce better quality in those contents. This would lead to more exposure to known players instead of rather unknown ones.
Maybe MLG could have one guy interviewing players before or after games, but not live. I think of the Grubby interview that was postet here on TL. It was a much better interview than those "how-do-you-feel?" on stage interviews right after a game.* Of course, the games are important, but for me the personality of players is as much important if I am supposed to cheer for them.
* And there was certainly no controlled light. In fact, it was filmed by a shaky hand camera if I remember correctly.
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Even with bringing in a community caster, it will also be an issue of quality assurance. I'd imagine MLG wants to make sure MLG branded content meets a certain production standard, and that requires oversight and more resources.
It may come down to community orgs stepping it up and going the extra mile to bring us game reports. But the issue is will a big org like TL or ESFI deviate from really big stories to take a risk on up and comers, and will the community as a whole embrace it?
I think everyone knows what they want, but getting the right group of people and the right execution is the trickiest part. You might need a major org to really dedicate themselves to the task of covering up and comers just to see how it goes and what can be done.
Still 100% agree it needs to happen, and I would propose that it would benefit MLG a great deal.
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On November 06 2012 18:42 shindigs wrote:
Even with bringing in a community caster, it will also be an issue of quality assurance. I'd imagine MLG wants to make sure MLG branded content meets a certain production standard, and that requires oversight and more resources.
It may come down to community orgs stepping it up and going the extra mile to bring us game reports. But the issue is will a big org like TL or ESFI deviate from really big stories to take a risk on up and comers, and will the community as a whole embrace it?
I think everyone knows what they want, but getting the right group of people and the right execution is the trickiest part. You might need a major org to really dedicate themselves to the task of covering up and comers just to see how it goes and what can be done.
Still 100% agree it needs to happen, and I would propose that it would benefit MLG a great deal.
Branching off of that, even third party coverage of mlg on another stream could be beneficial, but it would need to be through a well respected org, and even then they may want to keep the monopoly on advertising, justifiably.
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Agree with this. Also, amazing job Suppy! I didn't catch much MLG this weekend but it is always awesome to see you perform so well when checking the brackets. Going through that open bracket must be so daunting.
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East Gorteau22261 Posts
On November 06 2012 15:01 phodacbiet wrote:
How about fixing that shitty connection so the people that paid can actually watch starcraft 2 instead of a powerpoint presentation of starcraft.
I live in Sweden, I have mediocre internet and hardly experienced any lag after the switch from Own3d to Twitch. Obviously, that's only me, but I hardly believe a significant amount of people were watching a "powerpoint presentations of Starcraft"
On-topic: I agree that more could be done to show more games, from more players. Some players, like you say, had amazing runs but were hardly noticed at all despite great runs. This is a problem, I think.
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Actually if they wanted to run a roaming camera that wasn't attached to the mixer/stream and bring back the footage for super-quick editing I could see that working. I remember doing something pretty similar for CSL Grand Finals - while we didn't have the best equipment we actually managed to output a lot of content, and we weren't even all that coordinated. Of course MLG could also look into stuff like LiveU which works really well for IPL.
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First off - Great run at MLG man, it was really awesome to watch you move up the brackets.
Secondly, I completely agree. Viewers should be like gold dust to tournaments. If you get people to watch your stream to catch a game, you don't want to give them a chance to leave, bombarding them with constant content to keep them interested. Instead, they have long downtime where people will switch off the stream and move to do something else instead. It's a real shame and they need to switch it up.
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Perhaps something MLG could do is outsource downtime content to many of the eSports sites - Cadred, Teamliquid, ESFI World and so on - where they produce an interview, roaming report or whatever that gets played in between matches.
Win-win for both?
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I was fine with the setup of earlier MLGs with 2 streams with the main casters and then 2 more premium streams with community casters. The problem of this MLG was not just the fact that there was downtime, but more that there were very interesting matches going on while there was downtime. With other tournaments (that typically have far less games overall), downtime is typically when no games are being played. You still have to wait in that case, but at least you don't have that nagging feeling that you may be missing some exciting games.
With the community-caster-streams, there was (almost) always a game to watch and missing a good series rarely happened.
Of course, if the lack of community-caster-streams this MLG was due to logistical issues with Sandy and not a conscious decision by MLG then I'll withdraw my criticism on this point.
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Clutch does it really take much more budget to have 1 guy walk around with a camera filming the action in the player areas?
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On November 06 2012 15:01 phodacbiet wrote:
How about fixing that shitty connection so the people that paid can actually watch starcraft 2 instead of a powerpoint presentation of starcraft.
Yeah, they should definitely make sure to prevent any hurricanes next time.
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A 'hardcore' stream? LOL i just heard it --
ANyway, a stream that's "empty" & w/o casters that is there to have shaky cam footage of whatever cool matches that are going on would be cool. When I went to MLG in Anaheim, I enjoyed watching JYP vs Stephano behind a huge crowd (not casted); I wouldn't mind a video camera pointed at a screen w/o any casters, honestly. You'd get the 'hardcore sc2 fan experience thing' as well as the actual crowd reactions super close by.
Logistically however, I have no idea where their set ups are cause you'd have to hook up the camera to a feed somewhere, and I dont know how their cables are set up.
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I think it would be a great idea for MLG to get one guy to be sort of an "open bracket reporter." This guy's job will be to follow the open bracket results, ask players if there were any awesome/exciting games, and to take notes on everything that's going on. He can be the perfect filler for the downtime on stream as he can come on and basically tell some of the important results that occurred. In addition, he can go through the replays of the good games (think Scarlett's 3 spine crawler or goswser's proxy hatch win) and have a short clip created for each interesting game, and this he can show on stream while waiting for the next match.
Agreed, sounds like a great idea.
BTW I didn't experience any stream lag. Well at least no more than other streams. Lots of commercials though.
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On November 06 2012 16:52 GaiusBaltar wrote:Show nested quote +On November 06 2012 15:41 Clutch8 wrote:
This issue and these points have already been discussed with MLG for about a year. I know because I was the one presenting similar ideas and solutions, along with others. It all comes down to budgets. Sure it does, but I mean how much can it cost to get some guy to do what Suppy suggested? The open bracket reporter thingy. I'd bet you'd find a ton of people who would be willing to do this. How about yourself Clutch? Just don't ask for too much money ;P
don't know if you remember the old MLGs from 2011, but Clutch already did that job before. They used to cut to him standing in the crowd as he'd give the live score updates from the open bracket and other group matches that weren't casted on main stage or on blue stream. it was excellent filler between matches.
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Well written article about an issue that needs to be addressed during the upcoming MLG season.
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Man that would be my dream job, to go around picking open bracket matches to show on stream, I always go around finding the best ones as it is already, so fun.
Lots of good suggestions I totally agree.
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Could it be possible that they were undermanned due to Sandy and therefore couldn't put on such a smooth production?
FYI, Goswser vs. Rain was streamed. First game was super good, second was a bloodbath.
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I'm gonna respond to this here, because I was going to actually just make a blog on it, but this topic is already here.
There are many big problems for me with the way MLG handles downtime.
I remember a year ago or so when we were getting more streams. I remember all the hype with getting new streams. And then I remember spending at least a quarter of the tournament with red and blue mirrored and one of those two "extra" streams down. Maybe next event would be better. Next event was not better. Next event had two free streams + red and blue and one was down for two days and the other had an awesome kid playing with a rubix cube while really big names were playing because no one could move their setup over to them. Skip a few events forward, those new streams are now premium AND red and blue are still mirrored. All of this is going on WHILE MLG is hyping about their massive caster lineup so there's less downtime.
From another perspective if I'm watching for free, I'm advertised as getting two streams. Which I don't get for a good amount of time. If I AM paying a lot of the time all I'm really guarenteed is what the free people are supposed to be getting.
From yet another perspective...while the way all tournaments handle downtime is pretty bad still, mirroring streams is just confusing. If you stuck to your schedule religiously it might be okay. But for me to sit an extra 30 minutes and then go to some game magically that wasn't even scheduled and have to wonder if I'm on the wrong stream and then go through reloading everything and then sit through ads all over again because you all finally decide after an hour of nothing that maybe you can do something is just...bad. It's confusing and badly managed. There's no other way around it.
I understand casters need breaks. But I also understand if you're going to brag about having the biggest caster lineup continuously and don't use them you look like a fraud.
I understand technical issues happen. I also understand they happen every event.
I understand there's a budget concern. I also know there's ways around that. Does that mean hey there's downtime we should host 2GD and his crew and give them a channel? No. It means give clutch a camera man while he walks around. It means make that camera the blue stream camera. Forget clutch entirely and just have a guy walk around with a camera. You don't even need sound, and it'd still be more intelligent and interesting than mirroring things. There's lot of options that aren't budget eating.
Lastly the thing I see most is that I could have made this point a year ago, and I'm sure someone else did and many have since then. And it's still the same problem it was then.
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good post and sick run homie.
I think also one thing that MLG needs to get on is actually releasing the replays from the tournament. There were sooooo many amazing games played (like both scarlett vs hero and jookto vs grubby g3s) that people missed out on. And unfortunately, people may never get to see those games.
I am not a fan of everyone in the scene pitch forking and huddling together to get what they want, but I think for something like this then it could be beneficial. There's already a massive reddit thread on it, and hopefully MLG pays attention. Apparently they promised to release replays a few weeks after every MLG tournament, but haven't even bothered to release the replays of the past 2 MLGs.
If we can't get better exposure in the player pit, then at least let us be able to download and see all the games after the tournament is over. I feel like their excuses of "we have to remove certain information from every replay" is just an excuse. IEM and Dreamhack release the replays within either hours or days of the tournament, and nothing is wrong with them. Why can't MLG?
Also, I just wanna steal everything from Rain 
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It looked like MLG was cutting back.
Anyway:
I think it would be a great idea for MLG to get one guy to be sort of an "open bracket reporter." This guy's job will be to follow the open bracket results, ask players if there were any awesome/exciting games, and to take notes on everything that's going on. He can be the perfect filler for the downtime on stream as he can come on and basically tell some of the important results that occurred. In addition, he can go through the replays of the good games (think Scarlett's 3 spine crawler or goswser's proxy hatch win) and have a short clip created for each interesting game, and this he can show on stream while waiting for the next match. I think this is a much better and detailed way to present tournament results compared to having viewers rely on Twitter MLGSC2Scores or Liquipedia. Instead of simply going to Liquipedia, seeing a notable player dropdown or be eliminated and being left wondering why or how that happened, we can get a short overview of what happened, maybe with a short clip or two of the games, and a nice filler that reduces the amount of down time in between main stage matches.
To this day I don't know why they haven't done something like this.
Sure, they have Wheatie/Sean/etc. sometimes commenting on the brackets or if a big upset takes place.
They don't need anymore silly segments either. Heck, they could even do a side-scroller if they wanted as long as there was a tab to turn it on and off.
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I'm sure these ideas have been floated in MLG's planning:
* In addition to the live streams, add a centralized sportscaster style desk that reports on open bracket games and also gives status updates on *all* games. It's time to start fighting about which game is best and realize that esports fans like esports. Like the sportscenter desks on Sundays covering all the NFL games -- and you can add in some "roving reporter" interviews with players and fans on site. This would be way better than looking at the chairs...
* I have no idea why there aren't screens with the brackets all over the room at MLG. It seems ridiculous with all the technology required to run the games, the bracket is updated on a hand-written whiteboard that the players cluster around. Or that everybody is trying to look up liquipedia on their phones on-site to see where the next games are (observed this at MLG Columbus this year and nothing seems to have changed).
* Both the brackets and at least one stream should be played out by where the concessions/food are. Everybody needs to eat and you lose total touch with the tourney when you step out of the room.
I realize the budget is a constraint, but MLG is honestly not charging enough. Lollapalooza is a $300 weekend ticket, where MLG is $30. Charge more and make the event more of an experience for the fans. This is the *only* chance most of us ever get to see the players in person.
If you are coming from out of town, you'll pay $150 for a weekend pass -- especially if MLG throws in some cheap extras (t-shirt, pro player interaction opportunities). If you are worried about crowding out the local high-school-aged/broke crowd, bring in a bunch of volunteers to do things like run around and tell players when their games are and let them in cheap/free. I'm sure you could have had plenty of fanboys more than happy to go chase down Daisy Sunday morning and avoided having to DQ his game.
MLG could be the premier gaming festival in the US. If they want it to be.
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Binski also had a pretty awesome tournament, taking down a lot of strong NA ladderers in SniXSniPe and PulseKitty, and then went on to face four EG members consecutively before finally falling in the LR8 right before championship bracket.
lol Suppy, you so humble and classy, not even mentioning who he lost to <3
Good blog, and nice run at MLG.
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tbf for this MLG, their team was hit hard by Sandy and were working with a smaller group than they were planning on.
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You bring up some great ideas Conan! I know i've been hoping MLG would promote the open bracket/up and coming players/teams forever T_T There were so many epic games that were messed during 2012. I like a few lucky people who were at the event were able to watch some of these games first hang but most people never got a chance to.
MLG please improve your open bracket coverage for 2013!!!! The future of Starcraft rests on the shoulders of the up and comers!
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I contacted Puckett on twitter about MLG's plan to increase coverage for 2013 and here is his response.
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On November 06 2012 15:41 Clutch8 wrote:
This issue and these points have already been discussed with MLG for about a year. I know because I was the one presenting similar ideas and solutions, along with others. It all comes down to budgets.
While I'm sure the budget thing is an issue, I would, and could, do a lot of this stuff for free. MLG could host a couple contests, or calls for filler that can be used between SC2 sets and all they would need to give would be free passes to a local MLG (wouldn't even need to fly anyone anywhere). Hell I'd probably go out of my way to try and do something just for the exposure.
But I think a big issue is that we would want that exposure. I love MLG, I've offered to volunteer, and they've even almost accepted that offer, but if it comes down to using an expensive skill that I earned through hours of college I want to know that it would at least be looked at. Creating a random commentary piece on the foreigners in an event that may or may not be seen by anyone that you want to see it isn't everyone's idea of fun.
I think they simply need to be a bit more transparent about what they're thinking about, or what they feel they need, and to provide open calls for that stuff, and that alone would fix a lot of the stream issues at least.
Give us what you need, how much time it should take, any restrictions (can't use licensed music, can't use ___ can't use ___ please have it use ___) and just have someone go through it all. Bam, stream filler issue fixed until next time.
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I don't know about you guys but I would pay 20 dollars to watch raw POV of the main stage computers with sound.
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I would volunteer to report on the state of the open bracket. VOLUNTEER. I go to all these things already anyway, and I love watching the open bracket.
MLG ... I'll do it for free!!!
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What they need to do isn't adding streams (they could tho but not my point), it's finding a way to be more flexible and be able to jump from one game to another. Technically it should be possible, for instance have some random chat channels for every open brackets where games are announced and the obsing computers can just join a game easily.
I mean, 2 hours downtime when we know big matchups are being played is really a waste of potential good content, I'm sure it's just a question of being better organized.
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Completely agree that there should be a lot more coverage of the exciting storylines not already featured with the most recognized players.
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Good stuff. Wonder who got the MLG Breakout Player Award this time.
Also, it must have been really fun for you to have your family along for them to see what such an event is about. Your parents being surprised and proud about you signing autographs and all that jazz was a fun anecdote in one of your interviews.
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On November 07 2012 01:34 Drlemur wrote:
I'm sure these ideas have been floated in MLG's planning:
* In addition to the live streams, add a centralized sportscaster style desk that reports on open bracket games and also gives status updates on *all* games. It's time to start fighting about which game is best and realize that esports fans like esports. Like the sportscenter desks on Sundays covering all the NFL games -- and you can add in some "roving reporter" interviews with players and fans on site. This would be way better than looking at the chairs...
* I have no idea why there aren't screens with the brackets all over the room at MLG. It seems ridiculous with all the technology required to run the games, the bracket is updated on a hand-written whiteboard that the players cluster around. Or that everybody is trying to look up liquipedia on their phones on-site to see where the next games are (observed this at MLG Columbus this year and nothing seems to have changed).
* Both the brackets and at least one stream should be played out by where the concessions/food are. Everybody needs to eat and you lose total touch with the tourney when you step out of the room.
I realize the budget is a constraint, but MLG is honestly not charging enough. Lollapalooza is a $300 weekend ticket, where MLG is $30. Charge more and make the event more of an experience for the fans. This is the *only* chance most of us ever get to see the players in person.
If you are coming from out of town, you'll pay $150 for a weekend pass -- especially if MLG throws in some cheap extras (t-shirt, pro player interaction opportunities). If you are worried about crowding out the local high-school-aged/broke crowd, bring in a bunch of volunteers to do things like run around and tell players when their games are and let them in cheap/free. I'm sure you could have had plenty of fanboys more than happy to go chase down Daisy Sunday morning and avoided having to DQ his game.
MLG could be the premier gaming festival in the US. If they want it to be.
what i love about e-sports is that unlike regular sports where people go "hater on" and act like idiots, you get refreshing content and people are generally positive. fans pack into the stands waiting to see the content, and when the casters start it's a real thrill. the audience cheers on the casters, and the casters interact with the audience. if you carefully watch the day[9] dance you'll see what i mean. it's like the audience and the caster are in sync.
i totally disagree, though. like where the best game is concerned, it's just not a productive argument. there are plenty of great games out there; i personally love LoL and Starcraft, and I'd hate to see one take a backseat to the other. Though I guess if I had to pick, I know where my allegiances lie.
BTW, why do you suggest that the fans should have to pay more to enjoy the services provided? $300 is a pretty radical price change. Where investments are concerned it's always a give or take and nothing sucks more than losing participants. Live games need to be really packed, IMO. Personally I think we should try to bring more female fans into the Western esports, something like what goes on in South Asia.
anyway, there's no lack of content. i love what i see when i get a chance to tune into the games. my work keeps me away from gaming for the most part, just because the nature of what i do involves others in a lot of shifty maneuvers. not to say underhanded, but just that time is of the essence, it's a lot like i'm on call. sad to say with the time i've invested in gaming, i've got little to no return. but time isn't the only factor that causes me grief. there are all sorts of disparities in my job and my games, i guess probably the most tangible is the least obvious. and that's the fun factor. i hate to say this, but i think i enjoy the machinations of my burgeoning corporate empire more than the politics of say x17. i never thought the end would arrive, but here it is.
anyway, about the concessions: food with the games could get really messy. i wouldn't want my seat bottom sticky, and i hate gum in theaters. there's nothing worse than sticky shoes, not only because of the sheer inconvenience (you cursing the idiocy), but most of all because of the damned noise. that sickening sound of suction when the heel leaves the asphalt.
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On November 07 2012 18:35 Proseat wrote:
Good stuff. Wonder who got the MLG Breakout Player Award this time.
Winner is YaTa from It's Gosu. Saw them taking photos of him in the isle in between games Sunday - it was rather awkward for him since people were constantly walking in front of the camera. I wish they would have announced that on stage with a Clutch interview!
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On November 07 2012 01:12 StarStruck wrote:
It looked like MLG was cutting back.
No, apparently over half of their tech team and setup crews were stranded in NY due to the airport closures from Hurricane Sandy.
MLG headquarters are in New York City.
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MLG seems to get these criticisms a lot. I realize that they have quite a bit of stuff to work on, but at some point they should really attend to this x.x
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On November 08 2012 00:31 Zaranth wrote:Show nested quote +On November 07 2012 18:35 Proseat wrote:
Good stuff. Wonder who got the MLG Breakout Player Award this time.
Winner is YaTa from It's Gosu. Saw them taking photos of him in the isle in between games Sunday - it was rather awkward for him since people were constantly walking in front of the camera. I wish they would have announced that on stage with a Clutch interview!
No haha YaTa isn't even playing right now. He won it in Winter Championships though. But winner was HwangSin xD
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On November 08 2012 00:51 dcemuser wrote:Show nested quote +On November 07 2012 01:12 StarStruck wrote:
It looked like MLG was cutting back. No, apparently over half of their tech team and setup crews were stranded in NY due to the airport closures from Hurricane Sandy. MLG headquarters are in New York City.
I am well aware of where their headquarters are. A plan, B plan, C plan. You get the idea. In either case I wouldn't be surprised of scaling certain things back. You need to run a well-oiled machine.
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thanks to EGSuppy for pointing the idea of an "open bracket reporter". i was wondering why there are so many talents at mlg dallas yet i felt there's something missing, and it is because of the lack of exposure for other players. i would love to see a reporter going around and just shooting player to player interactions or player-fan interactions. i also like to see more fan activities to keep everyone engaged.
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EPT
