EPTThere is just one thing I have been thinking on for a long time and that is how much the actual quality of SC2 as entertainment depends on the casters. Over time I discovered things that repeatedly annoyed me and things i found very appealing regarding the cast of a game or rather a tournament. So I thought I write it all up for myself at least.
Here is what I'd like to see and hear (or rather not) from the casters at Blizzcon:
1. Embracing the stories that have been outlined in the Blizzard signature series, in the previews on TL and other places. Even though I and possibly most of the SC2 community genuinely enjoy skillful play it is something which is detachable from the individual players.
- Anyone in the Global Finals is capable of awe-inspiring moves. So the best way to make people (especially those who are not fans of a specific player for long) care for the outcome and not just quality of the matches is to refer to the personal stories of the players as caster.
- That requires a certain amount of preparation, maybe even looking at some notes before a match. Included in this preparation should be some thoughts on when it is appropriate to talk about a specific story. For example, there is Zests super-engaging story of not being able to make his father proud with his success due to him passing away early. Hearing of this before every game however would feel absolutely inappropriate to me.
- One thing that is surely difficult due to a number of circumstances like scheduling but I would really like to be more visible on air: Casters using their privileged position to talk to the players. Of course it might be this happens a lot more than I as an outsider think. It is just that in many cases you rarely hear from the players in a tournament, mostly just in short winner interviews. The casters providing insights into their thoughts and feelings before matches is something a stream-viewer cannot replicate. Knowledge of a players skills and preferred playstyle however is at least for the fans of said player already there.
2. Apropos "hearing of something before every game": From my point of view some phrases seem to be golden cows to SC2 casters. There are casts when I feel I hear roughly the same things said before any game played. It is entirely subjective of course, as it is just one person writing this, but I'll make a list nevertheless and explain my critique in detail afterwards.
- "It'll be interesting to see what X can bring to the table here." I feel i have heard this phrase so often during casts by many different people that probably any professional SC2 contender could now also be considered a waiter.
- "Maybe X will mix it up, maybe X will go for standard play." That possibility applies to any game of Starcraft played ever and thus makes the cast feel exchangeable at this point.
- "X is a player how can do anything." Again, this applies to anyone ever (without further detail on how skilled a contender is executing certain plays and strategies). The question asked should be what we can expect a player to do under specific circumstances.
- I am not idiot enough to suppose nobody should ever say things like the above examples. I would love however if casters were trying to be very aware of what they are saying and how they do it. Maybe most of the time they have a genuine idea what they expect from a player and but use super generalist phrases anyway - possibly to avoid being proven wrong or something. For me these phrases have the opposite effect though. Hearing them time and again gives me the impression that casters do not really have an idea on what a player is capable of and willing to do.
- As I tried to stress with the point on players' personal stories it is important to go into emotions or detail to differentiate players from each other and make people care. I think partly the success of MOBA streams is due to the fact that competition between teams makes it very easy to build up stereotypes around contenders that engage fans. I think one of the important factors contributing to Byun's success and fanbase is the metaphore of the "one man army" that transports so many interesting stereotypes.
3. Another point I feel like worth writing down is casters agreeing seemingly a bit too much with each other. I know that objectively there is often one specific player to favor and of course it would be stupid to dispute players' trademarks. However, I think that some disagreement on purpose before a match is in fact a feature of a good unit of casters. If there is not an obvious hype to embrace like with Neebs run in Kespa Cup it might be worth to do play a little theater. Caring for a match does in my opinion increase if the casters seem to reflect the rivalries that might exist between the fans of certain players.
Well, I feel like I had more thoughts in mind before starting this text but i have run dry now. So to end this I would just like to put out a little disclaimer: The critique i expressed should not be misunderstood as a general discontent with the caster scene in SC2 or even the talent lineup for Blizzcon. Neither would I want everybody to agree with me without question - that's the most basic requirement for any rational argument! So please go ahead and criticize me as well, preferably backed up by reason.
Also, have a nice Blizzcon everybody
