The KeSPA era might be long gone by now, but the amount of games played during that period was insane. Of course, awesome TLPD staff managed to keep track of, and link vods for most of the great tournaments from that time. Though it's not fully complete with some tournaments missing vods while other early ones were likely missed, there are enough vods that it would take a lifetime for someone to sift through and document all the beautiful games of the past. After all, according to TLPD, there are currently 12500+ vods available!
Suffice to say, this game is my personal choice for one of the best BW games played in the history of the game. I have only watched so much, but when I think of an epic BW game that I can show to someone, a game where the pendulum swings in either direction and both players play their A game, this game is the one that comes to mind. A long back and forth fight between 2 players. A TvZ on none other than Andromeda between Sea and Jaedong during the 2008-2009 Proleague:
To really understand why I believe this is one of the best, one has to take a look at the overall picture. The macro from both sides as well as the insane positioning and spell usage. The constant action and planning that is quite evident from the way units moved on the map. Taking risks, playing smart and trying to keep tabs on everything. This is probably the best SK Terran game that I've ever seen as well as some of the best defiler usage from a Zerg that only few are capable of. It's hard to explain to anyone who hasn't played SK Terran just how insanely well Sea played after the beginning, especially when Jaedong had such amazing surrounds in a lot of engagements. Almost like poetry in motion.
Really, this game shows why watching BW can be such a treat. After all, BW is the best game of all time.
Will give it a watch later! Although there are so many contenders for this title and so many factors to consider. KeSPA era BW really delivered every week.
Nice!! I'll have to take a look at this game: I'm late to the BW party (basically missed the whole KESPA era, since I only joined the scene when Remastered came out), so it's really nice to have a knowledgeable vet point to great games from the KESPA era.
In post-KESPA, the game/series that most stands out to me is Effort vs Flash (also a TVZ as it happens ) in ASL 6 (for the storyline, skills, burrow, Effort showing how Zerg should be played, defeating the pinnacle of BW perfection, etc.). Curious, if you were to do a similar exercise to pick a game from the post-KESPA era, whether this would be in the conversation and/or what other games you would pick.
Feel free to post the games that you guys thought were the best from your perspective with a reason for why you think it is.
On October 31 2019 01:24 Chef wrote: Will give it a watch later! Although there are so many contenders for this title and so many factors to consider. KeSPA era BW really delivered every week.
yes indeed, there were many good options. I think it comes down to what you value in a game. I'm sure we can agree that the boxer vs hiya game where boxer used that nice strat would be high on the list, but from a pure mechanical perspective, this game tops my list.
Whenever I try to think of a game that I want to watch or would recommend, I always always remember this game. I thought Savior vs Nada on Bluestorm was impressive until I watched it again recently and realized the macro among other things was not on this level though would still recommend.
On October 31 2019 01:28 chozen86 wrote: Nice!! I'll have to take a look at this game: I'm late to the BW party (basically missed the whole KESPA era, since I only joined the scene when Remastered came out), so it's really nice to have a knowledgeable vet point to great games from the KESPA era.
In post-KESPA, the game/series that most stands out to me is Effort vs Flash (also a TVZ as it happens ) in ASL 6 (for the storyline, skills, burrow, Effort showing how Zerg should be played, defeating the pinnacle of BW perfection, etc.). Curious, if you were to do a similar exercise to pick a game from the post-KESPA era, whether this would be in the conversation and/or what other games you would pick.
np though sorry to disappoint, I missed the kespa era too lol. I ended up falling asleep on the couch waiting to watch the last OSL finals and I'm still sad that I missed it to this very day On that point, I do tend to watch different vods and series from the past and do plan to watch all the stuff I missed and haven't watched yet at some point.
As for the post-KeSPA, I think there's a lot of contenders. I'll probably write something about that in the near future.
On October 31 2019 12:52 NoS-Craig wrote: One of my favourite games as well. I remember when I first watched this game. Constant action back and forth.
yep, it's just great. Only thing that would've been better is if the quality was slightly better since the colors sometimes would blend together, but it's still a great watch regardless!
On November 01 2019 04:00 prosatan wrote: Although I love JD more than anyone and anything (there is no discussion here ), my favorite game is Free vs Hiya on Triathlon , 2010 !
Well, he had a good position imo but losing his army+mutas then letting Sea dictate the pace lost him the game. Having said that, he played extremely well and so did Sea. I do wonder if Jaedong remembers this game after all these years.
Excellent game! I'm not qualified to comment on "best" since I can barely remember what I did last week, but it was really a great game. The standout to me was Sea's defenses - a perfect combination of direct defense via proper amount of bunkers and MM left behind and indirect defense with pressure created by moving his standing army.
I love an old fashioned slugfest, which I feel like Andromeda is built for: Here's 3 bases for free, then go out into the open middle and bash on each other for 30 minutes.
On November 01 2019 17:01 xccam wrote: A good choice, but it's no Stork vs Jaedong on Match point, game 7 winner's league from 2010 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ijf6RysNq9I
This is a great game too, but I actually prefer OP's choice. Personally I've never really liked Match Point as a map. With 6 and 12 so defensible and no 9th expansion (often in mid), it leads to drawn out games.
Stand out moments for me was Stork having the foresight to built the shuttle and drop JD's main with so much else going on, and his ability to bounce from losing his main without missing a beat.
JD was barely holding on for 35 minutes. He had a few good engagements but he was playing from behind the entire time imo. I just felt stressed the entire game as a zerg. It doesn't feel like a top 10 TvZ to me... I respect your choice but am I the only one?
I can't recall what TvZ game would be my favourite from the top of my head (it's been a long time). However, this game will go down as one of my all time favourites:
Everytime I watch it I can't believe how Tempest managed to pull it off.
JD was barely holding on for 35 minutes. He had a few good engagements but he was playing from behind the entire time imo. I just felt stressed the entire game as a zerg. It doesn't feel like a top 10 TvZ to me... I respect your choice but am I the only one?
I can't recall what TvZ game would be my favourite from the top of my head (it's been a long time).
I'm personally a sucker for the FlaSh vs Jaedong game on Tau Cross.
JD was barely holding on for 35 minutes. He had a few good engagements but he was playing from behind the entire time imo. I just felt stressed the entire game as a zerg. It doesn't feel like a top 10 TvZ to me... I respect your choice but am I the only one?
I can't recall what TvZ game would be my favourite from the top of my head (it's been a long time).
I'm personally a sucker for the FlaSh vs Jaedong game on Tau Cross.
Just watched that. I would tend to agree with you and I slightly prefer that game, but it's really really close. I think I prefer the tactics in Flash vs JD more, and the execution appears very slightly cleaner, but the OP feels like a longer game and has some nice strategies in it.
I've always been a fan of short, unorthodox games, such as Kwanro vs Really on Othello or my second favorite game posted above: Light vs Tempest. My favorite though would be Bisu vs Memory on Byzantium:
I like it because in these kinds of games, neither player is doing what they planned to do anymore. It's all just high level instinct and you're left in awe of what just happened.
JD was barely holding on for 35 minutes. He had a few good engagements but he was playing from behind the entire time imo. I just felt stressed the entire game as a zerg. It doesn't feel like a top 10 TvZ to me... I respect your choice but am I the only one?
I can't recall what TvZ game would be my favourite from the top of my head (it's been a long time).
I'm personally a sucker for the FlaSh vs Jaedong game on Tau Cross.
JD was barely holding on for 35 minutes. He had a few good engagements but he was playing from behind the entire time imo. I just felt stressed the entire game as a zerg. It doesn't feel like a top 10 TvZ to me... I respect your choice but am I the only one?
I can't recall what TvZ game would be my favourite from the top of my head (it's been a long time).
I'm personally a sucker for the FlaSh vs Jaedong game on Tau Cross.
Oh mind posting a link please?
Sorry, it was cumbersome on the phone. Here's the game in question
Thanks for the recs all! I watched that FvJ Tau Cross game before and while it's exciting, there's something amazing about seeing both Sea and Jaedong go all out in the game I posted. You have two guys that are using the race and units as best as possible. Some of Jaedong's plague+swarm usage was insane and he was coming from all sides then you have Sea who kept up the relentless macro as he was trying to keep pressuring Jaedong. There's just something that's really really awe-inspiring when you see 2 armies constantly clash as both players try to get an edge.
On November 02 2019 08:22 Chill wrote: Excellent game! I'm not qualified to comment on "best" since I can barely remember what I did last week, but it was really a great game. The standout to me was Sea's defenses - a perfect combination of direct defense via proper amount of bunkers and MM left behind and indirect defense with pressure created by moving his standing army.
I love an old fashioned slugfest, which I feel like Andromeda is built for: Here's 3 bases for free, then go out into the open middle and bash on each other for 30 minutes.
I think it's fine if you don't remember everything you watch. The idea is to post any vod that comes to mind as soon as you hear the terms "best game". You can alternatively think of it as memorable game too.
I've watched almost every BW match from 2003 Olympus to 2009 EVER but this is the only game that kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time. Savior at his absolute best.
On November 07 2019 08:43 2Pacalypse- wrote: The best (or at least my favorite and most memorable) game of all time is JangBi vs Zero OSL semifinals on Snipers Ridge:
I've watched almost every BW match from 2003 Olympus to 2009 EVER but this is the only game that kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time. Savior at his absolute best.
When I saw the names and the screenshot, I remembered that I watched this game before and it was just insane. I watched it again and damn is it such an amazing game! Both players really pushing their multitasking to the limit. There was an Iris vs Bisu game that I remember watching which was also pretty epic. Someone also mentioned Bisu vs Flash on Katrina and I have to agree there, I watched that game years ago and can still remember the back and forth between both players. It's just too bad that we don't get games that are as long nowadays. Granted, when we do get the long macro back and forth game, it almost always ends up being epic so guess it's a tradeoff.
On November 07 2019 08:43 2Pacalypse- wrote: The best (or at least my favorite and most memorable) game of all time is JangBi vs Zero OSL semifinals on Snipers Ridge:
While I agree that this game is great, I feel like the comeback happened only because ZerO badly microed his hydras. He ate storms with his hydras before there was even much of an engagement. This allowed Jangbi the opportunity to push the exp and win the game. Still a good game. It reminds me of a PvZ that I played once on FS. I got stuck to 2 bases and was contained against a Zerg who went up to 4 bases. I knew that I'll have one chance to break out and try to win it because I couldn't take a third and was mining out/mined out my 2 bases. I keep scouting around and catch an OL drop heading into my main. This allowed me the opportunity to finally break through and I hit the perfect timing. Was such a good game too. Maybe I'm the Jangbi of D ranks?
I want to make an account that just posts "what about Boxer vs Joyo" in every games list thread.
Not to be racist but I think the best game would have at least one Terran player. Not just because I'm biased by being Terran.
Initially suppose it must be a TvZ with Flash or JD, or both, because of course late Kespa games should be better than earlier ones. The Tau Cross game is a great example. There was a like 25 minute TvZ game played on a space tileset in 2011? but I can't place it so I'm looking.
It may even be a TvT like a Flash vs fbh, or Flash vs fantasy game.
Or the best game may not necessarily contain one of the best players, because a game is a collaborative effort. There were lots of wild TvTs once late wraith switches started catching on. This is why I say it's not my bias. Terran has the best firepower. When amateurs split the map like that it may look slow and boring, but when pros do it there's so much calculation and pressure and volatile stuff being thrown and so many resources worth of units can be lost in seconds.
TvP is a great matchup but not remembering one game. Fantasy and jangbi on God's Garden, or Lomo and Best in game 6, seemed tense at the time but I don't know if they would hold up to rewatch.
Oh I found it it was earlier than I remembered, on Rush Hour. Duh.
The Sea and JD game on Andromeda is classic. In general we should be careful about long games though. The game doesn't have to be long to be good, or a long game isn't automatically good just because it's a macro game on a huge map that takes forever to figure out who the winner is. Back and forth can be tense but also boring. But yeah the Andromeda one is great. When someone opens with BCs you know it's serious.
EPT
) in ASL 6 (for the storyline, skills, burrow, Effort showing how Zerg should be played, defeating the pinnacle of BW perfection, etc.). Curious, if you were to do a similar exercise to pick a game from the post-KESPA era, whether this would be in the conversation and/or what other games you would pick.
