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Why I Stopped Watching NASL
As a member of the TL NASL coverage team, I feel odd writing this blog. Heck, I'm the guy who wrote "Why You Should Give NASL A Second Chance." I suppose you could also call this "Why I'm Not Giving NASL A Third Chance." Consider that I'm not suggesting that anyone else quit on NASL; heck, I'll be watching the finals myself. But these are my personal reasons for quitting on the regular season:
1. Time Travel
By broadcasting games almost an entire month after they were played, NASL cut their tournament out of the rest of the SC2 scene. As a spectator, you can't wonder if IdrA's going to use a new ZvP style or see if there will be any new developments in PvP. Part of what makes this community great is the seamless, interconnecting story that's told by every tournament, as the scene gets deeper and more mature, and as we follow the development of our favorite players. In order to tap into that, we need a stable timeline. NASL subverts all of that and effectively places their tournament on an island with a time-warp bubble around it.
![[image loading]](http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-8dHHYUVgQ0/S7oOXHvGYAI/AAAAAAAAATc/PLhfd_JK0lk/s400/lost_island3a.jpg) It's already got two of the letters
2. Destroying the Evidence
Watching VODs was a nightmare. I could almost never find a VOD that could be played in low quality, which is the only way I can watch VODs most of the time. It's great that NASL goes through all the work to provide super high-quality VODs, but that doesn't matter if I can't see them. I had to dig through twitch.tv rebroadcast video captures to finally find a low-quality-enough video I could watch. And I paid for that service. Other tournaments are hardly convenient with their own VOD services, but this was frustrating.
3. Crushing My Hopes And Dreams
I was genuinely excited about the regular season all the way up until DeMusliM and Hero were set to play. NASL even advertised the epic showdown between the two undefeated players in the LR thread they made for that day. So it felt like a swift kick to my ESPORTESTICLES when Gretorp announced that DeMusliM was a no-show. The way NASL handles these walkovers always seem like a bitter pronouncement upon the character of the missing player, as if reddit's supposed to immediately reach for the pitchforks. But instead I feel used.
Someone once asked if there were parents who, when asked for bread, would give their kids a stone. Or if they asked for a fish, would give them a snake, instead. NASL is that parent. I wanted to watch some epic SC2, and instead, my hands are full of snakes.
I hate snakes.
![[image loading]](http://filmfanatic.org/reviews/wp-content/uploads/2008/05/raiders-snakes.png) Not to be confused with ESPORTESTICLES
4. The Cliched Elephant In The Metaphorical Room
You know what isn't a problem with NASL? Not the format, the lack of koreans, the map pool, the time it airs, the price, or even Heroes of Newerth. NASL's proven it can improve in almost every area. But the area I worry they'll never improve in is arguably the most important: commentary.
Gretorp is the elephant in NASL's room. From day one, he's put his brand on this league, and while he's improved his skill, I just can't fully enjoy the games that he casts. Unfortunately, that turns out to be every single game. With all the talk lately on the value and worth of commentators, I think it's worth noting how much our enjoyment of SC2 can depend on good commentary. I'm not as experienced or skillful enough with RTSes to fully enjoy watching a high-level game without some help from a good presenter -- at least not enough to merit watching it over Axslav's stream or GSL VODs.
Gretorp is knowledgeable about the game, and certainly skilled as a player. He can be very insightful and look at strategy from interesting angles. See Gretorp's episode of the short-lived "JP and Friends" show to see what I mean. But he is not the savvy presenter and MC that NASL needs. No one questions his work ethic or character, but in this highly-competitive Battle for Viewers that NASL is losing, NASL needs to look for other options.
Meanwhile, I'll be looking for some good streams.
 
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It only took the 4th one to do it for me.
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I can understand the sentiment. I have not really watched any SC besides MLG Providence in the last month or two but I do keep up with all the results except NASL. I have no idea who's playing in the league or who's in the finals. You did a good job of expressing why I'm not really interested in it as well. Your points and the endless stream of games with players that aren't as exciting as other tournaments is enough for me to lose interest.
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I was heart broken when Incontrol wasn't casting anymore. He I thought was one of the best things about NASL. Other then the epic games. I agree with the match thing as well thats just a sour taste in my mouth and was one of the reasons why NASL was better then IPL in the first place.
I have no idea what they did between seasons that made any progress at all.
all the same though the finals will still be epic I hope.
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I kinda stopped watching/following NASL when iNcontroL left.
He was the main reason I watched it in the first place in season 1.
It's kind of sad to think about it, because people thought NASL could be right there with MLG and Dreamhack, but now, I don't know about that.
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I can't stand Gretorp. I'm sorry for this, but he's just kind of a douche. I love his insight, and he is far better at the game than I will EVER be. He knows his shit. However, his jokes are awkward, his commentary is awkward. There have been times when I've been listening to him, and his jokes were just so artificial, and sometimes just so devoid of taste, I just sat there facepalming. Literally, facepalming. Don't even get me started on what I feel about Orb.
If the NASL S2 finals don't show up, I'll definitely not even bother casually showing up to their streams. I honestly hope they can pull their shit together, but so far, I just can't bear to watch them. I mean, my eyes literally begin to hurt watching their poorly outlined bodies on that greenscreen. Perhaps that's because I'm stuck on LQ? If so, I apologize for making that an issue 
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Point 1 is the only one I have a real issue with, but that alone was enough to stop me from watching the NASL regular season for all the exact same reasons you stated. That won't stop NASL from having a great grand finals though. Considering the players who qualified it's basically Dreamhack without the group stages.
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It's depressing how accurate this blog is. I'd lie right to your face and say the NASL is great but.. my entire involvement has been reading the recap news articles.
Edit: I don't think gretorp is a douche though. I think he's a pretty good guy and he does a great job with what he is given.
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Your thoughts reflect a lot of my feelings as well. I followed the VOD problems during the first season and, convinced they wouldn't get resolved, decided I did not want to subscribe to their service as lower-quality VODs would have been a must.
I also agree with the lag between games played and games aired. I get why they do it, but it falls flat. I feel similarly about the IPL--I just can't get excited knowing the matches were pre-recorded.
And finally, Gretrop. I'm glad you've said it here, because I was afraid to admit it. Not to be reductive, but I can't tell you how turned off I am every time he uses the word "crap." He gets so worked up...only to use the phrase "Holy crap!" I'm sure this sounds like a nitpicky complaint, but its not just this phrase: I feel as though Gretorp understands all the cues and the situations, yet he always falls flat in his style. He does not articulate with precisely chosen words (Mr. Bitter), with humor (Day[9]), with an increasingly sure sense of purpose, yet honest reverence for the players (Husky), or with the ease and familiarity of the casting archon. Yes, he is knowledgeable; but his communication of his knowledge lacks the style or refinement of these others casters.
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On December 01 2011 13:36 Probe1 wrote:
It's depressing how accurate this blog is. I'd lie right to your face and say the NASL is great but.. my entire involvement has been reading the recap news articles.
Edit: I don't think gretorp is a douche though. I think he's a pretty good guy and he does a great job with what he is given.
I think the word "douche" was the wrong word choice on my part. It's really all I could think of though. Perhaps "awkward" is a better term, but it just doesn't give the impact I am trying to imply. He's not just awkward he's...just sort of trying too hard, I suppose? I mean, I don't want to hate on him too much since I respect him as a player and with his knowledge of the game. However, I just can't bear to listen to his casting. It's just so odd and I am just mentally or physically facepalming 90% of the time. As the person above me said, it just seems he doesn't know what caster he wants to be. He's in an identity crisis. He can't decide, it seems, between being analytical, humorous, or whatever.
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I would agree with that. Sometimes the casts in season 1 were.. strained. I really want to not hate on NASL but.. I have very few positive things to say.
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Except for 2. (cause I didn't bother paying for another season after last, and my internet doesn't give me that problem)-- exactly my thoughts. I hope the finals will be good, and I plan on watching those for however many more seasons NASL runs, as long as I know the players. I will probably never touch the regular season again though. If I want an evening of sc2 it will be IPL or a favorite streamer.
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On December 01 2011 13:48 RedJustice wrote:
Except for 2. (cause I didn't bother paying for another season after last, and my internet doesn't give me that problem)-- exactly my thoughts. I hope the finals will be good, and I plan on watching those for however many more seasons NASL runs, as long as I know the players. I will probably never touch the regular season again though. If I want an evening of sc2 it will be IPL or a favorite streamer.
Honestly, Catspajamas and HD have taken up more hours in my nights than most actual video games in the past ~2-3 weeks.
It's starting to scare me.
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agree on all your points sir. the format, the rules, the presentation- all less than optimal in my opinion.
as much as gretorp is awesome,i just cannot bear listening to him cast the games. he knows what he is talking about though- back when it was him and incontrol it was more bearable i guess. he just doesn't have the demeanor necessary for casting sc2.
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I would like to make this clear- I'm definitely planning on watching the final despite the lack of interest in the season.
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Regular season NASL is just a bit "meh". The Finals last time around were great, though, very good players and some incredible games. Sure, it's no MLG but it's well worth the time, and I'm sure it would be quite good this time as well.
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Yep I'll be watching the finals too, but I have had no interest whatsoever in anything else NASL has had to offer. Season 1 was ok, but this season, I've had no interest in pool play at all.
IPL is slightly better although only Painuser is a decent caster IMO... Makes me value MLG and Dreamhack so, so much.
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Great blog. I always feel really bad that such a massively ambitious project like NASL would fail, and couldn't place a finger on exactly what was wrong, but you seem to be hitting all the main points.
As unfortunate as it is, NASL has kind of become a warning to other tournaments on what you shouldn't be doing, a thousand little things that they just aren't doing as good as other tournaments. I'll still watch the finals, and I still try to tune in to the show
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i watched HuK play in season 2. that is all. him being onboard is literally the only reason i bought the hd pass. i actually don't mind gretorp's casting much if paired with the right co-caster; unfortunately this has not happened in season 2. the delay in the play to broadcast time only really bothered me around patches.
all that said; i really, REALLY hope they have a successful finals this weekend. the more 'big' tournaments the better imho.
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EPT
