Flash Stream Thread

On February 19 2016 13:38 Bisu-Fan wrote:
"The Ultimate Weapon," Flash's present and future

It’s not common for a progamer to have a following after retirement. It probably indicates the legacy he/she created as a player. That Lee Young Ho (aka Flash), 9 year KT Rolster star and former face of eSports, has such a legacy comes as no surprise.

After spending the past 9 years as one the best progamers, Flash announced his retirement last December. After 2 months of retirement, Flash has signed a contract with Afreeca and begun a new challenge. He now plans on created various content on Afreeca as well as participating in the Brood War Starleague.

We think you’ve all heard enough of Flash’s past through his retirement interview. So you probably are curious to hear about Flash’s present and future. Here is that story.

On Choosing Afreeca:

The fans’ reaction to Flash’s announcement of his activity with Afreeca was quite polarizing. On one side, fans were rejoicing and excited for the chance to see Flash play on stream. But on the other side, fans were scared of Flash potentially tarnishing his legacy and his status as a progamer.

Do you think Flash was unaware of the fans worries? Flash probably worried more than any of his fans. The potential of 9 year’s work, status, and legacy crumbling after a failed Afreeca broadcast undoubtedly nagged on Flash’s mind. However, Flash eventually chose Afreeca. Why is that?

“League of Legend players stream, and no one says anything bad. But people talk about streaming on Afreeca they get bad rep. I think the bad image is mostly because a few BJ’s are too desperate for balloons (donations). I think I’ll be able to break this preconception.”

Of course Flash wasn’t immediately open to the idea of Afreeca because he had several other profitable offers from China and other places.

“What convinced me was Afreeca’s director Chae Jung Won’s sincerity. He was the most intentional in his approach, and he valued the progamer’s integrity above all else. I saw his firm beliefs, and I was able to follow him.”

Director Chae’s persistence slowly but surely moved Flash’s heart. Thinking that he would walk a completely different path from other BJs, Flash accepted the offer from Afreeca. He’s begun to become more and more confident of protecting and preserving the title of “Ultimate Weapon” (T/N wow it’s been so long since I’ve thought about BW. What was Flash’s nickname that corresponded with the Korean '최종병기').

“I won’t stream for balloons. I’m confident that I won’t be wary of the balloons. I won’t be a retired gamer who is desperate for money, and I don’t think neither I nor the viewers want that. I’ll try to create a stream where I interact with viewers, giving tips to improve.”

Starcraft 2, League of Legends and other various contents:

Flash will meet his fans this upcoming Sunday at 9PM (12:00 GMT). Flash is planning a lot for his first broadcast. He’s been researching BJs who are featured on MBC’s “My Little Television,” a show widely considered the apogee of personal streaming.

“Honestly, I’ve been reminding myself constantly that I’ll be able to do well, but I’m not confident. I was always confident going into matches (laughs). I think I’m good at giving interviews, but thinking about talking by myself is stressful. Then again, I have a slight hope that I’ll have a good broadcast if I’m able to show good content while satisfying my fans’ curiosity.”

Flash plans on showing Brood War on his first broadcast, but he also has Starcraft 2 and League of Legends in store for future streams. I’m already getting curious of Flash’s LoL skills.

“Fans have mistakenly understood that I’ll exclusively be playing BW. First, I’ll begin with BW because I know it’s the game I can play the best. In SC2’s case, Legacy of the Void has changed everything. And I can’t just dive into League.”

This also affected his decision to participate in the national Starleague (T/N is there like a SL open to the public or something?). After all, if he planned on playing SC2 competitively, he wouldn’t have retired. It only makes sense to play BW for the time being.

In the near future, we’ll be able to watch the godly control and defense skills of the Ultimate Weapon. To not disappoint the fans, even today, Flash has been practicing, furiously tapping on his keyboard.

“I thought my skills would return back to me pretty quickly, but that hasn’t been the case (laughs). My skill returning has slowed down, and I’m wondering whether I’ll just be embarrassed at this rate. I think my current skill is around 50% of my previous self, and I think to improve beyond this point will take some more time.”

On his continuing relations with KT:

Flash’s relationship with KT is impossible to break. Not too long ago, Flash appeared on KT’s marketing team’s web cartoon. Although Flash wasn’t the most happy with the character that came from the cartoon, he’s still grateful for the opportunity to continue relations with KT.

“After I retired, KT’s headquarters directly contacted me. Although I officially am under contract with Afreeca, the contract’s only for a year. I plan on starting something new with KT as well. I’m so thankful that they haven’t forgotten about me and that they continue to treat me so well.”

In fact, at the time of his retirement, KT offered Flash a coaching position, but Flash respectfully declined. He didn’t want to inconvenience or put unnecessary stress on the already achieving coaches Kang, Kim, and Ryu.

“The desire to improve as a mentor and a leader isn’t nonexistent. However, now is not the time to return to KT as a leader. I need to grow and learn more right now. If I were to join the coaching staff right now, it will not only be a very prideful act, but it will also be very uncomfortable for the existing staff. As it stands, I’m also very lacking in leading other players.”

During retirement, Flash frequents the KT gaming house and practice rooms. This is to continue his relationship with KT as well as to see the people he misses. After living with the same guys for 9 friends, just not having them by his side makes Flash lonely.

“I’m staying at a room alone, and it’s just super awkward. In the past, I always had friends who’d laugh with me, but now I’m just greeted by my TV (laughs) (T/N ). After I retired, it was quite hard because of the loneliness. I’m that much more grateful to my KT friends and family.”

"Please Look Forward to my New Transformation!”

Flash says that outside of gaming, he does nothing well. He says that he’s technologically illiterate (bad at computers), and he says it’s common to be clueless about the most obvious of basic life skills. He smiles while saying that outside of gaming, he is the perfect buffoon.

“It’s tragic how bad I am at life outside of gaming. I learned this after retiring--the fact that the only thing I was good at was games (laughs). But don’t you think that I would have gotten just a bit better at talking after those countless interviews? Although I might not be as good at talking as I was at being a progamer, please be gracious during my stream.”

Another of Flash’s concerns is his personality. Because he’s the typical detached Korean male, he fears that he might not have the most charismatic comments during his stream. He knows that he’ll have to thank fans frequently, but he doesn’t think those words will come very naturally.

“I’ll have to thank the fans who watch my stream, the fans who cheer for me, and the fans who give me balloons, and I’m worried that I won’t be able to convey my thanks well enough. I’m pretty reserved towards my parents as well (laughs). Even though it’s the online world, I still think it’s quite awkward interacting with my fans.”

It seems his competitive drive has not stopped. Expressing his desire to become a successful BJ, Flash promises to bring new and fresh content to his fans.

“If the fans didn’t exist, I wouldn’t either. I tried my best not to cry during my retirement ceremony, but the tears wouldn’t stop when I saw the letters my fans sent me. I even momentarily regretted retiring. The thought that I would never be able to to see and meet with those fans again really depressed me. I’ll try my best to never let that day come, so stop worrying and cheer me on!”