EPTOn November 13 2022 20:56 RowdierBob wrote:
You can’t judge the older gamers by the relative weakness of the competition compared to the level they play at today.
The modern gamers wouldn’t exist without the pioneering the older generation did. Guys like Boxer, Oov, Nada, Savior were not just greats due to them dominating the best competition there was at the time, they also did so much for the meta of BW that future generations benefited from. And that’s not just gameplay but the way they practised and approached big games etc.
For me, the greats are those who changed the meta and had the individual dominance to go with it. So for me:
Flash
Boxer (he made BW a prime time event. He was so dominant in his time and made BW so popular. None of what came after with BW’s popularity happens without him).
Oov/Nada (I can’t split these two. Both very dominant. Oov showed the power of macro Terran that is still around today. Nada was a BW artist).
Savior (I know he’s a scumbag but it’s hard to ignore his dominance plus the huge influence he had on modern Zerg play. The first dominant Zerg player).
Bisu/Jaedong (again hard to split. Both so influential and had great results).
I think this is the core group of greatest of all BW players. Others like Jangbang, garimto, nalra, Light, Stork, Fantasy, Effort, Zero are the next tier. All excellent players with great legacies but don’t have the influence of those above.
You can’t judge the older gamers by the relative weakness of the competition compared to the level they play at today.
The modern gamers wouldn’t exist without the pioneering the older generation did. Guys like Boxer, Oov, Nada, Savior were not just greats due to them dominating the best competition there was at the time, they also did so much for the meta of BW that future generations benefited from. And that’s not just gameplay but the way they practised and approached big games etc.
For me, the greats are those who changed the meta and had the individual dominance to go with it. So for me:
Flash
Boxer (he made BW a prime time event. He was so dominant in his time and made BW so popular. None of what came after with BW’s popularity happens without him).
Oov/Nada (I can’t split these two. Both very dominant. Oov showed the power of macro Terran that is still around today. Nada was a BW artist).
Savior (I know he’s a scumbag but it’s hard to ignore his dominance plus the huge influence he had on modern Zerg play. The first dominant Zerg player).
Bisu/Jaedong (again hard to split. Both so influential and had great results).
I think this is the core group of greatest of all BW players. Others like Jangbang, garimto, nalra, Light, Stork, Fantasy, Effort, Zero are the next tier. All excellent players with great legacies but don’t have the influence of those above.
This topic was filled with great and interresting posts but this one was perhaps the best. Even though i disagree with rankings and would put Jaedong as clear second.
Also, i think players like July, Mind, Rain and Mini should be added to second tier for their achieviements at competitive play, build ordens etc.
