This interview was conducted by Manifesto7 and translated by yours truly, and made possible by the terrific coach of SKT T1, Hyung-suk Suh, better known as aficionado.
Enjoy~!
the pic is 100% real and not photoshopped o_o
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Hello and thank you for taking the time to talk with TeamLiquid and the English speaking StarCraft world. We have been following your career since the beginning, and we wish you good luck in your future.
These questions were made by the fans of TeamLiquid.net.
Who was your first pro game against, and what were your feelings when you were getting ready to play? What map was it on? Did you win ?
I don’t remember my very first opponent. Among many players, the one people will most likely know is Kim Il-jae, who used the ID Special Dra, who I played at the SBS tournament. I won.
StarCraft at the pro level has changed so much over your career, why do you think you have been able to be successful for so long?
I think it’s my constant renewal of new goals and sense of duty. In particular I think I had a sense of duty to change the social perception of e-sports.
You changed the way people played the game many times. What players caused YOU to change your game style?
First of all I learned a lot from players who scouted well. My strategic play was also aided by the exceptional play of progamers who were able to catch generational trends and flows.
If you could make one balance change to starcraft, what would you change?
I wish the balance of protoss would be changed. I think that if zealots became weaker and dragoons were strengthened, tosses would be sufficiently strong against zergs as well.
Which player were you most confident to beat in your career? Which practice partner was the most difficult to train against?
There is not one player who I thought was easy. But if I had to answer the question, I’d say Jang Jinnam, who I have a good won-loss record against. The most difficult training partner I had was Park Hyomin (Combi) during my IS days.
Over the next two years, which terran, protoss, and zerg players will be the best?
For protoss Song Byung-gu (stork), for Zerg Ma Jae-yoon (saviOr), and for Terran (and this is to encourage him to make more of an effort), Yum Bo-sung (Sea[Shield])
What do you think of the mandatory two years of military service for Korean men? Is it a good thing or bad thing?
Foreigners may see this and think Korean men must feel victimized but in reality Korean men don’t think this way. Mandatory military service could be seen as both good and bad.
How do you feel about being the lead person in e-sports? What benefit has there been, and what has been bad about it?
I do feel slightly regretful because many things necessary for e-sports will be put into place this year. However I think my juniors will be able to receive many benefits in the future.
What single moment from your career will you always remember?
My first major league victory as a progamer. Other progamers feel the same way because from that moment on, everything becomes very important.
How is Iloveoov's role on the team gonig to change now that you are gone? What is the "big change" rumoured that he was going to make?
The "big change" is something my coach mentioned so I don’t think I can answer that question. Iloveoov’s duty and role is to become the team’s Terran captain and to play his part as a senior and veteran gamer.
How does your team scout for new talent?
Pass.
How can StarCraft stay popular while newer games are always being released?
New maps, new players, new ways of playing the game, and new things to attract attention. I think the popularity of Starcraft is due to constant change, development, and evolution.
If you had to give only three tips to a StarCraft beginner, what would they be?
A drive to win, effort, and rivalry.
What UMS maps do you play?
Mostly zergling blood, and Nexus.
When you are given a new map to play on, what steps do you take to prepare for it? How do you examine a new map?
First I skim the map, then I look at the movement path for units, then the rush distance, then check to see if there are areas that are susceptible to bugs, then other general details such as the distance between main and natural.
Does the Korean army have scv suits? -_- (would you prefer a wraith?)
Pass. I have no idea.
What are your predictions for this years WCG? The current OSL? The current MSL?
The current OSL is hard to predict because many players are battling back and forth. But in both the MSL and OSL I think zerg players will show a good fight. In this year’s WCG, although Park Sung-jun (July) is a talented Zerg, the two Korean terrans are not easy prey and so predicting the outcome before the final will be difficult.
If you could play in another Superfight, who would you play against?
I’d like to play against Kang Min (Nal_rA). I think there would be lots of fun games if I could play against him.
How can e-sports move outside of Korea in popularity? Can you help with that?
I think there need to be more international tournaments. Politicians must take an interest and aid from many different quarters and sectors will be needed.
Thank you very much for your time. I hope the future is good for you, and that your service in the air force is meaningful. From everyone (28,000 people) at TeamLiquid, thank you very much.
On October 08 2006 06:02 Beyonder wrote: I think the Slayers_'Boxer kills the Newstab to the left, try playing around with it to fix it . Cool picture btw.
edit: it's fixed. Fun interview, though he gives short answers.
I liked most of the answers, short but I think he answered them perfectly =]
Too bad he couldn't answer the scouting-for-talent part, would have been interesting. Thanks for doing this interview, was nice, and good luck to him.
On October 08 2006 06:15 vGl-CoW wrote: haha first he says he doesn't remember his first pro win and later on he says it was the most rememberable moment in his career
Wow :O . Great work, great questions and greater answers. I never thought Boxer knew about the international scene like this. Hope when he comes back Starcraft will still be as strong as it is or even more
ahah great picture, that alone was worth the interview
I think he gave too short answers, but that's because I wanted the interview to never end hehe, and I think we should not complain about that, but being thankful because the interview happened, and thankful for those who made this possible.
"How do you feel about being the lead person in e-sports? What benefit has there been, and what has been bad about it?
I do feel slightly regretful because many things necessary for e-sports will be put into place this year. However I think my juniors will be able to receive many benefits in the future."
Wow, my question made it. I can't believe that Boxer moved his hands across a keyboard for a question that I asked.
Very cool interview. I didn't even know you guys had this in the works! Wow! Nice work uhjoo and Mani!
I gotta say, I love the fact that he speaks so highly of stork. I've always had a gut feeling that stork had the most potential of the big 3 new tosses, and now the emperor has validated that opinion.
On October 08 2006 10:11 MuShu wrote: Wow, thanks uhjoo and Mani for making the interview possible! Gosu picture. ^_^
Second .
That was a fantastic interview. It's no surprise that the Emperor has some insightful answers to our questions . I wonder how many other people have ever mentioned or even thought about making zealots weaker and dragoons stronger in PvZ. It's something I would never have thought of myself, but after hearing it I can see why it might work.
On October 08 2006 08:41 new_construct wrote: [removed quote within quote] maybe change dragoon's attack type to something like the marine, then it can deal full damage to lings, mutas and hydras while less effect vs terran.
lol that would be so fucking imba, mines die 1 hit, vultures take instead of 15, lings die in 2 hits, hydras die in 4 (with +1) mutas die in 6. Basically goon = autowin pvz
edit: thank you boxer for your time, and thanks many for the interview
Am I the only one who find the pictures format (white sheeth held by boxer) little too convenient? No one gets the feeling the text there might not be the text that was written there originally? Maybe I am paranoid but I dont think this is the original picture...
Thanks Mani for putting all the effort into conducting the interview. I'm sure it was a difficult task to get a time set up with someone as busy as Boxer. Great job on the translation Uhjoo.
Wow this got set up REALLY quick. I thought it was going to take at least a week or so before seeing the answers. Thanks a lot guys.
I'm really really glad I was one of the lucky few who got to post a question in the alotted time (even though my question was kind of lame (favorite moment one)).
I second the notion to put this into Articles. This is huge.
On October 08 2006 14:27 space_cowboy wrote: Am I the only one who find the pictures format (white sheeth held by boxer) little too convenient? No one gets the feeling the text there might not be the text that was written there originally? Maybe I am paranoid but I dont think this is the original picture...
In the original thread, there was a special request in the questions sent to BoxeR to hold up a sign saying he loves TL.Net.
On October 08 2006 10:44 rabies wrote: www.reps.ru They photoshopped it :-/
LOL that photoshop is funny It's nothing like "Boxer loves reps.ru", translated literally it is something like "hi cool dudes" but the spelling is purposedly distorted.
On October 08 2006 06:15 vGl-CoW wrote: haha first he says he doesn't remember his first pro win and later on he says it was the most rememberable moment in his career
That's not what he said at all. Read more carefully. His first major league win (when he won OSL, or w/e) was his best moment, not his first career win.
Awesome interview, as always. Sad to see a legend of the sport go. It was inevitable, though. Glad we got an English interview with him before he left.
Know that he wants to come back and be the example that progamers can have a career in their 30's, it would have be nice to have him answer questions about that. Nevertheless, it was a good interview and thanks for your efforts.
thats pretty omfg though. I live in canada, and Boxer was in the Korean newspaper (the one I usually get) like half the page. whats more insane is if he succeeds in his 30's after coming back from the air force. IN HIS 30's!
EPT
![[image loading]](http://www.teamliquid.net/staff/uhjoo/boxertl.bmp)
?
. Cool picture btw.
All Hail the Emperor indeed 
