[ESEA S11] Let's Get the Show Started!

da_bears wrote:
Maps are very important in the starcraft world, they are like the basketball courts, ice arenas and football fields all rolled into 1 sport. As a former pro gamer I know what's it like when maps can win and lose games depending on the preparation of the players. As Starcraft 2 gets older the maps will be continuously changing and the leagues will have to adapt every season by switching maps out. One of my biggest mindset of deciding maps for the league are: how balanced each map is, what race it favors, what the players in the league think, and what the other tournaments are using.

I generally want a mix of maps that will be used in all tourneys so when the players go to major events like MLG, IPL and even GSL qualifier events. These players will have a good idea of what to expect in a league match on those maps. GSL has had the biggest influence on me when choosing the map pool. I have been watching GSL since it first debuted Starcraft 2 in 2010 and the various maps have shaped the game to what it is now.

ESV Cloud Kingdom: I like how the map looks, the path ways and how wide the map is. It can give Zergs nice run around room and Terrans safe mech play on 3 bases.

ESV Ohana: This map is more of a risk pick, I have never seen it in play but I've talked to some teams at MLG and they like this map over Bel'shir Beach. And since GSL added it, it will be interesting to see how it turns out.

Metropolis: Some players do not like this map because of the third base, but I feel that this map hasn't found its potential being so new. I have yet to see someone use the island expos and watching MMA proxy rax is always fun to watch.

Day break: I've always like watching matches on this map, I feel like it's the staple 2 player map right now. It was one of the first matches I saw where a protoss fast expanded twice against a terran and it gave me goosebumps.

Korhal Compound: Another risk map, I have not seen this played but it's on the ladder and some of the players from the league liked it so I threw it in the pool. By the looks if it, I think it will be one of the more macro oriented maps in terms of being able to defend 4 bases.

Atlantis Spaceship: Taking out crossfire was a huge relief to everyone I talked to in ESEA. Watching crossfire wasn't the best map to watch matches when all you saw was 1-1-1 timing pushes from Terran in every single match up. So I threw in this map on a whim from other players telling me it's a pretty good map. It will also give an edge to protoss players with the small ramps to the main for those greedy plays.

MLG Metalopolis: Classic map, a lot of great matches have come from this map over the sc2 lifespan. Seeing an old classic map brings a nice warm, fuzzy feeling when you play and watch it.

GSL Antiga Shipyard: This map is becoming a classic, being with GSL and every major tournament right now it is familiar with every pro player.