• Log InLog In
  • Register
Liquid`
Team Liquid Liquipedia
EDT 16:57
CEST 22:57
KST 05:57
  • Home
  • Forum
  • Calendar
  • Streams
  • Liquipedia
  • Features
  • Store
  • EPT
  • TL+
  • StarCraft 2
  • Brood War
  • Smash
  • Heroes
  • Counter-Strike
  • Overwatch
  • Liquibet
  • Fantasy StarCraft
  • TLPD
  • StarCraft 2
  • Brood War
  • Blogs
Forum Sidebar
Events/Features
News
Featured News
Code S Season 2 (2026) - RO8 Preview3[ASL21] Finals Preview: Two Legacies21Code S Season 2 (2026) - RO12 Preview2herO wins GSL Code S Season 1 (2026)5Code S Season 1 (2026) - RO4 & Finals Preview5
Community News
Weekly Cups (May 18-25): MaxPax wins doubles0Crank Gathers Season 4: BW vs SC2 Team League4Weekly Cups (May 11-17): Classic wins double0Code S Season 1 (2026) - RO8 Results2Weekly Cups (May 4-10): Clem, MaxPax, herO win1
StarCraft 2
General
Code S Season 2 (2026) - RO8 Preview Weekly Cups (May 18-25): MaxPax wins doubles herO wins GSL Code S Season 1 (2026) Code S Season 2 (2026) - RO12 Preview Weekly Cups (May 11-17): Classic wins double
Tourneys
GSL Code S Season 2 (2026) Crank Gathers Season 4: BW vs SC2 Team League GSL Code S Season 1 (2026) Sparkling Tuna Cup - Weekly Open Tournament Maestros of The Game 2 announcement and schedule !
Strategy
Custom Maps
[D]RTS in all its shapes and glory <3 [A] Nemrods 1/4 players
External Content
Mutation # 527 Hell Train The PondCast: SC2 News & Results Mutation # 526 Rubber and Glue Mutation # 525 Wheel of Misfortune
Brood War
General
Pros React To: ASL S21 Finals BGH Auto Balance -> http://bghmmr.eu/ ASL21 General Discussion 25 Years Since Brood War Patch 1.08 [ASL21] Finals Preview: Two Legacies
Tourneys
[ASL21] Grand Finals [Megathread] Daily Proleagues Escore Tournament StarCraft Season 2 Small VOD Thread 2.0
Strategy
Any training maps people recommend? Muta micro map competition [G] Hydra ZvZ: An Introduction Fighting Spirit mining rates
Other Games
General Games
Stormgate/Frost Giant Megathread Path of Exile Nintendo Switch Thread Dawn of War IV ZeroSpace Megathread
Dota 2
The Story of Wings Gaming
League of Legends
Heroes of the Storm
Simple Questions, Simple Answers Heroes of the Storm 2.0
Hearthstone
Deck construction bug Heroes of StarCraft mini-set
TL Mafia
Vanilla Mini Mafia Mafia Game Mode Feedback/Ideas TL Mafia Community Thread Five o'clock TL Mafia
Community
General
US Politics Mega-thread Trading/Investing Thread Russo-Ukrainian War Thread Dating: How's your luck? European Politico-economics QA Mega-thread
Fan Clubs
The herO Fan Club!
Media & Entertainment
[Manga] One Piece Anime Discussion Thread [Req][Books] Good Fantasy/SciFi books
Sports
2024 - 2026 Football Thread McBoner: A hockey love story TeamLiquid Health and Fitness Initiative For 2023 Formula 1 Discussion
World Cup 2022
Tech Support
streaming software Strange computer issues (software)
TL Community
The Automated Ban List
Blogs
Customization Drives Loyalty…
TrAiDoS
Why RTS gamers make better f…
gosubay
ramps on octagon
StaticNine
ASL S21 English Commentary…
namkraft
Customize Sidebar...

Website Feedback

Closed Threads



Active: 1940 users

Is SC skill natural or trained? - Page 25

Forum Index > SC2 General
Post a Reply
Prev 1 23 24 25 26 27 30 Next All
I_PROTOSSED_MY_HW
Profile Joined August 2011
22 Posts
October 08 2011 04:19 GMT
#481
On October 08 2011 12:01 Gurblechev wrote:Starcraft ability being highly related to intelligence would also help explain Korean dominance at tournaments. East Asians have a higher average IQ than Whites and therefore have a larger pool of potentially great players to develop.

I fail to see the correlation between pattern recognition and RTS skills, not to mention the correlation between pattern recognition and intelligence.
stokes17
Profile Joined January 2011
United States1411 Posts
October 08 2011 04:23 GMT
#482
On October 08 2011 13:09 Offhand wrote:
Show nested quote +
On October 08 2011 12:01 Gurblechev wrote:
It seems obvious that success at Starcraft is highly influenced by genetics.

A Starcraft match includes essentially a series of reaction time tests. Intelligence is also required to learn strategies and make good decisions in game.

Intelligence and reaction time are highly heritable. Some are born with the potential to play Starcraft at a professional level, and others are not so fortunate.

g and speed of cognitive processing
The consistent relation between shorter reaction times and higher intelligence mainly appeared to reflect genetic effects shared by both measures. Luciano et al studied a wider range of information processing measures such as inspection time, choice reaction time, delayed response speed and accuracy with IQ in a sample of 245 MZ and 298 DZ twin pairs. Their results indicated the presence of a general genetic cognitive factor affecting both IQ and psychophysical phenotypes, as well as additional genetic factors explaining the additional test variance and covariance.

http://www.nature.com/ejhg/journal/v14/n6/full/5201588a.html

Starcraft ability being highly related to intelligence would also help explain Korean dominance at tournaments. East Asians have a higher average IQ than Whites and therefore have a larger pool of potentially great players to develop.


East Asians do not dominate SC2, Koreans do. Koreans have practice houses and a structured training environment. The whole of Asia minus Korea doesn't amount to the NA or EU scenes yet. This does not make sense if what you says is at all true.


Does that change the point that east asia has a high poetential player pool to pull from. All you said was that Korea is the best at maximizing the potential.
Voltaire
Profile Joined September 2010
United States1485 Posts
October 08 2011 04:25 GMT
#483
95% trained

5% natural talent
As long as people believe in absurdities they will continue to commit atrocities.
Dissonance23
Profile Joined September 2010
United States259 Posts
October 08 2011 04:31 GMT
#484
Both, I keep a high masters play level only playing 5-10 games a week, having never played more than that. Some people have to play 5-10 games a day to get there and stay there.
Gurblechev
Profile Joined May 2011
188 Posts
October 08 2011 05:01 GMT
#485
On October 08 2011 13:19 I_PROTOSSED_MY_HW wrote:
Show nested quote +
On October 08 2011 12:01 Gurblechev wrote:Starcraft ability being highly related to intelligence would also help explain Korean dominance at tournaments. East Asians have a higher average IQ than Whites and therefore have a larger pool of potentially great players to develop.

I fail to see the correlation between pattern recognition and RTS skills, not to mention the correlation between pattern recognition and intelligence.

Sorry I don't understand what point you are trying to make.

Starcraft contains what is essentially a series of reaction time tests. You have to react to what is happening in game in real time. People with faster reaction times have a natural advantage. Intelligence is also a highly important trait for good decision making and ability to learn and execute strategies.

Reaction time and intelligence are significantly correlated with each other and are both highly heritable (genetic) traits.
emidanRKO
Profile Joined December 2010
United States137 Posts
Last Edited: 2011-10-08 05:06:04
October 08 2011 05:05 GMT
#486
sc skill will always be "trained". natural skills (intelligence) only help to decrease the training needed to get to a certain skill level.
son
Gurblechev
Profile Joined May 2011
188 Posts
October 08 2011 05:13 GMT
#487
On October 08 2011 14:05 emidanRKO wrote:
sc skill will always be "trained". natural skills (intelligence) only help to decrease the training needed to get to a certain skill level.

Training is not a magical elixir that can bestow greater reaction time and intelligence than you are capable of.

Training is and always will be just a way to make use of potential.

If you are not born with advantageous genes for intelligence you will never play starcraft at a professional level even with a million lifetimes to train.
icarly
Profile Joined August 2011
United States400 Posts
October 08 2011 05:39 GMT
#488
Hrm. Obviously there is a lot of natural talent that comes into play. Someone with an IQ of 88 simply won't succeed at the pro level, but the talent pool for SC2 players is so small that we can't really determine if SC2 is as reliant on natural talent as sports.

Basketball appeals to millions of people. Kids dream of becoming rich and famous and Basketball attracts the best of the best potential basketball players. Michael Jordan is the greatest Basketball player in history and we can safely say he was the best in the world because millions of people strived for his glory.

With SC2 currently it doesn't appeal to many people. Pro players now are pro because they played video games and had enough free time and lack of commitments to dedicate themselves to the (in the grand scheme of things) obscure hobby that is esports. But, SC2 doesn't even come close to attracting all of its potential talent pool. Who's to say that there aren't engineers, doctors, college professors, programmers, and etc that don't have analtyical thnking or intelligence that surpasses Flash or Jaedong?

TL;DR:

Yes, I think SC2 is mainly natural skill. If it was as big as MLB, NFL, NBA, Fifa, etc those more naturally talented would rise to the top.
IzieBoy
Profile Blog Joined November 2010
United States865 Posts
October 08 2011 05:49 GMT
#489
honestly it's mostly intelligence

intelligence teaches you how to train

intelligence helps you read your opponent

training just helps macro (which is actually much easier than playing an instrument - i have yet to see a gamer practice with a metronome). training also helps micro (more muscle memory and mouse-speed than anything else). intelligence is what defines a progamer from the rest - being able to piece together an overpowered gameplay or better yet a build that counters the opponent.
Let's Do This! Leeeeeeeeeeeeeroy Jenkins!
trias_e
Profile Blog Joined May 2010
United States520 Posts
October 08 2011 08:55 GMT
#490
I've put so much work into this stupid fucking game and can't get into masters after basically playing nonstop since beta. People with no rts experience, have played half the games and gotten into high masters. Natural talent has a fuckload to do with this game.
Big J
Profile Joined March 2011
Austria16289 Posts
Last Edited: 2011-10-08 09:06:32
October 08 2011 09:03 GMT
#491
Like EVERYTHING IN LIFE IS PURE PRACTICE, SC is pure practice as well.
Ofc everyone is born slightly different, but from the day the egg and the sperm meet, everything becomes learning and being taught.

There is no such thing as natural skill. Mozart didn't just start making music. He was raised that way. All he ever saw was his father and sister making music.


Just ask any progamer out there:
-) training the game
-) thinking about the game
-) talking about the game
-) experimenting in the game
-) experiencing the game
-) practicing the game
-) focusing on the game
-) playing the game
...

that's all they ever talk about, if they tell you what makes them good players.
xiaofan
Profile Blog Joined July 2006
United States513 Posts
October 08 2011 09:13 GMT
#492
On October 08 2011 13:25 Voltaire wrote:
95% trained

5% natural talent


On October 08 2011 18:10 Fort Minor wrote:
10% luck
20% skill
15% concentrated power of will
5% pleasure
50% pain, and
100% reason to remember the name
Lysergic
Profile Joined December 2010
United States355 Posts
October 08 2011 09:16 GMT
#493
Playing the guitar all the time won't make you Jimi Hendrix.
Epoch
Profile Joined October 2010
Canada257 Posts
October 08 2011 09:24 GMT
#494
To everyone that says that it's pure practice, you are of course wrong. If it were simply up to practice then then everyone would just improve at an equal rate and you wouldn't have bronzies and other low levels that have played and do play countless games but can't break into the higher leagues. The reality is some people are smarter then you and have affinities for the skills required to be excel at the game.
Gurblechev
Profile Joined May 2011
188 Posts
October 08 2011 09:28 GMT
#495
On October 08 2011 18:03 Big J wrote:
Like EVERYTHING IN LIFE IS PURE PRACTICE, SC is pure practice as well.
Ofc everyone is born slightly different, but from the day the egg and the sperm meet, everything becomes learning and being taught.

There is no such thing as natural skill. Mozart didn't just start making music. He was raised that way. All he ever saw was his father and sister making music.


Just ask any progamer out there:
-) training the game
-) thinking about the game
-) talking about the game
-) experimenting in the game
-) experiencing the game
-) practicing the game
-) focusing on the game
-) playing the game
...

that's all they ever talk about, if they tell you what makes them good players.

2GD: "Why are you so good MC?"
oGsMC: "Uh... maybe good brain."




I think it is generally well understood that Starcraft skill primarily requires intelligence. It is impossible to learn or benefit from training if you are a dullard. When Artosis gushes over Nestea he gushes about how he is a genius with a massive brain, not his practice regimen.
insaner
Profile Joined June 2011
United States3 Posts
October 08 2011 09:35 GMT
#496
No one is born extremely good at something. Sure there are those who have talents and may be highly gifted in something but they also work very hard in order to succeed. Even prodigies don't start at a professional level, they just learn much much quicker.
Big J
Profile Joined March 2011
Austria16289 Posts
October 08 2011 09:36 GMT
#497
On October 08 2011 18:24 Epoch wrote:
To everyone that says that it's pure practice, you are of course wrong. If it were simply up to practice then then everyone would just improve at an equal rate and you wouldn't have bronzies and other low levels that have played and do play countless games but can't break into the higher leagues. The reality is some people are smarter then you and have affinities for the skills required to be excel at the game.



well, you can call that whatever you want, but it's a kind of trained intellegence. Ofc if I learn maths I don't train to be a starcraft player, but in the end it might help me and I have put work on it.
Just because some people haven't learned anything than is portable to starcraft, it doesn't mean that they can't become as good as others. But it means that they start on a lower level doing so.
Big J
Profile Joined March 2011
Austria16289 Posts
October 08 2011 09:38 GMT
#498
+ Show Spoiler +
On October 08 2011 18:28 Gurblechev wrote:
Show nested quote +
On October 08 2011 18:03 Big J wrote:
Like EVERYTHING IN LIFE IS PURE PRACTICE, SC is pure practice as well.
Ofc everyone is born slightly different, but from the day the egg and the sperm meet, everything becomes learning and being taught.

There is no such thing as natural skill. Mozart didn't just start making music. He was raised that way. All he ever saw was his father and sister making music.


Just ask any progamer out there:
-) training the game
-) thinking about the game
-) talking about the game
-) experimenting in the game
-) experiencing the game
-) practicing the game
-) focusing on the game
-) playing the game
...

that's all they ever talk about, if they tell you what makes them good players.

2GD: "Why are you so good MC?"
oGsMC: "Uh... maybe good brain."


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0b-qufr0eqY

I think it is generally well understood that Starcraft skill primarily requires intelligence. It is impossible to learn or benefit from training if you are a dullard. When Artosis gushes over Nestea he gushes about how he is a genius with a massive brain, not his practice regimen.



And where does intellegence come from?
Learning, getting taught and raised... Nothing that could not have been acquired by anyone else, but some people simply don't choose to do so
HaXXspetten
Profile Blog Joined October 2009
Sweden15718 Posts
October 08 2011 09:43 GMT
#499
I think the quite obvious answer is both.
iFU.pauline
Profile Joined September 2009
France1718 Posts
Last Edited: 2011-10-08 09:59:57
October 08 2011 09:55 GMT
#500
I believe there is no "natural talent" everything is learnt along the way. Your environment is the key. In Korea, e-sport is much more developed than others countries, it is logical that the average skill is much better. For an example in Rugby, it was such an event when north hemisphere nation would win against south africa, australia or new zealand. Because at this moment rugby scene wasn't much developed in Europe (no pro scene). It's not the case anymore and even if south hemisphere nation have still a consequent advantage due to the fact that their rugby scene has been evolved more than ours, it's not a exploit to win against them anymore.

You cannot be intelligent as a natural way to be, you can only be more intelligent than..."a precise moment in space and time" and that's it. Meaning, it's not forever.
No coward soul is mine, No trembler in the world's storm-troubled sphere, I see Heaven's glories shine, And Faith shines equal arming me from Fear
Prev 1 23 24 25 26 27 30 Next All
Please log in or register to reply.
Live Events Refresh
Next event in 3h 3m
[ Submit Event ]
Live Streams
Refresh
StarCraft 2
ByuN 730
mouzHeroMarine 333
LamboSC2 231
UpATreeSC 98
ProTech96
JuggernautJason33
StarCraft: Brood War
ajuk12(nOOB) 21
NaDa 14
Dota 2
canceldota46
League of Legends
JimRising 348
Counter-Strike
kRYSTAL_55
Super Smash Bros
PPMD39
Heroes of the Storm
Liquid`Hasu450
Other Games
summit1g8500
Grubby4455
FrodaN1430
Liquid`RaSZi1368
B2W.Neo647
hungrybox591
ceh9445
uThermal172
C9.Mang0106
ArmadaUGS101
ViBE40
Organizations
Other Games
BasetradeTV341
Counter-Strike
PGL330
StarCraft 2
angryscii 25
Blizzard YouTube
StarCraft: Brood War
BSLTrovo
[ Show 18 non-featured ]
StarCraft 2
• StrangeGG 75
• Reevou 4
• Kozan
• IndyKCrew
• sooper7s
• AfreecaTV YouTube
• Migwel
• intothetv
• LaughNgamezSOOP
StarCraft: Brood War
• STPLYoutube
• ZZZeroYoutube
• BSLYoutube
Dota 2
• masondota21200
• WagamamaTV360
League of Legends
• TFBlade541
Other Games
• imaqtpie1373
• Scarra808
• Shiphtur196
Upcoming Events
PiGosaur Cup
3h 3m
GSL
12h 33m
herO vs Classic
Cure vs Clem
uThermal 2v2 Circuit
18h 3m
Replay Cast
1d 3h
GSL
1d 12h
Maru vs SHIN
Zoun vs Rogue
WardiTV Spring Champion…
1d 15h
SKillous vs Strange
Lambo vs Strange
Ryung vs Strange
Lambo vs Ryung
Ryung vs SKillous
Lambo vs SKillous
OSC
1d 22h
Replay Cast
2 days
Maestros of the Game
2 days
Replay Cast
3 days
[ Show More ]
RSL Revival
3 days
Lambo vs SHIN
Solar vs Rogue
herO vs Clem
Maestros of the Game
3 days
IPSL
3 days
ZZZero vs WorsT
Julia vs eOnzErG
Replay Cast
4 days
RSL Revival
4 days
Maestros of the Game
4 days
IPSL
4 days
Dragon vs Artosis
dxtr13 vs Hawk
BSL
4 days
Wardi Open
5 days
Monday Night Weeklies
5 days
Replay Cast
6 days
Sparkling Tuna Cup
6 days
WardiTV Spring Champion…
6 days
Maestros of the Game
6 days
Liquipedia Results

Completed

ASL Season 21
2026 GSL S1
Heroes Pulsing #1

Ongoing

2026 KK StarCraft Pro League
BSL Season 22
IPSL Spring 2026
KCM Race Survival 2026 Season 2
KK 2v2 League Season 1
YSL S3
Acropolis #4
CSCL: Masked Kings S4
SCTL 2026 Spring
WardiTV Spring 2026
2026 GSL S2
RSL Revival: Season 5
CS Asia Championships 2026
Asian Champions League 2026
IEM Atlanta 2026
PGL Astana 2026
BLAST Rivals Spring 2026
IEM Rio 2026
PGL Bucharest 2026
Stake Ranked Episode 1
BLAST Open Spring 2026
ESL Pro League S23 Finals

Upcoming

Escore Tournament S2: King of Kings
BSL 22 Non-Korean Championship
CSLAN 4
Blizzard Classic Cup 2026
Kung Fu Cup 2026 Grand Finals
CranK Gathers Season 4: BW vs SC2 Team League
HSC XXIX
uThermal 2v2 2026 Main Event
Maestros of the Game 2
Bounty Cup 2026
BLAST Bounty Summer 2026
BLAST Bounty Summer Qual
Stake Ranked Episode 3
XSE Pro League 2026
IEM Cologne Major 2026
Stake Ranked Episode 2
TLPD

1. ByuN
2. TY
3. Dark
4. Solar
5. Stats
6. Nerchio
7. sOs
8. soO
9. INnoVation
10. Elazer
1. Rain
2. Flash
3. EffOrt
4. Last
5. Bisu
6. Soulkey
7. Mini
8. Sharp
Sidebar Settings...

Advertising | Privacy Policy | Terms Of Use | Contact Us

Original banner artwork: Jim Warren
The contents of this webpage are copyright © 2026 TLnet. All Rights Reserved.