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Great writeup!
I do believe that MLG Columbus was something akin to a wakeup call for foreign professionals. Even tough some people laughed at Incontrol's statement that EG won't allow Koreans to overrun the foreign scene I literally got shivers down my spine when I read it. It sure is a bold statement but imagine what some of the foreign players could become with a fierce passion/determination and a training regime that rivals the Koreans?
The little fanboy in me gets excited just thinking about it. I guess as a player who just got started with SC2 and did not play SC1 my dream is to witness the ascension of a total foreigner beast. Someone who dominates everyone in his path to greatness ^_^ We got great players like Naniwa, T-zain, IdrA and many others but even when they win their games I still don't get the feeling that they played at the highest possible skill level in SC2. The game is young and it is for that reason that I was so excited to read this
"Over 250 starry-eyed gamers participated in the open bracket – the first time MLG competitor’s passes have sold out. The sheer number of players registered exposes the interest in competitive Starcraft in North America. Its entirely possible, perhaps even likely, that the next Maynard, IdrA, etc just got his first taste of competitive gaming"
It would be a great story if someone completely unknown suddenly appears and wrecks face everywhere he goes but thats probably the SC2 fan in me speaking. I'm a real sucker for such stories.
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Great writeup. With the results of MLG Columbus, one can hope that this is a wakeup call for all the progamers in North America and Europe.
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On June 08 2011 14:11 Fionn wrote:
It's not just practicing, though. It's the infrastructure. The Korean infrastructure for Starcraft progaming is so far ahead of North America and Europe that it will take some time before the skill gap gets closer. I'm sure we'll have a few foreigners that will be able to compete and take games off the best Koreans, and maybe even win BoX series, but for the scenes themselves to get closer then NA/Europe will need a similar infrastructure to Korea. Which, in my mind, is unlikely to happen in the near future.
I compare it to soccer (or football) in Brazil. Those kids grow up only seeing and watching soccer. They grow up watching these heroes on their television playing this one sport. These kids then grow up, playing and training to be amazing at said sport. The infrastructure is already set there and the most gifted athletes in that country will all be produced as soccer stars. It's the same in Korea. Kids over there are all immersed in Starcraft. It's by far the biggest video game in Korea. They have two gaming channels that is dominated by Starcraft. The progamers over there have sponsorship deals with athletic bags. It's all around them. When a kid grows up in Korea, they'll all play Starcraft.
The infrastructure is already there. The gigantic offline tournaments are already there. The progaming teams in close proximity of each other is also there. Also, it's a lot less likely to be frowned upon with someone trying to become a progamer in SC in Korea than being a kid in the USA who wants to become one. Progaming teams recruit kids early (Creator is 14, Keen and Leenock are both 16) and build them up through the system to be great. All the most gifted gamers in Korea will become Starcraft pros.
In America, just like soccer, there are lots of different options. A lot of kids do play soccer, but when they get older, they venture off into basketball, football, baseball and a lot of different athletics. That makes it so that not all the most athletic people get into that singular sport. It's the same with video games. Starcraft is popular in America, but the television is hammered with Halo, Modern Warefare and FPS. There is also the fighting game scene. That makes it so the big dense group of kids who could be great progamers in SC2 will go off and play different games.
I do think that a few like Thorzain and Naniwa could become truly great if they went over to Korea for a while and practiced in a team house. Idra was in Korea for three years and picked up a lot of great mechanics through the system they had.
This is a very interesting post.
There are certain aspecst of the Korean setup that are unique to Korea however unlike soccer (football to be correct  ) SC2 can be played onlined. I would argue that this gives the foreigner scene the opportunity to make the most of the small playing pool. That is why you can have teams like TL in three different continents. Yes there are limitations in terms of lag and so forth but the fact that you can play and practice with people in different regions makes SC2 very different to traditional sport.
It would be interesting to see how many people in Korea vs Outside Korea are trying to make it pro. I hope that the global nature of SC2 in its infancy will help the foreigner pool grow to a point where sheer brute force of numbers changes the tide.
The tournaments with Koreans travelling also helps give foreigners opportunities to test themselves. Nothing can more motivating than knowing you are playing against the best in the world.
In short, yes there are structural differences that give Koreans the advantage but that doesn't always have to be the case.
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Hey guys I think I got the solution to keep par with koreans.. Instead of training like the koreans 10 hours a day.. I reckon you add another 1 hour to the training (ie: total 11 hours of training a day) then you will topple the Koreans.. The solution is so simple, BUT will any foreigner pro gamer do it? it makes the difference between skill with 1 hour a day advantage.. Thats like getting an extra days worth of training ever 10 days OMGOSH..
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On June 08 2011 14:34 ilmman wrote:
Hey guys I think I got the solution to keep par with koreans.. Instead of training like the koreans 10 hours a day.. I reckon you add another 1 hour to the training (ie: total 11 hours of training a day) then you will topple the Koreans.. The solution is so simple, BUT will any foreigner pro gamer do it? it makes the difference between skill with 1 hour a day advantage.. Thats like getting an extra days worth of training ever 10 days OMGOSH..
I feel like you are trying to make a point but your sluggish brain is getting in the way.
Please try again.
It is clear from what both foreigner and Korean pros have said, that the practice scheme in Korea is harsher than elsewhere. If you wish to debate that fine, otherwise find somewhere else to spout your nonsense.
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Train more.
Enough said, it's not going downwards but as a huge IdrA fan I am one of the first to say that even though he is great the asshole always loses games for himself rather than opponents besting him. I don't care what excuses people give him; Koreans win, he doesn't, the major blame is on him and nothing else:
Just as it is on every other westerner.
Stop whining, train more. I don't care if MLG turns 90% koreans in the end, aslong as I the spectator get better games for it I am all for it.
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I like the spirit this post was written in. Very good, thanks for taking the time to write this up!
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I was really hoping that the Koreans would dominate MLG. For 2 real reasons.
1. I love the korean players
2. A wake up call for Foreigners (primarily NA players)
Through the TSL and the birth of the NASL foreigners started to relax and kick back, thinking "Hey, its fine, sure these are online, but we took games on em". While on the other side of the world the korean pro-teams kick it into high gear and we even see people whom we long thought dead in the scene come back with a vengeane (jukto, Makaprime, Leenock, etc). This shows the true difference. These people treat it how they should. Their job, a way of life. Read Maka's cadred interview, you'll see.
I'm glad foreigners are finally seeing the result of not truly dedicating the time and energy into being what they say they are, progamers. If they don't want MLG's prize pool to be monopolized by Korea, better kick it into high gear.
Whats scary is that sure most of those players were high tier, but that was 4 (moon i consider lower tier). Where was MKP, MVP, Bomber, Alicia, Nestea, DRG, Gumiho, Ganzi, Zenio, Nada, Leenock, etc etc.
Also the foreigners have another ticking time bomb, and thats China. Those chinese players look SICK, and when they start getting invites / going out, thats a whole nother level of competition.
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great article. I have so much hope for the future. Maybe one day my kids will participate in their high school starcfraft team.
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I found the analogy to trade protectionism especially interesting, assuming it is valid (didn't see a contest on the first page anyway) I think I just got a better idea of why it's not a good idea to insulate yourself from foreign markets.
Anyways... I really enjoyed the optimism in the post and I agree that having Korean competition in our tournaments in the West can only be a good thing for the growth of all players worldwide. Regardless of the outcome, I was thoroughly entertained by MLG Columbus. Really looking forward to the day when foreigners earn the right to call themselves equals to the Korean greats.
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Lets hope for the best, shall we 
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On June 08 2011 14:28 Davidxcom wrote:
Even tough some people laughed at Incontrol's statement that EG won't allow Koreans to overrun the foreign scene I literally got shivers down my spine when I read it. It sure is a bold statement but imagine what some of the foreign players could become with a fierce passion/determination and a training regime that rivals the Koreans?
Take team EG for example. Aren't they one of the first non-Korean team to set up a team house? And where are they now?
I'm not saying they're bad or anything. I like iNcontroL, but whenever he says stuff like "we're gonna start taking this seriously now" or "we're never gonna let that happen again", I have my doubts, because quite frankly, he's been saying things of that nature for about a year, but results really haven't been backing him up.
I mean right now, I'm getting this feeling that EG, or even Liquid, is not that strong of a team that I thought it was a year ago.
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I got halfway through the article and went back up to the top to see what mod wrote it! O_o awesome write-up, I agree with almost every point you made.
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On June 08 2011 15:04 don_kyuhote wrote:Show nested quote +On June 08 2011 14:28 Davidxcom wrote:
Even tough some people laughed at Incontrol's statement that EG won't allow Koreans to overrun the foreign scene I literally got shivers down my spine when I read it. It sure is a bold statement but imagine what some of the foreign players could become with a fierce passion/determination and a training regime that rivals the Koreans?
Take team EG for example. Aren't they one of the first non-Korean team to set up a team house? And where are they now? I'm not saying they're bad or anything. I like iNcontroL, but whenever he says stuff like "we're gonna start taking this seriously now" or "we're never gonna let that happen again", I have my doubts, because quite frankly, he's been saying things of that nature for about a year, but results really haven't been backing him up. I mean right now, I'm getting this feeling that EG, or even Liquid, is not that strong of a team that I thought it was a year ago.
I reallly think that the distraction of being members of the community can be partly to blame. Inc said it himself that he didn't have time to practice. Tyler seems distracted and how many of the liquid guys have moved to Korea and back again? I don't think it is a talent thing as we have seen these players put up amazing games. I think it is the structure of the training and the desire to be involved with the growth SC2. As the game becomes bigger and bigger and more figured out, practice becomes more and more important.
It would be a sad day when the pros stopped being involved because they had to focus on training but I think that day is coming fast.
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You didn't even mention Thorzain in the 'achievements' ? He's one of the few foreigner who took a bo3 of MC !
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On June 08 2011 15:04 don_kyuhote wrote:Show nested quote +On June 08 2011 14:28 Davidxcom wrote:
Even tough some people laughed at Incontrol's statement that EG won't allow Koreans to overrun the foreign scene I literally got shivers down my spine when I read it. It sure is a bold statement but imagine what some of the foreign players could become with a fierce passion/determination and a training regime that rivals the Koreans?
Take team EG for example. Aren't they one of the first non-Korean team to set up a team house? And where are they now? I'm not saying they're bad or anything. I like iNcontroL, but whenever he says stuff like "we're gonna start taking this seriously now" or "we're never gonna let that happen again", I have my doubts, because quite frankly, he's been saying things of that nature for about a year, but results really haven't been backing him up. I mean right now, I'm getting this feeling that EG, or even Liquid, is not that strong of a team that I thought it was a year ago.
Actually, I don't think EG's team house plans really solidified. Idra and Machine are living together, but that's pretty much it (unless others are living with them).
Root set up a team house a while ago that housed quite a few of their stronger members, many of which are doing quite well. Kiwikaki has been a beast recently. Catz is gradually making bigger splashes in the competitive scene. Drewbie has also improved somewhat. Plus, their team house had been bolstered by the temporary residencies of Fenix and TT1. As a result, Root has been doing quite decently against stronger teams during team leagues, even taking out EG a recent EG Masters Cup series.
I have a feeling that TLO's Swedish pro house will produce similar results, as will FXO's trip to Korea.
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Great writeup! One thing to have optimism, but the real test is to actually do it. And I'm glad that there's none of the "protect foreigners from the koreans" that some ppl have suggested. EG's battlecry is the right attitude and I wish them the best!
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Wonder what would happen if the Korean Brood War players transition. Seems to be an issue rarely mentioned whenever a shiny article comparing the progress of foreigners to Koreans is published.
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On June 08 2011 15:57 Xpace wrote:
Wonder what would happen if the Korean Brood War players transition. Seems to be an issue rarely mentioned whenever a shiny article comparing the progress of foreigners to Koreans is published.
since bw got liscneced for 2 more years i dont see it being a issue for a while
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On June 08 2011 16:07 Falcor wrote:Show nested quote +On June 08 2011 15:57 Xpace wrote:
Wonder what would happen if the Korean Brood War players transition. Seems to be an issue rarely mentioned whenever a shiny article comparing the progress of foreigners to Koreans is published. since bw got liscneced for 2 more years i dont see it being a issue for a while
That smile should be a frown!
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EPT
