Starting on October 27, the WCS Top 16 will begin their quest to be crowned as the WCS Global Champion.
To celebrate the occasion, we’re commemorating the achievement of those competing in the WCS Top 16 with a bundle of portraits featuring the artwork of Nicolas Chaussois. The bundle will boast 18 total portraits: a beautifully painted portrait for each of the 16 players, one of the WCS Gosu Trophy, and a special victory portrait for the player who claims the title of WCS Global Champion.
A portion of the proceeds from the portraits will be evenly distributed to all 16 competitors, and these portraits will only be available to purchase for a limited time, so secure your 2016 WCS Portraits today by visiting our Battle.net Shop*. Once purchased, your portraits will become available in-game soon after the conclusion of the WCS Global Finals.
We hope you enjoy this celebratory addition to the game, as well as the 2016 WCS Global Finals starting on October 27th with the Global Playoffs in Burbank, California! Stay tuned for more news about the WCS Finals here on our website, as well as on our Facebook and Twitter pages!
*This bundle will initially only be available on the Battle.net Shop
For the first time the community can buy something to increase the global finals prize pool! You can get your portraits, drawn by Nicolas Chaussois, for 9.99!
Really like Blizzard is finally getting their toes wet with crowdfunding, however I'm can't find excitement in portraits (you can only equip one at a time) anymore. Will still buy to support my favorite players but I hope they do something more interesting next time they wanna do something like this.
Normally I don't care about customization/portraits/sound and skin packs. But this is awesome. As soon as I get this months salary I will buy the bundle. Awesome idea. I hope that in the future there will be more. Maybe with casters also? Including some community casters?
On October 26 2016 04:33 Asturas wrote: Normally I don't care about customization/portraits/sound and skin packs. But this is awesome. As soon as I get this months salary I will buy the bundle. Awesome idea. I hope that in the future there will be more. Maybe with casters also? Including some community casters?
So I bought the bundle from EU, but some people are saying you can also buy it from the US store and still use it on every server. That would be a bit cheaper than buying it from EU, but I'm not sure, so I will leave both links in the OP.
Edit: Yeah it says "Play in any game region". So buy from any store you prefer.
On October 26 2016 05:06 Musicus wrote: So I bought the bundle from EU, but some people are saying you can also buy it from the US store and still use it on every server. That would be a bit cheaper than buying it from EU, but I'm not sure, so I will leave both links in the OP.
Edit: Yeah it says "Play in any game region". So buy from any store you prefer.
On October 26 2016 04:33 Asturas wrote: Normally I don't care about customization/portraits/sound and skin packs. But this is awesome. As soon as I get this months salary I will buy the bundle. Awesome idea. I hope that in the future there will be more. Maybe with casters also? Including some community casters?
You want your Hushang portrait too? Nice.
I'm worried about people getting tricked into getting the fake-Hushang portrait.
how big is the player's portion? this should be clarified. can someone find out? The only reason to me to buy it is to support the players, i would be pissed if i find out that most of the money is going to blizzard. And btw there should be a web page showing how much was sold, like dota's compendium.
I'd buy it gladly if it meant increasing $ for players. But you have to say 80% or 70% of proceeds go to players/tournaments. I can't just take it on faith.
Sad they only do this now . Maybe next year we get something like dota 2 international. Where you can buy and some of the money can be used in tournaments etc . It will be fun to add unit skins , voice packs etc . And more they should let you make them for your tournament like olimoleague etc . One starcraft fan can dream ;O3
++ they can add quest like play 10 games zerg , 10 games random etc and win them / play co-op and get points etc .
Yeah having quests would be much more enjoyable for $10. That's really a lot of money for what it is.
It's a profile picture pack. Having limited profiles is already somewhat absurd.
"Get a ravager with 5 kills" or "A disruptor with 10 kills" or something like that to get a Snute or a Neeb portrait would be pretty nice. I'd pay $10 for that.
Give me value for my money and I will give it to you. As is, I can't even show off who I support with my profile because it will be available after the tournament. Seems ass backwards to me!
Clever move. To make sales available pre-Blizzcon with all this hype and stuff, and release these portraits only after the show, after we know the winner and 15 players who have lost. After the show I assume all will equip winner's portrait and those 15 unlucky guys' portraits will just be as kinda garbage. But sales are now, when we don't know the winner yet, and we like all those portraits. Clever move.
P.S. Anyway I won't buy these portraits. I won't play better if I equip some pro player's photo on my icon, and I don't see fun in wearing another REAL man's face as my avatar. I have bought announcers and co-op commander at once though.
On October 26 2016 06:53 Probe1 wrote: That's pretty steep for a very low value item.
I'd buy it gladly if it meant increasing $ for players. But you have to say 80% or 70% of proceeds go to players/tournaments. I can't just take it on faith.
Really? I was expecting 5$ for each portrait since some of the money went to the player(s).
On October 26 2016 06:53 Probe1 wrote: That's pretty steep for a very low value item.
I'd buy it gladly if it meant increasing $ for players. But you have to say 80% or 70% of proceeds go to players/tournaments. I can't just take it on faith.
Really? I was expecting 5$ for each portrait since some of the money went to the player(s).
They didn't say how much some is. It works for Valve because they do. As well, the more I think about it the more I can't find myself interested in it because of what I mentioned.
Why would I buy something now if I don't receive it until after Blizzcon? Let me support my favorite player in attendance as he plays, not after he's won/lost.
Edit: Also would you really expect to pay $90 for a portrait pack? I mean cmon man.
OK to be fair it they look really good but I just wish Blizzard would for once recede back to the older days when things were given away for free... Almost anything on any game is now pay as you go . I guess it's because I have none that this bothers me so much
I also would like to know how much of this goes to the players. 10€ for 16 portraits available *after* Blizzcon's winner seems a bit too much. Now, if it was 60% or 70% going for the players, I would consider.
On October 26 2016 06:53 Probe1 wrote: That's pretty steep for a very low value item.
I'd buy it gladly if it meant increasing $ for players. But you have to say 80% or 70% of proceeds go to players/tournaments. I can't just take it on faith.
Really? I was expecting 5$ for each portrait since some of the money went to the player(s).
They didn't say how much some is. It works for Valve because they do. As well, the more I think about it the more I can't find myself interested in it because of what I mentioned.
Why would I buy something now if I don't receive it until after Blizzcon? Let me support my favorite player in attendance as he plays, not after he's won/lost.
Edit: Also would you really expect to pay $90 for a portrait pack? I mean cmon man.
Pretty sure he meant 5$/portrait as single buy, not a package deal at 5$/portrait * 16 =80$
Yeah Blizzard just doesn't get his whole crowdfunding thing. Not mentioning what percentage goes towards players and releasing portraits after Blizzcon.
Pretty poor value for $10 imo, considering what a Battle Pass for The International gets you (three custom cosmetics, taunts, weather effects, music packs, cursor pack, ward, emoticon pack, new courier, an HUD... Plus access to quests, community challenges, among many other things). Now compare that to 16 player portraits.
Anyway, I wonder if they'll release sales figures... But I would have thought it'd be quite universally known by now that esports doesn't sell in these situations unless you provide in-game items that people can use. Stuff like custom unit skins or custom doodads, etc instead of a pure esports thing. Just comparing previous numbers of crowdfunding in Dota 2 tournaments with similar little to offer bundles... I'd expect this to be able to raise $50k-$200k, which probably 25%~ goes towards the players, so not big in the grand scheme of things, the money raised would do much better in any tournament that is not Blizzcon S:.
Unfortunately seems like a little too late kind of thing.
On October 27 2016 01:28 Schmorfling wrote: I like this a lot, but I would love to see the first portraits before Blizzcon and the special winner one after Blizzcon.
I won't make a single microtransaction just to support one tournament's prize pool. I will, however, make a microtransaction if I knew for a fact that it contributed to player salaries.
Hooray! Finally, Blizzard is giving us plenty of options to throw money at StarCraft this year. This may be the best one yet. Getting to support the players.
On October 27 2016 15:33 FiWiFaKi wrote: Yeah Blizzard just doesn't get his whole crowdfunding thing. Not mentioning what percentage goes towards players and releasing portraits after Blizzcon.
Pretty poor value for $10 imo, considering what a Battle Pass for The International gets you (three custom cosmetics, taunts, weather effects, music packs, cursor pack, ward, emoticon pack, new courier, an HUD... Plus access to quests, community challenges, among many other things). Now compare that to 16 player portraits.
Anyway, I wonder if they'll release sales figures... But I would have thought it'd be quite universally known by now that esports doesn't sell in these situations unless you provide in-game items that people can use. Stuff like custom unit skins or custom doodads, etc instead of a pure esports thing. Just comparing previous numbers of crowdfunding in Dota 2 tournaments with similar little to offer bundles... I'd expect this to be able to raise $50k-$200k, which probably 25%~ goes towards the players, so not big in the grand scheme of things, the money raised would do much better in any tournament that is not Blizzcon S:.
Unfortunately seems like a little too late kind of thing.
Hopefully it'll get better. The first compendium wasn't anywhere near as good as compendiums in recent times.
I think the comparison would be less compendium, more stickers for Blizzard's purposes.
I think a huge part of this potential is just wasted given how much time we have. A compendium you have months and months, this you have days.
Most importantly, you don't get to show off your purchase until AFTER Blizzcon...
So like, let's say people like icons or if they gave out a cool skin as well. If I don't go on reddit or whatever, I would queue up, play games without knowing it existed, then after Blizzcon I see you have this cool shit and I ask, "where do i get that"? And then I'd find out it's too late.
As opposed to like, me seeing cool cosmetics on ladder, wanting it myself, and then going out and impulse buying it right then and there.
On October 27 2016 15:33 FiWiFaKi wrote: Yeah Blizzard just doesn't get his whole crowdfunding thing. Not mentioning what percentage goes towards players and releasing portraits after Blizzcon.
Pretty poor value for $10 imo, considering what a Battle Pass for The International gets you (three custom cosmetics, taunts, weather effects, music packs, cursor pack, ward, emoticon pack, new courier, an HUD... Plus access to quests, community challenges, among many other things). Now compare that to 16 player portraits.
Anyway, I wonder if they'll release sales figures... But I would have thought it'd be quite universally known by now that esports doesn't sell in these situations unless you provide in-game items that people can use. Stuff like custom unit skins or custom doodads, etc instead of a pure esports thing. Just comparing previous numbers of crowdfunding in Dota 2 tournaments with similar little to offer bundles... I'd expect this to be able to raise $50k-$200k, which probably 25%~ goes towards the players, so not big in the grand scheme of things, the money raised would do much better in any tournament that is not Blizzcon S:.
Unfortunately seems like a little too late kind of thing.
Hopefully it'll get better. The first compendium wasn't anywhere near as good as compendiums in recent times.
I think the comparison would be less compendium, more stickers for Blizzard's purposes.
I think a huge part of this potential is just wasted given how much time we have. A compendium you have months and months, this you have days.
Most importantly, you don't get to show off your purchase until AFTER Blizzcon...
So like, let's say people like icons or if they gave out a cool skin as well. If I don't go on reddit or whatever, I would queue up, play games without knowing it existed, then after Blizzcon I see you have this cool shit and I ask, "where do i get that"? And then I'd find out it's too late.
As opposed to like, me seeing cool cosmetics on ladder, wanting it myself, and then going out and impulse buying it right then and there.
My eyebrows are still contracted from first hearing about it. And Blizzard hasn't given any kind of response.
On October 26 2016 17:11 Muxtar wrote: Clever move. To make sales available pre-Blizzcon with all this hype and stuff, and release these portraits only after the show, after we know the winner and 15 players who have lost. After the show I assume all will equip winner's portrait and those 15 unlucky guys' portraits will just be as kinda garbage. But sales are now, when we don't know the winner yet, and we like all those portraits. Clever move.
P.S. Anyway I won't buy these portraits. I won't play better if I equip some pro player's photo on my icon, and I don't see fun in wearing another REAL man's face as my avatar. I have bought announcers and co-op commander at once though.
what??? you're completely missing the point. (smh)
EPT![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/2EnW5Jx.jpg)
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. I guess it's because I have none that this bothers me so much 
![[image loading]](https://a.pomf.cat/ufuyqh.jpg)
![[image loading]](http://puu.sh/sq8Bw/5decc77ee9.jpg)
