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[Opinion] SHOUTcraft: The Wool Pulled Over Our Eyes

Forum Index > SC2 General
116 CommentsPost a Reply
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[Opinion] SHOUTcraft: The Wool Pulled Over Our Eyes

Text byTL.net ESPORTS
Graphics byhexhaven
September 29th, 2017 19:43 GMT

The Wool Pulled Over Our Eyes
Read about SHOUTcraft on Liquipedia

SHOUTcraft: The Wool Pulled Over Our Eyes



by mizenhauer
[image loading] - Mizenhauer


SHOUTcraft Kings has been one of the more compelling events since its inception in July of 2016. It’s a romantic concept: a Bo1, King of the Hill competition where the order and names of combatants are unknown. It’s as even a playing field as you can get for foreigners and Koreans alike. And that dynamic has not failed to disappoint fans hungering for entertainment and unexpected results. In the very first edition (Z)Nerchio beat (P)Dear, who was only a few days away from kicking off a GSL campaign that would see him reach the semifinals for the third consecutive season. At the very same event (Z)Stephano beat (T)ByuN, at the height of his power, and (P)herO. Suddenly a realization began to take shape. SHOUTcraft Kings was becoming more than an event that brought international competition together. It was proof that foreigners were indeed closing the gap on Koreans.

Next month it was two foreigners, (P)Neeb and (Z)Scarlett and (T)INnoVation who reigned as King for the longest, ByuN lost once more, continuing for the third straight month in September, this time to Nerchio who also beat (T)Maru and (Z)Rogue on the way to eight straight victories. (Z)Solar was the lone representative from the Korean region to notch wins at the Blizzcon edition and, although Koreans ruled the final SHOUTcraft Kings of 2016, the event had played a significant part in defining the foreigner vs Korean landscape. Foreign fans used these results along with Neeb’s KeSPA cup victories and promising results at Blizzcon to assert that foreigners had made significant strides. Korean loyalists countered by citing the circumstances of those results and, that, in the end, it was Dark and ByuN who reached the finals at the WCS Global Finals. Less than a month after that, it was foreign fans who were left scrambling for mitigating circumstances, as Koreans posted a 24-1 record in matches against foreigners at HomeStory Cup 14. Was it a return to the old days or an aberration caused by excessive partying? One event does not a trend make, but even the most diehard foreign fan could not totally discount the display of dominance.

Despite the disappointing results at HomeStory Cup, there was great hope going into 2017 among many that foreigners would continue the supposed trend. Foreigners like Nerchio, Scarlett and Neeb had posted impressive results during SHOUTcraft Kings, looking at least the equal of even the most vaunted Koreans. Neeb’s victory at KeSPA Cup was a sign that they could duplicate those results in offline events as well. The WCS system remained largely unchanged and the opportunities for foreigners to push one another were still available.

The first two SHOUTcraft Kings of the year featured hardly any foreigners. But, by the time the third edition had rolled around, fans had already seen another offline event featuring both foreigners and Koreans. The results at IEM Katowice were far less encouraging than those seen in TotalBiscuit’s brain child. Thirteen Koreans ((Z)TRUE is counted as a foreigner due to his WCS affiliation) reached the group stages. They posted a 27-8 record against foreigners in bo3, putting the cherry on top with a pair of 3-0’s in the elimination stages. Nerchio got another five win streak in the June edition of SHOUTcraft, while Neeb got a win over Solar, but by this point that landscape was already starting to shift as the old paradigms took hold.

Foreigners did little to support their cause at HomeStory Cup 15, but looked competitive during the bracket stages of WCS vs The World. (P)ShoWTimE lost to (Z)soO in typical foreigner fashion, but (T)MajOr and (Z)Serral represented themselves well, as did Neeb, the lone foreigner to win a series against a Korean. Buoyed by the results, the murmuring began once again. It would take less than 24 hours for them to be quashed. The team portion of GSL vs The World was either catastrophe or affirmation depending on which camp one belonged to. Foreigner after foreigner looked impotent before their Korean counterparts. Even (T)Kelazhur’s victory was far from convincing. The looks of bewilderment on Stephano’s face, as well as those of the players, told the story. Things had come full circle. If only on this day, the foreigners were helpless before the Koreans.

Though not done maliciously, SHOUTcraft Kings played an enormous part in crafting the false storyline that the gap between foreigners and Koreans was closing. With WCS region locked, it served as the main battlefield upon which the two factions did battle. One would be completely foolish to discount the success seen by foreigners like Nerchio in the event as hogwash, but those results lacked proper context. Offline events clarified things, painting an indisputable picture that Koreans are still a cut above. Blizzcon will be the next opportunity for foreigners to buck the trend and bring new credence to the claims that they are an equal for the Koreans. Will they seize the opportunity or suffer the same fate that has befallen them for years?




Credits:
Writers: Mizenhauer.
Editors: CosmicSpiral.
Graphics: hexhaven.
Stats: Aligulac

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TL+ Member
SetGuitarsToKill
Profile Blog Joined December 2013
Canada28396 Posts
September 29 2017 19:47 GMT
#2
Wow I had no idea Koreans were still better thanks for writing an article to remind me.
Community News"As long as you have a warp prism you can't be bad at harassment" - Maru | @SetGuitars2Kill
ZigguratOfUr
Profile Blog Joined April 2012
Iraq16955 Posts
September 29 2017 19:52 GMT
#3
Sick click-bait title.

After foreigners experienced some success against Koreans (most notably at KeSPA cup) of course people were going to claim that the "gap-has-closed" or whatever. You can say that SHOUTcraft Kings threw fuel onto that particular fire, but that fire was basically a volcano and would have continued to burn regardless.

Someone who misinterpreted or miscontextualized the results of SHOUTcraft Kings would have misinterpreted no results as good results all the same.
Olli
Profile Blog Joined February 2012
Austria24417 Posts
Last Edited: 2017-09-29 19:54:20
September 29 2017 19:53 GMT
#4
What's click baity about the title?
Administrator"Declaring anything a disaster because aLive popped up out of nowhere is just downright silly."
ZigguratOfUr
Profile Blog Joined April 2012
Iraq16955 Posts
September 29 2017 20:00 GMT
#5
On September 30 2017 04:53 Olli wrote:
What's click baity about the title?


It made it sound like the article was actually interesting rather than something that could be summed up by: Because of SHOUTcraft Kings and some other stuff people thought for a while that foreigners could compete with Koreans, but they just got crushed several events in a row, so really they can't compete, and it should have been (and was) obvious all along.
Olli
Profile Blog Joined February 2012
Austria24417 Posts
Last Edited: 2017-09-29 20:02:29
September 29 2017 20:02 GMT
#6
On September 30 2017 05:00 ZigguratOfUr wrote:
Show nested quote +
On September 30 2017 04:53 Olli wrote:
What's click baity about the title?


It made it sound like the article was actually interesting rather than something that could be summed up by: Because of SHOUTcraft Kings and some other stuff people thought for a while that foreigners could compete with Koreans, but they just got crushed several events in a row, so really they can't compete, and it should have been (and was) obvious all along.


That's not what click bait means at all. The rest is what you make of the article.
Administrator"Declaring anything a disaster because aLive popped up out of nowhere is just downright silly."
ZigguratOfUr
Profile Blog Joined April 2012
Iraq16955 Posts
September 29 2017 20:10 GMT
#7
On September 30 2017 05:02 Olli wrote:
Show nested quote +
On September 30 2017 05:00 ZigguratOfUr wrote:
On September 30 2017 04:53 Olli wrote:
What's click baity about the title?


It made it sound like the article was actually interesting rather than something that could be summed up by: Because of SHOUTcraft Kings and some other stuff people thought for a while that foreigners could compete with Koreans, but they just got crushed several events in a row, so really they can't compete, and it should have been (and was) obvious all along.


That's not what click bait means at all. The rest is what you make of the article.


The title makes it sound like SHOUTcraft deceived us somehow whereas anyone who truly believed that foreigners had caught up to Koreans is practicing self-deception on several levels.
Olli
Profile Blog Joined February 2012
Austria24417 Posts
Last Edited: 2017-09-29 20:15:50
September 29 2017 20:15 GMT
#8
On September 30 2017 05:10 ZigguratOfUr wrote:
Show nested quote +
On September 30 2017 05:02 Olli wrote:
On September 30 2017 05:00 ZigguratOfUr wrote:
On September 30 2017 04:53 Olli wrote:
What's click baity about the title?


It made it sound like the article was actually interesting rather than something that could be summed up by: Because of SHOUTcraft Kings and some other stuff people thought for a while that foreigners could compete with Koreans, but they just got crushed several events in a row, so really they can't compete, and it should have been (and was) obvious all along.


That's not what click bait means at all. The rest is what you make of the article.


The title makes it sound like SHOUTcraft deceived us somehow whereas anyone who truly believed that foreigners had caught up to Koreans is practicing self-deception on several levels.


The title is a pretty accurate depiction of what's in the article. If you dislike the content, fair enough. You don't have to agree with it, this is an opinion piece after all.
Administrator"Declaring anything a disaster because aLive popped up out of nowhere is just downright silly."
Mun_Su
Profile Joined December 2012
France2063 Posts
September 29 2017 20:32 GMT
#9
No need to bitch about the title.
INno <3 - TY - Maru - Taeja - Rain <3 - Classic <3 - Stephano <3 - soO <3 - Soulkey - Dark - SERRAL =O / END REGION LOCK
BretZ
Profile Joined May 2011
United States1510 Posts
Last Edited: 2017-09-29 21:08:20
September 29 2017 21:07 GMT
#10
The only narrative I'll buy into is Neeb being the real deal. That man is looking hungry to make up for Blizz last year.

Zrana1
Profile Joined February 2017
Netherlands45 Posts
September 29 2017 21:16 GMT
#11
Is clicking 'the case for Dear' meant to link to that article?
Olli
Profile Blog Joined February 2012
Austria24417 Posts
September 29 2017 21:19 GMT
#12
On September 30 2017 06:16 Zrana1 wrote:
Is clicking 'the case for Dear' meant to link to that article?


Whoops, fixed that.
Administrator"Declaring anything a disaster because aLive popped up out of nowhere is just downright silly."
pvsnp
Profile Joined January 2017
7676 Posts
Last Edited: 2017-09-29 21:29:18
September 29 2017 21:27 GMT
#13
Hmm, personally I would say the argument presented here is pretty self-evident. Online results are not offline results. Foreigners winning online games is not the same as Koreans winning offline games. Until the foreigners can deliver major offline victories over top Koreans, the gap will remain extant.

The only people delusional enough to try and equate the two or claim that the gap is closed without any legitimate evidence, are exactly the same kind of people who would never listen to a logical argument in the first place.

The results speak for themselves.
Denominator of the Universe
TL+ Member
-Kaiser-
Profile Blog Joined November 2011
Canada932 Posts
Last Edited: 2017-09-30 05:31:21
September 29 2017 22:22 GMT
#14
I can barely even get started on this article.

And that dynamic has not failed to disappoint fans hungering for entertainment and unexpected results.


What a brutal string of negatives. We start off by saying (I'm assuming by accident) that the event is disappointing fans, then a paragraph listing a bunch of things to the contrary. The rest of the entire thing is running through business as usual results, summing up into the most un-newsworthy news possible - that Korean players are better than Starcraft.

Yeah, those wolves over at SHOUTcraft sure have been taking us for a ride. This whole manufactured thing seems like practice for a VICE media application.

EDIT: And for the record, the title absolutely is clickbait-y and misleading. "Pulling wool over one's eyes" is a very deliberate act of deception. The only thing this article is about is a couple top foreigners having taken a couple wins in this one event.
3 Hatch Before Cool
Solar424
Profile Blog Joined June 2013
United States4001 Posts
September 29 2017 22:25 GMT
#15
So basically, Bo1's only count when Koreans win. Seems silly to say Kings creates a false narrative while saying that the GSL vs The World team match says that the gap is as wide as it's always been when both are Bo1.
FrkFrJss
Profile Joined April 2015
Canada1205 Posts
September 29 2017 22:43 GMT
#16
On September 30 2017 06:27 pvsnp wrote:
Hmm, personally I would say the argument presented here is pretty self-evident. Online results are not offline results. Foreigners winning online games is not the same as Koreans winning offline games. Until the foreigners can deliver major offline victories over top Koreans, the gap will remain extant.

The only people delusional enough to try and equate the two or claim that the gap is closed without any legitimate evidence, are exactly the same kind of people who would never listen to a logical argument in the first place.

The results speak for themselves.

It is true that online results do not predict offline results, but it is also true that people neglected Beeb's online PvP stats in 2016, and he ended up winning the tournament off the back of PvP.

Similarly, Byun started with online results and moved to offline results.

I don't think most reasonable would claim that the gap has "closed," but I would argue that is has definitely become smaller.

There were always single individuals who could win series off of Koreans, but since 2011, there were not usually a group of people who could consistently show a fair match against Koreans.

But now we have at least at least five foreigners who have taken games and series off of Koreans. Major, Nerchio, Serral, Elazer, ShoWTimE, and Neeb have done well against Koreans (Though ShoWTimE had fallen off).

Sure, they're not winning most of the time against to level Koreans, but they're not being beaten as badly as they used to be. Back in 2013/2014, it was almost a foregone conclusion that if an NA person or an EU person faced any decent Korean, they would lose.

Now, it isn't always the case that people like alive or Solar will necessarily win.

All I'm saying is that while the gap has not completely closed, it has become a bit smaller.

Besides, Neeb (a foreigner) did win a major tournament with some of the best Koreans in it....and people still discredited that win.
"Keep Moving Forward" - Walt Disney
Matroid_Prime
Profile Joined December 2013
Canada59 Posts
September 29 2017 23:19 GMT
#17
Not a fan of this opinion piece. Most notably the title. I read that title and thought that Shoutcraft or TB did something negative to the community, maybe you should consider changing it; i'm sure i'm not the only one who thought that.

Nonetheless, the gap is still here obviously. We have 1 person in Neeb who was been an outlier, just like Naniwa or Stephano have. Other foreigners have high peaks but can't sustain that. Koreans can have the high level of skill for years on end like all the NesTea Award recipients. Koreans are just better overall, and will always be better overall, it's been how many years and some people can't relent that fact.
Lifelong fan of Starcraft
JimmyJRaynor
Profile Blog Joined April 2010
Canada16669 Posts
Last Edited: 2017-09-30 00:06:58
September 30 2017 00:05 GMT
#18
tough crowd here.
i think the gap between koreans and non-koreans is about the same as its been for years.

if one of the top 10 non-koreans decides to move to korea... assimilate into the korean scene completely which includes learning the language... that non-korean player will "close the gap"

you'll never be the best baseball hitter unless u move to the USA and assimilate into the Major League Baseball competitive scene....and you'll have to learn english or spanish or preferably both..
same thing with SC.. learn the language and assimilate.
Ray Kassar To David Crane : "you're no more important to Atari than the factory workers assembling the cartridges"
FrkFrJss
Profile Joined April 2015
Canada1205 Posts
September 30 2017 00:28 GMT
#19
Except that Neeb won KeSPA Cup before he really knew the language. Also, I don't believe he'd been in Korea all that long before his win.

But you're right in that a lot of the "good" foreigners nowadays are/have recently lived in Korea.
"Keep Moving Forward" - Walt Disney
pvsnp
Profile Joined January 2017
7676 Posts
September 30 2017 00:39 GMT
#20
On September 30 2017 09:28 FrkFrJss wrote:
Except that Neeb won KeSPA Cup before he really knew the language. Also, I don't believe he'd been in Korea all that long before his win.

But you're right in that a lot of the "good" foreigners nowadays are/have recently lived in Korea.

Training on Korea seems to have given a significant power boost to Major and Kelazhur. Neeb spent some time in Korea as well, possibly a factor in his rising strength over the course of the year.

But as far as I can tell, Scarlett, Drogo, Noregret, etc have not really reaped any major gains from Korean training.
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