There are very few stars in SC2 history who were as self-made as $O$. He didn't get big promo like Jaedong, or reputation intimidation like Innovation. He didn't start as a child like Maru, or fly out to every foreign LAN like Taeja and Polt.
Out of sixteen competitors in the 2013 World Championship, he was almost certainly the one people knew the least, were betting on the least (besides Rotti), and were cheering for the least. But he didn't care. He proved himself on he biggest stage, and did it in style.
And then he went to the most controversial Premier event in all of HotS, the winner-take-all IEM, and he did it again. In an instant, he supplanted MC as the king of big money. And in 2015, he proved he wasn't just clutch. He was a legend of the game. He defeated one of the great sources of shame in the history of SC2, and cemented himself as the indisputable greatest player of Heart of the Swarm. And he just kept proving his personality along the way, over and over again. In his playstyle, his interviews, his social media.
It wasn't until 2018, when he c0mpeted at Pyeongchang, that we got to see the other side of him. His origins. He didn't just waltz into a team house and decide he was gonna be a pro gamer. He came.from a small, rural village. Kim Yoo Jim was the biggest sensation to ever be produced by his hometown. Through all the swagger, he never showed that. Where it came from. We just saw the popped logos, the waving fingers, the consecutive cannon rushes. The man turned a dream into pure gold. There will not readily be others like him.
On September 15 2021 08:04 Circumstance wrote: There are very few stars in SC2 history who were as self-made as $O$. He didn't get big promo like Jaedong, or reputation intimidation like Innovation. He didn't start as a child like Maru, or fly out to every foreign LAN like Taeja and Polt.
Out of sixteen competitors in the 2013 World Championship, he was almost certainly the one people knew the least, were betting on the least (besides Rotti), and were cheering for the least. But he didn't care. He proved himself on he biggest stage, and did it in style.
And then he went to the most controversial Premier event in all of HotS, the winner-take-all IEM, and he did it again. In an instant, he supplanted MC as the king of big money. And in 2015, he proved he wasn't just clutch. He was a legend of the game. He defeated one of the great sources of shame in the history of SC2, and cemented himself as the indisputable greatest player of Heart of the Swarm. And he just kept proving his personality along the way, over and over again. In his playstyle, his interviews, his social media.
It wasn't until 2018, when he c0mpeted at Pyeongchang, that we got to see the other side of him. His origins. He didn't just waltz into a team house and decide he was gonna be a pro gamer. He came.from a small, rural village. Kim Yoo Jim was the biggest sensation to ever be produced by his hometown. Through all the swagger, he never showed that. Where it came from. We just saw the popped logos, the waving fingers, the consecutive cannon rushes. The man turned a dream into pure gold. There will not readily be others like him.
On September 15 2021 08:04 Circumstance wrote: There are very few stars in SC2 history who were as self-made as $O$. He didn't get big promo like Jaedong, or reputation intimidation like Innovation. He didn't start as a child like Maru, or fly out to every foreign LAN like Taeja and Polt.
Out of sixteen competitors in the 2013 World Championship, he was almost certainly the one people knew the least, were betting on the least (besides Rotti), and were cheering for the least. But he didn't care. He proved himself on he biggest stage, and did it in style.
And then he went to the most controversial Premier event in all of HotS, the winner-take-all IEM, and he did it again. In an instant, he supplanted MC as the king of big money. And in 2015, he proved he wasn't just clutch. He was a legend of the game. He defeated one of the great sources of shame in the history of SC2, and cemented himself as the indisputable greatest player of Heart of the Swarm. And he just kept proving his personality along the way, over and over again. In his playstyle, his interviews, his social media.
It wasn't until 2018, when he c0mpeted at Pyeongchang, that we got to see the other side of him. His origins. He didn't just waltz into a team house and decide he was gonna be a pro gamer. He came.from a small, rural village. Kim Yoo Jim was the biggest sensation to ever be produced by his hometown. Through all the swagger, he never showed that. Where it came from. We just saw the popped logos, the waving fingers, the consecutive cannon rushes. The man turned a dream into pure gold. There will not readily be others like him.
On September 15 2021 08:04 Circumstance wrote: There are very few stars in SC2 history who were as self-made as $O$. He didn't get big promo like Jaedong, or reputation intimidation like Innovation. He didn't start as a child like Maru, or fly out to every foreign LAN like Taeja and Polt.
Out of sixteen competitors in the 2013 World Championship, he was almost certainly the one people knew the least, were betting on the least (besides Rotti), and were cheering for the least. But he didn't care. He proved himself on he biggest stage, and did it in style.
And then he went to the most controversial Premier event in all of HotS, the winner-take-all IEM, and he did it again. In an instant, he supplanted MC as the king of big money. And in 2015, he proved he wasn't just clutch. He was a legend of the game. He defeated one of the great sources of shame in the history of SC2, and cemented himself as the indisputable greatest player of Heart of the Swarm. And he just kept proving his personality along the way, over and over again. In his playstyle, his interviews, his social media.
It wasn't until 2018, when he c0mpeted at Pyeongchang, that we got to see the other side of him. His origins. He didn't just waltz into a team house and decide he was gonna be a pro gamer. He came.from a small, rural village. Kim Yoo Jim was the biggest sensation to ever be produced by his hometown. Through all the swagger, he never showed that. Where it came from. We just saw the popped logos, the waving fingers, the consecutive cannon rushes. The man turned a dream into pure gold. There will not readily be others like him.
On September 15 2021 08:04 Circumstance wrote: There are very few stars in SC2 history who were as self-made as $O$. He didn't get big promo like Jaedong, or reputation intimidation like Innovation. He didn't start as a child like Maru, or fly out to every foreign LAN like Taeja and Polt.
Out of sixteen competitors in the 2013 World Championship, he was almost certainly the one people knew the least, were betting on the least (besides Rotti), and were cheering for the least. But he didn't care. He proved himself on he biggest stage, and did it in style.
And then he went to the most controversial Premier event in all of HotS, the winner-take-all IEM, and he did it again. In an instant, he supplanted MC as the king of big money. And in 2015, he proved he wasn't just clutch. He was a legend of the game. He defeated one of the great sources of shame in the history of SC2, and cemented himself as the indisputable greatest player of Heart of the Swarm. And he just kept proving his personality along the way, over and over again. In his playstyle, his interviews, his social media.
It wasn't until 2018, when he c0mpeted at Pyeongchang, that we got to see the other side of him. His origins. He didn't just waltz into a team house and decide he was gonna be a pro gamer. He came.from a small, rural village. Kim Yoo Jim was the biggest sensation to ever be produced by his hometown. Through all the swagger, he never showed that. Where it came from. We just saw the popped logos, the waving fingers, the consecutive cannon rushes. The man turned a dream into pure gold. There will not readily be others like him.
On September 15 2021 08:04 Circumstance wrote: There are very few stars in SC2 history who were as self-made as $O$. He didn't get big promo like Jaedong, or reputation intimidation like Innovation. He didn't start as a child like Maru, or fly out to every foreign LAN like Taeja and Polt.
Out of sixteen competitors in the 2013 World Championship, he was almost certainly the one people knew the least, were betting on the least (besides Rotti), and were cheering for the least. But he didn't care. He proved himself on he biggest stage, and did it in style.
And then he went to the most controversial Premier event in all of HotS, the winner-take-all IEM, and he did it again. In an instant, he supplanted MC as the king of big money. And in 2015, he proved he wasn't just clutch. He was a legend of the game. He defeated one of the great sources of shame in the history of SC2, and cemented himself as the indisputable greatest player of Heart of the Swarm. And he just kept proving his personality along the way, over and over again. In his playstyle, his interviews, his social media.
It wasn't until 2018, when he c0mpeted at Pyeongchang, that we got to see the other side of him. His origins. He didn't just waltz into a team house and decide he was gonna be a pro gamer. He came.from a small, rural village. Kim Yoo Jim was the biggest sensation to ever be produced by his hometown. Through all the swagger, he never showed that. Where it came from. We just saw the popped logos, the waving fingers, the consecutive cannon rushes. The man turned a dream into pure gold. There will not readily be others like him.
On September 15 2021 08:04 Circumstance wrote: There are very few stars in SC2 history who were as self-made as $O$. He didn't get big promo like Jaedong, or reputation intimidation like Innovation. He didn't start as a child like Maru, or fly out to every foreign LAN like Taeja and Polt.
Out of sixteen competitors in the 2013 World Championship, he was almost certainly the one people knew the least, were betting on the least (besides Rotti), and were cheering for the least. But he didn't care. He proved himself on he biggest stage, and did it in style.
And then he went to the most controversial Premier event in all of HotS, the winner-take-all IEM, and he did it again. In an instant, he supplanted MC as the king of big money. And in 2015, he proved he wasn't just clutch. He was a legend of the game. He defeated one of the great sources of shame in the history of SC2, and cemented himself as the indisputable greatest player of Heart of the Swarm. And he just kept proving his personality along the way, over and over again. In his playstyle, his interviews, his social media.
It wasn't until 2018, when he c0mpeted at Pyeongchang, that we got to see the other side of him. His origins. He didn't just waltz into a team house and decide he was gonna be a pro gamer. He came.from a small, rural village. Kim Yoo Jim was the biggest sensation to ever be produced by his hometown. Through all the swagger, he never showed that. Where it came from. We just saw the popped logos, the waving fingers, the consecutive cannon rushes. The man turned a dream into pure gold. There will not readily be others like him.
On September 15 2021 08:04 Circumstance wrote: There are very few stars in SC2 history who were as self-made as $O$. He didn't get big promo like Jaedong, or reputation intimidation like Innovation. He didn't start as a child like Maru, or fly out to every foreign LAN like Taeja and Polt.
Out of sixteen competitors in the 2013 World Championship, he was almost certainly the one people knew the least, were betting on the least (besides Rotti), and were cheering for the least. But he didn't care. He proved himself on he biggest stage, and did it in style.
And then he went to the most controversial Premier event in all of HotS, the winner-take-all IEM, and he did it again. In an instant, he supplanted MC as the king of big money. And in 2015, he proved he wasn't just clutch. He was a legend of the game. He defeated one of the great sources of shame in the history of SC2, and cemented himself as the indisputable greatest player of Heart of the Swarm. And he just kept proving his personality along the way, over and over again. In his playstyle, his interviews, his social media.
It wasn't until 2018, when he c0mpeted at Pyeongchang, that we got to see the other side of him. His origins. He didn't just waltz into a team house and decide he was gonna be a pro gamer. He came.from a small, rural village. Kim Yoo Jim was the biggest sensation to ever be produced by his hometown. Through all the swagger, he never showed that. Where it came from. We just saw the popped logos, the waving fingers, the consecutive cannon rushes. The man turned a dream into pure gold. There will not readily be others like him.
Hey I called sOs winning Blizz13 tho tbf I had dear in the finals over jd
Protoss always relied on the element of surprise to perform at pro level, inn all matchups protoss must do some damage to get an edge or get away with greed, this is the reason why sOs was so successful at certain meta's in sc2 history. sOs was the master of creating new strategies, without a doubt the most gifted strategic mind SC has ever seen.
With the game now getting more mapped out and players have learned to read protoss at a much higher level than in the past it's been sad to see players like sOs struggle because he still tried to use his strength in that area but it was just not that viable anymore.
Even if the results at the end of his career was poor if you compare it to his past, I think he deserves to be recognized as one of the very best Protosses to ever play the game and helped shape how protoss is played even today. He also showed the ability to play flawless macro games and late games so I hope people will not just remember him as a cheesy protoss, he was a complete player.
Personally I think sOs has retired because of lack of motivation, I don't know if he has made a statement on why he decided to retire.
On September 24 2021 20:58 Drahkn wrote: Protoss always relied on the element of surprise to perform at pro level, inn all matchups protoss must do some damage to get an edge or get away with greed, this is the reason why sOs was so successful at certain meta's in sc2 history. sOs was the master of creating new strategies, without a doubt the most gifted strategic mind SC has ever seen.
With the game now getting more mapped out and players have learned to read protoss at a much higher level than in the past it's been sad to see players like sOs struggle because he still tried to use his strength in that area but it was just not that viable anymore.
Even if the results at the end of his career was poor if you compare it to his past, I think he deserves to be recognized as one of the very best Protosses to ever play the game and helped shape how protoss is played even today. He also showed the ability to play flawless macro games and late games so I hope people will not just remember him as a cheesy protoss, he was a complete player.
Personally I think sOs has retired because of lack of motivation, I don't know if he has made a statement on why he decided to retire.
Will miss him a lot
The last interview wih sOs has been published by DH Masters during his final participation at the tournament. He stated that he didn't know what future lied ahead when asking about possible retirement. A week later, he decided to retire. Not sure if that may help you understand him better.
Of all the players in SC2 (or BW) I don't think there's a single one whose games I have enjoyed watching more consistently or more ecstatically. Even in the middle of a lackluster tournament, or a lackluster meta, or a dry patch in the scene, sOs always brought a sense of wonder unlike anything else in Starcraft. It always felt like a gift just to see him play, and like Christmas morning when he won against odds.
While it's true that his results got less incredible over time (though I mean last season's GSL run is nothing to sneeze at), I honestly don't think the wonder and entertainment value of his games ever went down. Some of his very best games and series occurred only in the last few years; and win or lose, he continued to play it his way until the end.
There have been a lot of great players in this scene, of very many different styles, but that's what I'll always remember sOs for. I very much hope he's able to turn this career and prize money into a good life for himself.
EPT
Enjoy whatever comes next!
