EPT[FomosQ] We meet with eSTRO Ace Park Sang Woo (Really)!
[Fomos Reporter Lee Hye Lin] Witty responses behind a cool exterior! 4/16/2010
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[Fomos Reporter Lee Hye Lin] Witty responses behind a cool exterior! 4/16/2010
After season after season of hovering near the bottom of the Proleague rankings, in the Proleague season of 09-10, there seems to be some hope for eSTRO. In the front lines of eSTRO's lineups, its Terran Ace Really has had a very big role.
In this week's SportsQ we met with the center of eSTRO's momemtum Park Sang Woo (Really), where he responded to each question with dilligence and sincerity after quickly finishing his lunch in order to punctually arrive for his interview at 3.
Beneath his shy exterior, he provided us with some witty responses. Now, without further ado, let's meet with our SportsQ interviewee, Really.
Q: First of all, let's start off with some starting words for the viewers of SportsQ if you please.
A: Hello everyone, I'm eSTRO's Really. First off, I'm honored to be a part of this interview, and I'll answer each question the best I can, so let's have a fun session ^^.
Q: With the start of round 4 [of Proleague], you became the new captain of eSTRO. What kind of captain do you envision yourself to be; what are your goals as captain, and anything you want from your teammates?
A: Mmm, first off, I didn't know I'd become a captain, but somehow I ended up becoming one. It comes with responsibility, so there is some burden, but within the team, minus Coach Seo Gi Soo, I'm one of the most senior members of the team, so I would need to set a good example for the juniors. The game's important too, but even in terms of social life, I'll need to teach them what I've learned from my seniors as well.
Q: Do you know that you're your team's Ace? If you do, since when did you realize that fact, and start taking responsibility in that manner?
A: When I realized I was my team's Ace was when I was posting good results in rounds 1 and 2, and people were paying attention to me, I realized I was gradually becoming the team's Ace. To be honest, it's a lot to carry. I'm expected to get my wins, and when the team's Ace loses, the team itself tends to crumble too, so it comes with some burden, but since I started playing with heavy responsibility and good confidence... I think I've become reliable now.
Q: We're curious if you still think Jangbi is the player with the best PvT.
A: When was it?... Last season I practiced with lots of Protoss players, but Jangbi stood out amongst them. His style and management are really solid and his macro's also really good, so I thought back then. 'how do I beat him?' Recently Jangbi's not doing as well as he did before, so that's a little disappointing. I'd like him to do well... But I still do think that Jangbi is the best PvT'er.
Q: In the 09-10 season, you have a monstrous 11W 1L record in TvP; is there some story or motivation that led you to become so good at TvP?
A: There's no special story behind it. When I was an amateur, I've always liked TvP, and I loved using vultures, so my win rate was really good. So I consistently played [TvP] with high confidence... To be honest, I'm not much without TvP haha. Before arbiters became popular, I did almost feel like I wouldn't lose. But recently, it's become difficult again T.T. I lose to arbiters a lot during practice... I think I'm pretty lucky when I play on air. Sometimes I win because Protoss recalls where I've laid my mines, and stuff like that. I think that's part of why my TvP results are so good.
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Q: In the TV show 스타방위대 (Star Defense Squad), Coach Kim Hyun Jin said that contrary to your image, when games don't go well, you break keyboards. How many did you break? And was it harder because Coach Kim Hyun Jin used to play Terran?
A: Actually, I've never broken any keyboards, honest. I almost did haha. A lot of times I do almost break them, and that's because I'm really competitive and really don't like losing. So I do get angry a lot, but I think that helped me get better. I do need to fix that about my personality... When I get a little better, I'll work on fixing it hahaha.
Q: How would you characterize your own personality?
A: Mmm... On the outside, I look and act so innocent and good-natured... well, I am good-natured haha. But I am blood type B, so I do get upset a lot, and sometimes get a little angry and such ^^.
[T/N: Koreans have a very prevalent stereotype about blood types and their corresponding personalities. I believe it goes as such (I usually get this wrong so correct me if I'm wrong): type A is timid and sometimes narrow minded, but in general a good person. Type O is outgoing; type B is short-tempered (is it?), and type AB is eccentric/weird.]
Q: On TV, you seem like a man of few words and usually act pretty dignified, so we'd like to see some really cool ceremony from you! eSTRO as a team doesn't seem to do a lot of ceremonies.
A: For one thing there's the fact that I'm a bit shy, but also our team's not one of the top teams... and it doesn't have as many fans as some of the other teams, so doing a ceremony does feel awkward T.T. In the case of someone like Samsung KHAN's firebathero, he has good skills and lots of fans, so the fans will respond well to his ceremonies, but... our team doesn't have as many fans, so it's a bit iffy ^^; When we get much better as a team and get to the upper rankings, then I'll do some ceremonies. As will our team.
Q: What does a fan mean to you? Are there a lot of fans that come to see you?
A: Any player needs his fans to survive as a gamer. In that respect, I think a fan is like fuel that motivates our games. The more the cheers from fans, the more energy and motivation we have to do well ^^.
Q: If you were to pick a factor that sets eSTRO apart from every other team?
A: Mmm... I'm thinking of when Coach Lee Ji Ho was around. Then we did exercises every day while in addition to playing games. So every teammate felt like close friends, like people we'd know for our whole lives. We valued friendship with each other more than the game... But these days there is the pressure of having to perform, and players don't chat with each other as much anymore... T.T But I still think what sets us apart from any other team is the friendship between teammates. The fact that even though we're progamers, we have friends all around the country is really nice.
Q: We've noticed that you seem to be really good friends with hyvaa; is there a story to how you two became good friends? You two play different races, so we're curious how you two came to be so friendly.
A: Hahaha. Uh... Do we really look like such good friends? Hyvaa joined the team about two or three months after I did, and this kid was so little and cute I used to make fun of him... He was so cute. I thought I need to make him my minion and as such made fun of him all the time, and we eventually just became friends.
Q: Who's your best friend among the progamers? Which player do you want to be friends with?
A: I'm friends with great and Brave of Samsung KHAN. I meet them sometimes on team non-practice days; come to think of it, among other teams I tend to be friends with players from KHAN. They're easy to talk to, and I've known them since my amateur days, so I'm friendly with them.
As for players I want to be friends with, there's quite a few... But these days the eSPORTS environment isn't great, and since our team's not one of the stronger teams, it's hard to make friends from other teams. I'd like everyone to make conversation with our team members and stuff T.T.
Q: Great and Brave are known to be progamers with good looks, and on top of that, you're a good looking guy too. Is that one of the reasons you guys are such good friends? Is it possible that ugly people can't be friends with Really?
A: No, of course not haha. If you look really closely, great's honestly pretty ugly... I've heard from a player from Samsung that when great fans come to meet great in person, they never again come to meet him keke.
Q: Who sits next to you the practice room?
A: I'm in the middle, and to the left is Fancy, and to the right is Classic.
Q: Who is the eSTRO practice bonjwa?
A: I think that would have to be hyvaa. He's gotten first place within team rankings many times, and... I think he gets pretty nervous on TV. In practice he even beats other team's main players regularly too... T.T. It would be nice if he could show that skill on TV; it's too bad.
Q: When people found out you'd be the interviewee of this week's SportsQ, what were their reactions?
A: Well, for one, I was really surprised... I couldn't believe it, and my teammates were really surprised too. Quite frankly, it is a little iffy for me ^^; I don't know if I should be doing such an interview already, and I even feel like my skills aren't good enough yet, so there is a part of me that's iffy about it. But I did get to do it, so it's definitely an honor, and the next time I get this kind of interview I'll be really the top Terran, so please cheer for me until that happens.
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Q: You showed really good games in Proleague; why do you think you're not doing as well in individual leagues?
A: Mmm... T.T. Ah... It's all very sad and stuff, but if I remember correctly, when I had to play for OSL, it was the day after lunar new year. Because of that there weren't many people to practice with and all, so I didn't practice all that much. After that, I got beaten pretty badly, and that made me really mad T.T. It was frustrating that I lost to Zerg, but what I was really upset about was that my hands tend to get really clammy, and that negatively affected my game. When I lost that game, I got lots of criticism for it too, so I was kind of hurt too T.T.
And after that, when it was time for [MSL] Survivor, I just flat-out gave up. My personality tends to be such that when I'm down or upset, I just let my emotions take over, and in that regard I wasn't really mature yet. I was truly not professional in my mindset back then. But I've been through the failure once, so next time I'll be sure and advance!
Q: Is there a player that you think, 'I have to win!' when you play against him?
A: I think that against every player, but... whether I'm ahead in head-to-head stats or behind, I do tend to play thinking that I must win. But there are many players against whom I've lost 0 : 3, and I tend to have a pretty big sense of pride about those things, so when I meet them, I want to beat them... But then I lose and it kills my pride T.T... I think I need to get more vengeful.
Q: Some time ago you stopped 'Ultimate Weapon' Flash from attaining a 23 game TvT streak; how did you feel then?
A: Honestly in my life as a progamer, I have never prepared as much for any game as I did for that one. I think that's why I won, and when I won, the joy was too great to be expressed in words haha. That game made be realize what makes a progamering career worthwhile. But then right after there was individual leagues and my mood went to... T.T. But I'd like to play against him again soon.
Q: This coming Saturday you have a game against WeMade; do you have any desires to play against Baby, who's been doing so well recently?
A: Mmm~ Baby is doing pretty well recently. His current momentum is... earlier there was a time when my momentum was greater than his, and I want to revive that kind of momentum, but this season I've lost to Baby once or twice, so I got kind of mad back then T.T. Since I lost, I should admit to his high skill level, but this week I'll be waiting for him... I'll be sure to win! ^^.
Q: What do you usually do on your non-practice days?
A: Non-practice days within a season are pretty much always just one or two days haha. On non-practicing days, I feel like time's wasted if I just sleep, so I get out and get some fresh air to relieve my stress. So sometimes I go out to drink, and sometimes I go to the movies and stuff.
Q: What kind of food do you like best? And what's the movie you've seen most recently? Or movies you'd like to recommend to your fans?
A: I like SamGyupSal [really fatty pork meat that you grill, Korean bbq style], and in general I like meat. And the most recent movies I've seen are Titan and Green Zone... I think they're both just ok. As for movies I'd recommend... Gladiator and Lord of the Rings ^^.
Q: Have you ever thought that you look like Professor Snape from the Harry Potter movies? My friends say the same thing!
A: Ah, um... I think I've seen that somewhere... I personally don't think so T.T I thought it was weird that people think that. My teammates don't think that either... They say I look like 당예서 [a chinese female ping pong player, apparently], and that I'll admit. [Images here: http://image.search.naver.com/search.naver?where=image&sm=tab_jum&ie=utf8&query=당예서］
Q: What do you think about 당예서? You look like twins!
A: Hahaha, um... kind of like a mom? Was she a ping pong player? If she were a Korean player, I'd go cheer for her, but it's too bad she's Chinese. Huh? She has a Korean citizenship now? I guess that means I should go cheer for her haha.
Q: Your skin looks so good! We'd like to know your secret to maintaining such beautiful skin.
A: Maintaining good skin? I've never really tried very hard to maintain good skin... I think people are saying that because I'm always under good lighting ^^; I suppose you can just wash up well and often.
Q: Do you have a girlfriend? If not, describe your ideal type of girl.
A: I don't have one. Ideal type, mm... I don't even really want one haha. I like cute girls; my favorite actress is Kim Min Jung~ I like cute and good-natured girls ^^.
Q: Why do you not do handshakes during fan meetings?
A: Uh... T.T. It's time for an explanation isn't it? I think I said so back when I said no to that handshake... My hands get really sweaty, so I feel really bad about shaking other people's hands T.T. And that's why I refused then. Even from now on, I don't think I'll be giving out handshakes ^^;
Q: If you feel bad about handshakes, will you give out hugs?
A: Um... ^^;;; That's... embarrassing... I suppose I can if I win a game. Still no to guys though -_- haha. Only pretty girls I suppose.
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Q: What do you think about the balance in the maps being used for Proleague? Is there a map that you particularly like or dislike?
A: Since I’m Terran… I feel like Terran isn’t easily affected by maps, so I don’t pay that much attention to map balances and stuff. Although last season maps like Tornado had positional imbalances… so if they fix that, it should be ok. I’ve noticed Protoss players talk about that map a lot, but well… I don’t think a map should be fixed to tailor the needs of a single player. There’s map makers who design and balance maps, and I guess they should listen to the needs of all progamers in general, but it’s difficult to listen to every single player’s needs ^^… For example, a map like Fighting Spirit is pretty well balanced, so I guess I do feel like they shouldn’t make maps that are a little weird at all haha.
Q: You frequently display good vulture play; is there a secret to handling vultures so well?
A: Terran is not Terran without vultures..! Vultures are actually the reason I play Terran, and to use them well you have to keep paying attention to them, and keep a close eye on your enemy’s movements as well. If you pay attention to those things, you’ll do well; also, you always need to use all 3 mines for each vulture.
Q: Your team has Action, whose ZvT matchup is really good, but we’ve noticed that TvZ is your worst matchup. Have you ever received advice from Action about your TvZ play?
A: I’ve never received advice from him… I don’t think my skills warrant any serious advice. In practice whenever I play against any main lineup Zerg player, I rarely lose T.T. On TV I guess I don’t do as well because I get nervous and mis-micro a lot… I’d like to be able to play as I do in practice, but I haven’t been able to, so that makes me sad T.T.
Q: Is there a reason you do so well on Match Point?
A: I don’t know why my results have been so good on this map. When it first came out, the layout of the map was a little weird, so it was initially kind of difficult for me to play macro games on it. After a while, somehow after practicing on it multiple times, my understanding of the map increased, and my win rate on it increased accordingly as well ^^.
Q: You were the victim (?) of MBCGame’s Jaehoon’s famous ‘Bermuda recall’; what were your thoughts when it happened to you?
A: That game was a long time ago… I played that game without knowing his build. I didn’t know he rushed to arbiters so quickly, but out of the blue there was an arbiter doing a recall. I thought ‘Ah, this could get difficult’, but then there were no units… haha. Back when I was playing the game, I didn’t find it funny, but when I came back and saw the VOD, it was pretty funny T.T. I thought ‘how did he manage to recall a single observer?’… I think he got really unlucky. He’s shown some funny recall shows again even after that game, I suppose since he got a funny nickname out of it, it’s not that all that bad. Maybe it would be better if he went carriers ^^;
Q: If you were to pick a rival who’s not one of your teammates, who would it be?
A: I’m not sure I’m at the level where I should be picking a rival ^^;; But… I think of all the Terran players as my rival, and I don’t really pay attention to rivals, but I do care a lot about arch-enemies [players against whom he has a bad record or does particularly poorly against; typical examples are like Bisu to sAviOr, or Jaedong to Leta]. So I have a sort of grudge against Leta, and I want to beat him pretty badly.
Q: When will you be able to end your bad streak against Leta? + Show Spoiler +
This interview was before Really beat Leta recently
A: To our team, Leta is like a thorn on our side… He’s a player we really need to beat, but Leta’s so good haha. We’ll have to try extra hard to beat him. Since round 4 just started, we’ll meet him again, and until then, we’ll hone our skills and beat him, and when we do, I think we’ll have to do a ceremony too.
Q: So far, your team’s record is only so-so, are you confident you’ll get to Gwanganri [Proleague] Finals!
A: Recently two of our team’s main players were taken off the lineup, and because of that, our team’s atmosphere hasn’t been too great… We want to get to the Finals T.T and there’s still hope left for it, so… I want to make it ^^. This season seems like such a great opportunity, and we want to advance by miraculously winning all the rest of the games of the season… ^^
Q: We are reminded of optical flares when we think of your play. We’re curious to know how or why you got to using them.
A: SangHo told me, and he might have just said it without much thought then, but he told me once that I should use it in one of my games, so I initially tried it in an all-in-ish timing with a poor economy. I tried using it once while doing a siege-mode contain, but it worked terribly, so I didn’t use it. But then one day I thought ‘what if I used medics to defend?’ and tried it as such, and I noticed it kept the Protoss away. As I gained more experience with it and got better win rates, I began to figure out the ins and outs of the build, and everyone told me it was difficult to deal with. It seems like a good build.
Q: Between micro and macro, which do you pay more attention to? And between Yongsan and Moonraedong stadiums, which do you like better?
A: Definitely macro ^^. I pay almost no attention to micro… haha. Winning with macro makes me feel better too, so I much prefer it. Between Yongsan and Moonrae, I prefer Yongsan a little bit because it’s closer.
Q: What do you think about the accusation that Terran is imbalanced?
A: Terran is definitely not imbalanced… It’s players like Flash that makes Terran look imbalanced. I feel like it’s actually harder because it’s so APM intensive. Honestly, I think Protoss is imbalanced… haha.
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Q: Can we expect your peak form in round 4?
A: These days I’ve gotten over the shock of having fallen from both leagues, and since there’s the responsibility of having to make it to the Post-Season… I’ll try to do better now by remembering how well I did in rounds 1 and 2, and regaining my confidence. I’ll definitely try to get at least 1 win per game from now on.
Q: Can you tell your fans your goals and what kind of progamer you aspire to be?
A: Every progamer wants a championship… In my current situation, I’m closer to a Proleague Championship than an individual league one, and I’ll try my best to get there, but for now I think my most important goal is to get my team to Post-Season ^^. And um… my final goal will be to surpass the current best Terran, Flash. If I want to do that, I’ll have to work incredibly hard, and it’ll no doubt be very difficult, but I’ll try my best until the end.
Q: Thank you so much for your honest and fun responses, Really. Lastly, would you say some parting words to your fans?
A: I don’t know if it was fun for all of you, but it was fun for me, so I hope it was fun for you too ^^. It was an honor to be a part of this interview, and I’d appreciate everyone cheering for our team.
Also, recently there have been some ominous news in the e-sports community, and so there have been a lot of people suspecting our team as being a part of it… T.T. I’d appreciate if every could withhold their suspicions and judgments. The players you’re suspecting are hurt from it, and nothing’s even finalized yet… It seems like everyone’s suspecting our team more than others, so I’d like everything to work out well in the end to raise our own spirits as well.
Source:
http://www.fomos.kr/board/board.php?mode=read&keyno=105829&db=issue
Comments and corrections are welcome.
at the "eSTRO has few fans" comment, but at least he's optimistic!
