Hello, Mat! A belated Happy New Year from the Liquid Weekly! How have things been going on your end?

Things are going well. Everything is quite busy but I was going a little crazy over the New Years period as I had nothing to do! It's great that all my co-workers are back and working.


How has laddering been going for you? Are you happy with how Zerg plays at the moment?

I haven't had much time to do laddering! However, I've unfortunately given up on Zerg and switched to Protoss as they are far stronger early game. Plus, I think Chargelots are some of the best units in the game.


Oh, OK. So what Protoss builds have you been focusing on these days and what's your favourite matchup? I take it you must enjoy watching Tyler and HuK replays a lot more now?

I don't do builds! I prefer to react to opponents as that allows me to be more efficient with my units. My favourite matchup would have to be PvT. Yes, watching Tyler and HuK is great, especially when they are streaming, so I try to indulge in that a couple of times a week.


Yeah, but IRL work probably takes up a lot of your time too, right? What's new on the TLAF front?

Yes, real life does eat up most of my time. In terms of TLAF, we are busily executing our plans for 2011, especially with regard to a large new product. We had a great new release of iRip come out late last year, which is worth checking out if you have a Mac, and we are putting finishing touches to a new Windows application which should be out in the coming weeks.

In other news, Tagalicious, our great music tagging app for Mac is now out on the new Mac App Store, so be sure to check it out. Looking ahead, we also look forward to Microsoft releasing an equivalent to the Mac App Store which has been great on the Mac side of things for us developers.


Speaking of apps, there have been many SC2 stream apps released for the iOS platform over the past few months. What do you make of them?

It's nice that streaming apps are appearing on iOS although, with reference mainly to the apps for the GSL, that they are severely lacking in user friendliness. Given a few hours of one-on-one time with the developers of the GSL app I feel we could create something truly significant. Unfortunately they haven't been receptive to my contacts so far.


Given your company's strong connection to SC2 via its sponsorship of Liquid, do you see TLAF getting into progaming related apps at any point?

Probably not. If SC2 was closer to mainstream then I'd consider it, but currently the mobile devices used are quite fragmented with a disproportionate number of people using Android, which is a horrid platform to program on. As an example, iPhone penetration in Australia, a country with multiple carriers carrying the device, is over 75%. In the SC2 community it's lower than 30% with a vast chunk being taken up by countless variations of Android phones.


If as a user you could wish for one SC2 related iOS app to be developed, what would it be?

Something that emails Blizzard every second requesting that they increase the base Overlord movement speed to a point that early game Zerg scouting is actually reasonable.


Hahaha! LOL. OK, let's move on to talk about Liquid. How has the past half year been for you as sponsor of Liquid? Is backing a team everything you expected it to be?

It's been a great big learning process. I'm far more hands-on than most sponsors are, or probably should be. However, it's always fun to chat to the pro-gamers about odds and ends so I'll continue to remain hands-on.
I can't say I ever had any expectations of backing a team. I just thought it was a great idea to give a bunch of excellent gamers more of a chance to compete on the world stage. And compete they have!


Liquid had a lot of great moments in 2010, but if you could pick one or two as favourites, what would they be?

The two big moments that come to mind are: Liquid's domination of MLG Dallas and Jinro's sleep talking about gorillas, which has now backfired on him now that he wins everything.


Let's talk about the man. Starting off with a very subdued performance in Korea, he broke through at MLG Dallas and smashed everything in sight. Were you always expecting this, or did it come as a bit of a surprise to you as well?

Due to insider information it definitely wasn't a surprise. In fact, I'd tipped him to take 1st or 2nd position. He definitely has the focus, excellent practice regime and willingness to try something new that will allow him to succeed for quite a long period of time. I look forward to seeing more excellent results tonight.


Yes, indeed! With Jinro in the GSL today and Liquid itself gearing up for a ton of tournaments in 2011, what are your expectations for the team in the year to come?

I have no expectations. All I want is for the players to be happy with what they've achieved because they all have the hunger to be the best.


Well, it's been great talking to you, Mat! Here's wishing TLAF all the very best in the new year. We look forward to seeing what that Windows app is. GLHF and see you soon!

Thanks, and I look forward to a fun filled year of SC2! Shout-outs to the guys in Liquid: Victor, Mahangu, Jesse, Chris, Dario, Hayder, Jonathan, Jos, Tyler and of course my girlfriend Pia!