[R&S] itemBay 8th SSL

SSL8 begins with Seeding Matches, to determine the seeds for Groups E to H (Group Seeds A to D were already determined by the top four of SSL7). Twenty-eight players were spread out into seven groups of four, played in a Round Robin format. The seven top finishers of each group would advance onto the final day of the Seeding Match, and an eighth player would be chosen randomly from the second place finishers to advance. On the final day, the eight players were matched up randomly, and played a Bo1 to determine who would get the group seed.

Soon after, the Group Ceremony for the Ro32 takes place, held live at the Musical House in Seoul. Unseeded players make their entrances and ceremonies one by one and place their names in the group (each group having up to four players) they want to be in. After all of that, the previous season's third, second and first place finishers (Sky, Larva and Killer respectively) make changes to the groups as they see fit. Sky gets one swap, Larva gets two swaps and Killer gets three swaps.

With the festivities over, the tournament finally truly begins. The Round of 32 is played offline, with eight groups of four. The format is the Dual Tournament format, a small double elimination type of format. To advance, a player needs to grab two set victories (by 1-0, 2-0 or 2-1) before he gets two set losses (by 0-1, 0-2 or 1-2). The first two sets will be Bo1, while the Winners, Losers and Final sets will be Bo3. Two players from each group will get knocked out, and two players will advance onto the next stage.

Here, the elimination bracket of the tournament begins. The Round of 16 follows the same format as the Ro32. From here, the general public will be allowed to spectate the games, live, at Sonic's office Sinbal Farm. The Round of 8 and 4 will be played in a Bo5 format, also held at Sinbal Farm.

Finally, after a grueling three months, four are left standing in the tournament, and only two will have the honor of fighting for the title of "Champion". Held at a special venue, the Grand Final and Bronze Match will be played as a Bo5 and Bo3 respectively for an epic finish.