TLnet Poll - How optimistic are you about ESL SC2 continuing for another season?

TLnet Poll - How optimistic are you about ESL SC2 continui…

How optimistic are you about ESL SC2 continuing for another season? :

Very optimistic (124)

24%

Somewhat optimistic (116)

22%

Neutral/don't know (112)

21%

Somewhat pessimistic (94)

18%

Very pessimistic (76)

15%

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TL.net Bot

TL.net133 Posts

October 19 2024 21:57 GMT

Discussion thread for front page poll: "How optimistic are you about ESL SC2 continuing for another season?"

Monochromatic

United States998 Posts

October 27 2024 21:31 GMT

I'm worried about Starcraft in general. Age of Empires 2 has seemingly replaced SC as the go-to vintage RTS game in public consciousness for the past couple years. I can't think of a time Starcraft has been less culturally relevant. I've seen Command and Conquer essentially vanish from the conversation over the past decade.

I love ASL (now SSL) but I can't help but notice the empty seats. I know there's a healthy daily proleague scene but I don't see it growing outside of Korea and I don't know how to follow it.

Pro SC2 is basically dead to me. I stopped watching GSL a couple years ago due to the lack of new faces and switched to BW. BW is significantly better than SC2 in practically every way - watching it feels like seeing the ideal version of SC2 that we wish happened. I spent a decade on SC2 without having ever played BW so that's not nostalgia speaking.

To be honest, competitive gaming feels dead as a whole. Esports just siphoned off interested players into a separate world. Gaming is more popular than ever, but it isn't because people are more receptive to games, it's that game design devolved into the path of least resistance. The most casual, simplified, and cozy aspects are what sell the best, where deep games which require time investment to learn are almost completely dead. It's only a handful of small indies which go nowhere keeping the dream alive.

I see Stormgate flopping hard and ZeroSpace being niche at best. RTS games lack mainstream appeal, and they can't surpass the greats that came out when the genre was at it's peak (which makes sense, investment in the genre was higher). Market demand is being met by Age of Empires and I don't see an opening for any new game to break into the scene. D.O.R.F. and Beyond All Reason are our best hopes, but I can't see them changing things.

This is a grim post, I hope I'm wrong, but I don't think I am.