When I joined this scene in 2012, after lurking, watching events and reading the forums since 2011, it was a completely different story. We had the hope of a young game in MK9 and a fresh scene -- but we were lucky to get space at a venue outside of some desolate corner, or to even have a stream for anything other than Top 8 at some major events (sometimes not even Top 8). Think about that.
While I was at Defend the North this weekend, I remembered that things have come almost full circle. Defend the North is an event that was practically a local a couple years ago. This year, we had players from all around the country.. Some of the best that play the game came all the way to White Plains for a 110+ man event (which used to be the size of our bigger majors!), without even having a huge pot bonus to draw them there.
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So what is it that's changed? For the first time, many friends and top players are backed by true, non-endemic organizations that are sponsoring and paying for flights, hotels and/or meals. To hear that so many people are traveling across the ocean for something like Viennality is really neat -- and it's something that just wouldn't have been possible only 2-3 years ago.
Much of this is possible now because of the support NRS has given our competitive scene. The original ESL MKX Pro League was a watershed event that brought major attention to our community -- and with increased prize pools, professional presentation and greater exposure, a lot of players gained the ability to both earn significant income and travel like never before.
And the Pro Series this year has given people a reason to make it out to all kinds of events. The points have really tied our year of offline tournaments together, giving it a narrative that helps spur everyone to compete. We take it for granted now, but we didn't have this only a few years ago.
SO:
I wanted to say thank you. First of all to NRS (and by extension, WB Games) -- thanks for listening and continuing to support the scene. Whether it's the Sub skins or the Tournament shaders, you guys are keeping an eye out for the tournament circuit and it rocks. Giving individual players shoutouts on the in-house streams is really cool. We take it for granted now, but it's great to feel loved, and we love you too.
To Ed Boon in particular, thanks for being willing to make this happen.
And to everybody in the community who's stuck around through thick and thin.. Thank you guys too. We toughed it out (after losing MLG!) and we're now seeing a great new era.
Lastly, minor shoutouts from DTN -- Whieboi, Theo, love you guys. Dragon, Grr, Sonic, Hayatei, Akro, The Magician, Insuperable, Kompetitor and whoever else I'm probably forgetting.. You guys are great and made for enjoyable hangs.
I'm really looking forward to seeing where things go for here -- and hoping we remember to stay positive and grateful for things the last couple generations never hard. Onward and upward -- let's go!!
@colt
@tylerlansdown
@Clutch8
@STORMS
While I was at Defend the North this weekend, I remembered that things have come almost full circle. Defend the North is an event that was practically a local a couple years ago. This year, we had players from all around the country.. Some of the best that play the game came all the way to White Plains for a 110+ man event (which used to be the size of our bigger majors!), without even having a huge pot bonus to draw them there.
---------------------
So what is it that's changed? For the first time, many friends and top players are backed by true, non-endemic organizations that are sponsoring and paying for flights, hotels and/or meals. To hear that so many people are traveling across the ocean for something like Viennality is really neat -- and it's something that just wouldn't have been possible only 2-3 years ago.
Much of this is possible now because of the support NRS has given our competitive scene. The original ESL MKX Pro League was a watershed event that brought major attention to our community -- and with increased prize pools, professional presentation and greater exposure, a lot of players gained the ability to both earn significant income and travel like never before.
And the Pro Series this year has given people a reason to make it out to all kinds of events. The points have really tied our year of offline tournaments together, giving it a narrative that helps spur everyone to compete. We take it for granted now, but we didn't have this only a few years ago.
SO:
I wanted to say thank you. First of all to NRS (and by extension, WB Games) -- thanks for listening and continuing to support the scene. Whether it's the Sub skins or the Tournament shaders, you guys are keeping an eye out for the tournament circuit and it rocks. Giving individual players shoutouts on the in-house streams is really cool. We take it for granted now, but it's great to feel loved, and we love you too.
To Ed Boon in particular, thanks for being willing to make this happen.
And to everybody in the community who's stuck around through thick and thin.. Thank you guys too. We toughed it out (after losing MLG!) and we're now seeing a great new era.
Lastly, minor shoutouts from DTN -- Whieboi, Theo, love you guys. Dragon, Grr, Sonic, Hayatei, Akro, The Magician, Insuperable, Kompetitor and whoever else I'm probably forgetting.. You guys are great and made for enjoyable hangs.
I'm really looking forward to seeing where things go for here -- and hoping we remember to stay positive and grateful for things the last couple generations never hard. Onward and upward -- let's go!!
@colt
@tylerlansdown
@Clutch8
@STORMS
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