Tag Archives: G-League

“G-League through my eyes” — a post-finals writeup by 17173’s Felix

Original: http://dota2.sgamer.com/news/201303/149412.html

Writer: Felix菜刀刃 of 17173

Foreword:

In this writeup, I’ll only talk about the actual competition at the finals, those that are here for gossip can turn away now.

A few days ago I was able to visit the Mercedes-Benz Center as a representative of a media organization. In name, I was there to report but in reality, I learned and saw more than anything. From the newsroom, to the various nooks and crannies of the venue, to the outer stands, backstage and player/team rest areas, media areas, I saw it all. More importantly, I was put up in 4 and a half star level accommodations, and with it came foreign waitstaff for breakfast, direct rides to and from the venue, and unlimited fruit and salad in the media room. So, okay, I guess you could consider my words below to be ‘soft’ for a reason, but I swear that all of it is the truth.

This is my response to that trending “7 best” piece written by a fan about G-League earlier this week (Dotaland note: this is referring to a satire piece written by a fan that criticized everything at the G-League — will summarize the criticisms in italics for each point)

Ticket pricing

First let’s talk ticket pricing. 100 RMB to go watch G-League, worth it or not? The fan piece compared G-League with StarsWar, WCG, and while this is certainly a legitimate angle from which to look at things, that doesn’t mean there aren’t other ways to look at it. First off, the venue for G-League is none other than the Mercedes-Benz Center. To be able to attend an event at a world-class facility such as this one, no matter if the event is a concert, or a sporting match, or a performance, 100 RMB is the absolute bottom line, or close to it. Secondly, the total investment towards G-League has topped 1 million RMB, and unlike other competitions, G-League does not have Grandpa Samsung, or Papa Tencent — ticket sales are a precious income stream. Third, live attendance at G-League was around 70%, so the argument that the tickets had been incorrectly priced seems to lose its strength based on that figure alone. Ticket pricing is one of those things where each person has their own limit, so let’s just recognize that and move on.

Service (no service at all, bad food, extortion pricing, long lines, everyone went hungry, made worse by the fact that spectators were not allowed to come back in if they went out to get food, and were not allowed to bring food in on their own in the first place)

The fan piece sarcastically pointed out the lack of food and refreshments, this is something that I also felt similarly on. I experienced a 15 RMB combo, which consisted of a piece of pure bread, and a cup of heavily watered down cola, what a rip off. For me, luckily I got to eat and drink as I pleased in the media room in back. Clever fans in the stands would have all snuck their own food in, but those that were too honest would only leave the night feeling famished. On this problem, even if Gamefy wanted to do soemthing, they’d face difficulties. For one, a venue like this wouldn’t ever allow events to freely hand out food and drink and thus affect the venue’s own food and drink business, and for another, it’s not as if Gamefy has the resources and manpower to feed some ten thousand spectators. If you think about it, this kind of thing is pretty common at all events of this size, and the real issue that caused this to be magnified was the fact that the finals competition took too much time, and I’ll address this next.

Competition schedule (long, tedious scheduling from 9am to past 10pm)

Four best-of-5s in a single day has never happened before, as the fan piece claims? In actuality, it happened at TI2. At TI2, for three days straight it was competition from 10 in the morning to 11 at night, for a total of 8 best-of-3s, 14 best-of-1s, and 1 best-of-5. All in all I counted 40 matches, averaging out to 13 matches a day. G-League was four best-of-5s, for a total of 16 matches, and in addition, I’m sure we all realize the difference in time required for an average match in SC2 or Warcraft3, compared with Dota2. So, like this, if the fan piece suggests that those who went to G-League should win an iron-man award, they should only get second place, as the fans in America for TI2 deserve first place. The scheduling was one of TI2’s few weaknesses, and we hear that this next time Valve will make improvements on it. In the same vein, BBKing has promised on weibo that G-League will compress their scheduling in the future as well.

Commentators (poor sound quality, poor hype and excitement, shallow)

This one I mostly agree with the fan piece. The sound quality in the venue had some problems, in some positions (such as where I was sitting), things were hard to hear because of echoing (I paid attention in middle school physics, ha). In most other places it was alright. Another issue was that at certain times, the commentators would be drowned out by the live crowd. Apart from raising the audio level, the commentary was also lacking in excitement and hype compared to Western and Korean counterparts, this has been a long-standing problem in Chinese commentators. As someone who has occasionally made cameos as a commentator, however, I understand that without 100% commitment and talent, it’s very difficult to do, so I won’t say more.

Interaction (weak, forced, lack of interaction and viewing of actual players and teams)

First of all, compared to WCG, the lack of interaction and close-ups with teams and players is something that comes down more to the venue itself. If you’re attending an NBA match, unless you’re at the players’ tunnel or you have courtside seating, you’d also lack any chance to get to see players up close. This is the same with G-League; with the situation at G-League, it would’ve been quite a disaster to attempt to allow ten thousand fans to go up and approach players for autographs. Here I want to make a small suggestion, perhaps we can arrange in the future a day before or after the event itself for player-fan interaction — for example a signing session, to allow room for interaction between players and fans? This could be something to consider in the future.

VIPs (live audience didn’t appreciate the singers, awkward)

It must be noted, our VIP performers were really very gracious. Their final performance was delayed by an hour, yet they still came out and performed all their songs very professionally. Maybe it was because I was in the lower stage and closer to the performance, but it seemed to be pretty good atmosphere down there. I could see outer stage spectators having trouble getting into it though. It has to be said though, Gamefy displayed some bold vision in combining big name performers with a finals event like they did. Additionally, the choices were fitting and suitable, and their styles seemed to match the kind of mentality that ‘esports’ displays — one of independence and chasing one’s own dreams, and the two worked together excellently. Overall, this try at a new thing was quite successful, and other competitions could learn from this.

Promotion (unrealistic, false advertising, exaggerated)

Not much to say about this one — the claim of “ten thousand” wasn’t off at all, no exaggeration there. My own estimate is that at the peak, attendance was around 15000, of course this might not be accurate. But those fans that I spoke with at the event all felt that it was over ten thousand. Considering max capacity of the venue was 18000, and the report was that it awas 70% attendance, these numbers all line up. As for forum fans claiming that only a few hundred people showed up: the inner stage alone held over a thousand people. I believe that the other at least 9000 people weren’t all planted there by Gamefy, nor were they holographic premonitions.

Conclusion

In the past I’d written pieces criticizing ACE League. Even though it wasn’t directed at the organizers, GTV, thinking back on it now I realize that that wasn’t the nicest of things to do, so here I extend an apology to those affected. The other thing was Gamefy’s daily show criticizing WCG. Nonetheless, no matter if it’s ACE or WCG, or G-League, everyone is working hard to advance esports in China, so let’s think from each other’s points of view.

If I were to give G-League a score out of ten, from a competition organizer’s perspective, I give it a full 10. The reason being, for an event like this, execution is much harder than it seems on paper. G-League not only brought to reality an unprecedented level of production, they also went beyond and managed things I had never even thought of before. There’s a slang saying that “if your steps are too big then you risk failure”, and G-League’s accomplishments here have been amazing, so I hope we can all give them more time with the weaknesses.

I don’t know if you all have this feeling, the one where you’re full of hope and energy and ready to chase your dreams, only to find that those around you have succeeded in doing so first. When I stepped into the Mercedes-Benz Center and looked up to see everything on the giant LED screens in the air, that was the feeling I had. It was joyous, envy, and a sense of loss. (Dotaland note: the writer of this, Felix, works with 17173 and G-1 League)

Competition organizers don’t need consolation, nor do they need sympathy, but they cannot lack the support of fans. Players and fans are our true deities, our god.

 

iG takes G-League Season 2 Finals over LGD.int by a score of 3-1

iG takes G-League Season 2 Finals over LGD.int by a score of 3-1! These G-League finals were spectacular, and through a day of esports, the Dota2 finals came as the final (and arguably focal) event of the night. With the team intros playing, iG and LGD.int began their showdown. Ultimately iG emerged victorious by a score of 3-1. Having taken the first two games with relative ease against LGD.int, they needed a long game four to seal it against a much improved LGD.int showing in the latter two games of the match.

According to Gamefy, the organizers of the tournament, the G-League Season 2 Finals had a live attendance at the Shanghai Mercedes-Benz Arena of nearly 10,000 people. Nice crowd.

Vods of the G-League Season 2 Grand Finals of 2013 are listed below.

BTS vods:

joinDota vods: 1 – 2 – 3 – 4

Chinese vods: HERE

 

Gamefy G-League preview and predictions: iG favored

Original: http://gleague.gamefy.cn/view_29633.html

Former professional player Sakray writes a G-League preview piece for Gamefy.

Bans picks analysis

After a long break between the G-League round of 8 and the upcoming finals, the two finals teams shouldn’t have much variation in previous patterns when it comes to bans and picks. Add this to the fact that overall, there haven’t been much new in terms of metagame development, so it’s safe to assume they’ll be fighting for similar bans and picks here.

In terms of the first two bans, iG should likely focus on stopping LGD.int’s favored jungle and roaming heroes (such as Chen), and it’s also very possible they use a ban on God’s Dark Seer or Shadow Fiend. As for LGD.int’s bans, even though iG is versatile to the point of it being impossible to ban everything for them, but it is still possible to see that iG relies heavily on heroes which use Blink Dagger, so Batrider or Brewmaster are good choices here.

For the first three picks, apart from fighting over core carries such as Lone Druid, Lifestealer, Anti-mage, etc, there will also be decisive picks revolving around core teamfight heroes such as LGD.int’s Chen and Enchantress, iG’s Batrider or Magnus. Also relevant here are hard support picks or solo mids, in order to solidify a basic core strategy.

As for the last three bans and last two picks, undoubtedly these will involve banning the opponents supports once a team has gotten their own supports, or the same with carries, followed by filler picks that complement the rest of the early picks. Additionally, if any team has a secret weapon or special tactics, this is when it will appear.

Pick predictions

iG: Brewmaster, Lone Druid, Rubick, Bounty Hunter, Lina
LGD.int: Dark Seer, Enchantress, Night Stalker, Luna, Shadow Demon

Head to head analysis

Zhou vs Pajkatt

From farming mechanics, to item builds, to late game experience, long-time carry Zhou fully exhibits the right to claim “number 1 carry”. After resolving previous issues in farm allocation, iG has managed to give Zhou plenty of room, and Zhou has indeed acquitted himself nicely. In comparison, Pajkatt, while perhaps not lacking in mechanics and skill, still has a long way to go before reaching the same level.

430 vs GOD

In terms of individual ability, the two solo mids of their respective teams are perhaps the closest. God, on the same level as players like Dendi, performed brilliantly in earlier competition, with excellent laning and last hitting, deadly ganking and dictation of tempo, good item usage and choices. So when faced with various solo mid greats, God absolutely does not lose out. If you need something to look forward to, then this matchup between God and 430 is it.

YYF vs Brax

Whereever YYF is, that is his home field. In the 3 role, Brax still has much room for growth, and this matchup is not only a winning opportunity for him, but also a chance to learn and develop. Hopefully this cheerful, optimistic fellow can keep it up, and ultimately learn those traits that are signature of YYF — calm, collected, patient, efficient, and able to take on the role of being a team’s “generator” in making things happen.

ChuaN vs Misery

In carefully watching iG’s replays, you will notice that no matter in terms of finding kills in lane, to teleporting to help countergank, to teamfight participation, to positioning, there is nothing to complain about in ChuaN’s play. He embodies a nearly ideal 4 position in his support-gank role. Apart from maybe a little bit of a liking for stealing kills, that is. As for Misery, he’s got a unique understanding of jungling, and if he gets Chen or Enchantress, there’s potential for him to create some problems for ChuaN and Faith.

Faith vs 1437

Zhou is iG’s eyes, 430 is iG’s hands, YYF is iG’s heart, ChuaN is iG’s blood, Faith is iG’s brains. To be able to play support in such a star-studded team and not fall by the wayside, Faith’s ability can only be described as unfathomably deep. 1437 performed decently in previous competition, but his performances were more linked to Misery’s than anything else. If he can successfully fulfill his own role while injecting more personal flavor into it, he can perhaps bring more life to LGD.int’s play.

Overall playstyle analysis

iG did not drop a single match in the earlier stages. Even though against LGD they met a certain degree of resistance, they ultimately showed their superior decision making ability. The “top three” of old has recently seen iG pulling ahead and away in all aspects, from bans and picks, to individual performances, to teamfights, and even as far as seeing superior creativity in cracking late0game stalemates. iG has indeed become the current world number 1 Dota2 team; the greatest impression this iG team gives is that they are un-beatable. Their playstyle is very efficient and clean: they rely on excellent individual skill to ensure laning goes well, then once key early items are farmed out, they rely on ChuaN and Faith’s roaming to make things happen and create space. Once they’ve achieved a certain advantage, they group up and take towers, always decisive in their decisions at this stage. If the opponent reacts less than perfectly, iG often takes kills in addition to towers, and they snowball out of control. If the oppponent defends effectively, iG quickly makes the decision to adapt. iG is rarely seen to be playing from behind, because they simply rarely fall behind in the early game. In all this, perhaps the best chance to find a hole in iG’s play is to go on all-out offense against them from the start.

LGD.int has not been together for long, yet have gone this far in G-League. Even though they’ve had tough challenges, their progress here is not an accident. Their strength comes from their fast learning; every mistake, defeat, or even spectacular performance from an opponent is something they learn from and absorb. Like a talented but unpolished fighter, their raw talent is enough to defeat many a master.

LGD.int favors jungling and then dual roaming. They tend to use an early Smoke gank in mid to help God open things up, and then shift into a trilane, utilizing controlled jungle creeps to harass the opposing carry’s growth. God will use all this to snowball while controlling runes. If not dealt with properly, teams find themselves in a cycle of teamfights against LGD.int with no space to farm and grow properly, and LGD.int will group up after their carry has core items out, utilizing the solo mid and carry’s earlier advantages to win fights. If LGD.int’s early game roaming and God’s growth can be countered, then LGD.int falters like a car without gas. If LGD.int wants to expand beyond this singular strategic mindset, then they not only need more from the 3 4 5 positions, they also need to show that Western creativity. Without trying, how to know it will not work?

Results prediction

iG 3 — 0.5 LGD.int

Looking at it from various angles, iG will ultimately win by relatively large margins. LGD.int’s 0.5 comes from the possibility of things such as God outplaying 430, or their potential at dominating teamfights. Worth looking forward to, either way, is the fact that both teams like to attack, and so no matter what happens, the matchup should be exciting for viewers!

Catch the G-League Season 2 2013 Finals online at: http://www.twitch.tv/gamefycn — g.gamefy.cn

 

Gamefy commentator BBC hype piece: Previewing the upcoming G-League finals

Original: http://gleague.gamefy.cn/view_29228.html

Dotaland note: Gamefy commentator BBC writes a long piece hyping up the upcoming G-League. He previews the finals matchups while also reminiscing on what has brought him this far in esports.

To succeed is to give your all.

If one knows one’s own interests, then no matter if one has luxury in food and clothing or has to settle with the simplest of provisions, one can be at peace.

For everyone in childhood, there are dreams, and for each and every one, the answer to the question of what those dreams may be is a different one. Yet, almost surely, for the majority of people, what they’ve achieved in the twenty years following childhood must result differently from those original dreams. Those that successfully stand on their own and achieve success in their dreams undoubtedly are the strong ones in life. Still, those that manage this much are rare; more commonly it is those who, like me, have been constrained, worn down, by time, and ultimately followed the flow of life to settle into whatever average, normal, everyday life we have now.

I remember, before my high school college entrance exams, I got hooked on playing Command and Conquer. As someone who had always seen the days leading up to major exams as the best times for gaming, even I had to retract that preference a bit and bury myself in studies in the face of the final hurdle of high school. And so, immediately following that, in the summer days, I fanatically contributed my savings to a nearby internet cafe as I awaited letters of notice from colleges. It was Starcraft, and then Heroes of Might and Magic 3, Diablo 1 and 2, Baldur’s Gate, Warcraft 3, DotA, all the way to today’s Starcraft 2, League of Legends, and Dota2.

Computer games grew up alongside many a kid, especially boys. Instead of talking about what makes games so interesting, the focus should perhaps instead be on how enticing it is to strive for victory for gamers who viewed winning with such desire.

On the other hand, everything in moderation, and if one gets too hooked on something then the joys of victory no longer remain joyous, and instead become an agonizing trap. The taste of struggling between balancing gaming and studies is one that I have experienced before, wandering between a steady path and the fork in the road, and it’s something I’d never wish to experience again.

Luckily for me, today I can do something I love as my career, even in the face of all the hard work I’ve put in for it. So here I present a soundbite as wisdom and a warning for all my fellow gamers: “If you pursue gaming as a career, then there is no need to have a care about other’s words to you no matter how invested you are. Can those outside understand you? But if gaming is just a game for you, then remember to indulge in moderation; happiness forever exists only in the realm of moderation.”

I remember, in the internet cafe across the street from school, back we were still fighting in Warcraft 3 with ball-mice as our equipment, at the cost of sleep and food, I could always re-create the experiences of pro players such as Shomaru, Magicyang, and briefly feel at the top of the world. Each and every battle, regardless of the outcome, left me pumping with adrenaline, and I was obsessed. Yet, ten years later, my Warcraft 3 is still so noob, and against Magicyang I’m still winless. Still, recalling the memories, those were beautiful times.

Every basketball fan has fantasized what it’d be like to be Michael Jordan, every football (soccer) fan has dreamed of being Ronaldo. And even though we may not be able to achieve that much, still no one can take the beauty of those dreams away. So, even though today we cannot return to the wild days of our youth, we’ve still once had dreams and ambitions, and those won’t fade so easily with time.

For those that like basketball, they have the NBA, the FIBA World Championships; for those that like football (soccer), they have the European Championships, the five big European leagues, the World Cup; then, for those that like esports, is the only thing we have the dubious tag of “video game addicts”?

We must thank those sponsors that support us. Even more so, we must thank those fans that have been following G-League since 2007. Over these years, people have come and gone, time rushes on, yet you fans remain. We remember your praises, your criticisms, and all your warm applause.

From Starcraft, Counterstrike, to today’s Warcraft 3, Starcraft 2, League of Legennds, and Dota2 — from a tiny studio to a finals stage in the center of Shanghai’s Century Plaza, Oriental Pearl tower, all the way to this year’s Mercedes-Benz Center. Every year, every iteration of competition has its own stories and unforgettable moments. How will the brilliance manifest itself this time?

In Warcraft, there are three Orc Kings: Grubby, Lyn, Fly. Each of them has their followers, debating amongst each other who truly is the king of kings. Nowadays, Grubby has switched, and this last finals may be the last time we ever see a battle of Orc Kings. As I recall it, Lyn is a graceful assassin, under a handsome exterior lies a determined soul and heart. In a past G-League match against Ted, with only two heroes left after losing his base, his mesmerizing micro steadfastly brought him back from the brink, leaving us memories that are unforgettable to this day. And Fly gives us a much more direct, aggressive impression, from his early inspired play to his peak performances of straight back and forth fighting. A bit shy in person, he attracts quieter fans. March 9, these two kings of orcs face one another once again, and we look forward to finding out the king of orcs!

In Starcraft, it’s always been dominated by Korean players. In today’s age of Starcraft 2, the best success for Chinese players so far has been second place at WCG — belonging to Xigua. Being able to snatch a second place from the grasps of the Korean players can be considered a great achievement, yet fans will always hope for even better. For Starcraft fans, that thing that they’ve always hoped for yet never dared to truly hope for is for a Chinese player to be world champion. Jim says, Xigua’s playstyle is too easily countered. Well, for 17 year old kids, they may not quite understand tact in their words, yet within those words is confidence gained from so much dedicated practice. March 9, the hope of Protoss challenges our Zerg King, and we hope for a world-class battle!

The explosive popularity of League of Legends is undoubtable. In LoL teams, the explosiveness of team WE is even more obvious. Ever since they appeared, their performances in taking most every domestic competition, ending in their taking a world title in the end of 2012, WE have firmly established themselves. “Beat WE? S2 might’ve been a bit harder, but in S3 it’s more up in the air”, iG’s PDD replied in an interview. To become the alpha, one must defeat the alpha, such is the world of LoL. March 9, iG brings the challenge to WE, and we anticipate a great fight!

Dota2, as the official successor to DotA, has long since been China’s strongest esport. In 2012’s TI2, just as NaVi looked set to sweep all Chinese teams out and take the title, iG stood up. In the music hall in Seattle, in the waves of cheering for NaVi, all of China, from spectators, commentators, to fellow players yelled their voices hoarse in support, just to let the exhausted iG know that they were not alone. And iG finally proved themselves with a world title, in the process defending the honor of Chinese Dota. Afterwards, LGD.int was formed with players from five different nations, and gathered in China to train. Today, their ability pushes them close to the NaVi of TI2. March 9, iG faces the challenge of LGD.int, what promises to be a battle for the ages!

This time, there aren’t only matches. G-League has also, for the first time, invited supporting guests, and they’re ones that most everyone will know — singers Zhang Zhenyue and MC Hotdog. I personally like Zhang Zhenyue’s “Missing you is a sickness” and MC Hotdog’s “Mr Almost”. Nine to five everyday, the days just sort of pass by like that. Yet, a life without passion is unbearable. Sometimes a week goes by with over 60 hours of live broadcasts, and so when my work has me drained, I hope for some passion and change. Every G-League finals becomes just that type of passion and change, giving me an outlet. This time, we’ve mixed esports, rock and roll, rap, for what is certain to be a passion-filled party!

March 9, 2013 will only appear once on our calendars. On that day, in Shanghai’s Expo District, at the Mercedes-Benz Center, there’ll be a grand finals for a certain G-League. In your heart does there still burn the fire of esports, or perhaps are you still youthful?

Who will ascend to the heavens of victory; how many more people will join us in our love of esports? We give it our all, if only so you can enjoy yourselves fully.

March 9, G-League, the Battle of Mercedes-Benz Center, we invite you to witness it together!

 

G-League Finals to feature MC HotDog

As reported earlier, the upcoming G-League Finals at Shanghai’s Mercedes-Benz Arena will feature various celebrity appearances. Previously confirmed was big-name rockstar Zhang Zhenyue. And now, a friend of his in rapper MC HotDog, who toured alongside him in the past, has been confirmed to be a headliner at the G-League Finals on March 9.

Rapper MC HotDog and rockstar Zhang Zhenyue

According to the Gamefy announcement, it seems that they will not only be making ‘VIP’ appearances, but will also be performing, and even taking on hosting duties for the event. This is pretty big for esports and further illustrates the draw of competitive gaming in the mainstream in Asia, as these two names are quite famous. Let us all look forward to what the G-League Finals will ultimately bring us!

Also, in case anyone was interested in attending the event live in Shanghai, tickets go on pre-sale on Jan 24, and open sale one week after that on Jan 31.

Follow Dotaland on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Dotaland, learn more about Dotaland at the About page.

G-League interview with iG.ChuaN: “We cannot allow LGD.int to win”

Original: http://gleague.gamefy.cn/view_28204.html

Gamefy: Congrats to iG for their 3-0 win over LGD.cn to make it to the G-League 2012 Season Finals. Say hello to our viewers?

ChuaN: Hi everyone, I am iG ChuaN, Wong Hock Chuan.

Gamefy: So far your team has been undefeated in this G-League, how are you able to achieve this?

ChuaN: Nothing special really, we just play our own positions well, and execute to the best possible.

Gamefy: Your teamfights are perfect, can you tell us who is usually supposed to initiate for you?

ChuaN: Usually it’s whomever feels there is an opening, and they just go!

Gamefy: Your Rubick earlier was spectacular, stealing Beastmaster’s Roar on multiple occasions and helping to lock down LGD’s main damage sources, any comments?

ChuaN: Mostly it’s about finding the right timing, and apart from that I think their Beastmaster’s skill progression had some problems today.

Gamefy: In the finals you will meet LGD.int, will you defeat them to defend your G-League title?

ChuaN: We will do our best. We cannot leave the title to a bunch of foreigners, just one foreigner in me is enough.

Gamefy: After the semi-finals there’s a period of time until the finals, what are your plans?

ChuaN: We’ll probably first break to celebrate the Lunar New Year, and then come back to make some preparations for the finals.

Gamefy: Though the Dota2 competition has come to a temporary halt, other G-League events such as the LoL and SC2 tournaments are still on-going, and iG has players in those as well. Anything you want to say to them?

ChuaN: Of course I hope that iG.LoL can defeat WE and take that championship, and in SC2 hopefully Xigua can once again take the title.

Gamefy: Alright, thank you for the interview.

 

 

G-League interview with iG.Faith: “defeating LGD to go on to the finals shouldn’t be a problem”

Original: http://gleague.gamefy.cn/view_28158.html

Gamefy: Congrats on your 2-0 lead over LGD.cn, say hello to our viewers?

Faith: Hi everyone, I am iG’s Faith.

Gamefy: Let’s start by talking about the games today, in the second game what caused your team to pick Juggernaut?

Faith: Because Juggernaut is pretty good in a trilane, plus he’s got a healing ward, which comes in useful against Keeper of the Light when we need to push.

Gamefy: Halfway through game two, things weren’t actually going so well for your team, what kind of changes did you make to turn things around?

Faith: Early on we had a tiny advantage from laning, so we wanted to force a fight. But then after a few fights we found out we couldn’t actually out-fight them, so we went decided to drag things out into late-game.

Gamefy: Before G-League began, iG had been busy with many events and promotions. How did you all so quickly get back into competition form and condition?

Faith: Because we’ve all come so far together, so our mutual understandings and teamwork all persist.

Gamefy: Yesterday Misery also mentioned that he had high hopes for you guys, do you feel that you can successfully defeat LGD.cn to advance to the finals?

Faith: I think there shouldn’t be too much of a problem.

Gamefy: Who do you think is stronger betwen LGD.int and LGD.cn?

Faith: I think LGD.cn is a bit stronger. Their play is more consistent, while LGD.int is still newer and more unknown so must be faced more cautiously.

Gamefy: Okay, thank you for the interview.

 

 

Top 10 Stories in 2012 Chinese Dota

Original: http://dota.sgamer.com/201301/news-detail-160432.html

Dotaland note: Written by Felix菜刀刃, friend of Dotaland, and translated at his personal request — this is a look back on the last year of Dota in China, where so many things have changed, grown, and in some cases, disappeared… Looks back on teams, controversies, achievements, and a hint at Perfect World having their own ‘International’? This and more, read on below!

10 — Disbandment

Nirvana, sponsored by Loveen, winners of prestigious titles such as G-League in 2010, WDC, WCG China, once upon a time stood amongst the three giants of Chinese Dota, alongside EHOME and LGD. WDC, the World Dota Championships, catalyzed in part by Loveen, was a top three competition in Dota. Going into 2011, Nirvana and the WDC both entered a turning point, where Loveen, citing a new marriage faded out of the scene. In the beginning of 2012, Nirvana officially announced their end, with WDC being their swansong.

PanDa, sponsored by a Hang Yu (this was PanDa’s second iteration), with Efeng as manager, established in 2012. Players under their tag included Hao, Mu, Yaobai, PanPan, 830God, and Sansheng. Their results were not bad, but then the boss disappeared, Efeng quit, three core players transferred to TongFu, and that was that — the team disbanded.

WE’s Dota team was established in 2011. At one point or another, they had new at the time, but now-familiar names such as Sylar and Veronica. After TI2 ended, their Dota players left one after another.

CLC’s Dota team, after a short existence including players like 357, ultimately disbanded after 357 returned to EHOME. Afterwards, the remnants of CLC merged with LOH to form Noah’s Ark. Following investors pulling out from NA in 2012, the team ceased to exist.

DT Club, once 3rd/4th placed finishers at ACE League, suffered an unexplained resignation from their manager, a loss of financial backing from their boss, their players floated off to other teams.

9 — Rebirth

“A thousand sails drift past the sunken ship, a thousand trees flourish upon the dying stump” — in 2012, though quite a few teams left us, new teams appeared to fill their spots and bring with them a new wind of hope. The most inspired of these is none other than LGD.int, where we must give credit to LGD.RuRu’s eagle-eyed wisdom for her skill in building another super-team in the hyper competitive Dota scene. And LGD.int’s performances so far have shown us all that Western players do not necessarily lack talent, they only need an environment to focus and train better.

Post-TI2, the biggest dark horse newcomer should be ViCi Gaming. Mostly comprised of new players, they first took the GosuCup by storm, only losing to Zenith and ending up third place. And then it was in the G-League group B, where they escaped death by eliminating MUFC, pushed LGD.cn to the limit, ending the year in a satisfactory manner.

Apart from that, there’s still the new as-yet-unnamed team led by ZSMJ and Ch, as well as a potential new team with LaNm. And then, there are rumors saying that former DT Club players have re-convened to fight anew in this new year.

8 — Perfection

After a seemingly neverending wait, Perfect World finally was confirmed as Dota2’s official Chinese partner. Despite many fans and industry people alike eagerly and impatiently awaiting this news, Perfect World played this to their own leisurely pace, perhaps with confidence in a long-term approach. While they prepared a new Dota2 official splash page and beta signups, Perfect World has also been ramping up recruitment in preparation. There are reports suggesting that Perfect World also has plans to hold independent large-scale events a-la Valve’s International, and perhaps this act could serve to disrupt the current balance between third-party events. Either way, no matter what comes from Perfect World, it will greatly influence the Dota2 scene as we know it.

7 — Reputation

For WCG, its name recognition is matched only by its controversy. As one of the key forces in early Chinese esports development, WCG holds an almost mythical reputation amongst Chinese fans. Yet, recent developments in gaming have almost left WCG behind, with WCG attempting a shift towards mobile games. And plus, as a modern-day esports giant, the new generation of Chinese gamers have the ability to look beyond what the Koreans can provide. Increasingly refined experiences and production from domestic competitions, plus huge moves from American gaming companies have left the Samsung-led WCG by the wayside.

This year’s World Cyber Games was held in Kunshan, China, and its production fully catered to the host nation’s tastes. Dota2 became a main competition, with its predecessor Dota included as an exhibition event. In Warcraft3, Ted’s Undead had a classic come from behind victory, and the Sky-Moon rivalry played out another emotional chapter; the whole of it meaning that viewers got more than enough. But still, the worries were apparent underneath the surface at WCG, and its future remains unknown.

6 — Surprises

G-1 League’s 4th Season quietly snuck up on us, and it brought with it China’s first Dota2 competition, a first for Chinese and English simultaneous broadcasting, the first Chinese competition with an in-game Steam ticket. Out of many firsts, what it served to do most was to set an example and kick off the future of Chinese — and even Asian — competitive Dota2. Even so, of course, there were many places for improvement; wonder what surprises the next iteration of G-1 League will have for fans?

5 — Breakout

As China’s longest standing and most well-known esports media organization, Gamefy’s 2012 wasn’t a typical one. In fact, it could be said that their summary for the year is a long list of achievements. The first season of G-League in 2012 managed to put on an exuberant celebration of a Grand Finals, despite being trapped between a spectacular ACE League debut, and a certain million-dollar tournament in Seattle. And speaking of TI2, Gamefy also successfully acquired broadcasting rights to the competition. Yet, not long after these successes, Gamefy commentator SnowKiss resigned controversially, leaving in her place a long series of accusations leveled at Gamefy and former coworkers there. Although Gamefy successfully cooled the situation down, the storm clouds from this incident remain difficult to disperse. Afterwards, Gamefy’s Daily Report show negatively reviewed WCG, and Chinese WCG media partner NeoTV responded, causing another wave of arguments and controversy in the public eye.

So it was in this atmosphere that the new season of G-League began at the end of 2012. Unprecedented production quality along with unpredictable and exciting matches seemed to sweep away the haze of past disputes, finally helping Gamefy to break out from a series of negative events. In 2013, a reformed SiTV (parent company of Gamefy) thus must continue their role as one of Chinese esports forces.

4 — Professionalism

The ACE League, as a collaboration between the ACE Esports League and GTV Channel, provided Dota competition in its debut event. In the roadmap of Chinese esports development, the ACE League holds a milestone-like status. In terms of production and packaging, it’s erected a new standard for other competitions. But an awkward reality cannot be ignored, that is that half of the original participating teams have by now disbanded, and a second season of the league never materialized in 2012. In what way will ACE re-appear in 2013, all is still unknown to us now.

3 — EHOME

EHOME is (or was?) China’s oldest esports name. In many different events and games, especially Dota, they at one time or another represented the top China — or even the world — had to offer. In 2011, BurNing and KingJ left the team, and DK and iG arose, and EHOME’s kingly aura faded as it never had before. In 2012, EHOME made high-profile roster changes: DC as a coach, ZSMJ et al recruited to compete, yet no goals were achieved. Afterwards, old EHOME veterans 357, Dai, and LanM were recruited back into the fold, and because of rule-breaking in these transfers EHOME ultimately were excluded from the new ACE Esports Alliance — EHOME became the ‘Horde’ to ACE’s ‘Alliance’. After TI2, 357 and Dai joined DK, team lead 71 left, and EHOME once again fell apart. Rumors say that EHOME’s been bought by iG owner Principal Wang, but no one knows if we’ll see EHOME make another return.

2 — Royalty

As we review the Dota scene of 2012, we come to find that unfortunately, ‘mess’ is still a word closely associated with everything, to the extent that the China Esports Magazine of 2011 below can be used again for 2012 with little changes. Paid smurfing to boost Dota 11 platform account ladder rankings, Dota2 keys and profiteering, the “100% focused” statements, Taobao’s antics… from one side to another, insults, maneuvering, and politics covered everything from fairness to profits and everything in between. The end result of all this being, for better or worse, we saw many more sides of players, commentators, organizers, tournaments, and clubs than we would have otherwise ever known about. Interestingly, all of this seemed to die down quite a bit after TI2. Perhaps it was because everyone saw first hand that there’s a quality in professionalism, and there’s a power behind a million dollars.

1 — Crusade

Because of Valve’s million-dollar injection into The International 2, the competition was seen as a ‘crusade’ of sorts by players. The first International in Cologne was not particularly important to Chinese teams, with seemingly only EHOME taking even a week of time to prepare for it. But then, EHOME’s $250000 prize for second place had everyone waking up. CCM, who finished outside the top four last time had turned into this year’s iG. Equipped with the best training environment Beijing could provide, and having just taken a G-League championship, with a lead in the on-going ACE League, it could be said that they had all the forces of nature alongside them. In the end, they didn’t disappoint, and successfully planted the Chinese flag on the greatest stage of Dota2.

This TI2 also served to completely rewrite the order of the worldwide Dota scene. China’s iG began their dynasty, Chinese competitions transitioned to Dota2, and the former big three Dota competitions faded away, all while Dota2’s gravity shifted ever so much towards the East. All indications point towards the fact that with TI2 and iG’s title, a new age has begun.

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G-League semi-finals interview with LGD.DD and LGD manager Nicholas

Original: http://gleague.gamefy.cn/view_28064.html

In last night’s G-League 2012 Season 2 Dota2 elimination match, LGD.cn managed to snatch a last-gasp victory against new and improving VG, and thus stride into the semi-finals. Afterwards, we got an interview with LGD player DD/Sc and LGD team lead Nicholas to hear what they had to say about this match, and any hopes for the semi-finals.

Gamefy: First, congrats to LGD for winning over VG and making it to the final four, how do you feel?

LGD.DD: I’m feeling decent, pretty happy.

Gamefy: Where do you think you lost in game two?

LGD.DD: We lost early game in the 3v3 lane. We did not deal with it very well, and then we made a bunch of mistakes, resulting in all three lanes growing very poorly. That tripped us up and we never recovered, so we lost.

Gamefy: In the beginning of the third game, you were also slightly behind. What kind of adjustments did you guys make to pull the game back, and ultimately achieve the win?

LGD.DD: Because VG is a new team, so we were waiting all along for them to make mistakes, since they cannot possibly be as experienced and savvy as teams like DK, iG, and shut their opponents out completely. They overextended in that assault on the top lane high ground, which let us counter-wipe them there. At that point, the game’s momentum had begun swinging back in our favor, and by the time we had two Sheepsticks on our team, the game was favoring us 60-40 at that point. In the end, their Lifestealer couldn’t buy back, and it was then that were sealed the win.

Gamefy: After having fought against VG, what thoughts do you have on this team?

LGD.DD: This team previously trained with us in Hangzhou, and we often went to each other’s team house to play. They’ve got excellent training environment and benefits, so if they can focus and continue improving, they will absolutely produce results.

Gamefy: Your opponents in the next match are iG, whom can be said to have cruised through their group like a hungry person eats soup. Facing a team in such great form as them, have you found any weaknesses with which to attack them?

LGD.DD: Let’s just hope they don’t drink us up like they drink soup, and we at least have some back and forth action.

Gamefy: Now that both LGD squads have made it into the semi-finals here, as team lead what are your feelings?

LGD.Nicholas: Very pleased. After all, G-League is one of the major competitions for us here in China. Our LGD.cn squad has been together for relatively longer, and have always had pretty good results, so their progress at this tournament was within my expectations, even if the path they’ve taken so far hasn’t been the smoothest. As for the LGD.int squad, their advancement from their group made me very happy. Because they joined LGD around the same time I was brought on, their achievements in just two months of time has left me really excited, and thanks goes to our boss for making such an epic decision in forming LGD.int.

Gamefy: Your two squads are facing iG and TongFu respectively, which of them do you think has the better chances of making it to the finals?

LGD.Nicholas: Shouldn’t say which is more likely, although LGD.int versus TongFu has slightly higher chances, while LGD.cn facing in-form iG will definitely have a tough fight. Of course, my hope is that both squads make it to the finals, but I feel that playing iG will be very hard.

Gamefy: If both squads make it to the finals, will there be any bonuses from the club?

LGD.Nicholas: Haha, after this interview I should call Ruru, and ask her what might come. Firstly the boss will certainly be delighted, and as for any bonus, it’ll have to wait ’till we have a team meeting.

Gamefy: There should be a gap between the semi-finals and finals due to Chinese New Year, how do you plan to handle that if one or both squads make it to the finals?

LGD.Nicholas: For LGD.int, they should be participating in some foreign online competitions, because in Europe and North America there are plenty of these kinds of competitions. Although, they’ll be in five different countries, and online conditions might be unstable, so they’ll probably mostly play some pubs. As for LGD.cn, because most of them are from Hunan, training should still be pretty convenient.