What Will Happen to Pro Starcraft Once Starcraft 2 Hits?
Could top-ranked SC players pull it off in SC2?
Starcraft 2 is rapidly making its way to our shelves, but the original Starcraft: Brood War is still alive and kicking in South Korea. Tomorrow marks the final match of Averatac-Intel Season 3 Classic Tournament, but could this be the last big name SC tourney?
If you play Starcraft competitively at all then you’ve probably at least heard of GOMtv’s streams or the high ranking Korean players (Jaedong, Flash, Bisu being consistently popular this year). Pro SC is still big business in Korea, and Blizzard recently increased the winning pot by another $50,000 dollars.
Tomorrow’s game features Flash vs Berserker, but one can’t help but wonder where the league players will go once Starcraft 2 comes onto the market.
The push from Blizzard to transition to SC2 is tremendous, as the developer has moved to officially sponsor tournaments. How easy could it be for players who have been training on one game for 8 hours a day for years to transition to the sequel, which will play significantly differently?
The chances of the entire SC league disappearing once Starcraft 2 is out are low, but it would be almost impossible for pros to be able to master and league play both titles.
Will the original Starcraft’s popularity dwindle come 2? Undoubtedly, but the question is what will happen to the professional players who have put their lives into the game.
There is not much the professional Starcraft scene can do in this situation: either evolve, drown, or give SC2 the finger.
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For some reason, I hope that the original starcraft will continue to flourish. I just like the idea of a timeless game that so many people have put so much time and analysis into. It’s already stood the test of time, being outrageously popular 12 years from it’s release. I’m kinda hoping people will see starcraft 2 as a very different game to the original, with the original’s particular traits rendering it still very playable.