OK, went full boomer and tagged in so many people I'm going to start part 2 of my decade in esports in a separate thread. This will be the stuff really want to know: Starcraft years and onward. It was basically make or break for me and it very nearly was the latter.
So, for the sake of web traffic Cadred had pivoted to including Starcraft 2. As this tweet from 2010 should show, just for a bit of trivia, I was one of the first English speaking reviews of the game. I stayed awake for 36 hours to achieve that.
But I never really inserted myself into the community at all. A lot of esports guys did. Starcraft was where you had to be to be relevant but I figured if I just jumped in and started pretending I'd get called out. Instead I watched from the sidelines and went to the events.
By 2013 I'd noticed a worrying trend; crowdfunding was in its infancy and everyone in Starcraft seemed to be taking advantage of it. ROOT wanted their teammhouse funded by the community, multiple documentaries were being funded, but the promises and goals were all vague.
Then came the Evil Geniuses Pizza.gg campaign from Papa John's. It was deemed to be the biggest campaign of its nature in esports. Basically if people ordered pizzas with a special code EG and associates would release special content. The SC2 community went crazy.
Within a day they'd achieved half the target, by the next they were so close to the supposedly impossible goal that they had to set new ones. Each tier unlocked promised new content, showmatches, new e-celebs getting involved. This was May 2013-ish.
Me being me I'd already written an article called "Better sponsors make better esports," which said Papa Johns was a shitty company for telling its employers if they voted for Obama they'd most likely have to be fired as the company wouldn't pay for the mandatory healthcare.
This article came in the middle of pizza.gg so Evil Geniuses were fucking livid. I was blacklisted by them over this. I wasn't allowed access to anyone in the organisation in any game. Hell, the Twitter account STILL has me blocked from this time.
But what I noticed as the months went by was that only a handful of the promises were being delivered upon and all the luminaries in the SC2 scene seemed complicit in letting it slide. For me it felt like the SC2 fans were being treated as a personal piggy bank so I called it out
Now, at this point in time I have between 2000-3000 followers on Twitter. What I didn't realise is the reach of the people I'd be criticizing and how much negative attention it would garner me. This is how I met the great Totalbiscuit. We didn't always get along.
EG, TB, a lot of top Starcraft pros and orgs... They all said I was essentially concern trolling for clicks, that the campaign was really great for esports, that the promises would definitely get delivered upon and I was pandering to the community to make a name for myself.
I got so much flak I actually had to write an article before the article, which would be called "Land of Broken Promises," basically explaining my motivations. This was the first barb from back in May between Totalbiscuit and I.
Then there was this.
And then by the time I dropped the first part of the article, there was this.
This honestly felt bad because not only was I getting called out by a guy with millions of followers (no big deal honestly) but I was getting called out by someone I respected and believed would have been on my side of this particular issue.
Just as a side note, you'll notice I was polite to John when I learned that his child was ill, and the fact we could argue like this and go on to become friends should show you how different things are these days. We've completely lost the ability to set differences aside.
Anyway, this set up the *GREAT DEBATE* on the emerging podcast "Unfiltered" ran by my good friend Chris "Chanman" Chan. Incontrol, 2GD, Totalbiscuit. This episode was considered one of the best esports podcasts to date.
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I usually had a drink for Unfiltered. It helped. I still don't really feel 100% comfortable doing live streaming if I'm honest. Anyway, when I heard John was coming on to the show I was so intimidated by his intellect and didn't want to get wrecked I stayed stone cold sober.
We argued. I even insulted another guy who would go on to become a good friend, Geoff "iNcontroL" Robinson, saying he was EG to the core so everything he said was circumspect. I got lots of attention, good and bad, but this is when the SC2 community embraced me as one of them.
Sure, I'd already been invited to some stuff in 2012. TakeTV inviting me to the HomeStory Cup was a big thing. You can see the tour here. However, the SC2 community realised I was in their corner and held me up as someone they could trust.
Let's talk about @ChanmanV for a moment. I can't remember exactly when it happened but he was the guy who saw in me that I could be good on a podcast. We did a show together called "Climbing The Ladder" that was all about esports business. It was low key good. No one remembers.
@ChanmanV We produced it was another guy I miss immensely. @es_johnclark . What a fucking legend this guy is. Ahead of his time in a lot of ways, he was another down to Earth, blue collar guy working in an industry. 100% he helped me stay grounded in reality.
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark Of course the marquis podcast in Chanman's repertoire was a little one called Unfiltered. I'd been a guest on it a few times. My new found notoriety led to me being invited to work alongside one of the biggest streamers in the world, Steven "Destiny" Bonnell.
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark A lot has been made of the breakdown in our relationship in later years. I'm sure people want to poke at that. All I'll say is I considered him a good friend, someone who I respected immensely and it was genuinely upsetting to fall out with him even after the show had ended.
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark But equally, I knew he was a unique personality. He was "turn up and talk" and we didn't spend much time talking outside of the shows bar one or two exchanges as he was always streaming and I was always running my website. I still think we had good chemistry. Proud of the work.
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark Unfiltered was what gave me the confidence to go on and create my own content, my own podcasts, to be more of a "personality" and not just a journalist. Without it, again, I'm just not the same guy and I don't have anywhere near the same level of "success" in this space.
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark It's one of the great esports travesties that Chris never blew up as much as he deserved. He really worked hard on all his content and brought together so many awesome people. Happy to support him in anything he does. Check out his latest project Juked.gg
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark Right, anyway, after pizza.gg the next target was the Sons of Starcraft documentary. The director, a guy called Jeff Alejos, had promised to deliver a definitive look at the premier commentary duo, Tasteless and Artosis, but was massively behind schedule.
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark That became "Land of Broken Promises 2." By this point I'd already had the worst of it by going to war with TB and the whole of EG. What was two more huge names on the list. I was surprised. The community were receptive. They didn't blindly fan boy the big names. So rare now.
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark Documentaries were a fucking hustle and a half at this time. Did we ever get Star Nation? I remember interviewing the director via mobile phone while he was working a construction job.
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark Back to it... The agent of Tasteless and Artosis, Tobias Sherman, went on the attack a little bit. He was running the first esports talent agency, GEM, Global Esports Management, and was trying to look after his clients. Another day another argument on social media.
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark The next move he made left me confused. We talked on the phone and he said that even though it wasn't exactly great for their brands it wasn't their fault, they just knew the guy and promoted his work, they weren't active in the crowdfunding or the scheduling. All true btw.
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark He then said that given the quality of my work I should be much bigger and I should get an agent. He asked if I would join GEM. Now, I ain't stupid. My read on this was "bring me into the fold, get me shut up or on message and make the drama go away." It actually pan out that way
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark Tobias turned out to be a massive reason I would get the job at Eleague in 2016. We'll get to that later. Regardless I talked about it with friends and decided I'd join but with a long term view to writing an expose of any weirdness I uncovered. I was finally in the old boys club
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark Turns out there was nothing to write about. I instead had fluked my way into being represented alongside the biggest names in esports with an agent that actually gave a fuck about getting me work. It should have been a scam. It wasn't. What are the fucking odds?
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark More opportunities at this time. Robert Ohlen, the mad king of Sweden and co-founder of DreamHack, had decided I should be a host. For Starcraft. A game I'd played a handful of times when working on my 2010 review. Really.
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@ChanmanV @es_johnclark There was a lot going on at this time. Sometimes the stars align. I was on the upswing as an esports "personality." Border tensions with Ukraine meant that travelling to this event was considered a "risk."
theguardian.com/world/2014/sep…
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@ChanmanV @es_johnclark The solution was to host the event in their Swedish studio. We sent a skeleton crew of English speakers to Moscow to do on the ground reporting. Still blows my mind that @Smix was one of them. She is so fucking brave and amazing. I love her and her work so much.
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark @Smix I went to this event with a gameplan. I wanted to do something a bit different, kind of more in line with how James "2GD" Harding would do his hosting. I knew fuck all about the game technically so I had to focus on setting up my colleagues and just relying on humour.
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark @Smix Fortunately my first ever hosting job had some of the best in the business. The greatest TV host that never was @ApolloSC2 a man sorely missed on the airwaves today. We hit it off immediately. He was "Mr. Starcraft" and he helped work on talking points with me for that show.
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark @Smix @ApolloSC2 Not a lot of talent can put their ego aside to do that. They want to see if YOU are as good as THEM. They watch you sink or swim from the comfort of their desk chair. Apollo helped mould me into something credible for Starcraft broadcasts.
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark @Smix @ApolloSC2 Also on the desk was another go to for my work, the French king of banter and another great friend, @YoanMerlo and I would work together at many events and in two games. He can play off anyone on a desk. An amazing talent, underrated if anything.
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark @Smix @ApolloSC2 @YoanMerlo And of course the final ingredient in what was a perfect show @mOOnGLaDeau . This guy was so great, the perfect self-deprecating but insightful pro player contrasy to the raging ToD. One of the coolest and down to Earth guys in the scene. And now he looks like Aquaman.
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark @Smix @ApolloSC2 @YoanMerlo @mOOnGLaDeau Not your dad's Aquaman you understand, the new one.
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark @Smix @ApolloSC2 @YoanMerlo @mOOnGLaDeau That show was so well received and went so smooth despite the remote studio set up I was immediately asked if I'd do it again. I love Robert for that. He took me the final step I needed to go because he had the magic eye for talent and was one of the bravest guys in esports.
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark @Smix @ApolloSC2 @YoanMerlo @mOOnGLaDeau Keep in mind I was told in 2013 I couldn't be involved in CS:GO broadcasts because I wasn't "polished" enough by others in the same company. Robert veto'd their decision and put me in a bigger esport, one I'd never played. Think about that. Think about that as an endorsement.
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark @Smix @ApolloSC2 @YoanMerlo @mOOnGLaDeau Him being usurped from DreamHack remains one of the most disgusting betrayals I've seen in any line of business. Looking back I should not have worked for them afterwards. I just had to keep climbing the ladder, a rare time I put principles aside.
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark @Smix @ApolloSC2 @YoanMerlo @mOOnGLaDeau The article telling the story seems gone from The Daily Dot archives. Here's the Team Liquid thread which includes snippets for anyone interested.
tl.net/forum/games/47…
tl.net/forum/games/47…
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark @Smix @ApolloSC2 @YoanMerlo @mOOnGLaDeau In the space of less than 2 years I'd gone from being a CS:S journalist to a guy who had a podcast alongside a huge streamer, a host for the biggest LAN event organizer in the world and represented by the biggest esports talent agency. Dumb luck most of it.
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark @Smix @ApolloSC2 @YoanMerlo @mOOnGLaDeau Probably a good place to break again. Next chapter will be the League of Legends era; during this time I went to war with two huge tech companies, returned to CS:GO and went on to cement myself as, apparently, one of esports biggest villain's by 2015. Yup. Really fucked that one.
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark @Smix @ApolloSC2 @YoanMerlo @mOOnGLaDeau For now I'll leave you with this about @Totalbiscuit . Despite the arguments in 2013 we ended up burying the hatchet very quickly. We'd met in 2011 when my company hired him to do some casting. Here we are. I still struggle when I hear his voice.
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark @Smix @ApolloSC2 @YoanMerlo @mOOnGLaDeau @Totalbiscuit I remember after we did Unfiltered he hit me up on Skype and we squared it. He said "we're just two Northern lads. If we lived close to each other, we'd have a few pints, punch each other a few times and laugh about it all after." He was right. I could never dislike him.
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark @Smix @ApolloSC2 @YoanMerlo @mOOnGLaDeau @Totalbiscuit We've become an online "society" that really overvalues agreement. We go after people or cut them out of our lives when we find they deviate from us on a single thing. It's making our lives drab, dull, miserable, hostile.
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark @Smix @ApolloSC2 @YoanMerlo @mOOnGLaDeau @Totalbiscuit Almost everyone I talked about during this chapter was hostile to me, yet we all managed to make up, become friends and even help one another at times. Esports was a fucked up family but a family all the same. I hope we can get back to that way of being. See you next time.
@ChanmanV @es_johnclark @Smix @ApolloSC2 @YoanMerlo @mOOnGLaDeau @Totalbiscuit Oh one last thing. I did an AMA back during the SC2 days and found this post about my own struggles with depression. I know this can be a tough time of year for many so I'll link it here. Maybe it can help people if they need it.
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