Two days remaining. Two days till DreamHack Winter hits our screens and makes us sit and watch jaw-dropping games. Two days till the beginning of winter that is coming to blow us away with a chilling wind of eSports marvel.
I bet you are excited. I know I am for so, so many reasons. DreamHack has always been the crown of gold in the European eSports scene and not the one that melts your face to agonizing death. Sixty-four StarCraft 2 knights are gathering in Sweden for the big joust, aiming to jab the €21,700 first place prize with the tip of their spear (or rather keyboard and mouse).
But there is another recurring theme that floats along with every DreamHack event. Jönköping has become a fantasy land of dreams that beckons and entraps the players in its soothing embrace. And needless to say, each dreamer comes to Sweden with different backgrounds of their own, carrying unique gifts of Morpheus in their possession.
Lullabies
I begin my preview as many great dreams do – with an interlude song to make you dowse into a great sleep. Among the DreamHack attendees there are some classic lullabies, such that have and still bring you pleasant emotions but are now just a faint memory from your eSports childhood. These lullabies seldom become real dreams anymore but when present they always enhance the experience by a great lot.
Photo by: DreamHack
TLO is a player who many people still remember and cherish for his golden days back in 2010. Once regarded as the most ingenious player in the west, Dario has been on the decline for some time now. His talent continues to shines bright but for a reason or two he hasn’t floated to the top for a long, long time. His melody is ever changing and is now back to those creepy zerg tones which I feel he hasn’t practiced enough. In addition, being in a group with HerO, who is among my personal top eight for DH Winter, and Satiini, who has beaten zergs of the caliber of Dimaga and Nerchio, does not aid his cause.
ToD and Grubby are songs that occupy the memories of WarCraft 3 fans and have acquired close to mythical status. Grubby is placed in a group with three zerg which is both good and bad for him. His overall record is not astonishing but he has just one match-up to practice for the Ro64 and he did beat Nerchio at the ESWC World Cup 2011 so his picture ain’t that horrific. SEn will be a nightmare match but I am liking his odds against DeathAngel and DeviL. ToD also has some tough PvZs to play and I am actually quite concerned for him. He would most definitely fall to Sheth and his match versus Moman is shady at best. Moman has been on a long vZ losing streak but his skill level is very close to his French compatriot so anything can happen.
Entangling lucidity
Ever had a dream when you actually realize it’s a dream and take control of your actions to stir the events to your liking? It’s an unforgettable experience because how often do you get to do, no, control the impossible? Many players have been lucid dreamers in their past, in fact – some just woke up of such a dream.
HayPro is the classic lucidity catcher as his sojourn in the eSports dream has been a long one but not until MLG Providence did he manage to pinch himself in his sleep and start going the way he wished. HayPro has long been criticized for showing mediocre results, never actually swaying towards a major accomplishment. That changed last weekend as HayPro went through SeleCT, Kiwikaki, NesTea and made Mvp break a bucket of sweat. If that’s not an illustration of commanding your own fairy tale I don’t know what else is.
Photo source: TL.net
Thorzain shares a similar story although he is still to wake up from his lucid dream. After a relatively unsuccessful year 2010, the Swede shut his eyes and began his kip around the time of the TL Opens but soon plunged into the deep slumber of TSL 3. Thorzain was not expected to win much and the gold medal was, literally, a dream for him yet there he stood crushing faces against the odds to conclude his adventure with a happy ending. He followed this up with bronze at EU Battle.net Invitational, top four at IPL 2 and silver at DreamHack Valencia, playing an astonishing match against champion DongRaeGu. My own advise – watch out for Thorzain and especially his upcoming group stage game against SeleCT!
There is a third person I find fitting this category and that is Quantic’s Sase and that’s not at all only because a perfect Swedish trio is formed this way. Sase has come a long path to reach the point where he currently stands with the trampoline being his “Road to Korea” victory over Naniwa. Funny how a tournament title exactly describes your goals in life, isn’t it? Sase have been on the quiet ascend since, ever staying out of the spotlights but doing more than OK, finishing second at CPL Invitational, making an amazing run through Orlando but most importantly – he became a Code A regular. Sase has been living his dream in Korea for quite a while now and it’s time to see if him canceling MLG Providence for DreamHack was the right decision.
The recurring dreamers
Not every one of you has probably experienced a recurring dream, one that presents to you in increments every night, building up towards its finish step by step and picking up where it left off. Here is the cross-point where my dream/eSports comparison drifts away for a moment. Because, you see, in eSports seeing certain players returning time and time again to write a different chapter in their story is a common sight. In fact, it kind of a whole single aspect of the scene and each time the old faces are met with a cheering sound, kindling the anxious expectation of how their next adventure would end.
Photo by: Jareed
White-Ra is the main hero in his own story of unending progaming conquest. White-Ra tournament life nowadays is much like that of SlayerS_Boxer: he might not be on par with the younger generation of hard-practicing individuals but every month he appears at a major venue to show that papa toss still holds his mojo. WhiteRa is placed in a relatively easy group and if he succeeds in fighting off any possible nightmares (check out the next chapter in the preview) and shakes out his hanging NASL 2 misfortunes, he is up for a great tournament.
Following DRG's performance is like watching the early seasons of House M.D. - you know it's gonna be good but you are always eager to find out how much exactly.
Photo by: ESPORTSEYE.net
Photo by: ESPORTSEYE.net
DongRaeGu returns as reigning Valencia champion and has become one of the regular "invaders" on the foreign scene. The renowned ZvT specialists has to his account two MLG top threes, AOL Team Invitational Silver, the aforementioned Valencia Invitational first place and another gold at IEM New York. If DRG has to think of a short slogan that adequately describes his recent tournament career it should be "I'm not done yet." He does not falter and he does not disappoint, ever playing up to audience's expectations. Following DRG's performance is like watching the early seasons of House M.D. - you know it's gonna be good but you are always eager to find out how much exactly.
When talking about DreamHack, one name always pops out in my head - mouzMana. The Polish protoss came to big fame exactly one year ago at the previous edition of DreamHack Winter. He then took a short break, falling once again out of my sight until August this year when he picked up his game to crash onto the high podiums of eSports. Every month Mana would appear at a tournament and walk out with a top three finish, including silver at Assembly Summer, third place at IPL 2 and second place at ESWC 2011. Something tells me that Mana is bound to have another moment of greatness at DreamHack Winter 2011; after all, these glamorous steps surely lead somewhere with a hot pie of money is waiting to be swept.
Living nightmares
Sudden awakening, lungs gasping for breath, sweaty palms, emotional discomfort. Nightmares are part of real lives as much as eSport tournaments. When you stare at DreamHack's player pool you can almost vividly picture how all some players want is to plunge into the dream and awaken champions. Only, there is always something (or rather someone) to throw them off guard and drive them insane.
Group P holds a couple that perfectly exemplifies my thoughts asGenius is sharing a group with Elfi. And the whole business here revolves around the fact that Genius' name bears a certain fame. A fame that has historical roots but which are withering quickly as days go by. Genius was once a BlizzCon champion and regular Code S-er, even making it to Top 8 in August (being also the only protoss player). He has now fallen to Code A and is trying to win back his good name but it ain't going to be easy. Now DreamHack presents him with an opportunity for him to make a good show but has also paired him with Elfi who, formally speaking, is a f***ing beast. If Genius had though anything along the lines of an "easy DreamHack group" and "even easier top sixteen" he is in for a treat. His nightmare is very real and comes from neighboring Finland.
Photo by: Fragster.de
Not every nightmare is so apparent, however. Some are sly, quiet and mischievous and there is a person that encompasses it all. That is Phoenix, formerly of team Werra and now being a team-mate of ReaL at Type II. Phoenix comes as the possible disturber of peace in Group D, reading to shatter the dream of two of Europe's finest - WhiteRa and Cloud. Funnily enough, his status still spells "Who the hell?" but I would love to see it changed to "How the hell?" before DreamHack is over. Just for the fun of it.
And finally we arrive at the zerg king of nightmares. Everybody who is in their own mind should be afraid of SEn as the Taiwanese has shown nothing less than a meticulous decapitation of his opponents. His performance at BlizzCon Invitational was breath-taking as was it at NASL 1. But what defines him most as an immortal nightmare is the hilarious events at Assembly Summer earlier this year where Stephano and BratOK actually fought who would take second in their group only to not play SEn in the Ro16. Come November 24th, SEn will be the dark end of Grubby's lullaby, mark my words.
Insurmountably epic
The top eight of every tournament is a strange concept: it is as blurry as it is obvious and always ends up only half true. My long experience as an editor has taught me not to try to predict anything anymore partly because I suck at it and partly because the progaming currents are tricky and deceiving.
The heavy hitters at DreamHack are easy to spot - a single look at the top spot in each group is sufficient to sketch them out.
Idra and HuK are coming from a what should be a disappointing MLG Providence where they won just a single victory. To their delight, however, they have both scored easy groups and the only match that bears a bit of uncertainty is Idra vs Kas. Everything else should be nothing short of a walkover.
Stephano shines out as the golden boy of eSports as just in the last three months he has earned more than €70,000. If he doesn't make it to top
Photo by: Alexandra Nagy/FRAGBITE.se
Naniwa and Hero were the protosses that stole audience's admirations last weekend. Naniwa played such an amazing tournament that Tasteless actually commented on his micro being one of the best in the world. And Hero is the person I would pick to go deepest in the tournament among all his compatriots and for good reasons. Among his recent highlights are the victories against Ret and Puma at Providence and his perfect 7-0 record at NASL. Add to it his dramatic run towards the 6th place at Raleigh and you get why HerO is to be taken with high dose of consideration. His group of TLO, Seiplo and Satiini should be a piece of cake and I would be surprised beyond all limits if he drops even a single game.
SeleCT and Puma present the pride of Korea-born terran who come to Sweden to make a proud stand for their race. Since the comical "one terran only" scenario in Providence these two are almost obliged to kick some serious ass because as the SC2 gods are my witnesses there is none more fit to the task.
When you talk epic you cannot miss mentioning Ret as his playstyle always invokes associations of something vast, and grand and smothering with its size. It might be his "quick seven hatch/150 drones" build or his long and colorful list of achievements. Pick whatever you like.
In less than four days, the motleyest dream will become reality and the sleeper will awaken €21,700 richer. Winter is coming and for a first time in many years I can barely wait.
