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Exclusive Interviews and content only available at OP magazine

OP

magazine December 2012 Issue

weekend in the Cosomopolitan Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas!

Free Autographed Poster From the players themselves, autographed to you, the readers!

Review Check out our review of the new Oroboros mouse by Razer! See if it’s worth the $140 investment or not!

Tips From the Pros The pros give useful insight on

how to play SC2 professionally! $9.99 US/$14.99 CA

IPL SEASON 5 WEEKEND See what happened during the IPL5

Reviews • Interviews • Give Aways • Tips Game_Magazine_01.indd 1

12/6/12 5:09 PM

Fans and players gather around to cheer for their favorite player and to see who wins the grand prizeof $40,000 at the Cosmopolitan Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas

I P L 5 We e ke n d IPL5 takes place in Las Vegas, Nevada, at the Cosmopolitan from November 29 through December 2, 2012. In cooperation with GOMTV, IPL5 will also host the 2012 Global StarCraft II League Season 5 Code S semifinals and finals, as well as the 2012 GSL World Championship.

qualify for IPL 5 due to conflicting tournament schedules.[citation needed] To account for this, IPL announced that two extra rounds of midweek qualifiers would be held, from which a further 16 players were to earn places at the main event, bringing the otal number of qualified players for this event to 72

Several qualifiers for this event were held, beginning in May 2012, in order to determine the 39 players who would join the IPL 4 winner, aLive, at the main event. The qualifiers were held on weekends, which led to some players missing the opportunity to

New to this season, IPL held satellite tournaments that earned players spots at the live event in addition to regional qualifiers that earned players a spot at the live event as well as a free trip to the event.

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Virgins

The Sea of Approximately 5,000 fans of eSports have traveled to Las Vegas to watch four days of live pro gaming events at The Cosmpolitan Hotel and Casino. IGN Pro League 5 (IPL 5) marks the start-up league’s first foray into fighting games, having signed exclusive eSports deals with Capcom for Super Street Fighter IV Arcade Edition and Street Fighter X Tekken and Tecmo Koei for Dead or Alive 5. David Ting, general manager of eSports for IGN Entertainment and founder of the IPL, talks about the growth potential for eSports in 2013 and explains why Call of Duty: Black Ops II may not be in the competitive picture in this exclusive interview.

The IGN ProLeague, commonly abbreviated as the IPL, is a StarCraft 2 league held and organized by IGN Entertainment’s eSports division. A countdown finishing on the April 4th, 2011 was viewable prior to the league announcement on the official IGN home page. The first tournament was an invitational featuring players primarily from North America.

is great for casual fans because almost everyone knows that game.

It will bring in a lot of mainstream audiences. We’re producing it like a boxing event. We want to bring in the MMA world with this digital fighting tournament. We hope to see similar levels of interest with these fighting games as the MMA has seen with mainstream viewers.

If you look at the spectrum of all the different eSports, some are easy to understand, but there are also some games on the other end of the spectrum with a lot of strategy involved, where if you don’t play the game, you don’t understand what’s going on. Street Fighter

OP magazine 02 Game_Magazine_01.indd 3

12/6/12 5:09 PM

Fans and players gather around to cheer for their favorite player and to see who wins the grand prizeof $40,000 at the Cosmopolitan Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas

I P L 5 We e ke n d IPL5 takes place in Las Vegas, Nevada, at the Cosmopolitan from November 29 through December 2, 2012. In cooperation with GOMTV, IPL5 will also host the 2012 Global StarCraft II League Season 5 Code S semifinals and finals, as well as the 2012 GSL World Championship.

qualify for IPL 5 due to conflicting tournament schedules.[citation needed] To account for this, IPL announced that two extra rounds of midweek qualifiers would be held, from which a further 16 players were to earn places at the main event, bringing the otal number of qualified players for this event to 72

Several qualifiers for this event were held, beginning in May 2012, in order to determine the 39 players who would join the IPL 4 winner, aLive, at the main event. The qualifiers were held on weekends, which led to some players missing the opportunity to

New to this season, IPL held satellite tournaments that earned players spots at the live event in addition to regional qualifiers that earned players a spot at the live event as well as a free trip to the event.

01 OP magazine Game_Magazine_01.indd 4

12/6/12 5:09 PM

Virgins

The Sea of Approximately 5,000 fans of eSports have traveled to Las Vegas to watch four days of live pro gaming events at The Cosmpolitan Hotel and Casino. IGN Pro League 5 (IPL 5) marks the start-up league’s first foray into fighting games, having signed exclusive eSports deals with Capcom for Super Street Fighter IV Arcade Edition and Street Fighter X Tekken and Tecmo Koei for Dead or Alive 5. David Ting, general manager of eSports for IGN Entertainment and founder of the IPL, talks about the growth potential for eSports in 2013 and explains why Call of Duty: Black Ops II may not be in the competitive picture in this exclusive interview.

The IGN ProLeague, commonly abbreviated as the IPL, is a StarCraft 2 league held and organized by IGN Entertainment’s eSports division. A countdown finishing on the April 4th, 2011 was viewable prior to the league announcement on the official IGN home page. The first tournament was an invitational featuring players primarily from North America.

is great for casual fans because almost everyone knows that game.

It will bring in a lot of mainstream audiences. We’re producing it like a boxing event. We want to bring in the MMA world with this digital fighting tournament. We hope to see similar levels of interest with these fighting games as the MMA has seen with mainstream viewers.

If you look at the spectrum of all the different eSports, some are easy to understand, but there are also some games on the other end of the spectrum with a lot of strategy involved, where if you don’t play the game, you don’t understand what’s going on. Street Fighter

OP magazine 02 Game_Magazine_01.indd 5

12/6/12 5:09 PM

IGN Pro League Season 5

IPL5 takes place in Las Vegas, Nevada, at the Cosmopolitan from November 29 through December 2, 2012. In cooperation with GOMTV, IPL5 will also host the 2012 Global StarCraft II League Season 5 Code S semifinals and finals, as well as the 2012 GSL World Championship.

Korean Casters from GOMTV commenting in a game of Starcraft 2

KOREA Vs. The WORLD IPL5 takes place in Las Vegas, Nevada, at the Cosmopolitan from November 29 through December 2, 2012. In cooperation with GOMTV, IPL5 will also host the 2012 Global StarCraft II League Season 5 Code S semifinals and finals, as well as the 2012 GSL World Championship.

Several qualifiers for this event were held, beginning in May 2012, in order to determine the 39 players who would join the IPL 4 winner, aLive, at the main event. The qualifiers were held on weekends, which led to some players missing the opportunity to qualify for IPL 5

Several qualifiers for this event were held, beginning in May 2012, in order to determine the 39 players who would join the IPL 4 winner, aLive, at the main event. The qualifiers were held on weekends, which led to some players missing the opportunity to qualify for IPL 5 due to conflicting tournament schedules.[citation needed] To account for this, IPL announced that two extra rounds of midweek qualifiers would be held, from which a further 16 players were to earn places at the main event, bringing the otal number of qualified players for this event to 72.

due to conflicting tournament schedules.[citation needed] To account for this, IPL announced that two extra rounds of midweek qualifiers would be held, from which a further 16 players were to earn places at the main event, bringing the otal number of qualified players for this event to 72 New to this season, IPL held satellite tournaments that earned players spots at the live event in addition to regional qualifiers that earned players a spot at the live event as well as a free trip to the event.

Spectators and the media prepare for the final match for the GSL during IPL5

03 OP magazine Game_Magazine_01.indd 6

12/6/12 5:10 PM

Players with Fans Approximately 5,000 fans of eSports have traveled to Las Vegas to watch four days of live pro gaming events at The Cosmpolitan Hotel and Casino. IGN Pro League 5 (IPL 5) marks the start-up league’s first foray into fighting games, having signed exclusive eSports deals with Capcom for Super Street Fighter IV Arcade Edition and Street Fighter X Tekken and Tecmo Koei for Dead or Alive 5.

David Ting, general manager of eSports for IGN Entertainment and founder of the IPL, talks about the growth potential for eSports in 2013 and explains why Call of Duty: Black Ops II may not be in the competitive picture in this exclusive interview.

The IGN ProLeague, commonly abbreviated as the IPL, is a StarCraft 2 league held and organized by IGN Entertainment’s eSports division. A countdown finishing on the April 4th, 2011 was viewable prior to the league announcement on the official IGN home page. The first tournament was an invitational featuring players primarily from North America.

“Fans are what makes e-Sports possibe.

Without the fans, I wouldn’t be able to play my favorite game for a living.”

-MMA

StarTales_Squirtle signs a fan’s copy of StarCraft 2

If you look at the spectrum of all the different eSports, some are easy to understand, but there are also some games on the other end of the spectrum with a lot of strategy involved, where if you don’t play the game, you don’t understand what’s going on. Street Fighter is great for casual fans because almost everyone knows that game. It will bring in a lot of mainstream audiences. We’re producing it like a boxing event.

We want to bring in the MMA world with this digital fighting tournament. We hope to see similar levels of interest with these fighting games as the MMA has seen with mainstream viewers.

Startales_Polt watches over Liquid_TaeJa

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“

Tips

from the

Pros The top players of Starcraft 2 show give us insight on how they prepare and play the extremely competitive e-sport of Starcraft 2.

Q: Congratulations to you on defeating MarineKing and winning the Korean qualifiers for SW7. Do give a short evaluation about the games against MarineKing.

A: Very happy to be able to defeat MarineKing, who has been on red hot form, especially with a score of 3:2, and with a comeback from being behind in the third game. It makes me all the more excited. I am very happy to be able to play such an entertaining and exciting series.

(Note: In the final game, MMA used three nukes to completely defeat MarineKing.)

Q: You’re about to go to China to play. Have you ever been to China? What are your impressions of China?

international tournaments in a short amount of time.

Q: Recently in tournaments like GSL and MLG, Terran players have been starting to show signs of decline. What do you think is the hardest part for Terrans in the game’s current state?

A: Yea. I feel that while buffing other races, the least they should do is not nerf Terran at the same time. If they did not keep nerfing Terran, we wouldn’t be having the situation that we are having now.

They’ve always been buffing other races and nerfing Terrans. This will only result in Terran not being able to achieve any good results.

A: It’s my first time going to China, but I’ve heard that Starswars is a really reputable tournament in China. My impressions of China is that it’s the country with the largest population, and I am really excited to be able to go to China.

Q: Previously, Mvp, MC, Tails, etc. have also taken part separately in several Chinese tournaments. As compared to tournaments in the West or tournaments in Korea, what are your views on Starcraft 2 tournaments in China?

A: I’ve never taken part in any Chinese tournaments, so I’m not sure, but I think it’ll be really lively and bustling.

Q: Chinese players like XiGua and Loner have achieved pretty decent results in international tournaments. What’s your evaluation on Chinese players?

A: I think they’re players with really great potential. I also believe that they’ll be able to achieve good results in 05 OP magazine Game_Magazine_01.indd 8

12/6/12 5:10 PM

An interview with StarTales_Life, one of the youngest professional Zerg Players from Korea.

After an amazing match in IPL, we interviewed him about his play style and technique.

An Interview With StarTales_Life Coming in from last season, you’ve advanced to the Round of 16 once more. Please tell us how you feel.

I’m in a good mood because I went through as I had anticipated. My goal is to win the championship, so I’ll have to work harder.

How did you feel that things would go once you saw the list of players in your group today?

My group looked easy compared to the others. I’m happy that I was able to advance so comfortably in spite of not being able to get much practice.

What is the reason that you chose BaBy to start with?

There wasn’t any special reason.

I wasn’t sure whom to pick, so it didn’t really matter whom I faced.

You took out two Terran players to make it out of your group in first place. During your first set against BaBy, you won using a Roach attack after an early scout, then won the second with fast Lair tech followed by quick Infestors. From your movements during those games, it looked as if you had predicted Medivac harassment in advance.

I didn’t, and it was through luck that I happened to be in the right positions.

During the second game, I believed that BaBy had decided to go for safe play and responded by making early Infestors in order to be safe, too.

To see the rest of the interview, see page 69

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“

Tips

from the

Pros The top players of Starcraft 2 show give us insight on how they prepare and play the extremely competitive e-sport of Starcraft 2.

Q: Congratulations to you on defeating MarineKing and winning the Korean qualifiers for SW7. Do give a short evaluation about the games against MarineKing.

A: Very happy to be able to defeat MarineKing, who has been on red hot form, especially with a score of 3:2, and with a comeback from being behind in the third game. It makes me all the more excited. I am very happy to be able to play such an entertaining and exciting series.

(Note: In the final game, MMA used three nukes to completely defeat MarineKing.)

Q: You’re about to go to China to play. Have you ever been to China? What are your impressions of China?

international tournaments in a short amount of time.

Q: Recently in tournaments like GSL and MLG, Terran players have been starting to show signs of decline. What do you think is the hardest part for Terrans in the game’s current state?

A: Yea. I feel that while buffing other races, the least they should do is not nerf Terran at the same time. If they did not keep nerfing Terran, we wouldn’t be having the situation that we are having now.

They’ve always been buffing other races and nerfing Terrans. This will only result in Terran not being able to achieve any good results.

A: It’s my first time going to China, but I’ve heard that Starswars is a really reputable tournament in China. My impressions of China is that it’s the country with the largest population, and I am really excited to be able to go to China.

Q: Previously, Mvp, MC, Tails, etc. have also taken part separately in several Chinese tournaments. As compared to tournaments in the West or tournaments in Korea, what are your views on Starcraft 2 tournaments in China?

A: I’ve never taken part in any Chinese tournaments, so I’m not sure, but I think it’ll be really lively and bustling.

Q: Chinese players like XiGua and Loner have achieved pretty decent results in international tournaments. What’s your evaluation on Chinese players?

A: I think they’re players with really great potential. I also believe that they’ll be able to achieve good results in 05 OP magazine Game_Magazine_01.indd 10

12/6/12 5:10 PM

An interview with StarTales_Life, one of the youngest professional Zerg Players from Korea.

After an amazing match in IPL, we interviewed him about his play style and technique.

An Interview With StarTales_Life Coming in from last season, you’ve advanced to the Round of 16 once more. Please tell us how you feel.

I’m in a good mood because I went through as I had anticipated. My goal is to win the championship, so I’ll have to work harder.

How did you feel that things would go once you saw the list of players in your group today?

My group looked easy compared to the others. I’m happy that I was able to advance so comfortably in spite of not being able to get much practice.

What is the reason that you chose BaBy to start with?

There wasn’t any special reason.

I wasn’t sure whom to pick, so it didn’t really matter whom I faced.

You took out two Terran players to make it out of your group in first place. During your first set against BaBy, you won using a Roach attack after an early scout, then won the second with fast Lair tech followed by quick Infestors. From your movements during those games, it looked as if you had predicted Medivac harassment in advance.

I didn’t, and it was through luck that I happened to be in the right positions.

During the second game, I believed that BaBy had decided to go for safe play and responded by making early Infestors in order to be safe, too.

To see the rest of the interview, see page 69

OP magazine 06 Game_Magazine_01.indd 11

12/6/12 5:10 PM