eSport Betting League (eSBL)

I came across this site today and thought it was one of the coolest things I've seen this week next to a guy walking around in a Doraemon costume on my campus. The eSport Betting League is a free-to-play site that is very similar to "Liquibets" on Team Liquid but is much more organized, aesthetically superior and provides current standings and rankings of individual betters. The system is very clean and simple and includes both Starcraft and League of Legends games. If you are into liquibets or looking for a fun way to keep up to date with the current eSports scene check it out at https://www.esbl.co/.

Korea: Changes to Pro-Gaming Tier Structure to be Implemented Next Season

At the eSports capital in South Korea, home of GomTV and the Global Starcraft II League (GSL), changes are being made to the structure of qualifying pro-gamers into their "Code" ranking system and will be implemented as soon as the next coming season that will start in November. WaxAngel from TeamLiquid gives the full detail and scope of the changes being made to the Code S and Code A qualifying procedures in his original post found here.

For those of you new to Starcraft II eSports, the GSL is currently the highest league of competition for Starcraft II professional gaming. Code S is the highest rank achievable within this league and is recognized as the top players of the world. Code A is the tier directly below where most of the up-and-coming stars rise and fall. If you want to see the best of the best, the GSL is the place to watch the top 72 players in the world (32 Code S, 40 Code A).

Some of the major changes being made:

• The new system has only the top eight players receiving seeds, while the remaining 24 get placed into progressively higher rounds of Code A depending on their performance. 

• With the Up-Downs supplying ten of the Code-S Spots this season, it needs to be elevated in status so it becomes its own unique entity, or rolled into Code A where it might get the high profile it deserves. 

From WaxAngel on Team Liquid, full complete article here.

Rumors of Legacy Korean Brood War Teams Considering Switch to Starcraft II

According to some translations of articles circulating Korea on Fomos (the e-sports "league" of Korea) and speculation from translators on TeamLiquid there is strong evidence that some of the Korean Starcraft: Brood War teams are taking Starcraft II into serious consideration. Most of the Legacy teams which are being left anonymous by Fomos have already begun preparations and training for Starcraft II. It has been revealed that teams like CJ, STX and SK have already made hardware changes to their equipment (source from Fomos). Most teams are reporting that many of their players are finding it an easy transition from BW to SCII. They report that most of their players are making it into Master's league naturally and believe that after enough time they will gain the experience needed to push into the GrandMasters.

Read more and discuss it on the original post from Team Liquid Forums.

Blizzcon 2011 Day 1 Recount!

Earlier today...

It's only 3:40 PM and my legs are already killing me. Sitting in the loot elemental line which is taking forever. I figured it would be a great time to just sit down and type out some of my blog content on my iPod touch while waiting. So far I have spent most of the time enjoying all the vendor booths and checking out the games and contests being offered. My personal goal is to play every game at least once. It's been 7 hours since I walked through the doors and I have already mustered together a respectable loot stash.

As far as Blizzcon it has been very similar to last year with the set up, schedule and overall atmosphere of the convention halls. The highlight has definitely been the gaming stations loaded with the latest playable beta content for World of Warcraft, Diablo 3 and Starcraft 2 Heart of the Swarm. The Heart of the Swarm unit updates is going to be extremely game changing, almost too game changing. I could not believe some of the new units and skills being added to the game will definitely lead to even more epic new strategies and matches within the pro league.

For now enjoy the photos of the venue, the awesome cosplay being shown off on the convention grounds as well as detailed descriptions of the event's activities and booths.

10:55PM Today: Finished uploading pictures, I will be posting all the awesome pictures through the next hour!

Blizzcon 2011 Post Navigation:
Blizzcon 2011 Swag and Loot
Blizzcon 2011 Eye Candy (Photoblog)
Blizzcon 2011 Booths, Games and Contests
Blizzcon 2011 Heart of the Swarm New Units

MLG Anaheim 2011 Photos

Just finished moving my Major League Gaming Pro Circuit Anaheim 2011 photographs over from the Team Liquid blog I had been using. If you are interested in some high quality picture of some visiting Korean Pro Gamers including most of Team SlayerS, MVP DongReGu, and IMMVP as well as some behind the scenes shots of a press shoot they had after the festivities check my gallery out by clicking the image.