Generally if you've read any of my columns (rants) over recent years any mention of G7 and or their teams has been negative, because my overall opinion is that they don’t use their position to aid the average competitive gamer anywhere near as much as they should do. On the whole I think they just waste valuable sponsorship money that should be going to teams/players who actually give a damn. However SK's addition of a CoD4 roster actually is met by a round of applause from this writer.
To those of who you don’t know SK, SK is the biggest western eSports organisation. Their website boasts just short of one million members, CounterStrike history books were written by SK and they boast a huge Warcraft 3 community despite their lack of dominance in recent years. And that’s only the half of it, from a business perspective these guys know what they're doing, booths at Games Convention (at least the one I attended), SK Insider and SK products and a fan base across the world with hubs in Germany and Sweden. If I were to blindly value the company based on the value of another recent eSports sale, they are worth in excess of $4 million.
And now those four million dollars are weighted behind Call of Duty 4 and its future has never looked brighter. The difference between SK and any other G7 team is their massive userbase and reputation with the added benefit is that The6Devils are German. When SK does something in Germany, German eSports listens. Their reach in the motherland is incredible, indebted to their support of German players/teams who don’t offer them prowess on the international front, but do locally. In a country that houses ESL and Readmore when SK shout, those two huge eSports institutions tend to listen.
The realisation is that a match between SK and Fnatic means a lot to someone who knows nothing about Call of Duty. Random eSports fan see's those names and instantly wants one of them win, whether that’s because they're a diehard SK.FIFA fan or they love Fnatic because of Vo0, its a power that is rarely wielded by the G7 probably in fear of diluting its ability, but never the less once the axe is wielded the chain reaction is huge. SK's decision that Call of Duty is worthy of their brand suddenly makes it an easier decision for other big teams.
The Call of Duty audience just got a million people bigger and the responsibility now rests firmly on 5 German shoulders, they cannot afford to '4kings it' and hit the self destruct button because with SK the stakes are huge both for you as a team and for the game! Call of Duty now has the support of SK, Fnatic, 4kings, EG and Dignitas throw in Gotfrag and you’re talking about a huge audience and it wouldn’t amaze me if one other large organisation threw their hat into the ring! It’s very easy to start getting carried away thinking that maybe there’s a rival to CS here.
I’m not convinced that there is a rival and that’s because the next step is the hardest and it’s all about money! The death of American eSports support from CPL, WSVG and GGL means there aren’t those $50k tournaments to look forward to and the big pay day isn’t coming for CounterStrike 1.6 as often as it was, let alone Call of Duty. The big pay days come from WCG and ESWC neither of whom are likely to touch the game this year. So growth is limited to within, the likes of Crossfire, TeK-9, iSeries and even Clanbase are the ones must build a European competitive base to keep the games finances flowing.
However, now is not the time to look forward but in fact the time to rejoice that the game is bigger than it has ever been! SK’s arrival onto the scene is a testament to a community that have had to be patient, the veterans of the scene who have stayed at the top from CoD1 will testify that institutionally the game has never been in better shape.
I wont lie, as a tournament organisor next weeks CDC just got that little bit harder.
To those of who you don’t know SK, SK is the biggest western eSports organisation. Their website boasts just short of one million members, CounterStrike history books were written by SK and they boast a huge Warcraft 3 community despite their lack of dominance in recent years. And that’s only the half of it, from a business perspective these guys know what they're doing, booths at Games Convention (at least the one I attended), SK Insider and SK products and a fan base across the world with hubs in Germany and Sweden. If I were to blindly value the company based on the value of another recent eSports sale, they are worth in excess of $4 million.
And now those four million dollars are weighted behind Call of Duty 4 and its future has never looked brighter. The difference between SK and any other G7 team is their massive userbase and reputation with the added benefit is that The6Devils are German. When SK does something in Germany, German eSports listens. Their reach in the motherland is incredible, indebted to their support of German players/teams who don’t offer them prowess on the international front, but do locally. In a country that houses ESL and Readmore when SK shout, those two huge eSports institutions tend to listen.
The realisation is that a match between SK and Fnatic means a lot to someone who knows nothing about Call of Duty. Random eSports fan see's those names and instantly wants one of them win, whether that’s because they're a diehard SK.FIFA fan or they love Fnatic because of Vo0, its a power that is rarely wielded by the G7 probably in fear of diluting its ability, but never the less once the axe is wielded the chain reaction is huge. SK's decision that Call of Duty is worthy of their brand suddenly makes it an easier decision for other big teams.
The Call of Duty audience just got a million people bigger and the responsibility now rests firmly on 5 German shoulders, they cannot afford to '4kings it' and hit the self destruct button because with SK the stakes are huge both for you as a team and for the game! Call of Duty now has the support of SK, Fnatic, 4kings, EG and Dignitas throw in Gotfrag and you’re talking about a huge audience and it wouldn’t amaze me if one other large organisation threw their hat into the ring! It’s very easy to start getting carried away thinking that maybe there’s a rival to CS here.
I’m not convinced that there is a rival and that’s because the next step is the hardest and it’s all about money! The death of American eSports support from CPL, WSVG and GGL means there aren’t those $50k tournaments to look forward to and the big pay day isn’t coming for CounterStrike 1.6 as often as it was, let alone Call of Duty. The big pay days come from WCG and ESWC neither of whom are likely to touch the game this year. So growth is limited to within, the likes of Crossfire, TeK-9, iSeries and even Clanbase are the ones must build a European competitive base to keep the games finances flowing.
However, now is not the time to look forward but in fact the time to rejoice that the game is bigger than it has ever been! SK’s arrival onto the scene is a testament to a community that have had to be patient, the veterans of the scene who have stayed at the top from CoD1 will testify that institutionally the game has never been in better shape.
I wont lie, as a tournament organisor next weeks CDC just got that little bit harder.
anyway nice read toss.
in that movie the founders were talking about SK in a football stadium (in cologne i think) was just funny ;D
CU there and gl.
Didn't quite comprehend what you were implying there, but I wouldn't say the expectations have suddenly risen or anything. You're still dealing with CoD people who've next to no prejudices about how professional tournaments should be run etc. Just a name change at the moment.
That was my point though, you're still dealing with CoD players. It's not as if Andreas or Alex are going, or the top guys in Fnatic either. Most have been going to your LANs for some time now, and won't know what the professional standard's are.
I would say that the pressure on people like TosspoT probably comes more from the knowledge, that there may be a massive influx of eSports fans to this site, as a result of a professional or non-professional looking tournament.
SK was going to cover the event (to the degree you're on about) even if T6D weren't recruited before the event ;)
I know how it appears, that I'm over signifying the work on the website, but you've to realize. A couple of monthes ago I was the only one who wanted CoD on the site (not one person in the crew supported the idea), I was the only one willing to do any work and had to fight just to get basic news posts and coverage. Fast forward a couple of months, and we now have a squad.
At the end of the day, I know it isn't my name or my money on the line, but others deserve some credit as well.
soz tossi spotti i dont read your boring (tooooo Long)
tread