Nihilum Arena wins CGS Championship
by Zach Yonzon 
Jul 20th 2008 at 9:30AM
Frag Dominant Duelists continued their strong showing on the pro circuit, finishing 2nd again after falling to Orz in MLG Orlando about a week ago, and placing first in MLG San Diego. FD-DGFG ran a double healer Rogue, Druid, Priest comp, taking home $12,500 after their defeat to Nihilum Arena's Hunter, Druid, and Priest. Two runner-up teams took home $6,250 apiece. The tournament used a format that pitted Europe's against the United States' best in the finals.
The coverage was different from the MLG series, being much more friendly to viewers not overly familiar with the game or Arena tournaments, with extensive previews of the characters used by the players, and an overview of the Arena maps prior to matches. The shoutcasting was also much more casual-friendly, at a significantly slower pace than the MLG coverage. The choice of the infamous Leeroy Jenkins to commentate was definitely a marketing move, with more than a few mistakes (calling Scatter Shot Distracting Shot, saying Ice Block's cooldown as 2 mins vs. the correct 5, being fooled by Cherez' Feign Death, etc.). The level of analysis wasn't as deep as MLG's, which featured Arena pros for commentating. Camera view was also an overhead style as opposed to the third person view used by MLG. Both tournaments had good points, and it's exciting to see Arena play gaining a stronger foothold in the pro gaming scene.
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, News items, PvP, Arena
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
kabshiel Jul 20th 2008 9:47AM
I, for one, cannot wait for this e-"sport" fad to die.
SgtBaker Jul 20th 2008 11:37AM
Aye, however I'm afraid it might be going the other way - becoming "serious business". Can't say I'm amused by this trend.
One day it'll ruin the game! Ruin the game I tell you!
Sealz Jul 20th 2008 3:38PM
Me to.
It wont be long tho as it seems other similar trends have died too and almost no one really likes the current direction of pvp,with arena as the one and only real thing and the overglorification of it.
Steve Jul 20th 2008 9:53AM
Was it a 12 and under tournament or something? lol...
Kryptonls Jul 20th 2008 10:31AM
Heh yeah - they do look very, very young.
Fizzl Jul 20th 2008 1:52PM
No but after 12 years old you tend to spend too much time think about boobs to be 'pro'.
Badger Jul 21st 2008 12:21PM
I absolutely refuse to believe that these CHILDREN just made more in ONE SITTING - by playing a PC GAME, no less - than I do by micromanaging advertising revenue over the course of an ENTIRE YEAR.
wowtard Jul 20th 2008 1:52PM
Maybe the prize should be a tub of protein powder and a set of dumbbells before these guys waste away into big eyed telepathic aliens.
Zach Jul 20th 2008 2:20PM
Riiiiight. I bet you're the regular He-man. You're trolling a WoW blog. There's a high likelihood you're about as physically fit as the guys you're mocking.
Froosh Jul 20th 2008 10:30AM
Hmm, you seem to be forgetting when cherez feigned death in MLG and the commentator was very surprised when he came back to life, saying something about the druid rezzing him.
Trenton Jul 20th 2008 10:40AM
They're European. They're probably 30 something.
bendak Jul 20th 2008 11:15AM
You can't even watch the final match...their videos are all messed up. The final match is the same video as the north american semi finals.
aencar Jul 20th 2008 11:28AM
They've conquered the arena.
Their next big challenge: Puberty.
Wildbinx Jul 20th 2008 11:55AM
look at the people you all are idolizing.. lol
Jagoex Jul 20th 2008 12:04PM
Make fun of them all you want. They're the ones holding a $25,000 check for playing WoW. ;)
But aside from that little fact, there isn't much positive spin I can apply to this system. I know you need "stars" in order to have a legit E-sport (or any sport, for that matter). But I can hardly imagine any WoW player giving a damn about who wins what, even if they are sporting a popular guild tag.
Thoughts, Yonzon?
Zach Jul 20th 2008 1:53PM
Well, I dunno. I guess it takes a deep interest in the genre to bother. I've been enjoying competitive or professional Arena play so much that I do like learning more about the players.
Needless to say, it doesn't hurt to have marketable players for the sponsors. That's just how entertainment works.
gabba Jul 20th 2008 12:12PM
Well played Nihilum, gg! And gratz to all the US kids who couldn't find anything else to comment other then the players appearance.
Zach Jul 20th 2008 1:55PM
eSports take a bit of getting used to. It's certainly not for everyone, just as not everyone watches sports on TV. To be honest, I only recently began to appreciate eSports when I caught the CGS Asia legs.
I'm not as interested in DOA matches, for example, or Gotham Racing. But I enjoy watching the Counterstrike games. WoW Arenas is the first eSport I really, truly enjoy because I more or less understand what's going on. I can't stand to watch Rugby or Cricket because I'm just not interested or understand the rules.
When I watch Arena tournaments, I appreciate the skill involved. And don't get me wrong... there's skill involved. People can laugh about these 'geeks' or their 'puberty', but these guys are making bank playing a video game. I don't know about you, but that sounds like fun to me.
I play sports. I am into Martial Arts, and I used to participate in competitive Fencing and Judo. I've been much more sedentary lately, but I understand competition. I appreciate it, even in video games. I recognize their eAthleticism.
It makes me laugh hard when people make fun of these eSports players. In all likelihood, these people trolling the comments boards are equally pre-pubescent or geeky. I mean, they're TROLLING a WoW blog, FFS. And guess what? Those people they're making fun of are making money off playing a game they pay to play.
Angry Hamster Oct 9th 2008 2:54AM
They may have won this contest...
...but still have not been on first dates.
Time to socialize.
jacksonibanezpeavey Jul 20th 2008 4:32PM
I don’t think the issue is with how the people on this team are physically built.
The humorous point is that the writers on this site, perhaps unknowingly, built up this guild so much over the past year only to find out that they’re young enough to be their kids.
It’s like WoWInsider is the 18 year adoring someone over AIM only to find out that that someone is the 12 year old everyone else in the school picks on.
I think there should be some embarrassment on the part of the writers for kissing the asses of a group of high school kids.
And, for the record, I realize that not everyone in the guild is a teeny-bopper. Just the faces now attached to the name.
And btw, Zach, I get you responding to the people on here attacking the players because of how they look; however, don’t criticize anyone for reading a WoW blog in their spare time. After all, you write for the damn thing. It makes you a hypocrite and self-loathing at that.
Besides, without the readers, where would any of you be? Would Schramm have ever made it into a television interview? Respect your audience.
You’re a decent writer, but insult your audience and watch us all give you the finger back, bub.