The year is now 2006 and I can still remember, when I started playing my beloved one and only FPS game - Unreal Tournament (yeah, there were couple of them before, Quake 1 or Quake 2 for example). UT (in comparing to only couple of other popular FPP games) has long history and as fallows - a lot of human legends. If I was suposed to write about them in here, few of them would be: GitzZz, Lauke, frag^m or aSim3tRie. As it goes about those guys - few of this oldschool players are still competing in the tournaments and beeing quite active at e-sport scenes. As you probably know, GitzZz play(ed) for SK, Lauke (I think still plays) for fnatic, frag^master (as he said to me today) allready finished with gaming, but the last team we saw him at, was mouz and as it goes about aSim3tRie - he's just living his live actually, somewhere in Germany (cheers by the way). Well I'm missing the point in here - I just wanted to say few words about those guys. I wish to sorry other ones who I've missed - I did not want to offend you, I simply wrote about the ones that I kept in mind at the moment... but anyway - let's get back to the point. I can say, that I feal "oldschool" aswell. I've met most of the old UT players on the servers, while I played it since 2000. When I look at those nicknames now (ok, let's remind few other ones) - Horny or R0X for example, they remind me "the good old days", when the so called "Gaming" had it's beginning, the FPP games were becoming the most popular platforms in it and the money earning had it's start. The one unfair thing by then was that only scandinavian, deutsch and dutch players could compete on "high" level at on-line tournaments, becouse of their equal pings. But let's leave this case alone.
Writing this blog, I wanted to say that everyone has his own memmories, his own "good old times" in their min and this is the most beautifull thing in beeing so called "old school player". To know people from around the world become friends, meet them at events and be able to talk about the old times when you competed not for money, but for your own pleasure. This is like the part of your life you've given those few years to this game afterall. There are tons of thoughts in your head, when you look at the e-sport now - how it's growing, how more and more oldschool players leave the scenes and how the new ones take it over. Not only the scene - they takeover the fame, the money, the fans. Truelly, we can call this e-sport, in every part of the word - it is sport, electronic one. What wonders me, is what will happen with those old players? I'm watching at myself, and thinking "what to do now?", "is this it?", "the end? finito? koniec?" - well, you have to do SOMETHING. Take a look at our well known friend - GitzZz for example. Yeah, he was a pro gamer, yep - he won a lot of money and YES - He has his real life and work. This is a good example of, what to do when you're "old school" player. I'm aware that this text should have the other part aswell - there are tons of old players, who still can give a good match to high skilled top ones, but still I think the time is eating them anyway, and it comes for everyone. You can't be on top for ever.
Now, when I still play my beloved game - people have respect for me. If you achieved something, people still have it for you, even if you're not on top now. (I'm not saying, I'm some kind of CPL or WCG champion - not at all, when I played I did not have money for good connection, visa or trip to go abroad and compete in LAN championships - it's Poland, we were poor.. and we still are, but it's a bit better - yeah). I feal "old" - yes, but I feal good aswell, like at my own home. When I enter the servers to play few games "for fun", I have a smile on my face. I remember myself the times of glory, the times of fame and long, stressful matches and I think to myself... it was worth it. i'm "old school" now, and it feals good, you can't regret of what you've done, if you achieved something by doing it.
What is this "old school" then? Well, it's the best fealing ever, the fealing which sportsmen feal aswell, after they retire. "Old school" player is simply the person, who retired from e-sport, and has all of those thoughts, good and bad times, friends from internet, happy moments in his mind and veins - feals it, feals like e-sportsmen. The good(or some can say bad) thing in all of this is, that he will feal like this all life now. He can try to get back to it, but it won't ever be the same - some of them do get back. Beeing that kind of person, beeing a retired e-sportsmen, "old school player" is a beautifull and very strange fealing.
It was hard to write this blog in "good way", so I wish to sorry all of you, who did not get it. I thank all of those, who red it untill the end aswell.
Greetings to all old players, everyone from all over the world, who I played with and I knew/know personally.