Lyn fought back valiantly, getting to the final and taking down LucifroN in two sets. The win marks his first victory at a Blizzard-run event. Lyn speaks about a memorable win, early StarCraft 2 impressions and comparisons, and what makes Asian players better at RTS games. I have transcribed the video interview into text for those who would like to read instead, and can be seen below the video.



You've cashed in on your promise that you would win BlizzCon 2008 after falling into the lower bracket, how does it feel?

Lyn: I'm happy because I did it from the lower bracket. It is really tough to win twice and claim victory that way.

Did you expect to go down in the lower bracket in the first place verse LucifroN?

Lyn: No :).

Were you really surprised at how good he was or do you think he just played bad?

Lyn: I played bad :D.

How do you rate his skill?

Lyn: He will catch up to the top players really soon.

How does this victory rank compared to your other championships?

Lyn: This tournament has a big prize purse so it was important, but it is also special because it's run by Blizzard who made WarCraft 3. It's meaningful to me.

Is this tournament more special than a WC3L, ESL, WCG, ESWC?

Lyn: The other tournaments are special too, it's just that Blizzard made the game and their events have a special nature about them.

What made Check your hardest opponent?

Lyn: Check is Night Elf and NE players are just really strong against Orc's.

Do you find it more difficult to play another Korean than international players? Are the Koreans and Chinese ahead?

Lyn: There's no real difference between Korean players and international players. The Chinese players are the top tier because there are so many players to play against. Everyone else is pretty much even.

Is there a bigger rivaly between Korean players since you guys face off a lot in the Korean leagues too?

Lyn: I play a lot with the Koreans but I wouldn't say there's a bigger rivalry.

How do you feel about your skill right now? Are you the best in the world, top 3?

Lyn: Top ten :D.

That's a long list though!

Lyn: I just don't want to be arrogant :D.

Who are the top players in the world right now?

Lyn: Moon of course is a top player, and a few others, but there's a lot of new players coming up through the ranks trying to make a name for themselves.

What makes Asian gamers better at RTS games?

Lyn: The first thing is that the Korean and Chinese players play a -lot- compared to European and American players. The Koreans and Chinese really focus on pro gaming and being a pro gamer. The second thing is that the Asian countries have a really thick playerbase and there's always people to play.

Over the course of the past decade of eSports activity, Asian players generally been better and won more in RTS games compared to Europeans and Americans, while the latter has done better in FPS events. Is there a mindset that Asians have that makes them better at RTS/micro/macro games rather than aim?

Lyn: For Korea, there's so many people playing StarCraft that it's all gotten passed down to WarCraft 3 players which have built up the playerbase for both games. The mindset is focused on RTS games rather than FPS games.

Is World of WarCraft looked down upon in Korean by the professional StarCraft and WarCraft III players?

Lyn: They never look down on WoW in Korea because its a different game, a different style of game. WoW is more casual where old, young, male, female, and people of all types can play. RTS players in Korea aren't good at playing WoW.

Have you had a chance to play StarCraft 2? What do you think?

Lyn: Yeah, :D *cringe*. It's a new game.

Could you be a bit more specific?

Lyn: StarCraft 2 is different than the original StarCraft and WarCraft 3. I think it's kind of mixed up, it's the StarCraft universe with the WarCraft 3 UI and other features.

Do you think it's a good thing as a mix of both games or would you rather just the original StarCraft with new graphics and without many changes?

Lyn: I think they have to make StarCraft 2 3D because all th new technology has moved onto 3D worlds. There's no 2D anymore.

If the eSports market turns to StarCraft 2 and leaves WarCraft 3 behind, will you play StarCraft 2?

Lyn: Probably not.

No? Why not?

Lyn: You have to spend a lot of time to become a pro gamer. I don't want to have to start again from the beginning with StarCraft 2.

Will you retire as a pro gamer if this happens?

Lyn: Maybe.

Would you play if there was a lot to be won?

Lyn: It's not about the money, I just want to play as a WarCraft 3 pro gamer. I want to play as a WarCraft 3 player.

Do you think the WarCraft 3 players will be able to match the StarCraft players in StarCraft 2? Could you beat Savior in StarCraft 2 if you both practiced?

Lyn: The person who practices more will win since it's a totally new game. If we start at the same time it'll come down to whoever practies more, they will be the winner.

How much of the game of WarCraft and StarCraft is practice, and how much is skill?

Lyn: Practice is way more important than having skill, no matter how good you are.

Is there anything you'd like to say to the SK fans?

Lyn: I made a promise to the team before I came to the United States, and I'm very happy to keep my word. I want to say hello to the SK fans and look forward to keep making nice games for everyone to watch. Thank you so much!