Marcus "djWHEAT" Graham was an integral part of the Championship Gaming Series' production, from his commentary on the stage to his contributions during post-production. In part two of this interview Marcus took time to reflect on his experiences with the CGS and the issues that led to its eventual closure.


When and how were you first contacted by the Championship Gaming Series?

My first exposure to the entire project actually happened back in 2006. Smeagol and I were covering the 2006 World Cyber Games US Open at the Kodak Theater in Los Angeles, CA. To be honest, the event totally sucked. Not from a competition standpoint, but from an attendance standpoint. But you know what, whether we were casting to 10 people over Shoutcast, or 5 people in the venue we didn't care. We're still the best at what we do cause we share a glorious passion for gaming.

So those Counter-Strike and Starcraft matches were still as exciting as if there was 10,000,000 people there.

After the event concluded, this strange man approached us and introduced himself as Mike Burks. He was an older fellow with odd hair, but he had this presence to him that was almost intimidating. Before I had any idea who he was, he said... "I'm really impressed with the fact that you were broadcasting these matches to basically nobody, yet I could still feel that passion and excitement you brought. I got excited by what I was watching because of you guys."

A few minutes later I found out that Mike Burks is a major player with Fox Sports who had experience broadcasting the NFL, SuperBowl, Olympics, etc. and that he was working with a company to start a new league.

Three months later I did the Championship Gaming Invitational.

How was the CGS and your role in it first pitched to you?

CGI (Championship Gaming Invitational) was a test to see if video games on TV was possible. They did two and I was involved with both. Each time I was actually just contracted from a talent perspective, however, I did do a little consulting with them for post-production. I didn't have much opportunity to be involved beyond that, so at this point it was simply for my own career and to make some extra money. The following year, CGS (Championship Gaming Series) was announced. This is where it began to get complicated.

CGS wanted me to be involved, again from a talent perspective, however, there was something stopping them and that was GGL (who I was employed with at the time). The GGL basically didn't want to give up their talent to the CGS because it didn't benefit them. They eventually negotiated a deal on my behalf that had me doing the North American CGS Season 1. I did not do the Season 1 Draft.

The CGS North American season was over and they wanted me back for the world finals (which took place about 4 months later). Although this would have been an opportunity for me to make some great money when I really needed it, the GGL would not allow me to do it. With my hands tied, I had to decline.

Season 2 rolls around. Again, the CGS tries to get me involved with them. Knowing the results of the last attempt, they were basically like, "this is the last time we're gonna try to get you on board". This time they wanted me to not only be talent, but run their digital media production.

The BIG SUCKINESS OF ALL THIS... They also told me that they were adamant about CGS being around for at least another 5 years. So I made the decision to leave GGL, to join CGS, leaving behind all the production I was involved with at GGL and basically starting from scratch at CGS.

So you were expecting at least 5 years worth of work, you must have felt cheated?

Of course I did. Who wouldn't? Am I angry because they said 5 years... yeah I am! Right now NO ONE is immune to the economy and unfortunately that included the CGS, however, I'm also not the kind of person who's going to turn my back, spit on the grave and say FUCK YOU. I feel like many people in and out of CGS have done that. Like it or not, they were doing their part for pro-gaming.

Clearly you're of the opinion that the Championship Gaming Series wasn't a total loss, what came of it that was positive?

How about the fact that nearly 130 gamers got to live their dream over 3 years and be paid to play video games?

I'd say the biggest positive to come out of the CGS is how others can learn from it. While that may be due to a reflection of mistakes, that doesn't make it not positive.

Additionally, it was a launch pad for many people, including myself, Swoozie, Redeye and so on. It was a revenue source for many organizations that typically weren't getting much paid work in the first place.

For me, it allowed me to learn even more about production and how I can be more effective in how I cover things. What can work on TV and what can't. I think that's just a few things positive that came out of CGS, and I could probably list several more.

So, point blank, break it down for us, why did the CGS fail?
The single mistake that sank the CGS was that they tried to go international too early. They spent so much money maintaining an aspect of the league that really brought nothing to the table. I know it sucks to hear because teams like Birmingham Salvo ended up winning and that's great, but the bottom line is, if CGS would have focused their efforts on JUST North America, I'm sure their initial investment could have gone that 5 years. Maybe by year 3 after being established you opened up to international teams, but money was being fucking lit on fire with flights, hotels, etc.

I would bet on my life, had the CGS done North America to begin with, we wouldn't be having this interview. They would still be around.

Now, with that being said, every single other mistake almost doesn't matter. 2009 was going to be a year that people were going to go, "Ok wow, they have got their shit together" but some of the more annoying mistakes from my perspective were:

- Not making it more accessible to the hardcore audience. It wasn't until the end of 2008 the CGS really started to listen and offer those things that the hardcore audience wanted.

- They didn't have any sort of online presence at all during season 1. I was brought on in season 2 and we had 2 shows up in like 2 months. I think if they could have established that earlier, it would have been beneficial for them.

- They waited too long to change games. 2008 should have been a big change, but again, it's easier said than done because of what it takes to get a game cleared for TV.

As I mentioned, those are almost pointless, because the err was in the initial global concept and implementation of the CGS.

Would you attribute the hemorrhaging of money to the overly ambitious business plan or was it just frivolous spending? Even inside of North America, were the expenses necessary?

It wasn't frivolous spending. It was what was required to maintain their original global plan. I mean, we could always argue that getting the Playboy Mansion was frivolous, but it was the money spent outside the US that was a problem. Let me add that I've never seen the books. I don't know the EXACT numbers, but I do know that the biggest regret everyone at the company shared was not launching domestically first and international when it was appropriate.

Were you ever given any updates as to what kind of ratings the show received?

Not so much from the DirecTV standpoint, but I do know the ratings on G4 were actually quite good. The demographic was a bit younger than I think they would have liked, but even by G4's standards, the show performed well. I think it's a shame they couldn't have gotten it on G4 the year prior, because that could have had a positive impact.

Would you happen to know how those ratings measured up against those projected before the show started?

Probably right on par. I don't think they expected an explosive following out of the gate. It's something that takes time. That's also why they had such a long timeframe for success. I think they ultimately felt like 5 years was the minimum for producing the results they wanted.

You've said that working for the Championship Gaming Series was like having your hands tied. Were there any restrictions you felt were particularly intrusive or unnecessary? Why do you think such strict restrictions were imposed upon you and others working with the CGS?

Let me clarify, it wasn't necessarily JUST the CGS. This happened when I was working for TsN, my own station iTG, GGL, etc.

The fact of the matter is, these organizations pay you to do work for them. With that in mind, if there was something going on within the GGL or CGS that I didn't approve of, I couldn't just go onto one of my shows and start ranting about it.

That's the type of silencing I felt with these organizations. I can think of specific examples where my hands were completely tied.

A great one is when I was doing the CGS LIVE Podcast. We wanted to really do a show that was going to benefit the community and educate viewers of the CGS. One week we wanted to do a feature on the World Cyber Games because the finals were approaching. We were basically told that we could not "spotlight" other leagues that may be viewed as competition.

To me that was absolutely asinine. I think it's that sort of mentality that exists among all organizations in pro-gaming. People are scared to give their competition any sort of acknowledgement or praise. Why? I never could understand. It's actually the reason why I'm excited about my current situation. I can say what needs to be said. Sure I might upset a few people in the process, but I'm servicing the community now, not an organization who's paying me.

How much input did you and your colleagues have in the final CGS product?

I can't speak for the others, I can only speak for myself. I can tell you that my input was basically nothing until I joined them for the 2008 season.

My input never got a chance to even really see the light of day with the exception of the production I did there. I think my biggest impact would have been on the games of 2009.

I had access to upper management, but I didn't have access to the board, who were basically making all the major decisions.

Having layers of insulation between what was essentially a microcosm of their target market (the guys who came from an esport background) and those who ultimately controlled the direction of the show must have had an adverse affect.

Well, keep in mind that they had some solid consultants for the show, Craig Levine of ESEA. So it wasn't like all hope was lost, they knew they needed help and one of the reasons I was confident in what was happening was because of Craig and his team's involvement.

If the show would have continued and money wasn't an issue, I feel like 2009 would have been the year that the "gamers opinion" would have really shown through.

I gotta give them props for making an effort to get people involved from the esports industry. The show would have never even got off the ground if it wasn't for their help and knowledge. So yes, there was a TUG-O-WAR, but what do you expect when you're dealing with millions of dollars?

Do you think the CGS overestimated the appeal their players had with viewers, meaning the policies that were implemented in regards to players being able to attend other events served little or no purpose and were simply a detriment to players, nothing more?

I don't think it matters if CGS overestimated the appeal of their players, the cold hard facts is this. The gamers/teams signed contracts to get paid salary with the opportunity to make more throughout the year. A part of their contract limited them in what they could or could not attend. If they wanted to attend other tournaments, they should have not signed the contract. Was it the right move? Probably not.

I think CGS would have benefited from more exposure, but they were trying to protect their assets. So from an entertainment/sports perspective, they were just doing what they knew. Where do I stand on it? I would have liked it if the CGS teams had more freedom, however, I know what it means to sign a contract, so from that perspective, no one forced them to do so.

The community and the CGS were at odds constantly, but the esport communities seem to be at odds with everyone. The potential for keeping an audience interested seems to be a strong aspect of competitive game production, Counter-Strike for example has only gotten bigger as the years pass. That being said, Counter-Strike was followed by Condition Zero and then Source when all the community really wanted was a quick polish. The alternatives to constant releases are subscription fees which are costly and off putting, or ingame advertising is new territory, if this is an issue, can it be resolved and how?

Developers interests and the needs of a community will always be at odds. The community wants the world, and the developer wants to make money. Those two are sometimes like vinegar and oil, they just don't mix. I believe we're stuck in an era of development where the only way we'll truly get a product we're happy with is if someone steps up and says, "WE'RE GOING TO MAKE GAMES GEARED TOWARDS COMPETITION".

I also believe, if one company (that isn't Blizzard) stepped up to the plate and said, "We're going to try to make the game that appeals to the Core and will be a viable pro-gaming option", we would see other companies following in their footsteps.

Although, in a fragile economy, that's not going to happen, so we'll need to wait a bit longer and hope that efforts like id's QuakeLive will encourage other companies to have similar initiatives.

I'm all for IGA if that can help developers spend more time on improving games. I think that's a very viable option that pro-gaming should not scoff at.

Don't forget to tune into Live on Three tomorrow morning at 1:00 CET (19:00 EST). Where, among other things, djWHEAT will be discussing the community, the year ahead and cheating.