| Sport | StarCraft, StarCraft II |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2003 |
| Ceased | 2016 |
| Country | South Korea |
| Continent | Asia |
| Last champion(s) | Jin Air Green Wings |
| Most titles | SK Telecom T1 |
| Official website | Proleague Official Page (Korean) |
With millions of players already in the fight, StarCraft II has made gaming history. Now it's your turn to take command and lead vast armies of terran, protoss and zerg to victory amongst the stars. Prepare for interstellar war, commander. You're needed at the front. StarCraft II continues the epic saga of the Protoss, Terran, and Zerg. These three distinct and powerful races will clash once again in the fast-paced real-time strategy sequel to the legendary original, StarCraft. Legions of veteran, upgraded, and brand-new unit types will do battle across the galaxy, as each faction struggles for survival.
Jul 27, 2010 Product Description. StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty is the sequel to Blizzard Entertainment's 1998 hit StarCraft, which has been hailed by players and critics worldwide as one of the top real-time strategy games of all time.
StarCraft II Proleague, also known as StarCraft Proleague or Proleague for short, was the longest running StarCraft league in the world and the most prestigious team league. Hosted by the Korean eSports Association (KeSPA), the league was played offline in South Korea. Proleague began in 2003 with the game StarCraft: Brood War before switching over to StarCraft II in 2011 and then discontinued in 2016. It was broadcast by SPOTVGames prior to being discontinued.
History[edit]
In 2003, the game broadcasting company MBCGame created the KPGA Team League, the first major team league in StarCraft professional competition.[1] MBCGame's competitor, OnGameNet created their own team league in response and so two major team leagues were active in the early 2000s.
In 2005, KeSPA merged the two team leagues to create the Proleague, a unified league.[1]SK Telecom T1 swept the first two rounds of the newly formed league and ended up winning the grand finals as well to be the first champion. From its inception, the Proleague format had the teams alternate between 1vs1 and 2vs2 games in a best of five or best of seven match. However, the 2vs2 matches were discontinued in 2008, leaving only 1vs1 games.[2] After the 2008 season, the format of Proleague changed again to span a longer portion of the year, typically starting from the end of one year and ending in the Fall of the next. The 2009 – 2010 season led to the creation of the modern Proleague format where teams face off each other in four or five rounds of round robin. At the end of the season, the highest scoring teams face off in a single-elimination playoffs bracket to determine the champion.
Fairbanks morse scale serial numbers. Prior to the release of StarCraft II in 2010, Blizzard Entertainment, disputed with KeSPA over intellectual property rights of broadcasting StarCraft games.[3] This put pressure on KeSPA and in 2011 the case was resolved with an eSports commentator noting that the case was a push to expand the broadcasting market into StarCraft II.[4] The 2011 – 2012 Proleague ended up being a transitional season for the league as featured both Brood War and Wings of Liberty. Each match was played alternating between Brood War and Wings of Liberty, with each player having to prepare for both games as well.[5] Following the closure of MBCGame in 2012, SPOTVGames broadcast Proleague alongside OnGameNet.[1]
The full transition into StarCraft II came into place for the 2012 – 2013 season which also featured EG-TL, a partnership between rivals Team Liquid and Evil Geniuses which made them the first non-Korean team to play in Proleague.[6] EG-TL did not achieve much success in Proleague and ultimately pulled out of the league in the following season. OnGameNet stopped broadcasting Proleague starting the 2013 – 2014 season, leaving SPOTVGames as the sole broadcaster for the league.[7]
KeSPA announced on October 18, 2016 that Proleague would be discontinued citing sponsorship and viewership issues.[8]
Fairbanks morse scale serial numbers. Prior to the release of StarCraft II in 2010, Blizzard Entertainment, disputed with KeSPA over intellectual property rights of broadcasting StarCraft games.[3] This put pressure on KeSPA and in 2011 the case was resolved with an eSports commentator noting that the case was a push to expand the broadcasting market into StarCraft II.[4] The 2011 – 2012 Proleague ended up being a transitional season for the league as featured both Brood War and Wings of Liberty. Each match was played alternating between Brood War and Wings of Liberty, with each player having to prepare for both games as well.[5] Following the closure of MBCGame in 2012, SPOTVGames broadcast Proleague alongside OnGameNet.[1]
The full transition into StarCraft II came into place for the 2012 – 2013 season which also featured EG-TL, a partnership between rivals Team Liquid and Evil Geniuses which made them the first non-Korean team to play in Proleague.[6] EG-TL did not achieve much success in Proleague and ultimately pulled out of the league in the following season. OnGameNet stopped broadcasting Proleague starting the 2013 – 2014 season, leaving SPOTVGames as the sole broadcaster for the league.[7]
KeSPA announced on October 18, 2016 that Proleague would be discontinued citing sponsorship and viewership issues.[8]
Tournaments[edit]
OnGameNet and MBCGame Leagues[edit]
MBCGame hosted their first major team league in 2003.[1]
| Year | Name of Tournament | Winner | Result of Final | Runner-Up |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | 2003 KeMongSa KPGA Tour Team League | Suma GO | 3–1 | STX SouL |
| 2003 | 2003 LifeZone KPGA Team League | Suma GO | 3–2 | Hanbit Stars |
| 2003–2004 | 2003–2004 LG IBM MBC Team League | SK Telecom T1 | 3–2 | KTF MagicNs |
| 2004 | 2004 Tucsan MBCGame Team League I | SK Telecom T1 | 4–3 | Suma GO |
| 2004 | 2004 Tucsan MBCGame Team League II | SK Telecom T1 | 4–3 | Suma GO |
| 2004–2005 | 2004–2005 MBCMovies MBCGame Team League | Suma GO | 3–2 | WeMade FOX |
OnGameNet also hosted their own team competitions in 2003 and 2004.
| Year | Name of Tournament | Winner | Result of Final | Runner-Up |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | 2003 KTF EVER Cup | SK Telecom T1 | 3–0 | Woongjin Stars |
| 2003 | 2003 Neowiz Pmang Cup | Suma GO | 3–0 | Pantech EX |
| 2004 | 2004 SKY Proleague Grand Final | Hanbit Stars | 4–2 | Pantech & Curitel Curriors |
United League[edit]
OnGameNet and MBCGame came together to host Proleague starting in 2005.
| Year | Name of Tournament | Winner | Result of Final | Runner-Up |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | SKY Proleague Grand Final | SK Telecom T1 | 4–2 | KTF MagicNs |
| 2006 | SKY Proleague Grand Final | MBCGame HERO | 4–3 | Pantech EX |
| 2007 | 2007 Shinhan Proleague Grand Final | Lecaf OZ | 4–2 | Samsung KHAN |
| 2008 | Shinhan Bank Proleague | Samsung KHAN | 4–1 | Hite SPARKYZ |
| 2008–2009 | Shinhan Bank Proleague | SK Telecom T1 | 2–0 | Hwaseung OZ |
| 2009–2010 | Shinhan Bank Proleague | KT Rolster | 4–2 | SK Telecom T1 |
| 2010–2011 | Shinhan Bank Proleague | KT Rolster | 4–3 | SK Telecom T1 |
| 2011–2012 | SK Planet Proleague Season 1 | SK Telecom T1 | 4–3 | KT Rolster |
Hybrid League[edit]
Prior to the switch to StarCraft II, the 2011 – 2012 SK Planet Proleague Season 2 league featured both games.
| Year | Name of Tournament | Winner | Result of Final | Runner-Up |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011–2012 | SK Planet Proleague Season 2 | CJ Entus | 2–0 | Samsung KHAN |
StarCraft II Leagues[edit]
Door kickers 1 1 5. Proleague fully switched to StarCraft II starting with the 2012 – 2013 season.
| Year | Name of Tournament | Winner | Result of Final | Runner-Up |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012–2013 | 2012 – 2013 SK Planet Proleague | STX SouL | 4–2 | Woongjin Stars |
| 2013–2014 | 2014 SK Telecom Proleague | KT Rolster | 4–2 | SK Telecom T1 |
| 2014–2015 | 2015 SK Telecom Proleague | SK Telecom T1 | 4–2 | Jin Air Green Wings |
| 2016 | 2016 SK Telecom Proleague | Jin Air Green Wings | 4–0 | KT Rolster |
Teams[edit]
For the 2016 season, the final season, there were 7 teams in Proleague.[9]
Prize Pool[edit]
The prize pool for the grand finals of the 2014 – 2015 Proleague season was a total of 70,000,000 KRW.[10] Librarian pro 4 0 – complete personal inventory system download. In addition, each round had its own separate prize pool and additional awards were given out to outstanding players. Jamf patch management.
| Place | Amount (KRW) |
|---|---|
| 1st | 50,000,000 |
| 2nd | 20,000,000 |
See also[edit]
External links[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ abcd'MBCGame: In Memoriam'. January 31, 2012. Retrieved November 27, 2015.
- ^'스타2 프로리그 2014, 프리시즌 이벤트전 개최' [StarCraft 2 Proleague 2014, Pre-season Event Information] (in Korean). December 11, 2013. Retrieved November 27, 2015.
- ^'StarCraft Losing in Gaming League'. May 19, 2008. Retrieved November 27, 2015.
- ^'Blizzard – KeSPA license official'. May 17, 2011.
- ^'[SPL] Opening Day'. May 20, 2012. Retrieved November 27, 2015.
- ^'Unholy Alliance'. December 4, 2012. Retrieved November 27, 2015.
- ^'[스타2] SK텔레콤 스타크래프트2 프로리그 2014시즌 – 미디어데이 (+ 사진)' [[StarCraft II] SK Telecom StarCraft 2 Proleague 2014 Season – Media Day (and Pictures)] (in Korean). December 14, 2013. Retrieved November 27, 2015.
- ^'KeSPA announces discontinuation of StarCraft ProLeague'. October 18, 2016. Retrieved October 18, 2016.
- ^'Proleague Media Day'. Retrieved February 16, 2016.
- ^'2015 SK Telecom Proleague Playoffs'. Retrieved November 25, 2015.
| Serral | |
|---|---|
| Joona Sotala | |
| Personal information | |
| Born | March 22, 1998 (age 22)[1] |
| Nationality | Finland |
| Nickname(s) | Serral, The Night King, The Finnish Phenom, The Finnisher, |
| Career information | |
| Status | Active |
| Current team | ENCE eSports |
| Games | StarCraft II |
| Career prize money | ~US$832,158.99[1] |
| Career history | |
| 2012 | eXelon Gaming |
| 2013-2014 | ENCE eSports |
| 2014-2016 | mYinsanity |
| 2016-present | ENCE eSports |
Joona Sotala (born March 22, 1998), better known by his gaming handle Serral, is a Finnish professional Starcraft II player using the race Zerg. In 2018, Serral became the first non-Korean player to win the StarCraft II World Championship Series (WCS).[2][3] He won every major non-Korean tournament in 2018, the 2018 Global Starcraft II League (GSL) vs. the World event and, ultimately, the 2018 WCS Global Finals.[4]
Starcraft II Career[edit]
Early career[edit]
Serral started competing at Starcraft II in 2012, but did not initially make a big splash. He would improve his play steadily, taking a first minor US$1,000 tournament win in 2015.[citation needed] His first major tournament win would come in 2017 with the World Championship Series (WCS) Jönköping European Qualifier win, beating Zanster, Mana, ShowTimE, Namshar and Elazer.[5][6] He would take 2nd place in the main event after beating Stephano, PtitDrogo and Elazer, but losing 3-4 to Neeb in the Finals.[7] In 2017, he also won the European Qualifier for WCS Valencia, taking out Stephano, Bly, HeRoMaRinE and Elazer twice.[8] During the main event, he was knocked out in the quarter finals by TRUE.[9]
Serral won the European Qualifier for World Electronic Sports Games (WESG) by beating Clem, NightEnD, Starbuck, Majestic, uThermal, Elazer and Nerchio.[10] In the main event, he did not lose a map during group play, beating ShoWTimE, Minato, Has, Elazer, Bly and Lambo. During playoffs he beat Neeb in the quarterfinals, but lost 0-3 to the eventual champion Maru.[11]
2018[edit]
His first premier tournament win came in 2018 when he won WCS Leipzig, beating MaSa, Nerchio, SpeCial and ShoWTimE.[12] He went on to win all 3 other major WCS tournaments in 2018, getting the first clean sweep, or Grand Slam, in WCS history.[13] In WCS Austin, he defeated Kelazhur, HeRoMaRinE, Lambo and MaNa.[14] In WCS Valencia, he beat Scarlett, Reynor, HeRoMaRinE and Has.[15] In WCS Montreal, his domination of the 2018 WCS circuit was underscored by beating JonSnow, Scarlett, Lambo and Reynor.[16] Serral also showed his prowess in the Korean scene at the 2018 Global Starcraft II League (GSL) vs. the World tournament where he took home a $26,901 prize over several of the strongest Korean players, beating Kelazhur, INnoVation, Dark and Stats.[17][18]
The year end WCS Global Finals at Blizzcon featured 2018's eight best non-Koreans and eight best Koreans, including Cho 'Maru' Seong Ju, who qualified for the Global Finals by making a clean sweep of GSL. Serral would win this tournament beating sOs, Zest, Dark, Rogue and Stats to become the first non-Korean to do so in the history of the Starcraft franchise.[2][3][19]
2019[edit]
To start off the year 2019, Serral competed in the WCS Winter Europe Tournament, where he was expected to win. However, he was defeated 4-3 by 16-year-old Italian Zerg player, Reynor, in the Grand Finals in an incredibly close series.[20] A month prior, he was also defeated by INnoVation in the WESG Finals.[21] Not to mention, earlier that week he was eliminated in the Round of 8 of IEM Katowice to soO, the eventual winner of the tournament.[22] After not losing a tournament in 2018, then falling short of victory in his first three tournaments of 2019, many started to question his dominance over the scene.[23]
After the conclusion of WCS Winter, the Challengers for WCS Spring quickly started where Serral easily won, defeating ShoWTimE in the finals 4-2.[24] During the main tournament, Serral quickly advanced to the playoff round. He defeated Lambo and TIME to advance to the semifinals. In the semifinal, he swept Reynor 3-0 to advance into the Grand Final - as a revenge for WCS Winter. In the Grand Final, Serral won 4-0 versus the Mexican Terran player SpeCial. His victory in WCS Spring was his Fifth WCS Circuit title.[25][26]
However, he lost again to Reynor in the WCS Summer Grand Final 4-2. In his home tournament in Finland, Asus ROG Assembly 2019, he was projected to be one of the favorites to win the tournament, but lost to the strong Korean Protoss player Stats 2-3 in semifinals. Later during the summer, he won the GSL vs. the World tournament on Korean soil by defeating another Zerg player, Elazer, in the finals 4-2. The first time in the history no Korean players appeared in the final match. The win was Serral's second consecutive in the tournament.[27] Serral won the last 2019 WCS Fall circuit tournament at Montreal against Reynor 4-1, and broke the previous WCS record by achieving an unprecedented map score of 17-1 - with his only map loss in the finals. Serral won the WCS season with 10,200 points, having already earned the top seed in Blizzcon 2019 with tournament victories in WCS Spring and WCS Fall tournaments.[28] Despite of being one of the main favorites to win The Blizzcon 2019 he lost the semifinal match against his season long rival Reynor 2-3, the eventual tournament runner-up, after tight series of best of 5.[29][30]
In the season's last premier tournament HomeStory Cup XX held at Tropical Islands Resort in Germany, Serral came back to the winning ways defeating Reynor twice (2-1 and 3-2) in the finals after winning the double-elimination loser bracket final against Innovation 0-3, to which he was first relegated from winners' round 2 by him with map score 3-1.[31][32]
Serral played crucial role in Nationwars 2019 tournament when Team Finland (ZhuGeLiang, Serral, TheMusZero) defeated Team Korea in the final match 5-3 becoming the champion.[33]
For recognition and honor of Serral's accomplishments and continued success in StarCraft II esports, the President of FinlandSauli Niinistö invited him to take part to the traditional Independence Day Reception in the Presidential Palace, Helsinki, December 6th 2019.[34]
References[edit]
Starcraft Ii 4 3 2 X 2
- ^ ab'Serral - Joona Sotala - StarCraft II Player Profile :: Esports Earnings'. www.esportsearnings.com. Retrieved 2019-10-19.
- ^ abKurt, Lozano. 'Serral dominates, becomes first non-Korean to win the WCS'. www.foxsportsasia.com. Retrieved 22 November 2018.
- ^ abHorti, Samuel (2018-11-04). 'Serral becomes first non-Korean to win StarCraft 2's biggest prize'. PC Gamer. Retrieved 2019-10-19.
- ^'StarCraft II: Serral wins WCS Global Finals'. ESPN.com. Retrieved 22 November 2018.
- ^'2017 WCS Jönköping - Europe Qualifier - Liquipedia - The StarCraft II Encyclopedia'. liquipedia.net.
- ^Miles, Yim. 'Serral searching to cement his StarCraft legacy'. ESPN.com. Retrieved 22 November 2018.
- ^'2017 WCS Jönköping - Liquipedia - The StarCraft II Encyclopedia'. liquipedia.net.
- ^'2017 WCS Valencia - Europe Qualifier - Liquipedia - The StarCraft II Encyclopedia'. liquipedia.net.
- ^'2017 WCS Valencia - Liquipedia - The StarCraft II Encyclopedia'. liquipedia.net.
- ^'WESG 2017 - Europe & CIS Qualifier - Liquipedia - The StarCraft II Encyclopedia'. liquipedia.net.
- ^'World Electronic Sports Games 2017 - Liquipedia - The StarCraft II Encyclopedia'. liquipedia.net.
- ^'2018 WCS Leipzig - Liquipedia - The StarCraft II Encyclopedia'. liquipedia.net.
- ^Miles, Yim. 'Serral searching to cement his StarCraft legacy'. ESPN.com. Retrieved 22 November 2018.
- ^'2018 WCS Austin - Liquipedia - The StarCraft II Encyclopedia'. liquipedia.net.
- ^'2018 WCS Valencia - Liquipedia - The StarCraft II Encyclopedia'. liquipedia.net.
- ^'2018 WCS Montreal - Liquipedia - The StarCraft II Encyclopedia'. liquipedia.net.
- ^'2018 GSL vs. the World - Liquipedia - The StarCraft II Encyclopedia'. liquipedia.net.
- ^Miles, Yim. 'Serral searching to cement his StarCraft legacy'. ESPN.com. Retrieved 22 November 2018.
- ^'2018 WCS Global Finals'. Liquipedia StarCraft 2 Wiki.
- ^'2019 WCS Winter Europe - Liquipedia - The StarCraft II Encyclopedia'. liquipedia.net. Retrieved 2019-05-19.
- ^'World Electronic Sports Games 2018 - Liquipedia - The StarCraft II Encyclopedia'. liquipedia.net. Retrieved 2019-05-19.
- ^'IEM Season XIII - Katowice - Liquipedia - The StarCraft II Encyclopedia'. liquipedia.net. Retrieved 2019-05-19.
- ^'Reynor wins WCS Winter: Europe'. tl.net. Retrieved 2019-05-19.
- ^'2019 WCS Spring: Europe Qualifier - Liquipedia - The StarCraft II Encyclopedia'. liquipedia.net. Retrieved 2019-05-19.
- ^'2019 WCS Spring - Liquipedia - The StarCraft II Encyclopedia'. liquipedia.net. Retrieved 2019-05-19.
- ^'Serral wins WCS Spring, claims fifth circuit title'. tl.net. Retrieved 2019-05-19.
- ^'Serral defeats Elazer to win GSL vs The World 2019'. tl.net. Retrieved 2020-01-26.
- ^'WCS 2019 Global Standings'. wcs.starcraft2.com. Retrieved 2020-01-26.
- ^'2019 WCS Global Finals'. liquipedia.net. Retrieved 2020-01-26.
- ^'CONGRATS TO THE STARCRAFT II WCS GLOBAL FINALS CHAMPION!'. blizzcon.com. Retrieved 2020-01-26.
- ^'HomeStory Cup XX'. liquipedia.net. Retrieved 2020-01-26.
- ^'Serral wins HomeStory Cup XX'. tl.net. Retrieved 2020-01-26.
- ^'StarCraft II: NationWars 2019'. liquipedia.net. Retrieved 2020-01-26.
- ^'StarCraft II -pelin maailmanmestari Joona Sotala sai kutsun Linnan juhliin'. is.fi. Retrieved 2020-01-26.
Starcraft Ii 4 3 2 1 Grounding
| Preceded by Lee 'Rogue' Byung Ryul | StarCraft II World Championship Series Winner 2018 | Succeeded by Park 'Dark' Ryung Woo |
Starcraft Ii 4 3 2 1
External links[edit]
