something to consider for upcomers

[zig8]

nobody knows me here really but...i got a story to tell. i've played halo competitively since halo 1. i got into halo competition when combat evolved hit the PC and i played in CAL/CPL which was the biggest competitive league back than... even bigger than MLG was. at that time halo was supposed to be the next flagship game for PC competition, but somehow it ended up only having two tournaments at CPL and both Halo on the PC died along with the league itself after numerous bad decisions and the slow downfall of the reign of PC as consoles started to take over. halo 2 came out and the competition was obviously on the consoles, not the PC. back than i decided to give consoles a chance and picked up a controller over a mouse and keyboard, and me and my real life friends formed a local nyc halo team. somehow we managed to find ourselves competing against players who would go on to become MLG superstars. xXx had TsK with players like poison, lil poison, boo, riddick, zion, se7en, etc. and i would also attend some lans in nj where i met players like shockwav3, ghostayame, etc. my team got to scrim against these players on lan, onlines, and we would even warm up with TsK at a few of the early Halo 2 MLG events which to us was epic because we felt acknowledged. it was especially satisfying because we considered ourselves top halo 2 players and felt like we put a lot of time and effort into the game, so for us to be acknowledged by other top players was a great feeling and a great experience. i got to play with and against the ogres and walshy when they were StK, and than Team 3D... and my team mate was actually in the hotel room with Walshy the night before they announced they would become Team 3D. it's just great memories...

but the reason i'm telling you all of this is because, my team ended up breaking up during Halo 2 due to the reality of how difficult it is to micromanage being committed to a competitive FPS game and also having real life responsibilities. i myself got into some real trouble with the law for doing something ridiculously stupid, and we never played halo 3. when reach came out we decided to try and come back to the game but we were miles behind where we used to be and getting back to the top of our game was something we just couldn't commit to anymore now that we were adults. it was a hard realization to come to, but we realized that competition just wasn't our thing anymore and we would never be able to get back to where we were.

the hard part about all of it is that even though it was a great experience, we all realized that we had played and invested so much time into halo but never had anything at all to show for it. we had no accomplishments. but i figure, a lot of competitors probably go through this very same experience. players who feel that they have the experience, the talent, and the drive to be where other MLG competitors are at but they just can't make it over the hill so to speak.

so i just wanted to give some advice to all of you who have the ambition to be competitive gamers. i'm 25 years old, and when I was competing in Halo 2 i never actually realized how close i was to finding the success and accomplishment that i desired. when my team mates quit to pursue other responsibilities i decided that i shouldn't go on without them... i ended up doing stupid things in life and even though my ambition to compete never died my opportunities did. when i finally came back to reach i noticed that everyone was obsessed with being #1, or having the best statistics, or the best kill death ratio, etc. i want you all to know that isn't really what is important.

being the best is about being committed to what it is that you do, never giving up, always improving, always adapting, not listening to any negativity and making sure that you realize where you are now and where you can be in the future. you might not be happy with the team your on, or your placing at a tournament, or your current ability at the game but as long as you have the passion and the commitment and you keep working hard at it you can be among the best and make it to the top. all of these "MLG Kiddies" i met when i returned for reach lack the personality of those players i knew who became MLG superstars. players like shockwav3 who i personally observed were never concerned about their individual performances or statistics, never put anyone down about their own performances, and were always very uplifting and showed a sincere passion for improving and getting better. it's all they cared about. they didn't put anyone down, they didn't talk shit about people, and they had sportsmanship and that's why they found success.

so, if you're still dreaming about being at the top just know that it is very possibly and your attitude has a LOT more to do with it than your skill. skill will come with practice, but if you have the right attitude about competitive gaming you can go very far. unfortunately my team is gone and i'm signing off for good... but good luck to the rest of you and i really hope one day MLG becomes as big and as spectacular as other competitive sports are today.

zig8

[-ironman]

Agreed.
Double Agree @ the "MLG kiddies".
Overall Good read.

[MidKnight]

nice long read to start off my day, well done

[SullyVan]

Great read man! Very well done.

[HeadStrongFTW]

nobody knows me here really but...i got a story to tell. i've played halo competitively since halo 1. i got into halo competition when combat evolved hit the PC and i played in CAL/CPL which was the biggest competitive league back than... even bigger than MLG was. at that time halo was supposed to be the next flagship game for PC competition, but somehow it ended up only having two tournaments at CPL and both Halo on the PC died along with the league itself after numerous bad decisions and the slow downfall of the reign of PC as consoles started to take over. halo 2 came out and the competition was obviously on the consoles, not the PC. back than i decided to give consoles a chance and picked up a controller over a mouse and keyboard, and me and my real life friends formed a local nyc halo team. somehow we managed to find ourselves competing against players who would go on to become MLG superstars. xXx had TsK with players like poison, lil poison, boo, riddick, zion, se7en, etc. and i would also attend some lans in nj where i met players like shockwav3, ghostayame, etc. my team got to scrim against these players on lan, onlines, and we would even warm up with TsK at a few of the early Halo 2 MLG events which to us was epic because we felt acknowledged. it was especially satisfying because we considered ourselves top halo 2 players and felt like we put a lot of time and effort into the game, so for us to be acknowledged by other top players was a great feeling and a great experience. i got to play with and against the ogres and walshy when they were StK, and than Team 3D... and my team mate was actually in the hotel room with Walshy the night before they announced they would become Team 3D. it's just great memories...

but the reason i'm telling you all of this is because, my team ended up breaking up during Halo 2 due to the reality of how difficult it is to micromanage being committed to a competitive FPS game and also having real life responsibilities. i myself got into some real trouble with the law for doing something ridiculously stupid, and we never played halo 3. when reach came out we decided to try and come back to the game but we were miles behind where we used to be and getting back to the top of our game was something we just couldn't commit to anymore now that we were adults. it was a hard realization to come to, but we realized that competition just wasn't our thing anymore and we would never be able to get back to where we were.

the hard part about all of it is that even though it was a great experience, we all realized that we had played and invested so much time into halo but never had anything at all to show for it. we had no accomplishments. but i figure, a lot of competitors probably go through this very same experience. players who feel that they have the experience, the talent, and the drive to be where other MLG competitors are at but they just can't make it over the hill so to speak.

so i just wanted to give some advice to all of you who have the ambition to be competitive gamers. i'm 25 years old, and when I was competing in Halo 2 i never actually realized how close i was to finding the success and accomplishment that i desired. when my team mates quit to pursue other responsibilities i decided that i shouldn't go on without them... i ended up doing stupid things in life and even though my ambition to compete never died my opportunities did. when i finally came back to reach i noticed that everyone was obsessed with being #1, or having the best statistics, or the best kill death ratio, etc. i want you all to know that isn't really what is important.

being the best is about being committed to what it is that you do, never giving up, always improving, always adapting, not listening to any negativity and making sure that you realize where you are now and where you can be in the future. you might not be happy with the team your on, or your placing at a tournament, or your current ability at the game but as long as you have the passion and the commitment and you keep working hard at it you can be among the best and make it to the top. all of these "MLG Kiddies" i met when i returned for reach lack the personality of those players i knew who became MLG superstars. players like shockwav3 who i personally observed were never concerned about their individual performances or statistics, never put anyone down about their own performances, and were always very uplifting and showed a sincere passion for improving and getting better. it's all they cared about. they didn't put anyone down, they didn't talk shit about people, and they had sportsmanship and that's why they found success.

so, if you're still dreaming about being at the top just know that it is very possibly and your attitude has a LOT more to do with it than your skill. skill will come with practice, but if you have the right attitude about competitive gaming you can go very far. unfortunately my team is gone and i'm signing off for good... but good luck to the rest of you and i really hope one day MLG becomes as big and as spectacular as other competitive sports are today.

zig8


You are my hero

[cF WiNGER]

Unfortunately more people don't think like that. For the sake of the game, I hope that changes. Just like in other sports, Halo you need the right pieces. In the words of one of the greatest coaches in hockey history:

"I'm not looking for the best players.....I'm looking for the right ones." - Herb Brooks

...Oh yea. And for those who don't know he took that team, filled with college amateurs, and went on to beat a Soviet team who was the best team in the world for about 2 decades. They won Olympic Gold at home on US soil in Lake Placid.

[TLN Frost]

nobody knows me here really but...i got a story to tell. i've played halo competitively since halo 1. i got into halo competition when combat evolved hit the PC and i played in CAL/CPL which was the biggest competitive league back than... even bigger than MLG was. at that time halo was supposed to be the next flagship game for PC competition, but somehow it ended up only having two tournaments at CPL and both Halo on the PC died along with the league itself after numerous bad decisions and the slow downfall of the reign of PC as consoles started to take over. halo 2 came out and the competition was obviously on the consoles, not the PC. back than i decided to give consoles a chance and picked up a controller over a mouse and keyboard, and me and my real life friends formed a local nyc halo team. somehow we managed to find ourselves competing against players who would go on to become MLG superstars. xXx had TsK with players like poison, lil poison, boo, riddick, zion, se7en, etc. and i would also attend some lans in nj where i met players like shockwav3, ghostayame, etc. my team got to scrim against these players on lan, onlines, and we would even warm up with TsK at a few of the early Halo 2 MLG events which to us was epic because we felt acknowledged. it was especially satisfying because we considered ourselves top halo 2 players and felt like we put a lot of time and effort into the game, so for us to be acknowledged by other top players was a great feeling and a great experience. i got to play with and against the ogres and walshy when they were StK, and than Team 3D... and my team mate was actually in the hotel room with Walshy the night before they announced they would become Team 3D. it's just great memories...

but the reason i'm telling you all of this is because, my team ended up breaking up during Halo 2 due to the reality of how difficult it is to micromanage being committed to a competitive FPS game and also having real life responsibilities. i myself got into some real trouble with the law for doing something ridiculously stupid, and we never played halo 3. when reach came out we decided to try and come back to the game but we were miles behind where we used to be and getting back to the top of our game was something we just couldn't commit to anymore now that we were adults. it was a hard realization to come to, but we realized that competition just wasn't our thing anymore and we would never be able to get back to where we were.

the hard part about all of it is that even though it was a great experience, we all realized that we had played and invested so much time into halo but never had anything at all to show for it. we had no accomplishments. but i figure, a lot of competitors probably go through this very same experience. players who feel that they have the experience, the talent, and the drive to be where other MLG competitors are at but they just can't make it over the hill so to speak.

so i just wanted to give some advice to all of you who have the ambition to be competitive gamers. i'm 25 years old, and when I was competing in Halo 2 i never actually realized how close i was to finding the success and accomplishment that i desired. when my team mates quit to pursue other responsibilities i decided that i shouldn't go on without them... i ended up doing stupid things in life and even though my ambition to compete never died my opportunities did. when i finally came back to reach i noticed that everyone was obsessed with being #1, or having the best statistics, or the best kill death ratio, etc. i want you all to know that isn't really what is important.

being the best is about being committed to what it is that you do, never giving up, always improving, always adapting, not listening to any negativity and making sure that you realize where you are now and where you can be in the future. you might not be happy with the team your on, or your placing at a tournament, or your current ability at the game but as long as you have the passion and the commitment and you keep working hard at it you can be among the best and make it to the top. all of these "MLG Kiddies" i met when i returned for reach lack the personality of those players i knew who became MLG superstars. players like shockwav3 who i personally observed were never concerned about their individual performances or statistics, never put anyone down about their own performances, and were always very uplifting and showed a sincere passion for improving and getting better. it's all they cared about. they didn't put anyone down, they didn't talk shit about people, and they had sportsmanship and that's why they found success.

so, if you're still dreaming about being at the top just know that it is very possibly and your attitude has a LOT more to do with it than your skill. skill will come with practice, but if you have the right attitude about competitive gaming you can go very far. unfortunately my team is gone and i'm signing off for good... but good luck to the rest of you and i really hope one day MLG becomes as big and as spectacular as other competitive sports are today.

zig8
Thread of the decade. <3

I so miss '05-06 when no one had a huge e-penis, and no one cared about stats, it was about the win. That's when shit got real, and got real competitive. Carbon, FB, Str8...sigh the good ol days.

[Legendary Pelon]

This is a must read guys!

Long but good!

[Makin]

So much knowledge is in this thread, I can tell you were close to the top before you quit. I welcome you back to the competitive scene. To be honest if you weren't playing competitively in H2 the odds of becoming pro in Halo are slim. It's the knowledge of past games that carries the skill onward from one game to the next. This thread is proof of that. HMU on XBL Zig I would play with you ANYTIME. Also Fuck the police :D

[Teamwe]

Wow. Probably the best thread I could read before driving down to Columbus later today. I want to honestly say that I have maybe 75% of that attitude and talent to get there without sounding like a cocky ahole. However, because of this read, I will try even harder to get that last 25%. Thank you zig for one of the best and influential reads ill read on the forums.

[Homer]

Agreed with everything.