transtrion

After months of traveling through Asia, enduring sickness and mending wounds, climbing, crawling, sprinting and swimming, I finally arrived in Seoul, South Korea. How many times I've imagined that day, for years I've been playing with the idea of actually one day visiting this Mecca of E-Sports, and now I had only one thing on my mind; Starcraft.

It just a computer game, but a computer game I've played since I was 12, now 20, and watched the professionals play from streams since before they had English commentary. In the past year has this game grown rapidly in popularity, now with major tournaments going on all over the world. But it's always been about Korea, now and then, and coming here to see the place I've watched trough my computer was truly a dream come true.

Nothing else was really important during my stay. I was here to watch Starcraft and as much Starcraft as I could fit in that time. On the first day I headed out to the GOMtv studio for the GSL Code A matches, heart pounding and eyes distantly dreaming, with absolutely no idea what to expect. Kaldor, one of the commentators, greeted me, spoke to me and joked with me. I didn't know how to react, instead of bursting out with energy as I should, I got silent, timid. This was not even the man I've watched since old. This was not Nick 'Tasteless' Plott, the first English commentary in Korea, who I've since he started four years ago have listened to, learned from, laughed with and looked upon from the other side of the world, still this Kaldor managed to move me so much.

Obviously I went there the next day, but now they were shooting Code S, the highest of the leagues. This meant other casters, in particular the duo I hoped would be back from their casting in the States. I was a bit late and it was raining as I ran through the streets towards the GOMtv studio. Entering the studio a bit absentminded just as they were going live, I saw Artosis in his casting booth. He smiled at me.

I might be a bias fanboy, but Dan 'Artosis' Stemkoski is one of the two I've listened most to in the past year, to me one of the highest, if not the highest, authority in game analysis and a nerd I have the outermost respect for. He makes half of the duo Tasteosis, the other part being Tasteless, which is to me the safest cast to get a experience from a game, and I watch everything they do. So there he was, smiling at me.

Same thing as the day before happen, I froze up and was almost unable to follow the games. Even thou I couldn't hear what he was saying over the Korean casting blasting out in the sound system, was still his smile there, the way he twitches when he says something funny or how he trows his head back whenever someone else delivers a punchline. It was all there, just like being home in front of the computer, but on the same way the exact opposite. This time I was actually here. Because of that was I only able to produce a short "Thank you for everything" when I caught him after the show.

On the third day as I walked to the studio did I arrive at the same time as both Nick and Dan. This being the Tasteosis, the magical duo, both of them, and I couldn't produce a single word. I was just smiling, beaming. They saw me, standing there like some mental patient, and gave me noticeable nod. These were like friends I've never spoken to, so what would I say? I followed them in silence and then crept up in a chair as close to their booth as possible, to maybe catch something they'd say during their cast.

As the last game started I was playing with the idea of actually quell my inner chicken and go for the autograph, maybe even a photo. It was like playing with the idea of asking out your crush, it's been a while now but I remember it the same way, the anxiety, the rush of chemicals messing up every sense in your body giving you the weirdest of headaches. Then suddenly one of them won. The game was over, my crush was advancing.

I sprung up from my seat and dived right for the question. Unfortunately my long suppressed stutter came back now while facing this legendary duo, so it's amazing how they even could make out what I was saying. As I walked away from the studio was my entire body shaking, I could feel the adrenaline dimming my eyes. I could have walked straight in to a tree without feeling any pain. While waiting for some take-out the owner asked me if I was cold and that he could close the door.

The picture below showed me how anything is possible. Not that it's a big achievement, just that it has been a dream for so long that I for some reason thought would never happen. To all you none believers; dreams do come true!

//Nisse

Oh yeah, and I got NaDa's autograph as well. Damn that felt good!