Total War

December 3, 2008 on 2:20 pm | In Korean Life, PC | 1 Comment

Last Sunday, I accepted the challenge put forth to me by a few of my younger Korean students and met them face-to-face on the field of virtual battle. The PC room located on the first floor of my building served as the venue for our epic showdown, our combat medium none other than the perennial “Starcraft.” The result? Let’s just say it was the first, and hopefully last, time I’ve ever been so thoroughly humiliated by third graders.

The war consisted of two separate battles, and in both cases I chose to deploy as Terrans whilst I faced down Zerg and Protoss opponents. I hoped to capitalize on the Terran’s excellent defensive capabilities to maximize my lifetime on the battlefield, as I considered victory far from reach. Instead, I merely hoped to see if, and how, the Koreans lived up to their reputation as a nation of “Starcraft” champs. My observations proved quite enlightening.

While pro gamer leagues exist in the U.S., the fact that anyone would want to watch the matches live on television seems a little far fetched. But here in Korea, there is a channel devoted 24-7 to that one purpose. After engaging in play with my pint-sized opponents, I began to see how such a thing is possible. The most important thing to understand is that they play the RTS in a manner far different from anything I had seen back in the States. In most of my RTS experience, people simply find a build order that specializes in producing a mass amount of one unit faster than their opponents, thereby earning a victory. Such a method merely involves a little trial and error in discovering which particularly unit is favorably unbalanced.

Koreans, however, take a much faster and looser approach that emphasizes quick hits determined to exploit an enemies weakness, followed by a more concentrated attack. Generally, they seize one or two expansions and then focus their forces near the center of the map. This loosely assembled group serves to probe enemy bases or respond to attacks, while raiding units and drop ships lurk behind the front. They constantly raid you, but rarely commit their entire force. Whatever you build, they build to counter you. Once you show sufficient weakness, then comes the main thrust.

Unlike Western players, who tend to focus on building one overwhelming force for one overwhelming attack, Korean players have their armies spread more thinly. While this at first seemed an advantage to me, I soon realized that it allowed them to attack repeatedly and from multiple angles, thus distracting me from building that all powerful army. This also lured my units out of position so they could swoop for a devastating counterattack.

Another gulf also separated myself from my victorious foes, the sheer speed by which they do everything . The mouse clicking is constant and it clicks all over the place. They check units, then buildings, then workers, moving the screen all over the map with surprising zeal. Control groups are discarded and defense is minimal, but effective. Building, expanding, attacking, upgrading, raiding, more tasks than I could possible hope to execute in an orderly fashion.

In the end, the overall speed, tactical discipline and instant adaptability inherent in the Korean style of play was unlike anything I had ever seen. It presented an entirely new way to play and think about the game. It’s no wonder the game is elevated to the level of a national sport, they play it with the a level of skill, execution and dedication that is the hallmark of any sport, from American football to curling. And all this, just from third graders. I shudder to think how I would have fared against the likes of two-time World Cyber Games champion Lim Yo-Hwan.

More minerals required: For everything you ever wanted to know about the Korean gaming scene, check out TeamLiquid, a foreigner (a.k.a. non-Korean) run Web site which posts videos of big pro league matches complete with English commentary.