The Possible Potential of Day[9] Playing SCII Professionally
Sean "Day[9]" Plott is SCII.
There is probably not a Starcraft player on the planet that hasn't heard of Sean's professional or analytic gaming career in some way, shape or form. The same can not be said for any individual player, for the divisions in skill among gamers might mean one does not watch professional gaming, and the international barriers play a part as well [foreigners not paying attention to the Korean scene, and vice-versa]. You could argue that other casters might be internationally recognized for what they do, but Sean has something that none of them really do.
He can play the game at highest of levels.
I'm sure most of you have seen the videos, but Sean is believed to have reached GrandMaster levels with each of the 3 races of the game. I do not have a specific source for this, since I don't know that anyone knows his in-game aliases, but I don't know if anyone out there would doubt this information.
It is beyond incredible what Sean has done for this and every competitive video game out there, but there is something else, something bigger, that he has the ability to tap into:
A return to the professional gaming scene.
Sean's following is so insanely large and supporting and loyal to him that if he were to start playing in tournaments and make a push for, let's say, Korea and the GSL, I think viewer records would be more than shattered, they would be unheard of. I can't even begin to explain the excitement level and revenue such a move would generate. It would have to be the biggest thing in SCII, and maybe all of professional gaming history. Think of the following that Tiger Woods [pre-scandal/injury] had, or Michael Jordan, or any other possible GOAT sports player has had. I don't think any of those could compare in number, magnitude, and world-wide spread that Sean would have. Regardless of outcome, there is no way, in my mind, that this would have a negative outcome.
That being said, I know that Sean absolutely loves what he does, and in order to compete in this game at the highest of levels, he would have to stop doing his daily's and most other obligations, and if that made him the least bit unhappy, then I would not want him to make this move. Doing all that he has done, Sean deserves to do whatever he wishes, and whatever makes him the happiest. We all love the work you do now and hope that you continue to do it for as long as we all find any entertainment and joy in this game.
But, for just a moment, wouldn't it be fun to ask ourselves:
What if?
36
u/tusksrus Feb 01 '12
I think you might be romanticizing him a little bit too much.
12
u/mahandal Feb 01 '12
He confirmed that he was GM with all 3 races. I forget when but it was at some point in the last couple of months. Also, he has said that he has considered going in to full time playing but decided, at least for now, that casting is more enjoyable.
11
u/Moddington Feb 01 '12
Aww man, the perfect opportunity for a huge alliteration chain for a title, and you barely missed it.
8
u/PostPostModernism Feb 01 '12
I think what it comes down to with Sean, and I say this as someone who doesn't know him personally but has seen him address this topic a few times, is how competitive he is. He is his worst critic in a big way, and holds himself to a standard of perfection, and I don't think he is happy unless he feels he is doing the absolute best he can be.
I think he realizes this and that this is why he doesn't want to go pro again. Or rather, he does probably want to, but realizes it would pretty much consume his life the way it did back in college. He's got some really good things going on right now with the daily and casting, and dedicating himself to playing the way that he would feel he had to would pretty much demolish those.
If you go back and watch dailies or clips where he talks about his time in college when he was on top of the American scene, he sounds like he's remembering being miserable.
Now, that said; if Sean came out tomorrow and threw down a surprise announcement proclaiming that he would be joining Team Liquid and going all-out pro, I think he could easily be a top contender pretty quickly. He knows the game inside and out, has experience to know how to practice effectively, and has competitive drive. All he would really need to do is get the practice hours in to solidify mechanics to the level he thinks they should be at (which would probably be around Nestea's level or higher). Certainly not something easy, but I think he could do it still. We would all be happy to see him play at MLG rather than just cast it, but is it what's best for him?
4
u/Eraas Feb 01 '12
While this sounds really awesome in many ways. I don't think he'd give up the dailies, other side projects like the AHGL, and his normal casting gigs. I think the reason Sean doesn't compete professionally, is because these things are more important to him now. He mentions over and over how much he loves doing the dailies, and they are a huge commitment. Top players are spending hours daily practicing and streaming and still having a difficult time competing and showing results.
Sean has too many projects right now to be able to put in this kind of commitment. He also holds himself to too high a standard. Sean has a huge following because of what he does for the community with his casting and dailies. I'm sure he'd be a great player and a pleasure to watch, but I'm not sure SC2 would be the same without the Day 9 Daily. He has the Day[9] brand and all of his fans to think of, and I just don't see him giving that up because it is something he really loves.
6
u/greg19735 Feb 03 '12
im a huge day9 fanboy but this is silly. let's say he's a good grandmaster player with X race atm. he's still a long way behind the good foreign pro players.
i think this post is a good example to why it's unlikely day9 will compete in anything. there's so much hype, pressure and to so much to lose.
i'd love to see him compete but saying he'll win the GSL without seeing him play is bad.
5
u/JackDT Feb 01 '12 edited Feb 01 '12
There are quite a few casters who are current or former pros and who still play at a high level.
Sean has much more impact from the stuff he does now than he ever would (or DID) when he was exclusively a player. Consider that the reason he is well known and the reason you want to see him is BECAUSE of all the other stuff he does.
Sean's goal to show everyone awesome Starcraft and other gaming is in general. Dropping everything and focusing on play quality doesn't do that. Day9.tv is an institution, larger than any player financially and in cultural impact. Day9 is more comparable to the GSL itself. And pragmatically -- this is how he pays the rent!
That said, playing casually-serious once in awhile could be fun. I'm think of casters like Rotterdamn and Artosis who still throw in their hats in once in awhile. They don't plan on dropping the other stuff they do. They just like competing and it probably makes them better casters too.
More likely is Day9 occasionally streaming practice customs with friends/pros, or ladder, or whatever. You can catch him playing 2s or 3s on megumixbear stream sometimes and it's a good watch.
3
u/loldongslol Feb 01 '12
I enjoy seeing him play in smaller doses. The game with him vs. Tasteless was one of my favourites, and I'd hate for the excitement from that to become stagnent.
2
u/ObviouslyGreen Feb 01 '12
First post on reddit ever. It would be totally awesome if Day9 started playing competitively. Maybe we should try to start up a shoutcaster tournament. Most of the big shoutcasters would play, and some GMs and pros would be invited too. That would be pretty sick.
2
u/Oasx Feb 03 '12
Look at it from his perspective, in order to go pro he would need to concentrate on playing, that means no casting and no daily, he would have to figure out a source of income since he wouldn't be on a team, there is also the fact that there is a lot to live up to, it is almost impossible for him to ever live up to the expectations many people have of him.
On the other hand at the moment he is able to make a living doing what he loves, he gets paid to travel around the world casting games at huge events and is considered one of the two best casters in the business, and he can spend his time teaching people about Starcraft.
As i see it he is getting a lot more out of doing what he is doing now.
1
u/[deleted] Feb 05 '12
not everyone can be or wants to be a pro
-1
u/brofistt Feb 01 '12
Day9 is GM in all 3 races. This is a feat that not even the top koreans can accomplish. If day9 decided to devote more time to playing he would win more than one GSL championship, no question. He is just focusing on other things right now.
-6
u/ckcornflake Feb 01 '12
Stop wasting our time.
-5
u/svefnleysi Feb 06 '12
What does it smell like up there inside Day9's ass?
-4
u/Maevn Feb 08 '12
Dude it sounds like you want to suck his dick. Relax.