The 2016 top 10 esports draft
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The 2016 top 10 esports draft
281d - Tyler Erzberger
ELeague SFV bracket preview
2h - Timothy Lee
What are the driving forces for AI
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NA LCS pros weigh in on MVP race
21h - Tyler Erzberger
Adrian, Team Liquid part ways
1d - Jacob Wolf
RLCS power rankings after Week 3
1h - Ian Faletti
The ESPN Esports bracket: Who's your
favorite esports pro?
3d - Leo Howell
Circa eSports dives into Injustice 2,
signs Forever King
1d - Timothy Lee
The 2016 top 10 esports draft
Mad Catz files for bankruptcy
4d - Doug Cortez
Joe Montana on esports: 'We believe in
the space'
4d - Tyler Erzberger
LoL: Team Liquid disassembles eUnited
3d - Ben Wong
LoL: VG tears GT apart in a bloody
sweep
2d - Noah Waltzer
Mikwen: 'You can't go toe-to-toe with
OpTic Gaming because you'll lose'
4d - Tyler Erzberger
LoL: RNG withstands iG onslaught
3d - Noah Waltzer
LoL: Gold Coin one step closer to LCS
3d - Dylan Sen
Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok holds up the Mid-Season Invitational trophy. Provided by Riot Games
LoL: Misfits sharp against
Giants
3d - Chase Geddes
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The 2016 top 10 esports draft
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Tyler Erzberger
ESPN Esports
Jun 27, 2016
Tonight, top collegiate and international standouts converge on the Barclays
Center in Brooklyn for the much-anticipated NBA draft. The draft is a window
into the future for the franchises and players that participate, and the results
can profoundly affect a team's competitiveness and even shape the sport itself.
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°
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Look no further than LeBron James, who was the Cleveland Cavaliers' top pick
in 2003 who just brought home the franchise's first championship while picking
up his third NBA Finals MVP.
EDITOR'S PICKS
Best/Worst - The 2016 Summer LCS so far
Best: best of twos/threes. Worst: Cloud dragons. Best: NA LCS finals in Toronto. Worst:
Echo Fox's slow decline into relegation territory.
League of Legends global power rankings through June 22
Longzhu Gaming and Snake Esports surprise, CLG falls, and a surprising number of
teams manage to keep their ranks.
East vs. West: Street Fighter V at CEO 2016
CEO 2016 will feature a climactic regional clash between two powerhouses in Street
Fighter V: the East and the West.
Like the NBA draft, esports is filled with prospects, but not just the players.
Everyone -- from sponsors to franchises -- is eager to see which game will
become the basketball of competitive gaming. Will League of Legends keep its
perch as the most-watched (and most-played) esport in the world, or is there a
game out there on the verge of coming out on top?
Keeping in the spirit of the NBA draft, it's time for the esports draft. Based on
current viewership, sponsorship, player base and, most importantly, future
growth potential, here is my draft board for the esports to look out for in 2016
and beyond.
1. Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (Valve)
CS:GO has come a long way in the past year. What seemed to be a midtier
competitive title only a year or two ago has begun to challenge League as the
world's most-watched esport. With the game currently on weekly television with
TBS and Eleague, the potential growth for the title is even greater. Outside of
being huge in North America, Europe and South America, the game is starting
to gain traction in China, and that can only mean more money, sponsorships
and eyeballs directed toward the world's top first-person shooter.
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The Tempo Storm CS:GO roster has been picked up by Immortals. Provided by Joe Brady / Gfinity
Additionally, CS:GO's straightforward five-on-five format with clear-cut attack
and defense objectives contributes to its growing popularity among spectators.
This simplicity has the advantage against games with thousands of spells and
different characters like League of Legends, and makes this Valve game my top
pick on the board.
2. League of Legends (Riot Games)
Provided by Riot Games
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League of Legends, for all its issues and complaints, is still the game that has
the farthest reach when it comes to worldwide appeal. There are professional
leagues for League of Legends across the globe, and it's huge in major markets
like the United States, Europe and China. It has a wide array of famous players,
like the Michael Jordan-esque Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok, and Riot has done a
good job marketing its leagues and talent while also investing in infrastructure
behind-the-scenes.
The issue that League might run into, outside of how difficult it can be for a
newcomer to understand what the hell is actually going on, is the regional parity
of the competitive scene. Koreans dominate the game, and most of the top
international teams in other regions have Korean imports on the roster. While
nationalistic diversity isn't the be-all and end-all, the same teams from the same
region winning the major tournaments every year can turn away fans from
budding regions.
3. Dota 2 (Valve)
Sumail is all smiles as he gets ready to play against Complexity at the The International. Provided by Valve.
The second Valve game on the board, Dota 2, is a game that has staying power
despite its smaller scale. Dota's greater complexity vs. League adds depth, but it
also makes the game less approachable for new audiences. While Dota has
significant international presence, its inability to crack key esports markets like
South Korea also contributes to its ranking behind League.
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Still, Dota 2 is a safe pick as the third-biggest esport. The crowd-funded prize
pools for Dota events are huge and you'll be hard-pressed to find a more loyal
group of fans; add in its history in China, and I think it'll keep its spot for at
least the near future.
4. Overwatch (Blizzard Entertainment)
The characters of Overwatch. Provided by Blizzard
For the fourth pick, I'm selecting the new game Overwatch, which doesn't even
have a competitive mode implemented inside it yet. Overwatch has been a huge
success sales-wise for Blizzard since its release in May. And it unthinkably
unseated League of Legends as the top-played game in Korean internet cafes
this past week, threatening to end a 203-week streak for the Riot title.
People love the game. People love the characters. People love the mixture
between a first-person shooter and a multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA).
While there is some merit in the opinion that the game is much more fun to play
than watch as an esport, there is enormous audience potential if Blizzard can
handle its property correctly.
Blizzard has experience when it comes to turning competitive games into
esports, and I think they're going to be going all-in with making Overwatch the
biggest esport in the world. Only time will tell if it succeeds or if it's another
Blizzard title that shows promise but can't crack Riot and Valve's leading pack.
5. Street Fighter V (Capcom)
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Yusuke "Momochi" Momochi, foreground, and Daigo "The Beast" Umehara, background, at Stunfest
2015. Provided by Jeremy Verchere/Stunfest
Here comes our first fighting game on the list. Between Street Fighter V and its
fellow fighting game Super Smash Bros., Street Fighter has the edge due to
publisher Capcom's strong commitment to fostering a competitive scene.
Capcom is throwing its financial weight behind Street Fighter, and the game,
although not selling as well as the company might have hoped, is one of the best
fighters ever created for esports.
The tournament Evolution 2016 in Las Vegas this July will be the first real test
to see whether the investment into Street Fighter will pay off. So far, with more
than 4,000 people entering the competition, the future looks mighty bright.
6. Super Smash Bros. Melee (Nintendo)
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Adam "Armada" Lindgren, left, and Joseph "Mango" Marquez, right. Robert Paul
Super Smash Bros. Melee has been around for 15 years, and it may now finally
be coming into its own. Its recognizable cast of characters and colorful graphics
-- eye-pleasing despite being almost two decades old -- make Melee very
approachable from a spectator perspective.
Beyond the game's history and accessibility, it's the players themselves and
their interesting rivalries that drive this esport to even greater heights. Every
year, the veterans of the game known as the "Five Gods" are challenged by
would-be slayers of kings from all ends of the community. In an era when fans
are constantly searching for the next big thing, Melee's rich history and quirky
cast of characters inside and outside the game are why this 2001 title is so high
up on the draft board.
Unfortunately, publisher Nintendo is still lagging behind its counterpart
Capcom when it comes to supporting Melee and other Smash games as esports.
If Nintendo ever decides to close the gap, watch out -- its money and
international reach could catapult Smash esports to the front of the pack.
7. Call of Duty (Activision)
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Provided by CWL/Dream Team
Anytime a game franchise has a competitive scene and more than 250 million
copies sold, it's going to have to make the top 10 of any esports game rankings.
While I rank Call of Duty firmly behind Counter-Strike, the current leader in
first-person esports, I respect the game's potential for growth. Publisher
Activision's CoD World League features some of the biggest online player
brands when it comes to esports, and its continued support of the title can only
benefit the esports scene. Although CoD lacks the viewership numbers of some
other titles, there is no doubting the committed competitive fan base this esport
enjoys.
8. Hearthstone (Blizzard Entertainment)
The Hearthstone Championship Tour is the official Hearthstone annual esports circuit, run by Blizzard
Entertainment. Provided by Blizzard
Hearthstone is a strange case. Based on the viewership numbers on game
streaming site Twitch, Hearthstone could be argued to rank in the top four
esports. It's an extremely popular game with larger-than-life personalities as its
stars. However, a majority of the viewers on Twitch aren't interested in
Hearthstone esports but in the personalities themselves. As a result, streamers
interacting with fans and playing opponents online for fun may reach 30,000-
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plus viewers, while non-major tournaments may only reach a fraction of that
number.
As with all card games, and especially Hearthstone, the element of randomness
in gameplay can hinder the consistency of competitive play. While a few pro
players regularly make it back to major tournaments, there are plenty of upsets,
and it's hard to craft narratives and interesting storylines when even the best
players miss tournament qualifications due to bad luck.
9. Super Smash Bros. for Wii U (Nintendo)
After the nerfs to Sheik, Gonzalo "ZeRo" Barrios returned to his comfort pick: Diddy Kong. Robert Paul
Smash for Wii U or Smash 4 is the newest title in the Smash franchise -- ranked
ninth currently, but with a lot of room to grow in the coming years. Its
predecessor Melee will always have the edge when it comes to history, but
Smash 4 could get the big bump over its brother if Nintendo ever decides to
financially support and promote its esports scene over Melee's. Right now,
however, I have to rank it behind Street Fighter V and Melee as an esports
fighting game title. At EVO 2016, Street Fighter and Melee will be center stage
at the 12,000-seat Mandalay Bay Events Center on Championship Sunday,
while Smash 4 will have to watch from the sidelines.
10. StarCraft II (Blizzard Entertainment)
The final game on the board came down to two titles: Blizzard's Heroes of the
Storm and Blizzard's StarCraft II. Although neither esport is as big as its fan
base hoped it would be at this point, I went with the game I think will have the
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longer shelf life. SC2 is the grandfather of western esports. If it weren't for the
game's boom period at the start of 2010 and 2011, games like League, CS:GO
and Dota 2 would not have had the success they enjoy today. Obviously, the
game has lost a lot of its luster since being the No. 1 choice five years ago, but
I'm confident that StarCraft 2 will be around five years from now, even if it
drops to the 20th-ranked esport globally.
Legendary pro gamer Lee "Flash" Young-ho started playing professional StarCraft: Brood War in South Korea at 14
years old. His fans call him "The Ultimate Weapon." Helena Kristiansson/ESL
On the other hand, Heroes of the Storm is already encountering StarCraft II's
challenges without ever having been a wildly successful esport. Out of the four
Blizzard esport titles currently being played in the West, Heroes is the only one
that doesn't have a niche. SC2 is the top real-time strategy esport, Overwatch
has a ton of hype behind it, and Hearthstone, for all its faults, is a hugely
popular game that will always get viewers if big personalities are invited to
events. Although HotS is a fun game to watch and play, it is lagging severely
behind the MOBA powerhouses that are League and Dota 2.
StarCraft II is a timeless game. It's frustratingly hard to play, it isn't the easiest
to get into as a casual viewer, and its glory days as the most-watched esport in
the world are long past. All that said, it still gets consistent viewership numbers,
tournaments are being played across the world, and the game has a long, rich
history like Melee. The legs on SC2 might be old and tired, but there are years
left before I'm ready to completely dismiss the former top esports draft
selection.
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ELeague SFV bracket preview Punk, NuckleDu will impress
Du "NuckleDu" Dang survived the prelims on Friday and is North America's best hope for a Capcom Cup
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Timothy Lee
Special to ESPN.com
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1:02 PM CT
On April 7 the bracket tournament of the ELeague Street Fighter invitational
will kick off. Twenty-four competitors survived the first round. The four groups
from the preliminaries, now with only six players, will continue to duke it out
until there are only two players per group remaining for the playoffs. The toptwo placers in the group from the preliminary stage are automatically in the
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semifinals and will only need one victory to qualify out of the bracket.
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ESPN talked to ELeague commentators and analysts Stephen "Sajam" Lyon and
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Zhi "Zhieeep" Liang Chew to help sift through all the players and information.
EDITOR'S PICKS
Mad Catz files for bankruptcy
Under financial duress for a while now, Mad Catz -- known for its fightsticks and other
gaming peripherals -- has filed for bankruptcy.
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Adrian, Team Liquid part ways
After a little under a month on the team, support Adrian "Adrian" Ma has decided to leave
Team Liquid.
NA LCS pros weigh in on MVP race
Who most deserves the NA League Championship Series spring MVP? We quizzed three
NA LCS pros on whom they think should win the award.
Reflecting on groups
Both Zhieeep and Sajam spoke briefly about which players surprised them and
met their expectations from the preliminaries.
Together, both agreed Panda Global's Victor "Punk" Woodley lived up to the
hype. His play during the group stage mirrored the dominance he showed
during a similar exhibition tournament at SXSW, "Fighters Underground."
Team Liquid's Du "NuckleDu" Dang's performance and placing also met what
you would expect out of a world champion.
Some of the bigger surprises included Sajam's pick of Cygames' Darryl "Snake
Eyez" Lewis because of his relatively low-profile in character choices and his
lackluster performances during 2016. Both agreed that Joshua "Wolfkrone"
Philpot's dominating 6-1 performance in Group C, arguably the most difficult
pool with players like Keita "Fuudo"Ai, Kun Xian Ho, aka Xian, and Hajime
"Tokido" Taniguchi, was the most surprising result.
Bracket Tournament
Group A
Favorites: Punk and Echo Fox's Yusuke "Momochi" Momochi
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Street Fighter V player Victor "Punk" Woodley (left) was just signed by Panda
Global. Provided by Eric Stewart Photography
Sajam: I don't believe in Punk's ability to close out yet. On paper, he is the
clear favorite, but I'm afraid his nerves after the group stage could be an issue.
Despite that, he's still my pick.
Zhieeep: I like Punk to make it out. There's going to be a tournament where he
will close, start to finish, and this is the place that he can rise up and come
through; ELeague is a more comfortable setting.
Lee: Momochi lived up to the billing with a great group showing and secured
himself a free pass to the semifinals. He played only Ken and it looked like
whatever tinkering he did during Fighters Underground paid off -- this is his
group to lose.
Group B
Favorites: Cygames' Eduardo "PR Rog" Perez and Twitch | Hx | CYG BST
Daigo Umehara
Sajam: I have PR Rog making it out. He's in the best position out of all the
players and his scariest opponent is SnakeEyez, who is on the opposite side of
the bracket from him. He has the best chance to make it out either way.
Zhi: I still like Daigo Umehara. He sponsors the top two seeds (Snake Eyez and
PR Rog are Cygames teammates) and I cannot see the students disrespecting
the master. He's currently mercenary Daigo and I've never seen him indirectly
go for just the money.
Lee: The way the bracket is laid out, PR Rog needs one victory to move on since
he placed into the semifinals - and the match won't be against the only person
he lost to during the group stages (Snake Eyez). That sounds like all the right
ingredients for a cruise into the playoffs. Even against Snake Eyez, PR Rog is
practicing the correct punishes for Zangief's V-Skill and harnessing his
ridiculous reactions to punish predictable movement options and errant normal
button presses.
Group C
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Team Razer's Keita "Fuudo" Ai competes at the DreamHack Summer Street Fighter V Capcom Pro Tour
2016. Provided by Stephanie Lindgren/DreamHack
Favorites: Team Razer's Keita "Fuudo" Ai and Team Razer's Kun "Xian" Ho
Sajam: My favorite is Fuudo. I think he looks really sharp despite the loss to
Wolfkrone (his first match of the day). He was training a lot in the backroom
and grinding games and that loss was just one of those wake-up calls. I expect
him to play on-point for the rest of the tournament.
Zhieeep: I also like Fuudo. I know I should give Wolfkrone more credit
because he's playing with that fiery rage and Japan hasn't seen a lot of strong
Laura's, but I wonder if his play provided enough information to lessen the
surprise of his character. But, Fuudo is just a very solid pick and he even said
he's feeling good.
Lee: To borrow Zhieeep's words, Xian is in mercenary mode. There is a
significant amount of change on the line and Xian is past the point of playing
F.A.N.G. for the fans. If Xian continues to lab up his character and take new
setups from other players, he should exit the bracket as one of the two
qualifiers.
Group D
Favorites: Team Liquid's Du "NuckleDu" Dang and Qanba Douyu's Zeng
"Xiao Hai" Zhuo Jun
Sajam: It's NuckleDu. Everyone knows freedom is the most powerful thing on
the planet and it will be live to a television audience that will appreciate that
and democracy the most.
Zhieeep: I still like NuckleDu to make it out. With Xiao Hai, his demon is Du
and it's more than just a psychological roadblock. For NuckleDu, he's due to
reload and double his coffers with a big tournament win; he's hungry.
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Lee: Xiao Hai is never a player that you want to give time off and research to -he will simply come back in the strongest way possible. NuckleDu continues to
plague his tournament runs, but Xiao Hai is playing Street Fighter V free of the
distraction from other games like King of Fighters XIV.
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