The first Starcraft game was released by Blizzard Entertainment in 1998 and it opened up the way for eSports. Hundreds of gamers around the world became professional players, turning a career of playing video games a viable option. Today, a Starcraft 2 tournament champion can expect to make thousands of dollars in any of the tournaments every year. In 2010, Starcraft 2 was released bringing new layers of depth to the game, including betting.
What is Starcraft?
Starcraft 2 is a Real Time Strategy game in which the players controls one of three races on an arena map. The objective of the game is to manage resources to build a base and a strong enough military force to destroy the oponent’s base. A professional game lasts from 15 to 20 minutes, though it is possible to execute a high-risk rush attack to end the game in less than 10 minutes. Rarely will a game go over 25 minutes but, when it does, you can expect the game to have an epic finale.
Starcraft 2 has lasted so long as a competitive game because the game is constantly balanced to make sure no race is stronger than the other. Each unit the player can create is countered by another unit from the other faction. If one unit is too fast, there’s a way to slow them or block them. If a unit has a shield, another unit can penetrate that shield. The game is tuned for balance so often, that a strategy that was viable a few months ago, could be useless today because the players found a way to counter it. Put simply, all efforts are made to make this a fair and balanced game. No player or race has an edge for the sake of it. However, a player may do better or worse depending on the map that a particular game is drafted in. Maybe a player is great at gaining quick control of resources on the map, but he is playing on a map that has gas and crystals too far apart, so he might struggle.
Betting on Starcraft 2
Betting on Starcraft 2 is as straight forward as betting on any sport. You pick who you think is going to win, put your money in and wait for the result. You have to do your homework and see statistics for each player. There are usually a couple of favourites for each tournament, but as on any other competition, there are underdogs who often win the whole thing.
Major Tournaments
The two biggest Starcraft 2 tournaments to bet on are the World Championship Series (WCS) held every year and the Global Starcraft 2 League (GSL). These two tournaments are where most of the best players in the world compete. These are the tournaments that award the most money (WCS awards $250,000 each year) and where the most betting money can be earned.
It is easy to get into betting on Starcraft 2 tournaments, but there is a lot of homework to do to really grasp the depth of it. Make no mistake, Starcraft 2 is a simple game to understand however all its dynamics are complex. From unit balance to scouting and decoy strategy to clicks per minute. It’s a fun game all around.