Edit: Interview completed, enjoy!
SGL:
Hello DdoRo! Thanks for the interview! Let's start by telling us a little about yourself. Your name, where you're from, hobbies and your history in SC2 and gaming in general.
DdoRo:
Hi, I'm DdoRo from ROOT-Gaming. I'm Korean but currently living in Toronto, Canada. I started sc2 shortly after its release and I started playing competitively after I joined ROOT. I was pretty decent in Brood War, with A rank in iCCup.
SGL:
What race did you play in bw?
DdoRo:
I was playing zerg.
SGL:
Interesting, what caused you to change your race from zerg to protoss in SC2?
DdoRo:
I actually switched to protoss at the end of my bw career just for fun! I played zerg competitively but then I quit bw for about 3 years and then came back to play protoss for fun. However for SC2 I liked the warp gates =) Being able to warp units in anywhere with power I thought the race was imba but then it's not..
SGL:
It's not? Tell us a little about how things are going with your current team, ROOT. You've been in the team for a few months now how is everything going there?
DdoRo:
I'm really proud to be a member of ROOT. Any member in the team can beat any player if they play well. All of the players have the skills to win anyone, on top of that, the people in ROOT are really nice. Everything is going great so far.
SGL:
Do you think your success in SC2 is all thanks to ROOT? Or would you have gotten to this point by yourself eventually?
DdoRo:
I think I would've gotten to this point eventually since I play a lot of games anyways. But ROOT definitely helped me get to this point as fast as I did, I also got a lot of attention and popularity for being a ROOT member. So yeah, ROOT contributed to my success a lot. But many people in SC2 still don't recognize who I am, I've gotta play a lot harder for sure.
SGL:
Where do you think your talent compares to the rest of the players in the team?
DdoRo:
I think my mechanics are as good as the other players such as apm and multitasking. However I'm bad at adapting to new strategies and making new build orders like KiWiKaKi. Also, my play is really unstable and inconsistent, it all depends on the day for how I play. Sometimes I play very well when I'm comfortable, other days I play really poorly.
SGL:
You've had a lot of great results lately. Beating players like Kas and all killing Fnatic in the SGL. Do you feel you've improved a lot within the past few weeks or do you think you just haven't been given a chance until now to show your true talent?
DdoRo:
Like I said, my play really depends on how I feel on that specific day. I don't think I've improved a lot within the past few weeks I just didn't have a chance to show my skills I guess. I haven't participated in known LAN tournaments such as MLG so I definitely didn't have an opportunity to get my name famous.
SGL:
Let's talk a little about the upcoming events in SC2. As we all know, the NASL was just recently announced, and you are one of the players on the voting list. Do you feel you have a good chance of winning this event?
DdoRo:
If I get the chance to play in the event, I will of course be preparing for it really hard. Recently I've played a lot of big names and have won against a lot of them, So yes, I'm pretty confident that I can go far in the tournament if I play well.
SGL:
Okay and what about MLG? Are you and all of the players from ROOT attending?
DdoRo:
I think most of the players from ROOT will be going. I'm not sure about QXC though since he's in Europe. As for me, I'm not certain at the moment because I'm a student and have to go to school. I have an exam in April and I don't know which week of April it is. If it's the second week of April I'll be going but if it's the first week I won't be able to make it. I'm going to get my schedule in early March so I'll let you know then
SGL:
Let's move on to some good ol' game balance questions! Where do you feel the current game balance stands right now?
DdoRo:
In my opinion, PvT and PvZ is pretty balanced.. Some people say marines are overpowered in TvZ but I think marines are just fine in PvT. I'm not too sure about balance though since I always play protoss and don't know too much about the other races.
SGL:
Which matchup do you find yourself doing best in, or which do you find the easiest currently? Along with which matchup do you think you are the worst in?
DdoRo:
For me, I think PvP mirror is the hardest because it's basically a coin flip. If I slip any micro in a battle, I've pretty much lost the game. I find PvT the easiest, because I practice this matchup the most I guess.
SGL:
With playoffs in the SGL coming and ROOT being defending champions, how do you feel you guys are going to do this season?
DdoRo:
I think we're going to do really well. We are all confident in ourselves and we can certainly defeat any team.
SGL:
Now let's take some questions from your fans! I opened up a thread for people interest to post asking their own questions for you and we got a few good ones!
MacroKing asks: Do you consider yourself a 'pro gamer?' Also, do you think you can win any big money from gaming in the future?
DdoRo:
I don't really consider myself a 'pro gamer' but I think I'm close to a professional level player. I definitely have to work harder to achieve that status. I think I have a great chance of winning big money from gaming in the future for SC2 as the western community gets bigger and bigger.
SGL:
AirbladeOrange asks: What are some of the biggest misconceptions protoss players have in builds and strategies in PvP?
DdoRo:
I'm not sure I can give a very sufficient answer for that question since I don't really understand the matchup so far.
SGL:
KoDo asks: Where did the name DdoRo come from?
DdoRo:
It actually has no meaning, I just thought it sounded cute in Korean =)
SGL:
Okay well that will do it for today! I would like to thank our head sponsor, Bigfoot Networks, and I would also like to thank you for the interview of course! Anything else to say or any shout outs you have to give?
DdoRo:
Thanks to all of my fans and my team ROOT. Especially Katari and KiwiKaKi, these two guys helped me improve a lot and helped me refine my builds. Also thanks to the SGL for choosing me for this interview =D
Thanks to DdoRo for doing this interview with us! Along with a thank you to our great head sponsor, Bigfoot Networks. You can find more information about the SGL at www.SGLeague.net and I encourage everyone to go vote for DdoRo for the NASL at www.NASL.tv!