Starcraft Playback: Week 3

Pusan versus who?! One of the special treats of the preliminaries (or not so special depending on how you look at it) is that you get to see the big stars duking it out against players who have yet to see the spotlight. Though this game is relatively short, it has action, intense micro and an exciting finish. This game delivers edge-of-the-seat suspense strait until the end, with both players getting into each others' bases in a race for destruction.

This game would be exciting just because Boxer is in it, which gets a bunch of people wanting to watch it anyway. The fact that the game was entertaining also meant that I couldn't force myself not to include, Boxer earns the extra nod. In this game against a relatively unknown Protoss player, Boxer finds himself behind but keeps finding ways to keep his chances alive for at least a little bit longer.

The beginning of this game is cut off, but that's okay because it joins in right when the action starts happening. The announcers talk about Ruby's build order being a late barracks into a faster tech, so that he can have a better unit mix and development for when the Zerg player gets to hive. Though Keke has other thoughts and will make life difficult for Ruby regardless of the Terran build order. Keke's gameplay is impressive and he packs a real punch against this up-and-coming Terran player.

Another game that doesn't join in right at the beginning, but this one starts in early enough to be able see early development. Both players clash armies and assault bases; complete with drops, swarms, storms and even the appearance of guardians. Both GoRush and Oops keep constant pressure on the other as each struggles to take a lead. This is an action filled game in which no player is able to keep a significant advantage on the other until its end.

It figures that the map which Light thumbs down (for whatever reason instead of Katrina or Loki II) is the map he puts up the best fight against Kal. In the only game of the series which was seemingly close, we see both players keeping up harassment and defending simultaneously. Light keeps seeming to come out the better in the exchanges due to his good multitasking, but Kal impresses with being able to keep in it to the end.