Source
After a truly memorable year of StarCraft II competition followed by the launch of the much-anticipated Legacy of the Void expansion, the World Championship Series (WCS) is ready to take the next step as the biggest competitive showcase for StarCraft II superstars around the globe. Thanks to a partnership between ESL, DreamHack and Blizzard, we are thrilled to reveal an updated tournament format featuring the all-new WCS Circuit Standings.
Building on an already well-established Korean ecosystem centered around multiple GSL/SSL and individual tournaments, Blizzard is now looking to level up the competition in other regions and scenes around the world. By offering players support to attend multiple events throughout the year, Blizzard is hoping to spark even more memorable moments like those we saw in Season 3 of the WCS in 2015.
In order to get the new system started, Blizzard is planning three WCS Circuit Championship events together with up to eight sponsored WCS circuit events hosted and supported by ESL, DreamHack and other partners who apply. As the name implies, the format will function similarly to the golf and tennis circuits in traditional sports. The WCS Circuit Standings will serve as the evolution of the WCS Premier League and is open to all players based outside Korea. The WCS Circuit Standings will be the counterpart to the WCS Korea Standings, which will include players participating in the GSL and SSL in Korea as well as any who dare challenge Korean players on their own turf.
In addition to the new tournament system this year, Blizzard is raising the base prize pool for the whole competition by more than US$400,000 to over US$2,000,000 in total for 2016. This doesn’t yet include the prize money provided by partners and organizers, and on top of that the WCS global finals (including the global playoffs) at the end of the year will be worth US$500,000 collectively.
In the WCS Circuit Standings, players will have an opportunity to travel from event to event, earning themselves prize money and WCS circuit points. The winners of the three Circuit Championship events will each receive a direct invitation to the WCS global playoffs, with the final five circuit slots going to the players with the most WCS points across the circuit. At the WCS global playoffs, these eight WCS circuit players will be joined by the eight contestants from the WCS Korea Standings, who are made up of the GSL and SSL Season 1 and 2 winners as well as the four highest-standing players in the WCS Korea Standings.
2016 WCS Changes - Highlights
Bigger total prize pool
This year, the Blizzard-sponsored prize pool is being increased from $1.6 million in 2015 to over $2 million in 2016—with the prize pool for the WCS Global Finals now totaling $500,000.
Two tournament standings
The WCS point system will now be split into two standings. The WCS Korea Standings, representing the highest level of competition, will include players participating in the GSL and SSL tournaments in Korea. They’ll be open to any player willing to take up the challenge of league play.
The WCS Circuit Standings, an evolution of the previous year’s WCS Premier League, will provide a proving ground for stars in other regions through a variety of tournaments around the world. These tournaments will be residency-locked to help focus on providing more opportunities to expose, develop, and celebrate the top talent from regions outside of Korea.
At the end of the year, eight players will move on from each system to participate in the WCS Global Playoffs. We’re hoping this split provides true global representation in the WCS Global Playoffs, where the best players from the various regions will be represented. The WCS Global Finals will still feature the best players, regardless of region, as only the top eight from the WCS Global Playoffs will move on to battle it out on the main stage of the WCS Global Finals.
Additional tournament support
While the WCS Premier League created consistent action throughout the year, the studio broadcasts could not match the energy and excitement of live tournaments. Rather than continue to produce these broadcasts, the new system will focus on further elevating existing live events through direct support and through offering a more open calendar for them to occur.
Multiple tournaments will receive more support throughout the year. Select WCS Circuit events, Regional Challengers, and the WCS Circuit Championships will all receive bonus prize pool support directly from Blizzard. Eligible players who qualify through designated WCS Circuit qualifiers will also receive support to travel to and compete in these events.
GSL and SSL will also feature significantly more prize money, and WCS Global Events will further bolster the prize pool tally.
Direct spots in the WCS Global Finals
While the WCS point standings have created some exciting moments leading up to the WCS Global Finals, we wanted the path to the WCS Global Finals to consistently have this level of excitement across the year. To achieve this, players can earn a direct spot in the WCS Global Playoffs by winning the most prestigious events of the year.
A total of seven spots will be up for grabs for championship winners. This includes four spots from the WCS Korea system (GSL and SSL winners in Season 1 and 2) and three spots from the WCS Circuit system (Winter Championship, Spring Championship, and Summer Championship winners). The remaining spots will be awarded to the top point earners for each of the standings (four spots in the WCS Korea system and five spots in the WCS Circuit system).
GSL & SSL Cross-Finals
With a more evenly distributed prize pool in the GSL and SSL, we wanted to further incentivize players to strive to become the best of the best. Players who win the GSL and SSL tournaments each season will face off to determine the top player in the WCS Korea system.
More opportunities for local players
In addition to the WCS systems, Blizzard will sponsor Regional Cups to increase opportunities for regional competition throughout the year.
Additional Details about everything can be found at battle.net