I just had to pop in and read all 182 posts to catch up on the drama… Now a lot of what I’ve read over the last few days makes a lot more sense. Going back and reading the stream chat was… a blow, to put it shortly.
I’m pretty new to KI. I’ve been following it since early S2, but hadn’t begun my journey playing until S3 dropped on PC. Previously, an avid GG and SF fan, I found myself more interested and invested in KI as my weekend leisure - y’know, catching the tourneys and streams. Learning about the game in anticipation of it dropping on my preferred platform (I don’t mess with consoles anymore, but that’s irrelevant), seeing and learning from high-level play, we all know the joys of spectatorship. If I’m being honest, it was ultimately the efforts (media, play, personality) of 4 people that truly sold me on KI (apart from lurking on the forums throughout S2 and being wholly impressed with the positivity and… ummm… “communityness” of the community in comparison to what I was used to in other FGC message-boards).
@Infilament - I wouldn’t have understood enough of what I was looking at to enjoy it without your hard work. I wouldn’t have been able to just jump in to S3 and play the game without your hard work either. Thank you.
@TheKeits - I’d never have dreamed that such dedication to a fanbase would be manifest in your level of community interaction. Your devotion to the game, the community, the genre, is nigh unprecedented. Further, your honesty and integrity is a breath of fresh air in today’s dev-communication environment, where no-news and maybe-laters are the accepted norm (not to mention days of yore where we just bought a game and lived with it, end of story). You involve yourself with your work when you are OFF THE CLOCK, to interact with the folks that consume your product. That in of itself should blow collective minds. I’m sorry your extra miles get trod without regard to the sacrifice you make.
Personal anecdote: I work on cars to earn my bread, and when I hit that clock at the end of the day, I don’t even want to hear an engine knock until the next morning. I go home and leave the shop at the shop. I think that’s true for many, if not most of us, in principle. That we (as a mass) cannot appreciate that your communication is indeed often a sacrifice of YOUR PERSONAL TIME is nothing short of shameful. I’m babbling, but long story short, Adam Heart the Individual is a large part of why I’m here in the first place. Lots of us appreciate you, fella. I’m not saying cut your vacation short - seems like a lot of us get it. I just wanna throw my +1 on the pile of well wishing.
The other two were top players that I loved to watch, and often found myself cheering for. I didn’t know much about them as people. After seeing the incident, the aftermath, and just a bit more about them in general (forum posts, streams, etc.) I must admit I’m glad I didn’t know about their personalities before I really got into KI and the community. Turns out they ain’t so great afterall.
And that’s the thing, y’all. Just because someone has a skill doesn’t mean they are beyond reproach. Being a top player doesn’t equate to free pass from decency, from dignity.
I’m with @Marbledecker, and whoever else said it or agreed - money talks. Pull your funding from the Toxic Avengers, and they deflate to mere Oscars.
But, here’s a weird idea: what about coordinated attempts to flood stream chats with positivity and knowledgeable feedback relevant to whatever stream we find ourselves a part of the chat in, eh? Like, opposite day but every day? I’m not saying flood’em with fanboyisms, but just upbeatness, enthusiasm, and joy to be enjoying something. Y’know, spread the fun a little. Like an ointment.
