I never really had much interest in e-sports. Until I started finding bits and pieces of info and drama. Who cares about the games? It's the weird stuff you read about that's interesting. For example:
They say mother knows best, and some would say no one knows better than 35-year-old Susie "lilsusie" Kim. For nearly a decade "The Esports Mom," a self-given title, has been guiding young pro gamers and newer colleagues through the chaotic and convoluted workings of the esports industry. Her background is well suited for it: a passion for gaming, bilingual, a degree in developmental psychology (and English), and a crack at a school counseling degree so she could "counsel them when they're young before they f— up their lives."
Despite all the time she's spent in front of the camera, Kim said that it's something that she won't continue doing for the rest of her career. "I want to transition myself away from the stage to a more backstage role," she said. "Ideally, I'd like to work in operations and team management or something similar."
In the end, it stems from being an Esports Mom. "So, I enjoy doing that - I enjoy being player manager. For the last few IEMs, I know I go as translator, but I also go as the Korean team manager," Kim said. "Just to make sure that they get their food vouchers, [and] I tell them what time they have to be somewhere. So, I take care of them in that way."
That is why I approached Tammy ‘furryfish*’ Tang, so that she could share her knowledge and shed some experienced light on the issue of eSports and the risks that come with it. For those of you unfamiliar with who she is, Tammy Tang is the founder and leader of PMS Asterisk*, an all-female Dota 2 team based in Singapore, and the former community and eSports executive at Razer.
She also used to be the manager of Team Zenith, a Dota 2 team, also in Singapore, who were fairly successful in both the local and international scene, before disbanding in 2013. You may have more recently seen her in Valve’s Free To Play documentary, where they covered The International 2011.
With so much experience in the competitive scene, I felt she would give valuable insight with her answers to my questions surrounding eSports and she did not fail to deliver. Join me as we climb into the mind of this exceptional gamer.
If you had to list the 3 most difficult aspects of being a manager, what would it be?
Most of them seem to refer to themselves as "Moms"
They almost are always single 30 something women who fly all round the world alone with their young wards.
They say mother knows best, and some would say no one knows better than 35-year-old Susie "lilsusie" Kim. For nearly a decade "The Esports Mom," a self-given title, has been guiding young pro gamers and newer colleagues through the chaotic and convoluted workings of the esports industry. Her background is well suited for it: a passion for gaming, bilingual, a degree in developmental psychology (and English), and a crack at a school counseling degree so she could "counsel them when they're young before they f— up their lives."
Despite all the time she's spent in front of the camera, Kim said that it's something that she won't continue doing for the rest of her career. "I want to transition myself away from the stage to a more backstage role," she said. "Ideally, I'd like to work in operations and team management or something similar."
In the end, it stems from being an Esports Mom. "So, I enjoy doing that - I enjoy being player manager. For the last few IEMs, I know I go as translator, but I also go as the Korean team manager," Kim said. "Just to make sure that they get their food vouchers, [and] I tell them what time they have to be somewhere. So, I take care of them in that way."
That is why I approached Tammy ‘furryfish*’ Tang, so that she could share her knowledge and shed some experienced light on the issue of eSports and the risks that come with it. For those of you unfamiliar with who she is, Tammy Tang is the founder and leader of PMS Asterisk*, an all-female Dota 2 team based in Singapore, and the former community and eSports executive at Razer.
She also used to be the manager of Team Zenith, a Dota 2 team, also in Singapore, who were fairly successful in both the local and international scene, before disbanding in 2013. You may have more recently seen her in Valve’s Free To Play documentary, where they covered The International 2011.
With so much experience in the competitive scene, I felt she would give valuable insight with her answers to my questions surrounding eSports and she did not fail to deliver. Join me as we climb into the mind of this exceptional gamer.
If you had to list the 3 most difficult aspects of being a manager, what would it be?
- Handling the relationships between the players. I don't mean romantic relationships... I mean just how they interact and treat each other. Sometimes you can step in, sometimes you shouldn't.
- Separating your own personal relationships with the members. ie, if you're particularly close to one or two, the rest might feel you're biased.
- Being unable to help out in terms of coaching, or giving opinions about the game. Usually relevant to a high skilled team, hence [the] need for a separate coach.
Most of them seem to refer to themselves as "Moms"
They almost are always single 30 something women who fly all round the world alone with their young wards.
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