The serious practice began the next day.
The semifinals are just a week away. It can be considered a long time or a short time, but it is definitely insufficient for people who have just met for the first time to get in sync.
Of course, there are no expectations of perfection from these individuals. How well can a hastily formed team perform, after all?
People are simply excited about various streamers gathering to practice together, achieve results, and the chemistry that arises between them.
In that sense, our team could be seen as one that meets the desires of those viewers. Chemistry was already emerging among the team members.
“Dae-sik, save me!”
“Stop asking to be saved and pull back a bit!”
“Oh, I got cut. Byeoljji got cut.”
“Why did you get cut again…”
The voices of the players are being broadcasted on my stream.
Next up are Hyeyang, Dae-sik, Byeoljji, and finally Dae-sik. You can tell by the voices that they are currently playing the game while I am observing.
I’m not sure if this can be called chemistry, but if viewers feel that way, then perhaps that’s what it is.
[It’s a mess lol]
[I expected it, but it’s worse than I thought]
[Why are they so bad?]
[Because they only picked the bad ones]
[Aha]
[Poor Dae-sik]
[To play games among women, one must endure this level of hardship]
[Ah lol I don’t care about team games; just take the bus]
[All the women are so pretty…]
[Is Lari not no-cam?]
[She used to stream with a cam; she was pretty]
[Lari, Dae-sun, Hyeyang, Dae-sun, Mollu… The whole world is Dae-sun]
[Is the moderator also Dae-sun?]
[I think it was said to be Dae-sun in the beginning]
[Anyway, it’s meaningless now since it’s bigger than Dae-sik]
[Is that even important right now? It’s a disaster]
[Why are they losing so badly? The opponent probably isn’t even on Discord]
[First of all, the kids aren’t listening to Dae-sik]
[Dae-sik sounds so awkward]
[Dae-sik isn’t being clear with his orders; you can see he’s overwhelmed]
[The form has really dropped]
A 5v5 team rank game is underway. I’ve thrown the players into the game, telling them to try a match together.
I had planned to observe the gameplay and give feedback one by one, but life rarely goes according to plan.
“It might be faster to identify what isn’t a problem instead of finding the problems…”
As I muttered this, agreement filled the chat. After all, these are people who spend the whole day watching game broadcasts. From their high standards, the situation must look like a total mess.
I feel the same way. It’s overwhelming, and I have no idea where to start fixing things.
It’s like cleaning a messy dining table. I have my own manual for putting things back in their place, placing dishes in the cupboard, and wiping the table with a cloth.
But what if I accidentally spill hot stew all over the table? What if I accidentally knock over food? Or break a dish?
Just looking at it feels daunting. It’s hard to figure out how to clean this up.
“Wait, but why has Dae-sik gotten so bad? I had fixed him last time, and he broke again.”
[Oh no, Dae-sik has broken]
[For real, it’s no different from a total noob now]
[I guess it’s time to tighten the screws again]
[Only the moderator’s tough training can restore Dae-sik]
[Dae-sik must have broken on purpose to go on a date with the moderator lol]
[Whoa]
[What what what what]
[Dae-sik is a secret admirer]
I thought that it was understandable for others. Being in such a low tier, and since I hadn’t seen his previous gameplay, I didn’t have much of a reaction. I just thought, “Oh, that’s how it is.” Because I didn’t have any expectations, I wasn’t disappointed.
However, Dae-sik is different. I’ve taught him twice, and he was definitely someone who performed well in the past. How could his form drop so drastically? Is it right for someone who has been to Challenger to be struggling in Diamond?
“Has the aging curve hit already…?”
[Oh no]
[It is that age]
[Dae-sik is still in his 20s though]
[Should we call the tail end of the 20s, the 20s?]
[I’ve heard the aging curve hits around 26]
[Oh no…]
[Will the moderator hit the aging curve in two years?]
[That’s a bit concerning]
[Yep~ Mollu is an overpowered character, so she won’t face that]
[For real, I can’t even imagine that happening]
No, no. It can’t be that he’s already at the aging curve. Last time, through one-on-one instruction, he was fixed fine. Moreover, many streamers maintain their physicality even after surpassing 30. Of course, there are differences, but for someone like Dae-sik, it didn’t seem like his physicality had dropped that much.
It’s just that his situational judgment and ability to utilize skills effectively seems to have diminished a bit. That’s something I can definitely help him improve on.
So, it’s feedback time now. Let’s see if we can change things one by one.
*
The feedback didn’t go smoothly. If it went smoothly, that would actually be strange.
The main difference from the previous tournament is that the overall tier of the players has dropped. Because of this, the players didn’t respond well to my feedback this time.
“Are you not sure what to do?”
“No, I understand what you are saying, but when it comes to the actual game, it doesn’t work out.”
“You need to be able to apply it in the actual game. That’s how you win.”
“Okay…”
I had shared a secret strategy—not exactly a game-changer, but a collection of techniques that most users employ. Byeoljji, who received the technique, couldn’t play as I had instructed in the subsequent matches.
In fact, trying to do something she wasn’t used to made her more focused in that area, making her play even worse. This is just a part that can’t be helped. Time will resolve it. It would be stranger if adjustments were made immediately based on feedback.
The same went for the other team members. Each of them took on the tasks I assigned them and began to struggle to accomplish those tasks in-game.
I was keeping Dae-sik busy with tasks as well. Dae-sik, being somewhat experienced and observant, managed to correct the areas I pointed out after several attempts.
“Just as expected of Dae-sik. For this round, let’s ignore the team and play like you’ll get a pentakill, okay?”
“Why do I always have to do all the work?”
“Of course, because you are the team leader and the ace. To escape the noob status, you have to play like this.”
As soon as I mentioned the noob status, Dae-sik, who had been complaining, fell silent.
[Ah lol To win, you need to do things you normally don’t do]
[You have to be perfect!!!]
[It’s sad how strict he is solely with himself]
[Ahh… That’s what it means to be an ace, Dae-sik]
[Endure the weight of the crown]
[Mollu was held to a stricter standard than this in the last tournament and won; Dae-sik has nothing to say lol]
The game continued. Everyone was playing while taking my feedback seriously. Certainly, their play improved overall compared to before. It finally felt a bit like a team game.
However, alongside the smoother game, another problem began to arise.
“Ah… I’m sorry. I got cut. No, I got cut.”
“Ah, I missed the heal. I’m sorry.”
Each time a mistake occurred, the mood noticeably soured. They had forgotten about the Hiddink tactic, and the formal speech returned. Their words became fewer.
This is normal; it’s hard to stay energized after consecutive losses. Dae-sik, who still had some composure, tried to lift their spirits by saying it’s okay, but that only worked a couple of times. It’s natural for them to feel down when mistakes keep happening.
However, just because it’s natural doesn’t mean it’s acceptable. The calls in the team started to decrease.
While unnecessary briefings should be avoided, it’s also important to ensure that necessary calls are made during the game.
If the initial match of getting in sync was the former, then now it was clearly the latter.
After the match, I immediately began giving feedback.
“Everyone except Dae-sik, you all need to call out more. Even the smallest thing that feels necessary in the game should be communicated.”
“Yess…”
Their voices lacked strength. They all responded this way, but once they enter the game, they likely wouldn’t brief again.
In reality, there’s nothing better for boosting team morale than a victory, but that’s not happening right now, so I thought a special measure was needed.
“It seems we need another tactic in addition to the Hiddink tactic.”
“What is it?”
The special measure I came up with wasn’t anything particularly special.
“From now on, let’s say ‘I’m sorry’ or ‘excuse me’ instead of ‘I love you’.”
“Excuse me?”
Dae-sik asked with a tone of confusion.
“Apologizing all the time isn’t helping at all. It’s better to say ‘I love you, I’ll do better’ and shake it off.”
“I understand what you mean, but…”
“Just listen to me. This is a direct hit.”
[Love you tactic, what is this? lol]
[What kind of baseless tactic is this?]
[Director Mol’s special measure, wow]
[Dae-sik is about to receive an embarrassing love confession lol]
[Dae-sik is lucky]
[Dae-sik also plans to scold if he makes a mistake with a confession lol]
[Whoa]
[For real, it might be effective]
[Dae-sik probably won’t make a mistake]
[This could definitely prevent a guilty conscience altogether]
The viewers also seemed to agree with my special measure.
