This was my 8th season of TF2. I felt pretty good about it. The good points were playing with some cool people. The bad points were dying and losing. I was expecting to grow as a tf2 player and a human being. I grew as a player, but as a human being I'm not really sure what happened. The logistics were ok. Topshot was our scheduler and I tried to get scrims one time and it didn't work. The distribution of skill in ESEA was pretty good, there were some good teams and some bad teams. I don't know if I will be playing in S19 yet or not. ESEA is the best league in North America. If MGE, DM, TFTV, streams, and Topshot can't help me improve, I think it's hopeless. I would recommend people to play ESEA if they want to have fun. My next goal is to have 50 followers on twitter.

~miwo

How did you feel about your season? What were the good and bad points?

Season was good overall. I learned a lot from playing scout and from playing with some newer players. Realizing we weren't as good as we were hoping to be wasn't fun, but I think it's a pretty normal thing to have happen

How do you feel about the logistics of playing scrims and matches?

Having to go to the ESEA website to join matches after the client was launched was kind of a pain in the ass. The client update that had the little popup in the lower right hand corner was really nice and better than the old way of going to the server browser IMO. As for scrims, it sucks super hard that IRC is no longer the place to go for scrims. So many teams wanted to schedule in advance which just wasnt possible for us due to people having varying commitments, and going into IRC usually meant a decent wait or a scrim with one of just a couple of teams. I get why people want to schedule scrims ahead of time but it's just not the best way to do things for everyone and those who can't tend to suffer.

What do you think about the distribution of skill in ESEA?

It's the same as any other season. A couple teams at the top with a real chance to win, then 3-4 more with a puncher's shot, then a bunch of bubble fodder. The bottom end of the division was much lower in skill than in seasons past, but I think that's a super good thing. It should be easy to get into ESEA open. Players should NOT have to feel like they need to spend any time in UGC. As long as they have a basic understanding of how 6s works, they should be getting into open.

Will you be playing in S19? If not, what is stopping you from playing again?

No cuz lpkane is a DICK. jk real life commitments mean I can't play anymore. Yet another team I've helped get to IM but can't play on. It's not like I'm bitter or anything.

How do you feel about how ESEA compares to other leagues?

It's the best 6s league out there, just like it always has been. ESEA has it's fair share of problems but the quality of the service has been steadily improving for a couple seasons now.

Would you recommend people to play ESEA? If so, under what conditions?

Yep. Play if you love 6s. Join open. If 25-30 bucks for a season is too much for you to commit to a hobby, then maybe you don't love the hobby that much after all.

What's your next goal?

hopefully to win the lottery so i can continue being a neet and playing tf2 all the time

football gifs literally saved my team's season

How did you feel about your season? What were the good and bad points?
I thought I did well in matches this season. Ended up not finishing the season though.

What specific expectations did you have, and which ones got fulfilled? Which ones didn't?
I got to scrim against low invite teams this season and invite pug teams, which is something that I never got to really do before. I wanted to get top 5 in IM, but that didn't happen.

How do you feel about the logistics of playing scrims and matches?
What is this question even asking lol? I felt like scrims were stupid because everyone booked scrims in 30 minute intervals in IM, and that's definitely not enough time to play against someone on most maps unless it was going to be a roll, or people actually getting into the server on time. Throughout the entire season people would be dropping planned scrims because a better team would ask to play, so it would make it even more silly trying to get scrims, because if you didn't have a bunch planned out, you were probably going to be getting subpar scrims. If you're asking about how I feel playing scrims and matches, I guess it's just a natural part of the game? what?

What do you think about the distribution of skill in ESEA?
I think it's absolutely awful lol. People in top open should be playing in IM, so it was a bit weird gauging people because divisions don't really matter since there's so many players that are good in open.

Will you be playing in S19? If not, what is stopping you from playing again?
Probably not, waiting on other games and I didn't have too much fun this season. I don't want to compete in a game that is not supported by its developers anymore.

How do you feel about how ESEA compares to other leagues?
What other leagues lol? idk how people outside of NA play, but I guess since europeans pug system integrates with where they are in the league, I guess that's a bit cool. UGC has always been the introductory league in terms of 6s, and is pretty unmatched besides etf2l for highlander.

Are there any specific resources you feel like would help you as a player?
In-game matchmaking and developer support. I tried to play tf2centers more, but everyone else seems to not take them seriously, and my latest centers have ended with people throwing/joking around more often than actually trying to improve/win.

Would you recommend people to play ESEA? If so, under what conditions?
If they want to play against actual competition in 6v6 and are located in NA, yes?

What's your next goal?
Create more youtube content for TF2/other games.

edit: oh i didn't realize this is only for open teams lmao

How did you feel about your season? What were the good and bad points?

I enjoyed it, ended up playing for a team that I enjoyed playing with. Nothing really bad to say about the season itself.

What specific expectations did you have, and which ones got fulfilled? Which ones didn't?

I can't say that I had any really, other than we wouldn't win open and that happened so there is that lol.

How do you feel about the logistics of playing scrims and matches?

Scrims is pretty much the same as ugc 6s I suppose. Either to to irc, have scrim partners, or add people with similar records to your own. Same with matches except more client issues. Not a ton though.

What do you think about the distribution of skill in ESEA?

Seendio was a bit questionable(at least early on when they were practicing more) but other than that it was as good as could be hoped for.

How do you feel about how ESEA compares to other leagues?

This might be a bit controversial, but I don't feel esea is head and shoulders above ugc like most people seem to say it is. The only real upside for me is honestly esea is where the competition is at.

Will you be playing in S19? If not, what is stopping you from playing again?

Yep, getting the boys back together.

Are there any specific resources you feel like would help you as a player?

My teammates always being online for me to mge them when I want to. Also a decent way to practice pistol tracking.

Would you recommend people to play ESEA? If so, under what conditions?

What's your next goal?

To not get carried by my roamer.

i got swindled by ggly and buick.

ya boys to return with the marm + thorn combo and 4 other gamers TBD next season. watchout~~~

Isn't this pretty normal? In every season I've been a part of there have been a couple teams at the top of open who would compete for playoffs in IM. At least it's not like s14 when rastlemania was scrimming invite teams by the end of the season. Usually the top half of open playoffs is on level with the non-playoff IM teams, or at least not too far behind.

How did you feel about your season? What were the good and bad points?
I felt pretty solid. I got to watch and have a bunch of fun games. Unfortunately, I had to leave my team, which proceeded to die mid season to team-killer Jaguar. (Who wouldnt die after losing to them lmao)

What specific expectations did you have, and which ones got fulfilled? Which ones didn't?
I expected to have a decent season, maybe get 16th seed in playoffs. Tbh i wasnt expecting much.

How do you feel about the logistics of playing scrims and matches?
I feel that they're fine as they are tbh

What do you think about the distribution of skill in ESEA?
I think it's been how it's always been. There's like a really big gap between mid and high open i feel though. I expected to do better against high open teams, but that isnt really a "distribution of skill" problem. ALSO I FORGOT THAT XATTUU WAS IN INTERMEDIATE WHO LET THAT HAPPEN

Will you be playing in S19? If not, what is stopping you from playing again?
probably, yeah. summer season and i'm like 5 so i ahve nothing else to do

How do you feel about how ESEA compares to other leagues?
better than cevo

Are there any specific resources you feel like would help you as a player?
More videos like youmustmike did, where invite players take demo request and review them.

Would you recommend people to play ESEA? If so, under what conditions?
yes please play esea so my favorite game doesnt die

What's your next goal?
rape esea open so people think i'm good

it has always been like that, but that's still answering the question lol

the distribution is a joke

How did you feel about your season? What were the good and bad points?
Season was okay. Class and other frustrations built up until I wanted a break from tf2.

What specific expectations did you have, and which ones got fulfilled? Which ones didn't?
My expectation for the season was to play on a team that would improve and move to IM next season with the same roster. It actually met my expectations for the most part, but I had some things that were annoying me a lot along with outside factors.

How do you feel about the logistics of playing scrims and matches?
Fine.

What do you think about the distribution of skill in ESEA?
Same as always. The gap between bottom to mid and mid to top in every division is massive.

Will you be playing in S19? If not, what is stopping you from playing again?
Possibly. If I don't have much going on summer and it's with friends. Playing competitive is a large time commitment, even when I was only showing up to scrims/matches it was still ~10 hrs a week. Just looking to have fun.

How do you feel about how ESEA compares to other leagues?
What other leagues?

Are there any specific resources you feel like would help you as a player?
Demo reviews are probably the most beneficial.

Would you recommend people to play ESEA? If so, under what conditions?
If you want to play competitive 6s TF2, play ESEA.

What's your next goal?
idk

The good points were that the team somehow made it to the end of the season and that we luckily weren't the worst surviving team in open, at least by rank.

I think most teams that die mid-season do so because their players go in with an inflated sense of self-worth which leads to them getting easily frustrated with their early results. My team was free from this malady because we had no self-worth to begin with.

If I call that I am bombing through choke to force the enemy medic's uber, then while jumping clearly call that there is a sticky trap in choke, I don't expect our medic to +forward brazenly through choke and drop uber to the trap.

I don't expect to go a month without seeing either of our scouts' names illuminate in my mumble overlay during a scrim or match. I still don't even know for certain what Hydroflouric's voice sounds like and he was our team's topfragger until metalworks week.

I don't expect to deal with our team cancelling scrims because I was the only one on the team willing to skip highlander scrims in favor of ESEA.

The team I was on failed to meet even the lowest of expectations but hopefully my next one will do better.

Enigma if you are reading this please please please add a scrim forum to TFTV. Scheduling scrims in advance without a simple and visible way for people to post what times they can actually play is a mess, and IRC is inconsistent as fuck. By the end of the season we were almost exclusively scrimming vs high-end UGC teams because we could get rounds off them it was so much easier to set up games using their forum.

As someone in the unhappy corner of the bell curve skill-wise, I feel unqualified to talk about this.

I guess.

On paper it seems much worse than other leagues. A bitcoin-mining spyware anti-cheat client (side note: when was the last time the ESEA client caught a cheater in TF2?), apathetic admins, no medals, questionable servers, having to spend $30 to fund a LAN you will not attend and a guarantee your division will be won by washed up former invite players all sound like a very bad time.

The only explicit way that sub-invite ESEA is better than any other league is that the players themselves care about it more. This upside is actually worth more than all of the grievances above.

I would honestly only recommend it to players who feel that they have outgrown existing free leagues. All of the people here who recommend jumping straight into ESEA after a few lobbies and a newbie mix are insane. Maybe that works for the occasional scout with wunderkind aim but everyone on our team and all the teams ranked near us had seasons of UGC under our belts and we still sucked so it would probably be even worse for truly new players.

To get good.

I hate ESEA with a passion, so don't take what I am going to say as me advocating for ESEA, but I think that you have actually proved why ESEA is better to get into earlier than UGC in your post. You had a team full of people with multiple seasons of UGC, and you did quite poorly. Now if you had spent those seasons in ESEA, you would have undoubtedly been forced to improve much more and much faster. I think that if a new player plays open right away, they will achieve far more in far less time. The fact that ESEA is basically their only option for this is quite annoying to me, but seeing as UGC is basically a joke with admins that don't care/know what they are doing, known hackers not banned, and no prize pool to encourage good players to play, we are left with ESEA as our only option.

Or they would just go 0-16 and go do something else instead like most sane people who find absolutely no success in a pursuit do.

Open is too big for brand new players and most of them won't find it fun to sit through the 4-6 weeks until they can play against teams that don't roll them when hugbox leagues that let them play matches with (theoretically) sane skill gaps exist.

Thoughts of someone who played near the bottom of open:

How did you feel about your season? What were the good and bad points?
It was cut short pretty early, we were low open, we lost a lot, expected. There were some good in game moments, and I enjoyed the games played that were competitive. My team went from enjoyable to hard to be around as well, personalities didnt line up, so it was super rocky at times, someone getting in legal issues lead to us having to find a replacement, and someone whining about how they missed our old player during the tryout was kind of the nail in the coffin for me and another member. Few other things led to more clashing and ultimately me leaving too, we just didnt work out in the end, it happens.

What specific expectations did you have, and which ones got fulfilled? Which ones didn't?
I expected to have a rough season, but also a better organized system than UGC. It was definitely nice not having to worry about a server, or communication with the other team, I didnt expect ESEA pugs to be as great as they were, really met a lot of cool people through the season.

What do you think about the distribution of skill in ESEA?
Idk, i mean being low open we expected to be bad, not sure we really were ready for Muffin Men to spawn camp us on viaduct. At least me and ulmyxx got the spy backcap.

Will you be playing in S19? If not, what is stopping you from playing again?
Nope, dont have the time and motivation to pour hours into DM/scrims etc. Besides, playing takes away from how much I can cast for EVLtv. How much I enjoy casting is probably why I dont feel like playing.

How do you feel about how ESEA compares to other leagues?
Big step up from UGC, especially once they sorted out server issues, my time in UGC was so disorganized that it was a really nice change.

Would you recommend people to play ESEA? If so, under what conditions?
I would, but you need a lot of free time, also if you cant stand losing, its not a good choice, you will get rolled at times.

What's your next goal?
Become a lot better of a caster. I have a lot of fun doing it, I doubt being one of the best is possible, but it's definitely the dream. A long the same lines, I'd like to boost the amount of solocasts I do. Also maybe get out of silver in CSGO (Silver Elite Master atm)

I don't think they would go 0-16 as long as they had decent DM and some experience pugging. I'm not saying to go from pubs to ESEA right away, but I think the best option to improve quickly is to pug a lot and then play open rather than spend time playing against other (mostly) bad players in UGC. I think UGC is good as an introduction for 1 season to get some in-game experience, but playing more than 1 season seems like a waste of time to me.

i love when scheduled scrims start 15-20 minutes after you schedule them

How did you feel about your season? What were the good and bad points?
Fun, got to play with friends, got "jewed" out of a playoff spot.

What specific expectations did you have, and which ones got fulfilled? Which ones didn't?
I got better i guess.

How do you feel about the logistics of playing scrims and matches?
People take scrims WAY TOO SERIOUSLY

What do you think about the distribution of skill in ESEA?
Open will equal IM next season and the already established IM teams will just stomp the ones who are at the lower half of the moveups.

Will you be playing in S19? If not, what is stopping you from playing again?
Yes

How do you feel about how ESEA compares to other leagues?
You get what you pay for

Are there any specific resources you feel like would help you as a player?
nah

Would you recommend people to play ESEA? If so, under what conditions?
Yea, you have to play out the whole season and not pussy out

What's your next goal?
get good

Hello friends I played roamer on HIENZ AUTOMATO/oloberd vs the world. Sorry if this is formatted terribly, I'm on my phone.

• How did you feel about your season? What were the good and bad points?
  
  I'm pretty happy with it. I improved a shit ton and it got me through sophomore year. It was fun at the start playing with my friends but we picked up 1 to many weaboos and the screaming match between me and moneyb caused 2 more players to leave. So I asked monkeysuit if he knew players, as I wanted to finish the season, and he got some old friends. From an outside perspective, it looks like I tried cutting my way to playoffs, but that was not my intention.
  
  
• What specific expectations did you have, and which ones got fulfilled? Which ones didn't?
  
  I had expected to just play my first season of open with an attitude towards improving but then my team got really good so I expected playoffs. I ended up going 8-8 which thinking about it now I'm more than happy with.
  
  
• How do you feel about the logistics of playing scrims and matches?
  
  Fine
  
  
• What do you think about the distribution of skill in ESEA?
  
  I'm not really sure. I never scrimped the top 4 open teams nor IM teams but I guess from the low-mid open it was fine.
  
  
• Will you be playing in S19? If not, what is stopping you from playing again?
  
  Hopefully. I'm having a problem where I don't know what I want to do. I have a team and people to play CS in open with but I need to grind that game because my dm is bad. But at the same time I love tf2. I want to play demo, but scout has been fun lately. I also am only good at roamer. So basically I'm very indecisive and its fucking me.
  
  
• How do you feel about how ESEA compares to other leagues?
  
  10/10 so much better than ugc god bless this 24 dollar league
  
  
• Are there any specific resources you feel like would help you as a player?
  
  I did add lunacide to go over my demos with but I never did because I'm dumb and bad.
  
  
• Would you recommend people to play ESEA? If so, under what conditions?
  
  If you have a firm grasp of 6v6 and you want to dedicate time. Some people don't realize it's a 2 match a week scrim most day game. I've scrimmed twice as much this season as I did all my ugc seasons combined.
  
  
• What's your next goal?
  
  Making playoffs and not being a shithead to people along the way.

How did you feel about your season? What were the good and bad points?

I'm happy with how my team did. There was a bit of lost motivation towards the end of the season, but I kinda attribute that to single elim and missing people.

What specific expectations did you have, and which ones got fulfilled? Which ones didn't?

My main goals were to make playoffs and to go 11-5 or better because of a friendly wager, both of which were fulfilled. All in all it was a good season.

How do you feel about the logistics of playing scrims and matches?

Everyone bugging morin to post the connect from the esea site was pretty funny, so as much opportunity as possible to fuck with morin is great. Irc is still alright from when I had to get scrims.

What do you think about the distribution of skill in ESEA?

It was pretty much business as usual lol, but I guess I don't really mind it.

Will you be playing in S19? If not, what is stopping you from playing again?

I will! Idk how IM moveups are gonna work though, 8 teams seems like too few :/

How do you feel about how ESEA compares to other leagues?

Much better.

Are there any specific resources you feel like would help you as a player?

Demo reviews are very helpful, as others have said. Barring that, just people posting their match povs (recorded or demos) is great.

Would you recommend people to play ESEA? If so, under what conditions?

If you want to play 6s and have any serious competition then play esea.

What's your next goal?

To make IM, hopefully. To find new and innovative ways to fuck tron over in scrims.

How did you feel about your season? What were the good and bad points?:

I joined a completely new team at the beginning of the season, I was pretty hopeful since it seemed we were doing okay in the tryout scrims but as soon as the season started, scrims became non-existant. The team died and that was about it.

How do you feel about the logistics of playing scrims and matches?:

Matches are pretty straightforward. I wasn't the leader but we had trouble getting scrims. As a new player in ESEA, I have no idea how to go about this and I'm going to be leading next season so I probably need to find out. Are the scrims scheduled with other teams? How do you go about this?

What do you think about the distribution of skill in ESEA?:

I think Open has way too wide of a field. Considering there isn't really any LAN stuff other than in Invite, I don't think the logistics of adding another division or two to split up open would be too difficult. I might be wrong but it seems logical.

Will you be playing in S19? If not, what is stopping you from playing again?:

I will be playing again.

How do you feel about how ESEA compares to other leagues?:

I think the fee is a tad steep but the experience is relatively professional.

Are there any specific resources you feel like would help you as a player?:

How to do things. I know how to play the game. I don't know how to do anything in the league outside of it. If you're a leader, where do you get scrims. I had trouble figuring out the client when first using it. A video or even a text guide on a basic runthrough of things-to-know would be helpful.

Would you recommend people to play ESEA? If so, under what conditions?:

Sure, if you want to compete in 6s.

What's your next goal?:

Have a team that doesn't die next season.

How did you feel about your season? What were the good and bad points?

We've done really well and I personally had a lot of fun, sadzone weeks included.

What specific expectations did you have, and which ones got fulfilled? Which ones didn't?

I wanted to make it to IM. Won 2 games in playoffs, so we should be in there. We're also atleast third place, which is cool.

How do you feel about the logistics of playing scrims and matches?

I wish we could've gotten more difficult scrims since we didnt really have to try against any open team that wasnt top 4 or mid- high IM teams.

What do you think about the distribution of skill in ESEA?

We beat Seendio, so I can't say they were sandbagging but I guess they shouldve been in IM and some IM teams should've been in open?

Will you be playing in S19? If not, what is stopping you from playing again?

Yeah.

How do you feel about how ESEA compares to other leagues?

I played CEVO in S4, so I didn't get the whole updated client thing but ESEA definitely had better competition except that it was woodpig sandbagging cevo open instead of IM players.

Are there any specific resources you feel like would help you as a player?

dingo reviewed one of my demos and know im rly god at snakewater

Would you recommend people to play ESEA? If so, under what conditions?

I would. It's a more serious league than UGC and the competition makes it a lot of fun.

What's your next goal?
Top 4 in IM. bruh bruh.

[*] How did you feel about your season? What were the good and bad points?
my team died mid season but I got to play with some experienced people and learned a lot!
[*] What specific expectations did you have, and which ones got fulfilled? Which ones didn't?
well I went into the season aiming to get better and have fun, and both of those happened. unfortunately I got a bit ahead of myself and expected to easily make playoffs yadayada team died :<
[*] How do you feel about the logistics of playing scrims and matches?
everything was peachy
[*] What do you think about the distribution of skill in ESEA?
idk I didn't really think there would be such a big gap in skill between mid and high open teams. I don't really see any harm to it at all tho.
[*] Will you be playing in S19? If not, what is stopping you from playing again?
for sure, this time I wanna make playoffs yeyeyeyeye
[*] How do you feel about how ESEA compares to other leagues?
its the best. UGC 6s is basically the only other NA option and thats kinda silly at higher levels :T
[*] Are there any specific resources you feel like would help you as a player?
mmm, tf2pug.me has made it easier for me to find/play higher level pugs (if I get picked >:c).
[*] Would you recommend people to play ESEA? If so, under what conditions?
for sure, but only if you have the right attitude. you might be the best team in ugc steel but don't get assmad when you inevitably get rolled by mid open teams, let alone high open.
[*] What's your next goal?
make playoffs and then maybe IM in the future

https://i.ppy.sh/93a7655c2cf1bc1603692ab43976ee35916a54c8/687474703a2f2f7075752e73682f64645a76642f373561323561303338382e706e67

How did you feel about your season? What were the good and bad points?
i felt pretty good about the season. we had a ton of close games that were fun but it was definitely a bummer that we lost most of them.

What specific expectations did you have, and which ones got fulfilled? Which ones didn't?
i had a slight expectation that there was a possibility we could've made lan - we had close games / did well in scrims against the some of the top 4 teams. plus it's always better to play with confidence.

How do you feel about the logistics of playing scrims and matches?
i wish i hadn't overslept through so many scrims. other than that, i felt like our scrims were usually good and matches were straightforward.

What do you think about the distribution of skill in ESEA?
the skill level difference is pretty much just because of the lack of experience. if the lower invite teams stick around for more than a season, they'll definitely improve. there's a bunch of players on lower invite teams that have incredible dm / gamesense but the team cohesion just isn't there.

Will you be playing in S19? If not, what is stopping you from playing again?
most likely. i believe the season should end before i leave off for college so i don't see why i woudn't play.

How do you feel about how ESEA compares to other leagues?
fuck the $85 fee

Are there any specific resources you feel like would help you as a player?
watching stvs/demos of high invite players. watching how they react to different situations can definitely improve your gamesense. improving dm just comes from playing good players.

Would you recommend people to play ESEA? If so, under what conditions?
yeah, but know that you have to put in the time to get better.

What's your next goal?
to make lan

By the look of how the registration for invite went this season, I wouldn't expect an invite division this time around. Specially with certain teams dying.

-How did you feel about your season? What were the good and bad points?

Well I had a kind of bumpy start as the team I was on in the preseason died and at that point almost every team had their 6 settled. Our scouts found their way to high open teams (Kairu and Mumble Robots/Slemnish and Cloud 9) our combo quit for school (Trick/Xoned) this left me and our demo (Peter) scrambling to find teams, luckily enough we both managed to find one he ended up on the ill fated Tim the Tool Taylor and I found my way onto a very steady lower open team as well to play both my first season of Open and Pocket on No Homers Club with about a week left before the signup deadline.

It was a learning experience and everyone on our team were a bunch of troopers but sadly by the end of the season we only managed to scrap together 7 wins and my power supply died right before the final week. Luckily they found an amazing replacement (Elliott PICK HIM UP HE IS SUPER GOOD) and managed to take 3 rounds off the undefeated post roster hijack Omega Rhythm.

Despite our slight roster issues (one of our scouts had to be replaced mid season) I loved all my teammates and season 18 and can't wait for season 19.

-What specific expectations did you have, and which ones got fulfilled? Which ones didn't?

I wanted to go positive in my first season of open but sadly after a loss to Sock Condoms we ended 7-9 but hey we were 7-7 in games I played in so I guess that counts...

How do you feel about the logistics of playing scrims and matches?

I enjoyed every almost match and scrim. They were set up well and everyone should use IRC if they don't already. However I am kind of sore about one of our matches. We gave a team extra time to get 6 players on their roster, and then they ended up picking up Dominiking and Aeriis (http://play.esea.net/index.php?s=stats&d=match&id=4121530) and Aeriis carried them to victory which made me feel a bit cheated.

-What do you think about the distribution of skill in ESEA?

Everyone should play ESEA so that the skill gap shrinks I felt that if we had more solid teams in open the gap between mid and high open wouldn't have been as massive. Also the troopers on extremely low open teams deserve to have more even competition.

-Will you be playing in S19? If not, what is stopping you from playing again?

Of course, I already found a team.

-How do you feel about how ESEA compares to other leagues?

Every match isn't a roll so that is cool. Everyone tries their hardest and it is much more enjoyable than UGC or that CEVO trainwreck that I played in. Also why the fuck is it single elimination? Single elimination should ONLY be used when the prizepot is winner take all for obvious reasons.

-Are there any specific resources you feel like would help you as a player?

Hopefully I already have what I need but I would love to see all the DM servers get revamped (I am sick of people using pocket pistol) also bring back turbine and other maps, I want more variety (and pro viaduct rc5 please)

-Would you recommend people to play ESEA? If so, under what conditions?

Yes under the condition they have the free time

-What's your next goal?

I want to make playoffs

How did you feel about your season? What were the good and bad points?

Eh, wasn't the greatest. My team lost the will to play TF2 pretty early in the season, so yeah. Nonetheless, I had lots of fun.

How do you feel about the logistics of playing scrims and matches?

ESEA client didn't have any issues for me. The fact that you have to go on the website to join a server is kind of annoying, but not really a big deal. For scrims, I didn't really see an issue, other than maybe people scheduling instead of using IRC, which I guess has its advantages, but really punishes teams that don't have a lot of people added.

What do you think about the distribution of skill in ESEA?

Lots of new blood in open, and I was really excited to see that. Hopefully we see those new players climbing up the rankings to replace the retired veterans :^) Otherwise, skill distribution was pretty good, and we got to have another great season of TF2.

Will you be playing in S19? If not, what is stopping you from playing again?

I will most likely be playing S19. Quitting TF2 is beyond my abilities.

How do you feel about how ESEA compares to other leagues?

Even though most people don't like the client, or lpkane, it's still the best option for NA TF2 right now. Servers weren't really that great for me at least this season, but the competition was there.

Would you recommend people to play ESEA? If so, under what conditions?

I would definitely reccomend playing ESEA if you have a love for the 6v6 game mode. It's the best way to improve, and playing is ESEA has been a great experience for me.

What's your next goal?

To be better at the game. Looking forward to really stepping my game up in S19 :^)

How did you feel about your season? What were the good and bad points?
I honestly can say that I enjoyed it. It helped me gain a lot of experience about what Open's like and the overall skill level of most teams. I got to hang out with a lot of cool people, as well as get to know a lot more of the comp TF2 playerbase throughout the season. However, the constant roster changes (p much 5 pocket changes) didn't help us in gaining cohesion and our inability to perform during high-stakes matches really got me frustrated. I don't know if I just have high expectations, but Squid Squad could've done much better. I did have a lot more fun though, and that's what counts.

What specific expectations did you have, and which ones got fulfilled? Which ones didn't?
I wanted my team to make playoffs. If not for me, then at least for mana (rip lucky #7). I also wanted to improve a lot, but the roster changes throughout the season kind of hindered that as well. Mostly, I just wanted to have a lot of fun, and I did that with people that I really enjoyed playing with.

How do you feel about the logistics of playing scrims and matches?
I think the ESEA client isn't problematic at all (for me anyway), and the new pull-up-match-page thing to join a match was a little bit inconvenient, but not a big deal at all. IRC was pretty consistent in getting us scrims except on things like weekends, but other than that it was fine.

What do you think about the distribution of skill in ESEA?
Around 50 teams in Open when the season started. I think that the overall low-open population was a lot higher this season, but that should lead to a very competitive S19. Other than that, the skill distribution was relatively same as previous seasons.

Will you be playing in S19? If not, what is stopping you from playing again?
I'm currently trying to decide whether I want to play or not. I might be traveling overseas to Asia for a year (AsiaFortress?), so I probably won't be able to play after the end of the summer. Because of school stuff, I'll probably play if someone asks me, but I won't go looking.

How do you feel about how ESEA compares to other leagues?
It's obviously more competitive than UGC, and now that CEVO's dead (wasn't good anyway), ESEA is really just the best option for TF2.

Would you recommend people to play ESEA? If so, under what conditions?
Yeah, of course! I think that if you have around $30 in your wallet, you're all set. Open is really for all players to get into.

What's your next goal?
If I'm playing next season, my next goal would be to make playoffs with a bunch of friends.

How did you feel about your season? What were the good and bad points?
It's been by far the best season I've ever played in any league, and probably the most fun I've had playing tf2 in general. I formed my team basically from scratch in hopes of at least making playoffs and we've made it to semi-finals. I really like all of my teammates, and I've met a lot of players from other teams over the season. My team has had some off scrims and matches over the season and we've had to play with ringers in scrims a lot, but it's been great overall.

What specific expectations did you have, and which ones got fulfilled? Which ones didn't?
My team was doing great in preseason and we expected to do well in playoffs, and so far that expectation has been fulfilled. We're all pretty satisfied with how we've been doing individually and as a team.

How do you feel about the logistics of playing scrims and matches?
Scrims have been pretty good overall, it would have been nice if we could have scrimmed some of the better IM teams more often since it would encourage my team to try harder in scrims and it's just overall better practice to scrim better teams. All our matches have went pretty clean, with little to no issues regarding client, etc. ESEA servers were notably bad at the beginning of the season but got better.

What do you think about the distribution of skill in ESEA?
Pretty good, like aiera said, hopefully more teams make the jump from ugc to esea so that the skill gap shrinks. It would be really cool if esea could be the go-to league for players who are completely new to competitive.

Will you be playing in S19? If not, what is stopping you from playing again?
Yes, assuming IRL stuff doesn't fuck me, which is unlikely. I will be playing in IM with my same team from this season.

How do you feel about how ESEA compares to other leagues?
It's miles ahead of ugc and cevo, I'm lucky enough to have never had an issue with the client, competition is great and the servers have gotten better.

Would you recommend people to play ESEA? If so, under what conditions?
Yes. If you like 6s and want to actually get better at the game, play in open. Getting into IRC pugs and joining a team back in s16 was the best decision I've made in this game.

What's your next goal?
I want to learn more about the game and get better. Hoping to make playoffs in IM and win at least a map next season.

How did you feel about your season? What were the good and bad points?
Pretty good for a first season, felt like I have improved a lot.
What specific expectations did you have, and which ones got fulfilled? Which ones didn't?
Just really expected to have fun and get better. Didn't really expect much aside from that.
What do you think about the distribution of skill in ESEA?
It's what I expected it to be, didn't expect our closest games to be in the first part of the season though.
Will you be playing in S19? If not, what is stopping you from playing again?
Yes.
How do you feel about how ESEA compares to other leagues?
Didn't play cevo but that's dead so can't compare, and UGC 6s is not even comparable to ESEA.
Would you recommend people to play ESEA? If so, under what conditions?
Yea, if they want to get better at playing the game and play against teams that care each week.
What's your next goal?
Find a team and make playoffs.