what happened to that other one, esa? anything ever come of that?

The esea season is starting pretty soon so most people might not get into it. There's already cevo, ugc and etf2l so idk how IGL might turn out with all these other leagues.

Still gotta get hype about more leagues for tf2 tho.

ESA is very delayed but still progressing. However I am not convinced at all that the people running it know how to run a pay to play league, and others share my concern.

Never even heard of IGL before this...

yeah, it's a lot of traffic with the "major" leagues already out there, but i've been hyped for this league since the site launched, as i've always wanted a ladder like system in tf2, which makes for better and more balanced games.

This is only true if a lot of people actively play there though.

http://www.playigl.com/ladder/1/Team+Fortress+2/Beta

Not really interested in using it until they get a 'forgot password' button that doesn't 404

They should probably integrate steam login with this, would probably be more convenient on their side as well, seeing how they have multiple steam games.

"how do you like your profile"

i would know if i could fucking see it

If their shitty website is any reflection of their progress, they are moving at a snails pace. My guess is that they've realized they have bit off far more than they could chew and are now trying to raise more monetary support before they can continue.

debbie downer :(

IGL looks like a solid project, still a long way to go tho, site has some problems but it definitly has the potential, I would love to play a season there to experience how it works.

But I'm from EU :( unless anyone wanna play with me on 130 ping

Ah, I am only most critical of those I wish to succeed. When IGL was first launched it seemed really cool but nothing was implemented yet. Furthermore, their website is largely unfinished because they have way too many features in mind to implement and not enough developers. It's just one of those things where you want to shake the founder and say "why did you release an unfinished product early!"

Hey Folks,

glad to see some discussion here around IGL.

To address some concerns...

1) Users can create accounts via Steam. We will soon integrate sign-on with all social media platforms, allowing users to sign in with multiple platforms, and reach the same connected IGL account.

2) I would like to hear more about the issue with viewing your profile, could you please link us?

3) New home page has been released, the remaining features of the home page should be live by Monday. Some real cool stuff :)

4) Although some bugs (this is really a massive project), Ladders are working. When you create a team, you select your team's location. All matches are played on IGL servers. Servers are picked based on both team locations. If you are NA West, you will never play on an NA East server, and visa-versa. Furthest away you will play is North or South Central.
For Euro teams, we have 2 euro servers, Germany & France. Should a Euro team be placed against an NA team, the match will be played on a New York server. In rare cases, an NA - North East team, may play a match on a London UK server versus a euro team. This allows for a truly international experience & ranking within the ladder. For NA teams, we have about 6 server locations nation wide.

Two ladder options:
1) Quick play.. sign-up and get matched randomly versus a team with similar points, who you have not recently played. Each hour has a different set of maps available. All teams vote for the maps they want to play.
2) Challenge - pick your opponent, time & map.

IGL provides all match servers.

5) I have noted the forgot password feature and will work to have this setup by our next update.

Updates happen every Monday, so check back frequently!

Regards,

Darryl Absolute Allen
Founder & CTO

I don't really understand how this format would work as a League, but it looks like a pretty neat matchmaking/scrim system.

It would be very beneficial for people or organizations to be able to view how large the comp TF2 player base is by looking at all the registered teams matchmaking against each other. Makes everything look more official

nvm just saw he was gonna fix the forget password thing, thanks.

i like the quickplay ladder idea honestly, we have lots of leagues but no real NA ladders.

rip teamwarfare league

never forget twl invite

http://www.playigl.com/forums/92/tf2/

Where you at Prem and Invite teams? I'm sure these guys are interested in giving you a showmatch

First of all, I apologise to IGL jumping in on their post, however, ESA is launching very soon, we’re almost ‘complete’ and will be providing a full beta product for people to play with. As for Sideshow, I am not sure how you have come to the conclusion about us? In Europe we have administrators you know and service your needs at present. ESA is not intended to be a Pay to Play website, we offer that service as a supplement to our regular operations. If you would like to share your concerns, I will happily convince you otherwise. Thanks

Firstly, thanks for helping tf2 grow.
But I just have to wonder why I currently can't register a team without having to choose an US location, really want to get my team registered and get some matches in (whenever EU players start showing more interest as well).

ESEA is also implementing a ladder system. Certainly you've scoped out your competition, so what makes your product better?

Less malware?

I talked to one of the others involved in ESA and we chatted for a while and (as long as he was well informed) I don't think you understand the basic ideas surrounding the paying side. Which means no prize pool and you'll be another free league, which isn't a bad thing but it's not what I had hoped...

I’m not entirely sure if the person you spoke to was reserved in the information he was prepared to disclose or you have misinterpreted what he has said. I’m not sure; it could be a mixture of both.

ESA has been designed to include, rather than exclude members of the community. We operate separate levels of skill tournaments, which are either free to enter or pay to play. In addition, teams can challenge one another for cash or points, which is entirely dependent on the users preference.

I think for you to say I don’t have ‘basic understanding’ is unwarranted and harsh, for the select few who know about our model, the feedback has been positive both in terms of the design of the site and how we operate… which is different to how others operate, that’s for sure.

I did not disclose everything to you, only what I knew I was allowed to share before the launch.
What exactly did you hope for, if I may ask? ESA will offer a free ranking system with the option to play for money as well as sponsored tournaments and perks for premium users. I never sold it to anyone as more or less.

The opposite of PR. When are you going to tell people?

When the beta is launching for the public and everything is finalised.

Is anyone else excited to elevate their game?

The ladder is different than your standard league. IGL is a competition platform, we host events/tournament, leagues & ladders.
Our ladders are now active. Tournaments & events (brackets)coming in the next 4-6 weeks, followed by leagues.

We're definitely looking for some top teams to participate in some casted matches. Contact us @ marketing@playigl.com

You're quite welcome, we're looking to help every game, community & developer out there. I will make sure our EU locations are included in the next update. For now you can select NA - North East, and change afterwards.

For 1, Standard ladders have a group of teams, in some cases >500 teams on a single ladder. IGL ladders are tiered, giving teams goals and milestones. You may never hit the top 10 teams in a single 500 team ladder, but in IGL, you may be able to hit #1 in tier 3.

Next, a big problem with ladders is forfeits. Teams challenge one another a week out at a time. A lot can happen in a week, things come up, people forget, teams split up ect. To help eliminate forfeits, IGL introduced Quick Play to ladders, where teams can sign-up to play every hour @ the top of the hour. "Hey, it's almost 7pm, lets register for IGL Quick Play and get a match in." There will be lots of teams registering, all of which are active and wanting to play NOW.
To keep it traditional, we do also allow challenges 3 days out.

Last but not least, the ladder has a pretty cool points algorithm, and method of aligning our ladders on a bi-monthly basis. Points you have on a ladder should give a good indication of where you truly stand in the pack of teams in regards to how good you are.

In addition to all of this, IGL has a unique global ranking algorithm based loosely on the Rating Percentage Index used by the NCAA. We rank teams across leagues, ladders & tournaments, weighted versus each other, and each teams' opponents to give a true global ranking of a teams skill. By playing as few as 1 match versus an overseas team, the algorithm can gather a very accurate global ranking of a teams skill. This has never before been done.

Oh... and it's also free to play at IGL & and we supply all servers req'd.