I spent like, 2-3 days trying to write this but honestly if I'm trying to cover everything it ain't ever gonna get written because words just can't do justice to the experience. It's gonna get tl;dr-ish so apologies.
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It was amazing to see what Essentials could pull off with its passionate group of volunteers, and the project leads (Doc, Soda and Arch) handled one stressful curveball after another. And some of the production guys didn't even leave their chairs for 2/3rd of LAN because they were just glued there handling stuff. Things didn't go picture perfect but the crew persevered and put on one heck of a show: server admins, production, casting, desk, content and social guys? Y'all are king champions, and I can't wait to see the next LAN that y'all will put together. A big thank you for showing me what a grassroots esports community can achieve even without developer support.
And the players and spectators! It's a bit surreal to me to finally meet people I have only seen/heard on twitter, twitch streams and TFTV forums. Everyone was legit so nice and friendly and I really regret being a shy bug during LAN because there were so many people I wanted to talk to, but I was just that awkward person hoovering in the background because of nerves (I should've started drinking earlier haha). It was lovely talking to everyone that I did manage to speak with, and it's real heartening to see that the community is still going so strong.
Thanks to everyone who signed the postcards + notebook. Y'all made my friends in Asia pretty happy to get those signatures!
And the players and spectators! It's a bit surreal to me to finally meet people I have only seen/heard on twitter, twitch streams and TFTV forums. Everyone was legit so nice and friendly and I really regret being a shy bug during LAN because there were so many people I wanted to talk to, but I was just that awkward person hoovering in the background because of nerves (I should've started drinking earlier haha). It was lovely talking to everyone that I did manage to speak with, and it's real heartening to see that the community is still going so strong.
Thanks to everyone who signed the postcards + notebook. Y'all made my friends in Asia pretty happy to get those signatures!
Special shoutouts to:
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The Production leads again! Doc, Soda and Arch? Can't emphasise how thankful I am for the good job you guys did for i65. Y'all really looked out for the team's well being, and are wonderful project leads.
eepily, Robbie and Rahmed, you guys are super friendly people. Thanks for chatting with me throughout LAN, even when I was clamming up during the first two days.
eXtine, samiface, and ma3la: I deeply admire people who pursue their dreams and passions. I don't think I have the courage to do that myself, so it's inspiring and encouraging to see people making it work. Thanks guys.
Prograde and team, y'all gutsy as heck to wear FROYO shirts to this LAN haha. Thanks for making the effort to fly over, it really couldn't have been easy. It was also great to finally meet you face to face, Prograde. Promise I'll sign your jug if I ever make it to RGB LAN.
eepily, Robbie and Rahmed, you guys are super friendly people. Thanks for chatting with me throughout LAN, even when I was clamming up during the first two days.
eXtine, samiface, and ma3la: I deeply admire people who pursue their dreams and passions. I don't think I have the courage to do that myself, so it's inspiring and encouraging to see people making it work. Thanks guys.
Prograde and team, y'all gutsy as heck to wear FROYO shirts to this LAN haha. Thanks for making the effort to fly over, it really couldn't have been easy. It was also great to finally meet you face to face, Prograde. Promise I'll sign your jug if I ever make it to RGB LAN.
And finally, huge thank you to the Comp TF2 community for a great and memorable time. It was my first international LAN, my second after AFLAN, and what's a LAN without the organisers and the attendees? I had a rough idea of what i65 would be like but the actual experience itself was so much better than what I expected. Might be awhile before I show up to another LAN outside of Asia, but fingers crossed I'll get there someday. Thanks again friends.