That's to be expected. Obviously no one wants to lose LAN, and if complaining will convince everyone to do what's necessary to keep it intact, there's going to be complaining. The threat of invite teams quitting holds a lot of sway in the community's opinion given how convinced everyone is that it's a likely outcome.

In my post, I tried to emulate the thought process behind quitting TF2 because there was no LAN, and how counterproductive it would be given (what are presumably) the reasons you started playing invite in the first place. How many invite players who complained about the absence of LAN back then would have a strong enough reason to actually follow through on their decision to quit? Unless there's something big here that i'm not seeing, i'd wager very few.

I don't know where everyone is getting the idea that the worst part of losing LAN will be any significant part of invite quitting.

If you're playing invite to play with your friends, the loss of LAN isn't stopping you.
If you're playing invite to be the best team in invite, the loss of LAN isn't stopping you.
If you're playing invite to go to LAN, you're probably after some combination of the two motivating factors above. Which aren't stopped by the loss of LAN.

The only thing a team like that loses without LAN is an opportunity to hang out with other TF2 players at a big event. Which you're going to lose anyway if you quit playing TF2.

Of course I can't speak for anyone in invite, but these seem like the biggest and most obvious reasons anyone already there continues to play it. Maybe there's the fame and e-sports glory of making LAN (as much glory as TF2 has to offer anyway), but how many people who choose this game honestly have that as their main source of motivation?

I think the word you're looking for is "businessman"

also wow 'i dont hate jews but damn, those jews with all their evil business guys am i right???'

You really can't just ignore the implications of giving up LAN all together. The combination of high-profile games and a big viewer base are integral to drawing in new players to keep the game growing, and the coverage of a LAN event is the best source of those things from season to season. What the focus should be is finding a way to get around the operating costs and difficulties of holding a LAN without ESEA, which is currently their biggest advantage over all the other leagues.

People often bring up the idea of all of invite refusing to play in some attempt to force ESEA's hand, which sounds ridiculous on paper. However, it's unclear as to what would actually happen in that scenario (assuming it's even a possibility in the first place)

The biggest concern is that ESEA will drop TF2, but that wouldn't be the end of the scene all at once. You still have a tight-knit community with hundreds of people eager to play and plenty of alternative leagues to accommodate them.

LAN is obviously ESEA's biggest draw right now, and nobody really wants to go without it. Even so, I doubt much of invite will quit right away if it doesn't happen for a season or two. It's a huge financial hassle for the invite teams attending and only one of many goals for those who aren't.

If anything the casting staff of TF.TV and VTV are the ones hurt most by the absence of LAN, considering how important high-quality casts of star-powered matches are to growing the game. Covering a big event like LAN from season to season is what brings the community together and draws in new players, and the loss of that opportunity is what we should be most concerned about should LAN not happen. It's unlikely that any of the alternative leagues will be able to provide a LAN event any time soon, but that doesn't mean they shouldn't be considered at all.

The alternative leagues might look dinky compared to ESEA right now, but take a moment to consider what it would be like if you ran one of them and ESEA stopped being an option. Suddenly there's a HUGE untapped market in the displaced community, and it's up to you to provide the highest quality league around or lose all those numbers to the guys that do. Competition like that is what the community needs in its leagues, else you get something like, well, ESEA.

Diving into any form of competitive with a team when you're brand new to the scene is a daunting prospect. It can be tough to find a team willing to pick up someone who's completely new, and even then you aren't guaranteed to learn a whole lot by playing with them. If your team (is full of people with bad chemistry/gets 5-0'd all the time/other common team problem), it's easy to get discouraged and quit or pick up equally terrible habits that will hurt you in the long run.

You don't actually need a team to play games in the competitive format, but playing with a solid, tight-knit team will teach you how to improve faster and better than any other method of practice.

I'd advise starting out with pugs before trying to find a team, just to get comfortable with the format and learn the maps. The websites and groups listed in the thread are a good place to start, but tracking down a good in-house pug group might be more beneficial. If you know someone who pugs with a group of regulars, ask them to include you the next time they play. You'll get to know people in a smaller group a lot faster, which greatly helps your chances of getting on a team since people will always look at their circle of friends first when considering possible teammates.

Most important thing to keep in mind while playing is not to get discouraged. Focus on getting better and your efforts will never be wasted.

had flurries this morning on long island, cold and windy as shit and still some snow on the ground

super pumped for another 5 month winter where the temperature isn't bearable until mid-april

Seriously driven guy, dedicated to improving his play. Definitely worth your time.

http://i.imgur.com/kwUzBc6.jpg

I'm surprised none of your arguments for Canada > USA include Canada's possession of TF2 legend (and debate club all-star) eMg Toaster

America's rad

really excellent

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barf printers?

Do you have your push-to-talk key bound to somewhere that painful? Or are you having trouble talking and playing at the same time?