Season 3: Chapter 90: Fake National Team (3)
"Alright, we have twenty minutes before we start filming."
"Yes~"
Before the shot went live, the broadcasters folded their reading notes and chatted casually to break the tension.
"How have you been?"
"Pretty good. And you?"
Although they used formal language on air, they were informal in private since Kim Sang-Hoon was considerably older.
"I've been well too. By the way, did you see that today?"
"That...?"
"The Fake National Team."
Caster Kim Sang-Hoon tilted his head in confusion. What was that?
"No? What is that?"
"Well, there’s this thing on the Almond channel. I thought it would be good to mention during the tournament."
Kim Sang-Hoon silently looked at the smartphone offered by OrangeKing.
"Oh... isn’t this similar to what they do in LIL Champs?"
"That's right. It seems the national competition teams are doing it. It’s the first episode. Nothing spectacular, but it was quite entertaining."
Kim Sang-Hoon nodded and said, "Alright, send me the link."
"Ok."
There was just enough time left, slightly more than needed, to watch the Fake National Team video.
As he started watching, Kim Sang-Hoon began to tear up slightly and wiped his eyes.
"Ah, damn..."
"Are you crying?"
"Shut up! Who's crying!"
Having been in the esports industry for a long time, Kim Sang-Hoon likely had many memories of people.
"Ah... reminds me of when the league first started."
After watching for about ten minutes, he put down the phone.
OrangeKing chuckled at the sentimental Kim Sang-Hoon and asked, "Right? It’s kind of touching, isn’t it? Maybe because we can relate."
OrangeKing also felt a rush of emotions when he first watched the video.
"Back then, everyone really struggled. Now, everyone has found their place."
Kim Sang-Hoon also nodded in agreement.
"They’ll do well here too, I think. The viewership trends are no joke right now."
"Exactly. The hype is really no joke, but... how many views does the video have now?"
"It hasn’t even been half a day since it was uploaded. It's already over a million."
"What!?"
It reached a million views in just a few hours.
OrangeKing momentarily bounced in excitement even though it wasn’t his channel.
"Ah, can this even be happening!?"
"Even the so-called Muggles who don't understand games are flooding in. While Civil Empire is hard to play, it’s easy to watch. It’s just wielding spears and swords and fighting."
Civil Empire became popular because it was easy to watch.
OrangeKing felt puzzled.
"But that’s the thing. Civil Empire has always been an easy game to watch. Why wasn’t it popular before...?"
"No, being easy to watch only meant it had potential. The reason it popped off is different. Don’t you know that?"
Kim Sang-Hoon was a historical figure familiar with the dawn of esports and one of the pioneers who created this market. He was revered among commentators and analysts as a venerable senior. He knew precisely the reason.
"What, what is it? Why wasn’t it popular before and why is it popular now?"
Why did Civil Empire only now catch people’s attention?
"I’ve said before. People don’t just want to watch games. Very few know how to actually watch a game properly."
"Is that so?"
Indeed, that was analysts and commentators were needed. Even in LIL Champs, how many viewers actually understood the flow of the game? Probably less than 5% of the total viewers. Then why did people watch a game that they barely understood?
"They want heroes."
"!"
Meaning, people watched games for the players. Then, what made players into heroes?
"That’s why I always say we need to explain the game. Yes, but we need to create narratives. We need to create epic sagas for these heroes."
It was all about the narrative. The stories they carried.
"What kind of story do we need?"
"Yes. And you see—"
This was why Civil Empire could succeed now. Fortunately, an opportunity arose during LIL’s decline. New content also spotlighted the players on the Fake National Team. Most importantly…
"The reason Civil Empire can have an epic saga now? It's because someone already has a story known to the public."
"Aha!"
In the Civil Empire Korean team was a real national team member, or rather, someone who aspired to be one. Someone who almost reached that frontier.
"That’s the power that the streamer named Almond holds in this market."
Sang-Hyeon stood before an audience again adorned with the Taegeuk sybmol, albeit under the title of a fake team.
"People aren’t just enthusiastic because Almond plays well. It's the journey he has taken that stirs their hearts."
Indeed, people hoped for Almond to perform well not just because they liked that he was good.
"So even if he loses, people will still applaud. They have seen his path, laughed with him, and cried with him. They have already received their gift."
OrangeKing's eyes wavered momentarily. He felt a piercing emotion reminiscent of his own professional days.
He quickly turned his head away, feigning distraction.
"Right?"
"No, ah!? I've never been lucky in my life. Except when I got completely trounced by JeonJaPa."
"Isn't it usually only at birth that you aren't?"
"I was reborn then, bro," OrangeKing responded seriously, prompting Sang-Hoon to burst into laughter.
"Here we go! 5, 4.."
Shortly afterward, the filming started.
"Hello! To all the wandering mercenaries who love Civil Empire, I'm Kim Sang-Hoon, the caster for today."
"And I'm OrangeKing, the analyst."
"Nice to meet you!"
— Hi hi
— Wow
— Hello~
— Wow
— Look at the number of people!
— Wow
"Wow. Firstly, it seems a lot of people have come to watch today."
The caster began by mentioning the burgeoning popularity of the game.
"Ah, yes. Even though it's just the qualifiers, the tickets for This World have sold out, right?" OrangeKing chimed in and confirmed it with data.
"Sold out?! Is the audience area full?"
"Yes. And we're looking forward to how many Korean supporters have come?"
"Ah~ That's right!"
— Sold out?!
— Wow
— Already?
— It's just the qualifiers lol
The broadcasters gave a brief introduction about the civilizations discussed today.
"OrangeKing, isn't it Rome vs Joseon today?"
"That's right."
"But I'm still confused. There's a huge time difference between the Roman civilization and Joseon, right? Even considering Eastern and Western Rome, how is that handled in the game?"
"Right. It’s a civilization that existed before Christ and there’s almost a 1500 year difference... In reality, many civilizations in the game don’t match up time wise."
"Ah, right."
"For civilizations that disappeared before the third or fourth eras, the game developers imagined their futures and crafted factions accordingly. The Aztecs and Mayans also disappeared long ago, right?"
"So if Rome had existed until the era of muskets, what would it have been like~? It's a kind of correction then?"
"Exactly. And Rome is such a strong civilization even without any correction! Jokingly, some say that even if Joseon really fought Rome, Rome would win!"
"No way! A civilization from 1500 years ago could beat Joseon!?"
"Yes. Although it would be difficult, it just shows how powerful Rome was."
— Roar~
— Old history meme lol
— If we get serious, obviously Joseon wins...lol
— Just being compared means Rome wins
OrangeKing laughed it off. He didn’t explain about the actual Rome, but about the Rome team in the national competition.
"And! The team for this national competition is also in great form. They might be the toughest opponent in this group stage!"
"Ah… that's true. The players here are good, but the commander is also famous."
"That's right. Anto is currently the top-rated commander."
— Damn
— 1st??
— Wow
— crazy
"Thanks to that, quite a few people are mentioning Rome as a contender to win it all."
"Yes, after Mongolia and China, Rome is considered a top contender."
Rome was in the top three power rankings in this competition. As they discussed this, the game preparations finished.
"Ah. The game preparations are now complete!"
The caster adjusted his in-ear and cleared his throat.
"Alright, the players will be entering soon."
[Current Viewers: 224,000]
Tension filled the faces of both broadcasters as they saw the number of viewers.
***
"Bro... how many supporters do you think are there this time?" Latte asked Almond with a trembling voice.
"Who knows? There will be a lot."
"But how many exactly! Initially, there weren’t many. Last time, almost one-fourth were our fans! What about this time!? Maybe half?"
"It's not a virus that doubles..."
"Then how many !?" Latte asked again as if his life depended on it.
"What does it matter? You're not here to cheer anyway," Carrot jabbed at him and sneered.
"… Ugh! Even facts can be violent!"
Latte twisted his body, expressing his agony.
"Hey, are you still that nervous, huh?"
Pang came over and flicked Latte's head sharply.
Twang.
It seemed quite painful given how his head flew back, but Carrot's earlier comment probably hurt more since this was a virtual world.
"Ha... Almond hyung, you're the only one who really gets me."
Latte clung to Almond. In reality, Almond was not listening to him more than anyone else.
— Latte, shut up lol
— He's the reason I can't even get nervous lol
— He should have gone to the military band, not the archery team...
— Latte's mouth is touching...
— Please take care of Latte
Nevertheless, quite a few viewers liked Latte since he kept talking to Almond.
"We're about to begin," Cookie shouted.
A blue text flashed in front of them.
[Enter]
Swoosh!
The view blazed and exploded in brightness.
"Let's goooo!!"
"Yeah!!!"
The players psyched themselves up and the tension relaxed. Soon, they all stood on a vast plain.
“Today, it’s Korea vs. Italy! Joseon vs. Rome! Who will take the lead in this group stage!”
As the broadcasters shouted, the spectator seats appeared on the horizon of the plain.
Thump! Thoom! Thoom!
“Here they are! The proud athletes of Korea! Joseon's finest!”
Suddenly, the entire horizon of the field turned into spectator seats. The stands became completely filled with not a single empty spot.
A red wave covered one side of the stadium.
"!"
The players' eyes widened.
"Insane..."
"Wow."
It wasn’t just one side. Out of the stadium’s four sides, red waves covered two sides almost equal in size to Italy’s supporters.
"Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!"
A cheer, unheard of in national competitions, echoed through the air in support of the Korean team.
“An enormous number of supporters! Italy must be quite fond of Civil Empire too!” the broadcasters exclaimed in surprise.
“That's right! It’s less known, but Italy is a powerhouse in RTS! Now, they’re even stronger than Korea! The interest there is huge! Having as many supporters as them means a lot!”
“How did everyone manage to get tickets?! It wouldn't have been surprising if Italy bought all of them!”
“We are a nation known for open runs! The Italians probably let their guard down! They thought it was just a match against Korea. How many would come?! And now, half their seats are taken!”
“Ah!”
“Starting with an advantage!”
— Wow, this is epic
— The match against Spain was really impressive lol
— Starting with an advantage lol
— Crazy logic lol
— So jealous
“Joseon vs. Rome! Korea vs. Italy! The match is about to start. We’re just briefly waiting right now.”
Before the match started, the players had around thirty seconds of waiting time. They needed to look at the selected map and understand how to proceed.
“Now, Rome is at eleven o'clock and Joseon is at five o'clock. They are diagonally positioned.”
“Oh, and... the map is impressive, isn’t it!?”
The broadcasters mentioned the map. They saw something special that they hadn’t seen before.
“It has its own walls and cliffs! The entrances are very narrow!”
“It's the map of the Ancient Walls! These ancient ruins interfere with passage!”
The terrain featured geographic restrictions. The bases weren't placed in open fields, but in strategic locations protected by walls and cliffs.
“In such places, if you wish, you can block the entrance immediately and prepare for an early rush!”
The early strategies that Korea often used would most likely be ineffective in this environment.