We knew about this for a while, Jos 'Ret' de Kroon mentioned it a couple of times before, basically he's going to Korea with a goal to become a Progamer and make a successful appearance in a Proleague match. To cut it short, here's an interview Ret gave to Artosis about the issue:
Artosis - When did you start thinking about going to Korea for Starcraft, and what finally made you decide to take the leap?
Ret - I’ve always wanted to be a pro gamer for Starcraft, and go to Korea.
When I was younger, perhaps the more appropriate age, there were less
foreigners in Korea and contacting pro teams managers was a lot harder
than now. I had never expected that I would still get the chance to go
to Korea, but when the opportunity arose I realized that it was still
my dream and that I wanted to give it my best shot.
Artosis - What are your goals in going to Korea? How long do you intend to stay?
Ret - The immediate goal for Starcraft would be to win the courage
tournament and then perhaps play a Pro League match. But we’ll have to
see what happens when SC2 comes out and how that changes things. I
really don’t know how long I’ll stay, but I intend to stay in
pro gaming for SC2, so it could be a long time.
Artosis - Winning the courage tournament is something that only 1 foreigner has ever done before (Assem), even though NonY came very close, losing the finals 1-2 on his first try. Supposedly they have even made it a much harder tournament now. What time frame do you think you can win this event in?
Ret - I think my ZvZ will be the only problem with winning Courage. So if
I can get that matchup up to par quickly, I should be a pretty strong
contender. If that happens reasonably quick, I think I could possibly
win it on my first try. But of course to win any tournament with a
strong field of players, you’ll also need some luck.
Artosis - Dropping out of school to move to Korea and become a professional video game player is a big change in your life. How has your family and friends reacted?
Ret - Surprisingly enough, they have been very supportive. I am about 2
years from finishing my degree and could always return to it. But my
parents and friends think it’s going to be a great experience for me, and
they also know that my real passion lies with pro gaming and not with
business, so I can make a career out of it they are very excited for
me. Everyone’s supportive and many have said they will come visit me
at some point. So it’s great.
Artosis - What challenges do you think you will face upon moving to Korea and playing Starcraft all day?
Ret - Playing Starcraft all day shouldn’t be a problem, I love the game.
It might be hard to give up a lot of privacy and freedom I had here in
The Netherlands, sharing rooms with multiple people much younger than
myself might prove difficult after time. It’s the only thing that
really worries me, I need my alone time sometimes. Also I worry if I
will have people I can really talk to, but I have already spoken to
eSTRO manager ( Hwanni ) and his English is very good so that’s nice.
And of course I’ll be able to hang out with the people already in
Korea, it’s a definitely a plus there’s already a big foreign group in
Korea right now so I won’t feel completely alone.
Artosis - What excites you the most about this new change in your life?
Ret - Well like I said being a pro gamer has been a dream for a long time.
I look forward to competing in Starcraft and trying to be the best I
can be. I also look forward to experiencing Korean culture and Seoul
as much as possible. And of course hanging out with the other
foreigners in Korea should be a lot of fun. Also, I can’t wait to beat
IdrA in every foreign tournament he ever participates in once I will
be able to practice as much as he has (WINK).
Artosis - Well, you’re off to Korea on the 16th of October, and I’m sure I
speak for everyone when I say GL HF~~ Any shout-outs?
Ret - Shout out to all my friends, family for being supportive, all the
American gamers I hang out with on vent every day, my teammates in ESC
and my teammates in ToT for making SC a fun place to be, and Artosis
for being a friend and helping me a lot with this career move.’
Cheers!
All that's left to us, here at GG.net, is to wish Ret the best of luck. We're 100% sure he'll be kicking some serious Korean StarCraft ass in no time. Yeah, and another job for Ret there, - give Tasteless a decent haircut. Good Luck!
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