Nov 11 2010, 12:48 AM, updated 16y ago
* She's currently diamond rank #1 in her diamond division, not sure about sc2rank...
** Updated from proper English translation release by official Blizzard Entertainment Taiwan
(she isn't prettiest anyway but she can play sc2)
Q: A lot of StarCraft fans from around the world are very curious about you, please give us a short introduction of yourself!
A: I was born in Taiwan and went to school in Canada. Really enjoyed performing arts so I took a lot of time going through vocal training and dance practices. I had planned to engage into the entertainment business as soon as I graduated from University so I utilized any time I had during my winter/summer vacations to audition in Taiwan. Being the only girl in the family besides my mom (2 brothers), I didn’t spend much time with Barbie dolls, I was more intrigued by Legos, robots, dinosaurs and 4wd etc. Toured many continents around the world as a choirgirl growing up. Played on the school’s team throughout my junior and senior high school years for both volleyball and basketball. Gaming wise, I play all sorts of games RTS RPG, and love my portable gaming gear as well because I travel a lot.
Q: What kind of experiences do you have with the original StarCraft?
A: I got into StarCraft just before college. I took some computer science classes as an elective, and as you know, nerds love gaming
I would force myself to finish off my assignments early, memorize my dance choreographies ASAP just to buy more gaming hours. One of the craziest things that I did was probably being too addicted to the game to a point where I would simply sleep in my chair and would not part from my computer except for washroom breaks.Q: Did you also use Protoss in the original StarCraft?
A: Yeah, I was a toss player in SC1 so toss was a natural choice in SC2 when I got the game. All races are so unique and it’s quite time-consuming to really get to know one race and exploit it well.
Q: What is it about StarCraft that attracts you?
A: Real Time Strategy games like Starcraft are really exciting. It not only requires technical skills, at the same time it also drains a lot of your brain juice. I really enjoyed watching other people’s RPs and developing my own strategies at the same time. It’s motivating to always game with a new build order or experiment with newly patched settings to come up with even more possibilities. Mainly I just enjoy playing the game and I also enjoy the fact that sometimes a smart move can make a twisting comeback, always fight till the last minute.
Q: What unit do you miss the most from the original StarCraft?
A: I kinda miss Reavers. They used to be one of my favorite units. For those SC1 players, reaver drops must sound familiar. I’d try to do clever drops to really damage the opponent’s economy and non-stop harass after that. It’s fun watching the reavers moving so slow yet do such incredible damage. (<3 she is a sc1 player too )
Q: Why did you decide to pick the ID “Pikachu”?
A: I gamed as Pikachu for SC1, so I just went along with this name for SC2, can’t recall why I chose it in the first place.
Q: If you were a StarCraft II unit, which one would it be?
A: I think I probably relate myself as a sentry summoned hallucinated colossi, can look intimidating at times but really no harm
Q: Zerg: Gross or cute?
A: I love zergs! Especially when I see a bunch of banelings rolling around, so cute!
Q: Which matchup (PvP, PvT, PvZ) are you the most comfortable with and which one do you think you need to improve the most?
A: I don’t really have a most confident matchup since all races are quite powerful and it really depends on your opponent’s units and strategies then come up with a countering strategy in each battle. Strategies can be really different depending on the maps as well. Maps with smaller and narrower ramps are easier to defend but then at the same time hard to penetrate through. I would have to say perhaps PvP are the battles that I find more intimidating simply because I know protoss the best and know more possibilities, the more you know the more complicated it gets.
Q: Does you especially dislike a certain race (Terran or Zerg) or is there are certain unit that you really enjoy destroying?
A: I love all the races, seeing ‘gg’s on my screen makes my day
Q: What is your favorite Protoss unit quote?
A: “Khassar'Detemplari”! (High Templar)
Q: Who do you usually play with?
A: Family, friends and the players who are battling it out on BattleNet every day.
Q: What is your favorite strategy or unit combination to use?
A: I like mixing units as a basic build, and do adjustments based on scouting information. Compositions of funny walking immortals, sentries, zealots and stalkers etc. If the game drags on, I’d get some high tech units, like high templars, colossus, void rays etc but of course it really depends on what your opponent is doing. Of course at times, a few dark templars can do the trick XD.
Q: From the time you released your first replay, you improved at an incredible pace, reaching 1v1 diamond level in only a couple months time, can you share with us how you trained?
A: The first RPs casted the infant Pikachu, now Pikachu has grown up, lol. Women can’t resist Diamonds, I wasn’t paying much attention on gaming skills, getting these glittering diamonds to my profile page was the primary goal XD.
Q: What do you think about the current balance situation of StarCraft II? Do you think there are any units that should be buffed or nerfed?
A: Being able to warp in colossii sounds like a good idea
Q: What advice can you give to new players who find it difficult to get the hang of StarCraft II?
A: Offense is the best defense!
Q: How do you balance gaming, work, and life in general?
A: There is no balance. I do not sleep.
Q: How do you think StarCraft II could be improved as it is right now?
A: Nothing really. This is already the best game ever.
Q: Do you also play the single player campaign?
A: Not really familiar with the story mode, I just started gaming on the ladder right away.
Q: Many male players after seeing you play so well think, “Wow, if only my girlfriend could play StarCraft II with me…”. Do you have any advice for recommending StarCraft II to girls?
A: 9BE, 12BG…with extra strength whitening effect! ; )
(Note: In Taiwan and most countries in Asia a lighter or “whiter” skin tone is considered to be desirable as opposed to being “tanned”, therefore if you stay in playing StarCraft you will be paler.)
Q: What was your reaction when you heard about the ESL SCII Goes Female Cup? Did you hesitate or want to sign-up right away?
A: I was thinking about entering a tournament before I knew about this cup. So when the news hit me, I just signed up for it.
Q: What was going through your mind before the first match of the tournament? Were you nervous?
A: 1st games are always a bit nerve racking, thought about applying different strategies before the tournament. Competing in tournaments is very different from doing ladder games, especially when the game setting is BO1 with all the games except the finals. I gamed a few before the tournament in order to adjust to a more suitable build that can defend off of the early pushes or unorthodox strategies. I had a lot of possibilities in my head but then when countdown finished, as my probes started to mine, I just immediately switched to game mode. To be honest, I was more nervous watching my own RP after the tournament.
Q: In the second game of the finals match your opponent (Czeck player DJena) snuck a probe into the back of your base and built a proxy pylon to warp in Zealots. What did you think when you saw it, and looking back aside from discovering it sooner is there anything else you think you could have done to stop it?
A: I was too careless that game, didn’t even scout my base parameters especially on this map. I would usually build my 3rd or 4th pylon by the backdoor on Blistering sands to eliminate any surprise attacks. Yeah, I was just too sloppy that game.
Q: In the last game of the finals match you used a well placed force field to trap your opponent’s forces on the ramp, taking many of them out. When your army was marching across the map for the counter-attack did you feel that the game was yours? How did it feel to see that “gg” and know that you had won the championship?
A: I was the one who chose the 3rd map, wanted a smaller map because I assumed my opponent would push early in the game. The ramp at home is quite small and narrow so sentries can be put into effective use. Having cut her forces and outnumbered advantage, I just countered right away without thinking. I was actually still warping units after the opponent had said “gg”, winning the tournament didn’t really hit me till after I got out of the game and started reading congratulations messages in the chat room. Looking at the final tournament tree was when I got quite emotional and realized that I had won.
Q: During the ESL tournament did you have any chance to interact with the other players? Is there one of your opponents that made an impression on you?
A: I met this player Laejten in the final 8 match, she told me that she’s a friend of TLO's and that TLO had told her Pikachu is probably the only player she can’t beat in this tournament. Wow, that was kinda cool.
Q: For the ESL SCII Goes Female tournament you had to play from about 2am to 5am, how did you keep your focus and not get sleepy?
A: I had a lot of coffee before the tournament to stay awake, but once in game mode my energy level just shot through the roof!
Q: After the tournament ended on Monday morning you posted the good news on your Facebook page and created quite a stir, even pro players like Canadian Huk and fellow Taiwanese Sen personally congratulated you, how did it feel to receive some much support and blessings?
A: I was very touched to see everyone’s congratutions! I am nowhere near Huk and Sen level! I’m gonna just continue to work hard on this game!
(GUYS REMEMBER TO SUPPORT pIkachuSSSS)
Q: The Taiwanese community has given you the title of “Protoss Queen” (With SEn being Taiwan’s Zerg King), what do you think of the name? Does it give you any pressure?
A: Actually I was thinking about giving Terran a try, hmm…
Q: Is there anything you’d like to say to the global StarCraft community?
A: Thank you everyone for your support, and once again: Offense is the best defense!
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