All throughout the early stages of November's GSL, much “scene” discussion has centered not on the players, their abilities, and their accomplishments, but on the overhauled format for Code A and Code S. Right after the initial announcement, fans from all over the world hastened to express themselves on well-known community websites. So far, the general sentiment seems to be that the community is overjoyed by the drastic changes the leagues undergo. Indeed, due to the higher amount of games and competition, the community will revel in watching more matches from their favorite players. Nevertheless, even though the format looks more interesting and offers more competition than the old one, there are still a few flaws that will probably play an important role in the elimination of some players.

Despite the excitement from the community, the players do not really seem to share the same feeling, and if you look at the new format from a player’s point of view, you can understand their annoyance.

Like It’s Gosu and GSL’s caster, Erik “DoA” Lonnquist reported during the GSL Code S groups selection, it will be a lot harder for the players to remain in Code S... but how about Code A? A lot of people do not seem to take an interest in this division because Moon “SlayerS`MMA” Sung Won, Lim “IMNesTea” Jae Duk or Shin “TSL_Killer” Sang Ho do not play in it and yet, in my opinion, it is a lot harder for Code A players to remain in this division or get promoted to Code S.

Be lucky or play Code B!

While this title may come across as a bit harsh for some people, this is actually what crossed my mind when the bracket was released by GOMTV.

As you may know, eight players from Code S (who ended up fourth in their group) will be downgraded to Code A where they will play the Round-of-48. What does this exactly mean? It means that players like Kim “IMMinSeOk” Min Seok, Kim “oGsCezanne” Jung Hwan and Lee “oGsVines” Sang Hun will have to play a Code S player for their first GSL Code A appearance ever.

Does it sound fair to you?

Of course, some people will say that if they got downgraded to Code A, it is because they did not have the level to compete with other Code S players... but this says nothing of the fact that, generally speaking, the skill gap (both in terms of experience, nerves, and high-level thinking) between a former Code S player and a new Code A remains immense.

Let’s take the example of IMMinSeOk. Unfortunately for him, he will have to play against one of the players from group A i.e. Moon “SlayerS`MMA” Sung Won, Jung “SlayerS`YuGiOh” Seung, Jang “oGs.SK.MC” Min Chul or Kim “SlayerS`Ryung” Dong Won. With due respect, I do not see MinSeOk making the “Incredible Miracle.” So at the end, either he manages to defeat one of the players I listed above, or he loses his match and goes back to Code B, which would be really unfair for IMMinSeOk who, once again, qualified for Code A for the first time.

Let’s now talk about players who have the chance to face a player of their caliber (a normal Code A player). Unfortunately, there is a winner and a loser, but the game will at least be more balanced. As a result, one of the players will reach the Round-of-32... but what does the Round-of-32 do? By reaching the Round-of-32 you secure your spot for the up-and-down matches so no matter what happens, either you do great in the up-and-down matches and you reach Code S or you remain in Code A. So what I am trying to explain here is that IMMinSeOk will have a tougher challenge in his bracket as he will have to face a Code S player, as opposed to Hwang “MvP_Keen” Kyo Seok and Kim “TSL_RevivaL” Dong Hyun, who both will play a normal match before logically facing a Code S player.

Another problem arises for Code A players. What the players want is to secure their Code S spot without going through the up-and-down matches. So for some players including IMMinSeOk, the first match alone is already a pain but there is another substantial obstacle in the Round-of-32. In fact, the player having ended-up third of a Code S group will be downgraded to the Code A Round-of-32.

So, what does this actually mean? It means that the player who was downgraded to the Code A Round-of-32 will only have one match to win to secure again their Code S spot for the next season. At the very worst, if they lose their match, they will have to play the up-and-down matches. How about the Code A player? Let’s imagine that IMMinSeOk did manage to pull out an incredible miracle in his first match, then beat his next opponent in the Round-of-32, he will then have to face another Code S player, and, considering the players representing the group A, I cannot imagine how hard it will be for the Zerg player to secure his Code S spot without going through the up-and-down matches.

To sum this up, either a player is lucky and he does not have to face a Code S player in the first round and thus has more chances to reach the second round, or a player is not lucky at all and has to face a Code S player which would drastically decrease his chances to reach the next round. As a result, if the player does not manage to win the first round, he can say good-bye to Code A for the next season.