For those who think that eSports and video games are men’s things, there are a few (and increasingly) examples of female players who would change their mind. María “Remilia” Crevelling, Se-yeon “Geguri” Kim, Zainab “zAAz” Turkie, Ana “aNouC” Oliveras … the list is endless. Think of the game that we think we will always find a renowned woman, even in Starcraft. You don’t know who we mean? Starcraft II also has a queen
Blizzard’s videogame is practically a religion in countries like South Korea, so it is surprising that one of the best-known names in the competitive landscape is a woman (and above Canadian). Sasha “Scarlett” Hostyn is the unquestionable champion of Starcraft. He drives the Zerg like nobody else and is currently still doing his thing in Newbee.
From the first moment he appeared on the competitive scene he left everyone captivated. It was 2011 and suddenly he won his first tournament, the NESL Iron Lady women’s competition. A year later and thanks to her talent, she managed to find a sponsor during an amateur competition that propelled her to the international scene of the IGN ProLeague. Already with all this on his back, a while later he got fully into the competitive scene of South Korea where he just made himself known.
Scarlett has had to endure a hard road to get the recognition she deserves and that being popular in this world as a woman is difficult, but it is even more so if you are a transgender woman. Scarlett shut up all those who questioned her talent in 2016 when she won the American qualifier for the WESG (World Electronic Sport Games). In addition, she was second in the qualifier for the World Cyber Arena.
In fact, that same year her name was registered in the Guinness Book of Records as the player with better competitive results in eSports and with higher profits in eSports tournaments (with about 120,000). Defending the crown Although many thought that her reign had come to an end, last year the player again proved that she is the best. She won the title of the Intel Extreme Masters by snatching it from the two-time world champion Kim “sOs” Yoo Jin. Of the 20 games she played, she only lost four, making it clear once again who’s boss. Along the way she faced well-known players such as TIME, Serral or Elazer, but nothing could prevent her from taking the first place and the 50,000 prize money becoming the first woman winner of a Starcraft II major. It is sad that in 2019 there is still a gender distinction in the field of eSports. More and more women and inclusive initiatives are present in the gamer ecosystem, but there is still much to do to achieve equal importance and pay in this area. Lately they are striving to create competitions that show that women are equally capable and initiatives are being born that remind us that this is still a struggle to be resolved. The case of MyGameMyName, a Portuguese initiative that reflected the rejection of the players, served to show how women are still teased and vexed in 2019 just because they are. Despite this, if we all participate in this fight for equality, we will end up enjoying electronic sports regardless of whether our favorite players are men or women. Achievements such as Sasha “Scarlett” Hostyn or her companions remind us that talent does not understand genres.