In this month’s issue of Game Informer we dove into the world of eSports, detailing how players, teams, and sponsors work with each other to make sure people who excel at games like Street Fighter, Halo, and more can make a living off their skills. Here at Gameinformer.com, we’re also taking a look at some of the periphery aspects of eSports vital to understanding the world of competitive gaming.
Peter “ppd” Dager is one eSports’ most recent success stories. What began as a few excursions in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and Heroes of Newerth tournaments eventually became something more when, in 2014, he signed up with Evil Geniuses’ Dota 2 squad. While on the team he helped elevate the North American Dota scene and scored a million-dollar paycheck when he won Dota 2’s The International tournament in 2015. Since then, he’s gone from captain of his team to CEO of his company, trading competitive glory for a quieter (but busier) lifestyle.
We recently caught up with Dager and talked to him about his early career, what it takes to pick the right lineup in a game like Dota 2, and why he made the transition from player to executive.
Game Informer: When did you first start playing video games?
Peter "ppd" Dager: My big first dive into video games was Mario 64 on the N64. I took it very seriously.
What was the first video game you became really competitive in?
I’ve always been an incredibly competitive person when it comes to pretty much anything, but as it pertains to video games I would probably say Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. My buddies and I would have LAN parties and compete on [online tournament website] GameBattles until we couldn’t stay awake any longer.
Your first big venture into eSports was in Heroes of Newerth (HoN). What drew you to that game?
I had played Dota and enjoyed it. My friend Ben pushed me into Heroes of Newerth because it was identical to Dota, except with a couple new heroes and much better graphics. It was a compelling game, just as Dota was, but was current for the time.
Ludwig "Zai" Wåhlberg
HoN was where you met [fellow EG teammate] Ludwig “Zai” Wåhlberg, correct? How did that happen?
Zai was just another player on another team when we met. We became friends near the end of our time in HoN, as we both had aspirations of switching over to Dota 2 sooner rather than later.
What prompted your move from HoN to Dota 2?
I was no longer the top dog in HoN and saw an opportunity to start competing in some lower-tier Dota 2 tournaments. Eventually I couldn’t split time and stopped playing HoN to go back to college while I spent my free time learning Dota 2.
Everyone recognizes you as an EG player, but do you have a major accomplishment from the early days on teams like Dignitas, Stay Free, and Super Strong Dinosaurs?
None in Dota 2 really. With Stay Free we managed to find ourselves playing against some top teams and were casted by some of the premium casters, which was cool.
How did the move to EG happen? Why was the team first branded under the S A D B O Y S moniker before being unveiled?
EG went after Arteezy and pitched the idea to him about building a team with Fear. FluffNstuff, Demon, Universe, Zai, and myself were the tryouts. I was chosen for my in-game leadership and rapport with the guys through in-house leagues. I also said I wouldn’t play on the team without Zai (not that he wasn’t strong enough to make it on the team on his own merit).
What do you think it was about that initial roster that catapulted it into a tier-one team?
The idea of playing around a polarizing player like Arteezy made a lot of sense to me. I managed to come up with some cool ideas and convince my team to believe in them, and we ended up changing the way people played Dota 2 entirely.
You’re well-known as one of the best drafters in all of Dota 2. What do think goes into creating a good draft? Why do you think you’re so good at it?
It’s all about giving your team an opportunity to win. I’ve been blessed to have such skilled teammates the last few years that if I can give us even a 40-percent chance to win a game through the draft they’ll make up the difference. I think I’m okay at drafting because I think big picture. I also care enough to work at it, and a lot of my skill comes from my desire to win. Drafting well helps you win!
Similarly, what makes for a good captain?
I think I have a good idea of how to facilitate both communication and ideas. My Dota 2 skill plus the skill of my teammates should be enough to win any game, but if you can’t organize those ideas you won’t go anywhere.
How much communication is going on during a pro match among teammates? Is it very talkative, or do you all know what you’re doing and give each other minimal instruction?
Communication is everything. Sometimes it’s talkative, other times it's not. It depends on what is going in the game.
As soon as someone wins The International, it seems like they start falling off. But EG has staved off that curse and is still one of the highest-rated teams around. What do you think causes that decline? Did you feel you had to make a conscious effort to avoid it?
When we won [The International] 5 I don’t think we ever felt like we were the best team, we just won a tournament that happened to be the big one. We play numerous double-elimination tournaments every year, and TI is just another tournament but with a much bigger prize. I think after winning what was your loftiest goal it makes losing a lot easier. We brought in Arteezy [Artour “Arteezy” Babaev left Evil Geniuses in January of 2015 then signed on with them again in August of that year. - Ed.] and still had the drive to win but losing wasn’t that big of deal, which prevented us from playing 100 percent, in my opinion.
On Page 2, we talk about the Amazon/EG split and Dager's switch to executive.
from www.GameInformer.com - The Feed http://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2017/02/11/evil-geniuses-ceo-peter-dager-on-esports-building-a-team-and-moving-to-management.aspx
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