Gaming
esports
Is Titanfall the Next Halo?
Master Chief David “Walshy” Walsh talks about the future of Halo and the potential of Titanfall.
David "Walshy" Walsh
© Justin Kosman/Red Bull Content Pool
David “Walshy” Walsh spent years beating everyone in Halo, but now he’s spending time using his favorite first-person shooter to help people. Walshy will be a commentator for the Halo competition at this weekend’s annual eSports event Gamers for Giving in Michigan. It’s a fundraiser for Gamers Outreach Foundation, a charity that provides games for hospitalized children and U.S. troops overseas.
Red Bull eSports spoke with Walshy about his role and his thoughts on Halo and other eSports.
What’s your role going to be at Gamers for Giving?
I’ll be meeting fans and commentating on the Halo event. We want to put on a good show for them. We attract some good teams and we’re pleased with the talent we’ve attracted to this year’s event.
What do you like best about being part of Gamers for Giving?
Charity is a cause that everyone can get behind, and we pride ourselves in that 100 percent of donations go to these causes. We don’t get a dime.
After hosting 'This is eSports', what do you think about the StarCraft scene?
I had definitely watched a lot of professional StarCraft beforehand. But to get to talk to them, especially off-camera, was a real treat for me. I got to learn that we were very similar in certain ways.
People may think of console and PC pros and shooters and real-time strategies gamers to be divided, but when you sit down with these guys, you find a lot of similarities about the way you prepare for a match or the way you study your opponent. Getting to know the people behind the gamertags was the best part for me.
What's the state of professional Halo like these days?
We had a huge event at PAX, the championship with $200,000 for first place. But the overall scene, it's not as big as it was in the past. So, I'm looking forward to seeing what 343 has in store. Especially this year, there's been rumors about Halo Anniversary and Halo 5 in the works. So, we're excited to see what's going to be revealed and how it's going to turn out, especially when it comes to competitive play. 343 have hired top pros that are well-respected in the scene, so I'm curious as to see how that will translate to competitive Halo.
What do you think of Titanfall or Destiny? Could either of these games be the next big shooter eSport?
I literally wrote the book on Titanfall, I'm one of the co-authors for the strategy guide for Prima. I really enjoyed the game, I'm really excited to see how the community likes it.
Titanfall
© [unknown]
What do you think of the new gaming consoles?
I'm still waiting for the big titles to come out. On Xbox One, I picked up Call of Duty: Ghosts and Battlefield 4, but I haven't played the games nearly as much. I'm really looking forward to seeing Titanfall, Destiny and the Halos.
How big is streaming going to get for console shooters?
Streaming is getting to be bigger for pros, especially in the Call of Duty scene. I've logged on and seen Nadeshot with 10,000 viewers just to watch him practice.
What's the health of eSports in general?
Can't complain. It's a community that in the past has gone up and down but in general, it's gaining a lot of traction. More people are learning about it and watching it on a regular basis. Pretty amazing that a quarter of a million people are watching the LCS at like at all times. It's pretty insane.
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