Today, I had the opportunity to speak with Daniel "Nyoken" Eidson, the 2nd place finisher at WCG USA. A veteran player from the United States who had finally managed to place well enough to move onto the grand finals.

Known for his very strong Terran versus Terran play, some even considered him as being one of the best at that particular matchup. This past year though, he has struggled with trying to stay motivated with Starcraft and even seriously considered retiring. However, he decided to stick around, and through his experience over the years and overall strong play he has ended up in Seattle.

Prior to WCG USA you had doubts about even competing. What motivated you to continue?

I made the decision to compete because the Atlantic regionals were online. I qualified at those and decided to drive down to Orlando to compete at WCG USA. I was placed in a good group and was able to qualify for the grand finals.


Where have you been spending much of your time practicing? How has your practice been going so far?

I have been spending a majority of my practice time on ICCup. Unfortunately, I have not been able to really practice with my Korean team because my leader never logs in anymore. Since he has not come online, I have not been unable to get games with the good Korean players. I also recently joined Excello thinking that I would be able to get some good practice with them since they have matches almost daily. However, I just really haven’t been on Europe that much to game with them.


What did you think of your chances coming into this tournament?

I feel that I will be able to advance from my group, but after that I don’t really think my chances are high. Maybe if my opponents are Terran then I will win.


You were placed in a group made up of just about all Terran users. Were you really happy about his or did you wish that you were in another group?

I completely lucked out in both WCG USA and here. My best matchup is Terran versus Terran and I could not have asked for a better group.


Do you plan on continuing with your Starcraft career once Starcraft II is released?

I fear that Starcraft II will be too slow and a lot like Total Annihilation. It is still too early to tell what my plans will be until I at least play the game.