Will ‚Zolex‘ Degryse is the first english-speaking moderator joining GIGA. With the age of 17, Will did his first job as a shoutcaster and got famous for moderating the famous Go4wc3-Tourney. As his biggest success in moderating videogames he mentions the World Cyber Games 2003 in Seoul, Korea where he presented the FIFA-Games. On his way to GIGA he did his certificate in computer sciences and some administrative jobs in an hospital after.
readmore.de: When did you start to moderate videogames?
Will: When I was 16 years old. I started commentating on Tribes2 in the shoutcast team ESN (European Shoutcast Network), I casted this until Warcraft3 was released. I was the first English shoutcaster for Warcraft3 then and soon after left ESN to be an independant shoutcaster for a while. I joined Replayers soon after and concentrated on commentating on Go4wc3. After a while Replayers was closed for about a year though, due to server problems. During this time I became independant again and was invited to the WCG Grand Final 2003 in Seoul, Korea to commentate on Age of Mythology and FIFA. After this I continued shoutcasting for wc3 in Gamesports before I became inactive for some time and joined GIGA afterwards.
readmore.de: Do you think eSport is the future?
Will: Yes I do, eSports has gained incredible popularity in the past 2 years and I expect it to be acknowledged as a actual sport very soon, a sport that you can enjoy even if you don’t know much about the game.
readmore.de: After some years of moderating videogames, are you still motivated?
Will: Definitely, more than ever actually. I was inactive for some time. I think it was a much needed break and when I come back now the eSports scene has grown so much. I’m glad I’m still able to start shoutcasting and be part of the scene again.
readmore.de: Are you more motivated because you are paid for your hobby now?
Will: Obviously it grants some motivation, still I have fun shoutcasting, I like the scene and the community. Now that I can get paid for it, I no longer need to take any other job, I can fully concentrate on commentating without dying (laughs).
readmore.de: How did you get connected with Giga II?
Will: I was invited by and old friend of mine, Baschi. I used to shoutcast a lot for him in the old Go4wc3 and he introduced me to GIGA. I went to Cologne a few times and talked with Jens Hilgers, soon after I made the decision of a lifetime to go live in Cologne and make my hobby my job.
readmore.de: When will Giga II start with an English stream
Will: Very soon, the wc3l finals will be in English of course so we can except an English stream around that time.
readmore.de: Do the people of other european countries have enough bandwith to watch a videostream?
Will: I think so, most countries have a good connection these days. The people watching GIGA 2 are mostly gamers, which usually have a good connection to play their games on the internet.
readmore.de: You cant do the whole english stream on your own. Who will join the english Giga II-Team as a moderator?
Will: All I can say for now is that someone will soon arrive to do English commentation of Shooter games as I won’t be covering those myself at the moment. He is quite familiar to the scene and will do a really good job I’m sure.
readmore.de: Do you know any figures about Giga II? How much people bought it yet?
Will: Not really, I think only the tech guys know that 😉
readmore.de: Do you play videogames yourself?
Will: Yeah, I have been playing videogames addictively ever since I was about 8 years old. I started with games such as Duke Nukem 3D, Descent and even pacman. I used to play in a computer club with some friends where we organized LANs ourselves and had a load of fun playing Descent, Doom and the Duke in LAN, where I used the nickname „Killer“. I went to the internet with the game Mechcommander, which was my first time playing a game competitively, under the nickname „Zolex“. After this I played X-Wing Alliance, where I was ranked first for a few seasons of the biggest league for this game under the nick „Lionheart“. The next game for me was Tribes 2, I made my own Belgian clan at first, ranking first in Belgium and winning a few tournaments. I went more international soon though, eventually ranking first in the biggest European Ladder called theladder, with a different clan called Flatliners. My position there was Light Defense/Shriker. I became a full-time commentator soon after, going to Warcraft 3 then and now I still commentate on Warcraft 3. I usually play RPGs and Shooters in my spare time, nothing too competitively. If you’re a shoutcaster there usually isn’t a lot of time to play games intensively.
readmore.de: How do you like Germany?
Will: I like the country but I don’t understand the language that well yet, but I will pick that up soon enough. I can’t say it’s that different from Belgium, we are neighbors and the mentality and habits are pretty much the same.
readmore.de: And Cologne?
Will: Busy! I come from a beach town in Belgium, pretty quiet and peacefull. I’ve now entered a very busy touristical town, especially with the WC now it takes getting used to busy atmosphere of Cologne. I don’t dislike it though, it’s different but not bad.
readmore.de: Do you like it to „stand on your own feet“ in another country?
Will: It was a big change for me but it feels good and I’m glad I did it. I get to meet new people here, a new work atmosphere, new places to visit and a whole new life in front of me. I would say it’s quite exciting and I’m curious how things will turn out.
readmore.de: Do you have problems communicating with the other moderators?
Will: Naw, they all understand English and are willing to talk English to me too. If they talk to each other I sometimes have difficulties understanding what they say but I don’t mind. It’s a good way for me to learn German without the need to take a course every day.
readmore.de: Do you like the EPS Finals location?
Will: It’s not so far from where I live so I definately do. It’s also a nice enviroment around the building and the building itself is well designed, it’s big, well cleaned and decorated. You can also find it very easily as there are directions to it in the city and clear on a city map.
readmore.de: Any negative aspects?
Will: Not really.
readmore.de: What does your family think about your job and that you are far from home?
Will: They are happy that I found a job that I like and I can make my hobby my job. I used to live with them though so it’s also a big change for them and they miss me a lot. I talk to them frequently on MSN and on the phone though. I think they silently wish for me to come back though. (grins)
readmore.de: Thank you for this interview.