8 Nov 21

Interviews

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Showliana Discusses the Path to Becoming a Pro Player and Expectations That Come With It

Dignitas’ Showliana is a seasoned FPS player and will be telling you the secrets to making it as a pro

With esports rapidly growing, more and more people are flocking to put their hat in the ring to compete in games at the top level. With that influx of people, comes a lot of people making mistakes and not knowing what to do. So we talked to Juliana "showliana" Maransaldi about her own path to becoming a pro and talked about what it takes to become a professional player.

Hey Showliana! Let’s talk about your career and how you got to where you are currently. First of all, what personally drove you to play games at a professional level?

Showliana: Actually, it just kind of just happened. I didn’t plan on becoming a pro. I used to play for fun when I was really young, around 8 years old, because of my older brother who introduced me to games. I then just started playing Counter-Strike a lot because I liked it. The years passed and it started to become a thing, since I knew everyone in the Brazillian scene I got invited to a team and just started competing.


What is the biggest mistake you see people make when trying to go pro?

Showliana: I think people, especially nowadays, they wanna see results really fast, like they don’t wanna wait. Everything is a process, you’re not gonna get into the best team just by playing PUGs. You have to know people, you have to make sure people see your plays through posting clips. I see a lot of people trying to skip those steps and quit teams before a better team invites them. Basically just be patient, becoming the best does not happen overnight and requires a lot of effort and practice, which requires time.


You talked about it a bit in the previous question, but how important are connections in esports when wanting to go pro, and what are the best ways to build connections in esports?

Showliana: It’s one of the most important things. If you don’t know people, how do you expect to get on a team? The best way to build connections is to post your clips on Twitter, play smaller amateur tournaments with friends. You need a portfolio to show people to make them interested. It’s really important to know people. I am where I am today because I knew the Dignitas girls, so that’s how it works.


When it comes to going pro and playing with other people, what tips would you give to people to make sure they are good teammates, both in and out of game?

Showliana: For me, the most important skill is communication. Like, you cannot play a tactical FPS without communication. I really hate it when I’m playing a ranked game and no one is talking. Of course, there are a lot of qualities outside of the game, fun teammates can make me laugh. But when it comes to the game, communication, and taking criticism.


I know that you have been in a team environment for a long time, but if you can remember, what was the biggest adjustment you had to make when going from a casual to a professional player?

Showliana: I used to play a lot even before I was on a team, so it was not that big of a change. I’d say the biggest change was that you have a routine when you’re on a team and you have to follow a schedule, so you don’t make your own time. Also I think you need to know more specific skills and game knowledge that you wouldn’t know as a casual player


You mentioned it earlier, but how important is it to be flexible towards a new meta, feedback, criticism and trying out new things when joining a team to go pro, versus focusing on your strengths or just raw mechanics?

Showliana: When you play a lot, mechanical skill comes automatically, and you don’t really need to think about improving or actively think “oh I need to press my mouse now”. So I think you have to be open-minded and have to listen to your teammates. Taking criticism is really crucial because you cannot improve if you cannot listen to what they have to say, they want the same thing as you, which at the end of the day is to win. So it’s really hard when a teammate does not take criticism well. When adjusting to the meta it really depends on the team, but it is still important to look at what it’s changing in the game.


Please share one of your favorite moments in your pro gaming career with us

Showliana: I really like to remember when I played my first ESWC, I used to only play in Brazil, I was 16 and I went to Paris to play in ESWC. I have a lot of good memories from that event since it was the first time I went to an international event and I was so young.


Let’s end the interview with a classic question: do you have any tips for women who want to go pro in the gaming scene?

Showliana: I think persistence is key, as I said, you have to make sure that’s what you want, it’s not easy to be a pro player and make money. You are going to sacrifice a lot, so if you’re sure that’s worth it, just play as much as you can, improve, make connections, and don’t give up! I know there are a lot of people that say mean things, if that’s what you want, just believe it!


Thank you for the interview! Any final shoutouts?

Showliana: Not really, just wanted to say thank you for having me!

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