Starcraft Ladder

The phenomenal game StarCraft launched in the summer of 1998. Its success led to thousands of players challenging each other online through our Battle.net service. The game featured a ladder system, and we planned to invite the top players each season to an official Blizzard tournament with cash prizes. Unfortunately, some players sought to gain an unfair advantage in the ladder system. I co-developed StarCraft’s ladder abuse detection software. Running on a dedicated server daily, it ensured fair play among competitors. Fun mention: During our first major tournament, I was honored to serve as one of the official referees.