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fession,” says Peter “ppd” Dager, a member of the professional
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Dota 2 team Ninjas in Pyjamas. In tournaments, a player’s skills
can attract the attention of a pro team that is looking to add a
new player. This is how Sasha “Scarlett” Hostyn, a Canadian pro
gamer who is the fi rst woman to win a major StarCraft II tourna-
ment, was recruited to the pro ranks.
Scarlett started playing StarCraft II when she was eleven. She
credits her brother for encouraging her to consider playing pro-
fessionally. “My brother watched a lot of Starcraft II, pro matches,
so I guess he got me into it,” she explains. “I just got really good at
it when I was playing for fun, so I tried playing a few tournaments
and just went from there.” 10
When she was eighteen, Scarlett entered an online female-only
tournament, the NESL Iron Lady, and won. In 2012 she won the
Playhem “Sponsor Me!” Tournament, an online event designed to
help amateur players fi nd a team or a sponsor.
As part of the winner’s award, she received a “I just got really good at
sponsored trip to the IGN ProLeague Sea- it when I was playing for
son 4, a tournament in Las Vegas, Nevada. fun, so I tried playing a
Scarlett participated in the open bracket and few tournaments and just
won the fi rst two games over two well-known went from there.” 10
players, Terius and DdoRo. She lost in the — Sasha “Scarlett” Hostyn, rst
third round and dropped down to the loser’s woman to win a major
bracket. But there she pulled another upset StarCraft II tournament
by defeating DeMusliM 2–0, knocking him
out of the tournament. She lost her next match, but her excellent
play brought her to the attention of Eclypsia, an international team
located in France. The team offered Scarlett a contract, and her
pro career took off. She has played for several teams, including
Dead Pixels, Team Expert, Tollenz Lions, and Newbee. Guinness
World Records lists Scarlett as having the highest career earn-
ings for a female competitive video game player, with more than
$271,000 in winnings.
Ryan “OpTicJ” Musselman, a founding member of OpTic
Gaming, a four-time Call of Duty Major League Gaming champion

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