okay!! firstly, in order to become a good commentator, you must understand what it means to be a good commentator. the role of the commentator is to enhance the audience’s experience by…

1. providing insight of the match/players/game
2. using your voice to elevate the hype levels of intense moments
3. having great synergy with the other caster to provide more entertainment value and to improve the flow of the viewing experience

now that we have that down, there are some basics that makes a good caster, well… good!!

CASTING ETHICS
the first rule of casting is DO NOT INTERRUPT THE OTHER CASTER NO MATTER WHAT. of course that’s a given because you are disrupting the flow of the match and the thoughts of your co-caster, it is also… quite rude!! no matter how long your co-caster is speaking for, still let them finish what they say!!

it is also encouraged that you synergise with your co-caster by asking them for opinions or introducing them when you start the stream. you’ll mesh better together and you’ll build a lot more confidence overall, it will also give you more of a positive reputation which more people would wish you to staff for them!!

another super important casting ethic is to NOT CRITICISE THE PLAYERS, MAPS, STAFF OR TOURNAMENT. now firstly, it is okay in fact i would even encourage to give your own opinions as long as they are objective, what do i mean about that?

let’s say if player 1 picked RC4, the chordjack pick, but last week and the week before they lost both their RC4 picks because they missed. it’s okay to say that you think this is a weak pick from player 1, as long as you are giving your justification.
it is also okay to give your opinion on who may have the upper hand for the match, but use the stats and performance from previous weeks to back up your statement on why you think that way. (it might not be too accurate if you compare ro16 to like semis though so usually i just go 1 week back)

back on topic, giving negative criticism is a big annoyance. it’s unnecessary, you lower player confidence and you make yourself look like an idiot in front of an audience and your co-caster. if you have a problem with the tournaments or maps, discuss them in private matters with the staff.

A NOT SO SILENT VOICE
kinda mid movie sorry not sorry
your voice is important because how would you cast without it?

starting off with speaking length, it is okay to be talking for smaller periods but i wouldn’t recommend it, this usually applies to newer casters as casting is an overwhelming experience at first!! but as you improve casting, i would recommend speaking for longer periods, but not too long to let the co-caster speak too.

for the opposite, you shouldn’t be speaking for too long, plain and simple. you’ll miss details that the other caster would find, especially if it’s in a team tournament, keep your sentences slightly short and pretty snappy.

and finally for voice thingies, the “hype usage”! the way i think about a map is a track race, you just talk casually about the map and players for the first 3/4th’s and then if the score is neck and neck, that’s when you start to add more energy to your voice, this adds more intensity to the match and enjoyment too!! it makes for some amazing clips also… but don’t overuse hype, don’t over exaggerate over an early miss, trust me it isn’t cracked up as it is to be.

and just like that. those are the basics!! but there is one more thing i forgot to mention… and that isssss

WHAT TO TALK ABOUT DURING A MATCH BECAUSE BEGINNER COMMENTATORS LOVE TALKING ABOUT MISSES AND ACC DIFFERENCE ONLY

usually this depends on your commentary style. as an analytical commentator, i like to look at the map pool and take down notes of each map, their features and fun facts too!! (such as a map being used in a previous tournament or the difficulty increase from last round).

in example, if LN2 has 2 dense kiai sections and player 1 struggled on it, you may comment on player 2 being able to capitalize on player 1’s weakness.

player notes while not as important, can be pretty handy just as quick filler to remove dead space. such as tournament history and such.

so for this fact TLDR, talk about the map, the players and their performance. you guys know how the UR bar works so use that too to comment on their performance.

quick note on confidence, you’ll build it as you staff more often!!