Kevin ‘Harstem’ DeKoning is at the forefront of the Dutch StarCraft 2 scene, and has been for quite some time. Kicking off his professional career in 2011 at the age of 18, Harstem has been a fan favourite since the very start. His consistently friendly persona coupled with constant gameplay displays of huge potential made him a star player in the foreign StarCraft 2 scene.

With the ‘year of Harstem’ meme cheering him on, Harstem saw success last year, conquering the Gold Series international tournament in Shanghai, and claiming himself a spot on the TakeTV wall of champions after winning Homestory Cup 13.

More recently, Harstem has been dealing with Invasion Esports, his former team. The Invasion Esports roster parted ways from the organization after months trying to chase don and claim the prize money they they were rightfully owed. Prize money that had been collected on their behalf by a team manager, Sebastien ‘Sebou’ Dang, who had vanished. At the time, Harstem said that he would be pursuing legal action in this matter.

I was lucky to chat with Harstem about the upcoming IEM Katowice tournament, the state of the SC2 metagame and the horrific imbalance experienced in Protoss vs Terran, his plan to deal with Invasion, and what might come for him in the future.

Editor's Note: This interview was conducted prior to IEM Katowice.

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You started playing SC2 on a professional level at the age of 18. What has it been like to grow up with SC2 and professional esports? How has that impacted you as a person?

I think it impacted me in a positive way, It gave me a big sense of self discipline and it has helped me become more independent.

A few weeks ago, you took control of the @Netherlanders account on Twitter -- an account that goes to a different Dutch citizen every week where they talk about their life a bit. How did you get involved with this project? Did you use the platform to support SC2 esports? ;)

You can just sign up and they will invite you to use it. I tweeted some facts about esports and SC2, but I wasn’t as active on it as I could have been.

You played in the Team Liquid Map Contest tournament this month. What do you think of the maps you’ve been playing on? Any particular favourites? Any that you can’t stand?

There are some good maps and some bad ones. My favourite one so far has been Sequencer. And a map that has been very interesting for me is Bandarlog Ruins, in which your main runs out of minerals at the 4 minute mark. Bandarlog Ruins really creates a different kind of game and I would like to see this map being used in tournaments (not sure if it is fit for ladder play).

One of the most famous memes in the Starcraft 2 scene is ‘the year of Harstem’. How did this meme come about?

It started with a showmatch between me and Naama. There was a hashtag for Naama that I can’t remember and my hashtag was #yearofharstem. It kind of stuck with me and everytime I won something (big or small) people would just kind of spam it.

Do you ever feel bothered by the phrase? Do you feel any added pressure because of it?

No, not really; I think it is a funny meme and one that has increased my brand recognition, so it has been only positive for me.

According to Aligulac’s balance report, PvT in January was the most imbalanced matchup in years. November saw a PvT matchup that was slightly Protoss favoured at 50.44% winrate, which fell in December to 42.84% winrate, making it the most imbalanced matchup in years. This change was sparked because of buffs to the tank and the cyclone. Do you see the changes that were made in those units as changes that can create a better game in the long run, or would you prefer to see them revert the changes back to when PvT was a stable matchup and try something else?

I don’t mind the changes as much. I believe they might have overdone the tank a little bit, but now that the liberator has been nerfed, tank pushes aren’t that much of an issue anymore.

Something that seems to still get ignored when talking about win rates is maps. The maps in the past 3-4 months have been very bad for Protoss in PvT.

You’ve spoken out against the popular idea of nerfing the Terran liberator. Why don’t you think this is the answer to the imbalance and what would you do instead?

The main strength for Terran is in the early game and nerfing the liberator basically nerfed the mid-late game for Terran. Even though it helped Protoss quite a bit, I don’t believe this change will improve the matchup in the long run.

What are your thoughts on the overall balance of the game, beyond PvT?

I think Protoss is a little bit strong in PvZ and a little bit weak in PvT (this might just be a map problem though). I don’t know too much about TvZ, so I can’t really comment on that. Reapers do seem strong though.

IEM is coming up in just a few days and there’s still much discussion on the balance of the game. Do you think that Blizzard should be more heavy handed with their patches, particularly in the weeks leading up to large tournaments?

No, I think Blizzard should patch minimum 2 weeks before a big event and massive changes should only be done at the end of the year.

What are your expectations for your own results at this event?

Qualifying and I hope to get out of my group. After that, the bracket will have to be very good for me to make an impact.

Are there any players who you expect to experience some breakout success at this IEM?

I believe serral will do very well. Serral is probably the best foreigner at this moment. I would be surprised and a bit disappointed if he doesn't take down a few household names.

IEM Katowice is the first WCS circuit event in 2017. What are your thoughts on the WCS 2017 format?

It seems like there are a lot less tournaments than last year, which does give some reason for concern. On the other hand, the prize money that can be won stays very similar, so I am expecting a relatively successful year for me. Having less evens can cause motivation issues, but I have never really struggled with those.

In the announcement of WCS 2017’s format, Blizzard stated that the 2018 format would remain largely the same. Do you think this is the right choice?

Not sure, I will be able to make more useful comments on this in 6 months or so.

Last month you went public with an issue surrounding your former team, Invasion esports, where they hadn’t paid yourself and your teammate Major the prize money that you won from several tournaments. You said at the time that you would be pursuing legal action. Have you taken any further steps with that?

Yeah, I have looked into it and it basically is impossible to get my money back. I will still try something, but it is going to be very difficult. I don't want to talk about it too in depth.

Do you have any interest in joining another team right now?

Yes, either joining a new team or getting a couple of companies to sponsor me.

Will you be streaming at all in the future?

There is a good possibility I'll start streaming after IEM Katowice.

What’s your preferred practice regiment? Does not being part of a team affect it at all?

I do about 50/50 between custom games and ladder. Not being on a team doesn’t really change too much. I am still close to the guys that i was on invasion with and I still trust them completely, so no real change there.

You’ve been playing SC2 at a professional level for years. Despite your experience though, you’re still quite young. What are your plans for the future? Can you see a day where you switch games or switch out of the role of a pro to the role of a commentator?

I wanna go back to school for econometrics. I might start streaming like Stephano when I am in school. But I do plan on attending university rather sooner than later. I don't think I would compete while in school though.

(Header image courtesy of Helena Kristiansson of ESL/Turtle Entertainment)

(Article image courtesy of Team Liquid - R1CH)

Questions and responses have been edited for brevity and clarity