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What stage of the tournament are you currently in?
We actually just won our first quarter final match against Team Basic. It went down pretty quickly 3:0 and now we’re moving on to the semi-finals, being guaranteed top four.
Looking at the current Call of Duty Scene, where would you place your team in the rankings?
Right now we’re hovering in the best 14. The last one and a half year we were the best team in the world. It shows that we’re kind of struggling, but we’ll probably comeback when the new game comes out.
As a German, we’re not too acquainted with console titles in eSport. We’re used to seeing Counter Strike, League of Legends and other PC titles more. Do you think console titles will take over the scene in countries such as Germany or do they stay below PC?
PC eSport is going to be the more dominant in the long run, but consoles are establishing well at the moment. I think people used to look down on consoles because it seems easier and I agree. The individual skill matters less than the combination as a team. Finding your core with 4 players is far more important here.
Here in France the crowd seems quite amazed by CoD on console. Would you say that the USA and France are the main countries for console titles?
I would definitely agree with that, especially the crowds you get to see in the US are impressive. They are all very enthusiastic about the game and cheer on us. I believe it’s going to grow even more. CoD Ghosts is kind of a let-down when it comes to spectating and I hope Advanced Warfare is going to boost that.
Comparing only the game itself to other shooters such as Counter Strike and Quake, what would you say are the differences in the skillsets?
CS is much more slow paced and has a more tactical style. With the respawn system we have in CoD you have to coordinate very well with your teammates and react within a matter of seconds, so the gameplay is very frantic and fast paced. Many teams tore apart over this. But we also have Search & Destroy, which is a lot more like CS, and in a best-of-five there are different dynamics in the games, depending on the maps as well.
CS has been an eSport title for over 15 years now. The metagame started shifting and by now you can see differences in the play styles for the same map every year. Does the same happen in CoD?
It’s actually very different in CoD than in CS, because we get a new game every year. Every November new strategies need to be learned, rosters shift, new gameplay elements are explored. There is no room for a metagame to actually develop. Though it keeps the players occupied with learning the game. It stays fresh. To be good on long terms you have to be good at learning. I’ve been playing for five years now and saw that you have to be able to realise the fresh start and learn fast.
Here at the ESWC, have you followed any other eSport titles?
I follow CS in my spare time, which makes for a decent amount. I used to play, not very competitively, but when I was younger I tried myself at a good amount of competitive matchmaking.
Other eSport titles are mainly driven by their developers, as are the tournaments. Is it the same situation for CoD?
We have some developer support, but going from year to year we have different developers to deal with. Some are much more supportive than others. Infinity Ward is really trying, but doesn’t always manage. Treyarch does really good. Sledgehammer we’ll be seeing with the new game, but they’re getting good feedback from the competitive community, they’re seriously trying to push eSports to the next level. It will be exciting to see, but they probably won’t be doing as good as Valve or Riot, raising the price pools via the community and making it a better experience for the viewer.
With TI 4 and its 11 million dollar price pool and the Worlds in Korea and their 40 thousand viewers in the stadium itself, the mainstream media seems to start noticing eSports. Does this also happen with the console titles?
I think we are growing well, not at a fast rate as the PC games, but well enough. It comes down to the developers like Valve and Riot introducing and running their own leagues and tournaments. I believe it’s possible for CoD to reach that level, especially because there are millions of people playing it at a public casual level. If we can reach out to those people more and make professional CoD a bigger thing the media could notice us too.
Other than you, which team is the most dangerous in this tournament?
For NA I would say it’s EnVyUs, they won the last MLG tournament. In the EU there are EpsyloN or TCM doing quite well.