Astralis device: "What a horrible birthday if we had lost today" Astralis device: "What a horrible birthday if we had lost today"

Astralis device: "What a horrible birthday if we had lost today"

Counter-Strike
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Interviews
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Grady Hooker
Immediately following Astralis' historic win at the StarLadder Berlin Major 2019, we got to talk to the Major MVP device. We chatted about what it was like to win three in a row, the overall major playoffs, and what makes Astralis special.
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Renegades Liazz: "I was getting ready for Dust2" Renegades Liazz: "I was getting ready for Dust2"

Renegades Liazz: "I was getting ready for Dust2"

Counter-Strike
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Interviews
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Grady Hooker
Renegades shocked everyone by taking out ENCE in the quarterfinals of the Berlin Major and advancing to the semifinals. We sat down with Liazz and talk about his professional career, the rough 0-2 start, and a strange bet he made with his teammates.
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Vitality NBK-: "We need to keep ourselves out of our comfort zone" Vitality NBK-: "We need to keep ourselves out of our comfort zone"

Vitality NBK-: "We need to keep ourselves out of our comfort zone"

Counter-Strike
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Interviews
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Grady Hooker
Back in the New Legends stage, right after Team Vitality secured their top 8 and playoff spot, Grady had a chat to NBK-. They talked about the rocky start in New Challengers, whether they are the #2 in the world, and playing with ZywOo.
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Renegades Gratisfaction: "We’re just not going out without a fight" Renegades Gratisfaction: "We’re just not going out without a fight"

Renegades Gratisfaction: "We’re just not going out without a fight"

Counter-Strike
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Interviews
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Grady Hooker
Renegades managed to just slide through and send FaZe Clan home from the major. Right after that win, Grady had a chat with Gratisfaction about the teams' performance in recent tournaments, what is currently the mentality of Renegades, and their Vertigo.
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NaVi Boombl4: "It is a new chapter for me, a new role, new friends, new team" NaVi Boombl4: "It is a new chapter for me, a new role, new friends, new team"

NaVi Boombl4: "It is a new chapter for me, a new role, new friends, new team"

Counter-Strike
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Interviews
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Grady Hooker
Natus Vincere just dispatched MIBR in an elimination match after shockingly dropping down to 1-2. We talk to Boombl4 about what went wrong in the early games, his feeling joining NaVi, and playing against teams from your own region.
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NRG tarik: "Shit happens and we got it done either way" NRG tarik: "Shit happens and we got it done either way"

NRG tarik: "Shit happens and we got it done either way"

Counter-Strike
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Interviews
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Grady Hooker
NRG Esports triumphed over AVANGAR with a 2-0 victory and that means they advance onto the New Legends Stage. Right after their win, Grady got to talk to tarik about advancing to the next stage, the change on in-game leader with stanislaw, and who they are scared of in the next stage.
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Complexity SicK: "I think [Vertigo] is just a really comfortable map for us" Complexity SicK: "I think [Vertigo] is just a really comfortable map for us"

Complexity SicK: "I think [Vertigo] is just a really comfortable map for us"

Counter-Strike
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Interviews
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Grady Hooker
Immediately following their 2-0 win against TyLoo in the Challenger Stage of the StarLadder Berlin 2019 Major, Grady got to talk to SicK from Complexity Gaming. They talked about Complexity's brand new player oBo, dephh's new in-game leader role, and what went wrong in the first two matches.
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Grayhound sico: "We are confident going into all our games in Oz" Grayhound sico: "We are confident going into all our games in Oz"

Grayhound sico: "We are confident going into all our games in Oz"

Counter-Strike
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Interviews
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Grady Hooker
Grayhound Gaming were 1 map win away from making the playoffs at IEM Sydney 2019, but unfortunately they fell short against Fnatic. This was one of the things Grady talked to sico about, they also touched on what happened to the ICON team and being so close to the playoffs.
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eUnited moose: "They can play majors, we get a revamped team" eUnited moose: "They can play majors, we get a revamped team"

eUnited moose: "They can play majors, we get a revamped team"

Counter-Strike
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Interviews
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Grady Hooker
At IEM Sydney, Grady got talk to moose from eUnited. Together they talked about the controversial shake-up between themselves and Swole Patrol, how important qualifiers are to a newer team, and their playstyles within the team.
counter-strike character
Liquid Twistzz: "They’re not going to stay the best forever" Liquid Twistzz: "They’re not going to stay the best forever"

Liquid Twistzz: "They’re not going to stay the best forever"

Counter-Strike
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Interviews
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Grady Hooker
While they were still the number 2 team in the world, Grady had a chat to Twistzz from Team Liquid. They talked about what is happening in the North American scene, having a bye in the middle of a tournament and how long it takes him to do his hair.
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BIG tiziaN: "[LEGIJA] took a last minute flight to Sydney" BIG tiziaN: "[LEGIJA] took a last minute flight to Sydney"

BIG tiziaN: "[LEGIJA] took a last minute flight to Sydney"

Counter-Strike
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Interviews
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Grady Hooker
Back in May, before the BIG shuffle - pun intended - Grady got the chance to talk to tiziaN about how XANTARES is slotting into the team and group, what they had to do when he couldn't make it to Sydney, and how he got into Counter-Strike.
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NiP Lekr0: "I don’t think you play the major for the prize pool" NiP Lekr0: "I don’t think you play the major for the prize pool"

NiP Lekr0: "I don’t think you play the major for the prize pool"

Counter-Strike
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Interviews
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Grady Hooker
Straight after losing the 115 round war against Fnatic at IEM Sydney, Grady got to talk with Lekr0 from Ninjas in Pyjamas. They chatted about the mentality of a long series, what it means to play in a major and how some players like to whine on Twitter.
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ViCi Freeman: "We didn’t prepare a lot" ViCi Freeman: "We didn’t prepare a lot"

ViCi Freeman: "We didn’t prepare a lot"

Counter-Strike
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Interviews
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Grady Hooker
Before he joined TyLoo, Grady sat down with ViCi Gaming's Freeman at IEM Sydney 2019 and via a translator they talked about how the different regions play Counter-Strike differently, the team's mentality heading into the tournament and Vertigo.
counter-strike character
Heroic blameF: "I think every team needs a friberg" Heroic blameF: "I think every team needs a friberg"

Heroic blameF: "I think every team needs a friberg"

Counter-Strike
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Interviews
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Grady Hooker
Back at IEM Sydney 2019, Grady had the chance to talk to the in-game leader of Heroic, blameF, about a number of things including; playing with friberg, events having third-party qualifying spots and how he got into Heroic via a phone call from peacemaker.
counter-strike character
Renegades Gratisfaction: "Maybe I can hang ornaments from my mustache" Renegades Gratisfaction: "Maybe I can hang ornaments from my mustache"

Renegades Gratisfaction: "Maybe I can hang ornaments from my mustache"

Counter-Strike
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Interviews
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Grady Hooker
Grady had a quick chat to fellow Kiwi, Gratisfaction from Renegades at IEM Sydney this year. They talked about what it was like transitioning from Grayhound Gaming to Renegades as well as their miracle run at the Katowice Major.
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SYF zeph: "It’s really good to prove that I’m still able win and beat these top teams" SYF zeph: "It’s really good to prove that I’m still able win and beat these top teams"

SYF zeph: "It’s really good to prove that I’m still able win and beat these top teams"

Counter-Strike
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Interviews
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Grady Hooker
Hot off their upset 2-0 victory over Genuine Gaming, Grady sits down with the newly minted player for SYF Gaming, zeph. They talk about what it is like coming in as underdogs, how easy it is to mesh as a team and the process they went through to rebuild the team.
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IEM Chicago 2019 Summary IEM Chicago 2019 Summary

IEM Chicago 2019 Summary

Counter-Strike
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Event Previews
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Jamie "PalmtopPitbull" Wert
With IEM Chicago over, and the United Center cleared out, it's time for a summary of the event.
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IEM Chicago: 5 stories to watch IEM Chicago: 5 stories to watch

IEM Chicago: 5 stories to watch

Counter-Strike
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Event Previews
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Jamie "PalmtopPitbull" Wert
The Groups have been set, and IEM Chicago 2019 is nearly upon us. With that said, it is time to take a look at some of the story-lines that will be on display.
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CSGO Tier Rankings: ESL One Cologne CSGO Tier Rankings: ESL One Cologne

CSGO Tier Rankings: ESL One Cologne

Counter-Strike
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Tier Rankings
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The Esports Kingdom team
Team Liquid took out ESL One Cologne 2019 after a hard-fought battle against the French side of Vitality. This win let them take home $1,000,000 and become the second Intel Grand Slam winner, but what did it do for their tier ranking?
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ESL One Cologne Preview - Team Vitality ESL One Cologne Preview - Team Vitality

ESL One Cologne Preview - Team Vitality

Counter-Strike
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Event Previews
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Jamie "PalmtopPitbull" Wert
Finally, the fantastic French phenomenon of Vitality rounds out our series. We look at some of the best players on the team, their important stats, and how they have been playing just before ESL One Cologne.
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