Interview with CRA, now Oasis

Apollo: Hey whats up everyone, I got a chance to sit down with the entire team of CRA or Clean Rich Adolescents.  The winners of the Halo 3 Anaheim Qualifier.  This is a group of great guys and i wish them well at Anahiem!

BlakeumZ: Before we start the interview out, I’d like to clear up a name change really quick.  On the ladder we are known as “Clean Rick Adolescents”, but the name is too long for the events so we will be attending Anaheim as “Oasis”.

Apollo: Alright so how about starting off by just introducing yourselves(Name, where your from, what got you into MLG, anything else you can think of)

Ashes: I’m Ashes (Mike Cholko), I’m from Philadelphia, PA, I got into MLG about 4 years in Halo 2 just by playing team hardcore and hearing about it, and I loved the concept of BR start and competition at a high level, I got into a party with GH057ayame after a game of Team Hardcore and didn’t even know who he was at the time, added him as a friend, and that’s when I really started to get into things

BlakeumZ: My name’s Blake Roberts, I’m from Tigard, Oregon.  I first got into competitive MLG through local tournaments held in our downtown city.  Through those I met CAK, my future teammate – who was insanely better than me.  Through about 6-8 months of solid improvement, I eventually got onto CAK’s level and began running with him for various LAN, and online tournaments.

CAK: My name is James (CAK69), i was born in the state of Oregon and continue to thrive in my birth place. I got into the game during the end of Halo 2, I was not a very solid player, but i continued to practice. Then i started taking competitive gaming seriously during the beginning halo 3. After placing well during local tournament I found that i had potential.

VictuMM: My name’s VictuMM (Matt Kunke), I’m from Clackamas, Oregon. I first got into MLG a little bit back in Halo 2 by running MLG customs with my neighbors. Although I wasn’t very into it back than. I got really into it in Halo 3 just by playing MLG playlist and starting to go to LAN’s and local tournaments.

Apollo:  Have any of you attended MLG events before?

CAK: I attended Meadows 09.

BlakeumZ:I have lanned at local events H3 probably 20+ times, however no.

Ashes: I attended Philadelphia, 2005

VictuMM: I have not gone to any; this will be my first one.

Apollo: With Anaheim so close, are you guys nervous at all about the event?

Ashes: I’m not worried about the event; I’m just worried about missing a few college classes on Thursday/Friday, and maybe Monday.

VictuMM: I’m not very nervous; I’m more pumped up and excited.

Ashes: Yea, VictuMM has his smarties ready.

CAK: No, I feel confident that our team will pull through; we just have to continue to put in hours for practice.

BlakeumZ: I’m not worried at all – these guys are the best teammates a guy could ask for.  We all want the same thing, and NO ONE is stopping us.

Apollo: When I tell you guys that every team that has won the Online Qualifier that MLGInsider has interviewed has gone o n to place at least top 32 in the event, does this make you guys nervous at all?

VictuMM: I think we are very capable of placing top 32.

BlakeumZ:We don’t get nervous, just excited.

CAK: It adds some pressure to our shoulders, but i believe we can live up to that.

Ashes: No, it makes me feel even better about our chances.  Who wouldn’t like to hear a stat like that?

Apollo: That would have to be whoever gets paired against you in round 1.

VictuMM: Hahahaha

Apollo: So, do you guys plan on sticking together after Anaheim?

Ashes: As long as we can get a sponsor afterwards, sure.  I’m going to be going on Christmas break from college for a month, and as long as we’re a good team with a sponsor I’ll dedicate time when I’m home to keep practicing, otherwise, nope

Apollo: How long have you guys been together as a team?

VictuMM: Cak, Blake and I have been teaming for about 2 months

BlakeumZ: Cak and I – for quite a while.  We picked up Victumm about 2 months ago.  Ashes recently hopped on board 3-4 weeks ago through Victumm.

Apollo: When Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 comes out are you guys going to switch to that or stick with Halo?

Ashes: Stick with Halo, I haven’t played any other video game since 2004

BlakeumZ: What is Call of Duty?

Apollo: If you guys get into the pro bracket and end up facing a pro team, which team would you guys not want to face?

VictuMM: I heard that Str8 Rippin did not want to play us.

BlakeumZ: Str8 Rippin – They may have stumbled in Dallas, but I’m confident they’ll regain #1 come Anaheim.

Ashes: I wouldn’t want to face Triggers Down, Hysteria’s trash talk might hurt VictuM’s feelings.

CAK: I personally would not want to play Str8 Rippin, because i know how dissappointed they were with their placing at Dallas. Their going to come out guns blazing.

Apollo: Do you guys have any LANs set up for the  days before anahiem?

VictuMM: We actually have one for tomorrow. But it will only be the 3 of us over here in Oregon.

CAK: Yep, just the 3 musketeers.

Ashes: I’m just going to be split screening with a local here in Philly to get used to the resolution change on Wednesday, otherwise I’ll just be on Xbox Live.

Apollo: Alright guys, that’s about it for me…Got any shoutouts before we wrap things up here?

BlakeumZ: Bigups to Rhymesayers, Ent, Wembley Park, Senses <3, and ShadowfireZ for his sick sig he’s made us!

VictuMM: Shout out to Cpoon and Ned Flanders. haha

Ashes: Im going to have to give a shout out to my close friend Christian (TT69z), he let me borrow the mythic Halo 3 disk to practice Heretic. I also have to give a big shoutout to Colin (Recycle), he is letting me barrow is Astros for Anaheim.

Apollo: Alright guys, thanks alot and good luck.

Halo 3 Anaheim Qualifier Champs

We here at MLGInsider would like to congratulate Clean Rich Adolescents,  the Halo 3 Anaheim online qualifier champions!  Keep your eyes here on MLGInsider for an interview with them.

Interview with Connect 4

Apollo: Hey, whats up everyone, I got a chance to sit down with Connect 4, formally known as Anarchy.  They hold the 7th seed in Rainbow 6 Vegas 2.  Their a great group of guys and here is what they had to say.

Apollo: Hey, guys thanks a lot for doing this, why don’t you guys take a quick second and introduce yourself.

Berg: Hey, my name is James Berghaier. I’m from Philadelphia, PA and my friends got me into SOCOM originally but back in Rainbow Six Vegas FBI Bloodline (Plague, Rocco, Clipse, Reverend, & Soulja) introduced me to MLG.

DarkZone: I’m Dark Zone aka: Matt from Indiana, I’m growing up in Indiana……there is corn EVERYWHERE     so i just started playing games since I was a little kid and eventually started going to MLG events in 2005.

Minard: I’m Steven (The Ripper) Minard. I got xbox for Christmas 2 years ago and my first online game was battlefield. And i liked the game, then i got Vegas 2 and i used to love using a spas 12 on the back stairs at calypso casino. I finally met Waters and i joined a nice clan on gamebattles the first pros i met who got me into MLG were tekknique, Jwho, and all the people from Body Count on Vegas 1, I wanted to be like them so I tried playing MLG and i was nasty at it.

Digital: I’m Michael Mackowiak, From Seminole FL, Don’t know what really got me into gaming.. Just being a kid I guess.

Apollo: So I have heard you have gone through a roster change within the past few weeks, would you care to explain what happened?

Digital: Pemby & Synikal were unable to attend Nationals which kind of left us in a bind. We had a few options that weren’t looking so good and then 1 day DZ approached us. We decided that since he already has 2 National championships under his belt and a lot of experience he could be a good help to the team. And Minard was more of the wildcard but he’s shown up when we needed in scrim and got 2nd in the FFA Event at Meadows before the Rainbow circuit started in SD. After all the doubts people have about him, he’s more than ready to go to LAN and rip.

Minard: Actually its more like riiiiiiiiiiiippppppp!

Apollo: Alright so Minard, how do you feel about these guys picking you up?

Minard: I feel good, even though this is my first LAN even with a real team i am very confident. Especially going in with a Captain like dark zone, he has had great outcomes, and has alot of experience, and i think we can make it to the top

Apollo:  What place will you guys be in going into Nationals and how are you guys preparing?

Dark Zone: We are going into Nationals in seventh place. As for preparing, first, if we can get dig to grow up we would like to finish going over callouts and strategies.    We are also the newest formed team attending and are behind on building up to what a team should be. If we put in the work I expect a top 4 placing.  But, if people act like they are in middle school, we should place around 6th.

Apollo: Alright so, do you see Rainbow 6 Vegas 2 being on the circuit for next season?

Minard: Not a chance.

Apollo: Do you guys have plans for after Nationals? If so what are they?

Berg: We’re probably all moving to or at least going try to out Modern Warfare 2.

Apollo: Alright, so what do you guys think makes Rainbow 6 Vegas 2 different from the other shooters on the circuit?

Berg: The shooting is different. This is mostly because of recoil. We don’t have perks that make it less realistic, but we do have one of the worst cover systems known to man. Also, in our game 1 person can take a game over at any point and time somewhat like Halo:CE. Whereas in other games while you can have a big play, but you can’t take control.

Minard: You also can not cook grenades or stick people with them.

Apollo: So, how are you guys feeling for nationals?  Are you guys excited? Scared?

Berg: Personaly, I”m excited. It has been a year since I got to play on LAN. We’re no longer limited by connections or any of that. And scared is something we’re definitely not. We know who we have to beat and what we have to do to beat them. We’re prepared to go ahead and do that…

Apollo: So Minard, you mentioned before this will be your first LAN event, are you nervous at all?

Minard: : No, not at all. I’m going to do my thing, and my team going to do theirs. Nervous isn’t in my vocabulary.

Apollo: So what would you guys say one of your greatest strengths as a team is?

Dark Zone: I defiantly think its our attitude, some of us are determined while other have something to prove, I think we all want it bad enough to win. All we have to do is go out and do it.

Apollo: What would you say the most difficult aspect of MLG Rainbow 6 Vegas 2 is?

Berg: Most likely finding teams to scrim against.

Dark Zone: Yeah without a doubt

Minard: For sure.

Dark Zone: To compensate a lot of the times we have to play against Gamebattles teams that have horrible connections and use horrible weapons like the AK.

Minard: Ohh and Dark not being able to leave our spawn area also hurts us a lot.

Dark Zone: Yeah, I’ve been having connection issues lately.

Apollo: So with Nationals coming up is there one team that you do not want to play?

Berg: No, I think by the time Nationals comes we’ll be prepared for anything that comes our way.

Apollo: Alright guys, that just about does it for me.  You guys have any shoutouts you would like to give send out before we are finished up here?

Minard: Yeah I would like to thank Synikal for giving me this opportunity to go to Nationals.

Clearing the fog around SQ

With this being my first article, I’d like to take a few lines  to clear up some of the mess that has been following Status Quo around for  quite some time now.  Foremost, no money has been paid to any of the players  that the team has acquired over the season, with the exception of the  expenses that our sponsorship, provided by my father, has paid for.  My dad  has always supported my brother and I, one-hundred percent, in whatever we  have decided to pursue, and likewise, has supported our choice to compete in video game tournaments.  The sponsorship is nothing out of the ordinary, and  it covers the basics, such as, airfare, hotel, food, etc.

Another question that is commonly brought up about the team is,  “How did ToTz end up on the team to begin with?”.  Starting back in 2005, I became good friends with FlamesworD over Xbox Live and we never lost contact  with each other. After Orlando, Status Quo dropped Prolific and was in need  of a fourth teammate. My brother was gaming very hard at the time and was  improving exponentially, so I suggested a tryout to FlamesworD and the rest  is history. They improved their placing from top 24 to top 12 and almost  beat Ambush for top 8 in a heartbreaking series, that I probably never will  forget.  We get a massive amount of unnecessary disrespect for being more  well off than other people, but that is okay, because haters are always going to hate.

Finding Home

During the course of this MLG season, Status Quo has struggled  to settle on a roster that would fit the family like atmosphere and hold up in tournament play.  Once upon a time, at the  WinterLAN, MLG¹s top professionals from all over the country gathered at the Fries¹ House (it¹s my article, so I¹ll call the house by my name) for some epic halo action. Status Quo, at that point, consisted of FlamesworD, ToTz, S1y Fox, and Swisha.  S1y Fox never showed up to the LAN even though his plane ticket was purchased, and that event started the snowball (no pun intended).

It was the 2v2 tournament, where Ace teamed up with FlamesworD and became a dominant force that only StrongSide and, the Grand Master of Halo, Walshy, were able to take down in an eight game epic that was birthed from a three game series.

StrongSide saw the talent in FlamesworD and Ace then, and played numerous 4v4 games with ToTz, seeing potential in all three rising stars. StrongSide was in-between teams at the time, and after a few phone calls, decided to join Status Quo. The team practiced religiously and LAN¹d more times than some top teams do in a whole season, before the first event took place.  Nevertheless, they didn¹t live up to the hype that was built up around them, and everyone on the team was disappointed because they knew
their own potential, but did not perform at the event.

After another seventh place letdown, StrongSide was off to bigger things by reuniting with Final Boss, leaving Status Quo in search of
a fourth.  Believe the Hype, aka Cloud, had just released In The Clutch, and he looked like the best bet for the team. Even though Clutch performed well at the LANs and the team functioned very well against Triggers Down, something just didn¹t click at the event and Status Quo ended up with an, inexcusable, tenth place finish after a loss to an ³on fire² Dynasty for top 8.  After Dallas, Clutch left to join up with Cloud, and the core three from Status Quo were left without a fourth player, once again.

Luckily, Legend was dropped from Classic in the midst of a “hurricane” and Status Quo was able to acquire him before Classic realized that they had made a mistake.  This has been the best addition to the team since Ace was added to the team at the WinterLAN. Legend is a seasoned veteran who knows the game back and forth, and can also put up some Pistola-like numbers with a good supporting cast, but that isn¹t what he is here for and it isn¹t even something he cares about. What he really cares about, is what everyone on the team cares about the most: Winning.  I think I speak for the team when I say that it does not matter how ugly a win may
be, we will definitely take it if it brings the team closer to the number one spot.  Legend reminds me of Walshy, with his knowledge of the game and willingness to teach, but I think he packs some serious fire power (he dropped a positive 94 kill to death ratio at Dallas).  His mentoring of the young players will be key in the success of the team, because Heretic is now the dominant map on the circuit and, with that, Status Quo is at a huge disadvantage by being a new team to Halo 3.   However, this will only make them practice harder than ever.

I truly believe that Legend is the answer to the inconsistencies that have plagued Status Quo in tournament play so far this season.  This weekend Status Quo will LAN Carbon, who broke the mold with the acquisition of Walshy and Naded by placing second.  With all the scheduled practice, there should be no excuses this time around, and we should see a totally different Status Quo. After all, a Status Quo firing on all cylinders has yet to be shown to the 500,000+ watching the live stream, maybe this will be
the event where every head starts to turn.  I honestly believe that Status Quo has found home with the addition of Legend, and I guarantee they will come out on fire Friday night at Anaheim.

And then there were three.

With little over 2 weeks till Anahiem, the qualifier is wrapping up quickly. There are only three teams left; one team has already won the winners bracket and the other two duke it out for the losers bracket championship.

The winner of the Winners Bracket are Clean Rich Adolecents(9th), their roster is MeThudZ, Blakeumz, VictuMM, and xCAK69x.

The final match of the loser bracket is between Nothing Personal(10th)and Violent Theory(4th).

The roster of Nothing Personal is  AC C0 UN TA NT, AngeLs Router, Ashes on T3, and conpiex.

The roster of Violent Theory is Airtom, ganjiii, haunted cn, mr blakerz.

Anaheim Qualifier Update

With Anaheim less than a month away teams are fighting hard to claim the number one spot in the qualifier.  Six teams remain, two in the winners bracket and four in the losers. The winners bracket finals are Clean Rich Adolecents(9th), their roster is MeThudZ, Blakeumz, VictuMM, and xCAK69x.  Against Nothing Personal(10th) and their roster is AC C0 UN TA NT, AngeLs Router, Ashes on T3, and conpiex.

In the losers bracket Sector 7(12th) plays against Goon Squad(27th), and OMG GMMM(20th) against Violent Theory(5th).

Halo 3 Pro Scrim Update

Here are a few of the latest scrims and results
Str8 Rippin vs Believe the Hype (BtH 5 – Str8 Rippin 3)

Str8 Rippin – T2, ElamiteWarrior, Legit, Snipedown
Believe the Hype – Cloud, Demon D, Maniac, Clutch

Game 1
OddBall on Heretic (14:31)
BtH 250 – Str8 Rippin 157
Maniac was +10 with 31 kills, 22 assist and 68 seconds of ball time.

Game 2
Amp. Team Slayer (5:15)
BtH 50 – Str8 Rippn 45
Clutch was +9 with 17 kills.

Game 3
Construct King(14:26)
BtH 250 – Str8 Rippin 240
Demon D had 26 kills with 102 seconds of balltime.

Game 4
OnSlaught CTF(8:47)
Str8 Rippin 5 – BtH 4
Snipedown was +17 with 31 kills and two flag captures.

Game 5
Slayer on Heretic (4:59)
BtH 50 – Str8 Rippin 41
Demon D and Cloud were both +5. T2 only had 3 kills with a -12 KD.

Game 6
Slayer on The Pit(7:48)
BtH 50 – Str8 Rippn 42
Maniac was +6 with 16 kills. Elamite had 17 kills but only a +2 KD.

Game 7
Narrows CTF (9:51)
Str8 Rippin 3 – BtH 2
Legit had 19 kills with a +2, T2 also had 19 kills with a +4 KD.

Game 8
Heretic CTF (14:01)
Str8 Rippin 5 – BtH 3
Snipedown was +8 with 34 kills. Demon D was -15 with only 17 kills.

Believe the Hype vs Team Classic(BtH 3 – TC 1)

Classic – Best Man, Chig, Soldier187, GH057Ayame
Believe the Hype – Cloud, Demon D, Maniac, Clutch

Game 1
CTF on The Pit (11:51)
BtH 3 – TC 0
Demon D had 30 kills with a +17 KD. Ghost olny had 7 kills and a -17 KD.

Game 2
Amp. TS (5:46)
TC 50 – BtH 48
Best Man was +5 with 16 kills. Demom D had 17 kills with a +KD.

Game 3
Onslaught CTF(8:46)
BtH 5 – TC 1
Demon D had 25 kills, with a +9 KD and three Flag Caps.

Game 4
Oddball on Heretic(10:37)
BtH 133 – TC 124
Ghost was +7 with 25 kills.

Interview with FeaR Moho

I got a chance to sit down with Moho from DpG FeaRthe Number 1 Call of Duty team out there.  Here is what he had to say

Apollo: Thanks a lot for doing the interview.

Moho: Not a problem at all.

Apollo: How does it feel to know that you have won what may have been the last Call of Duty 4 PCL?

Moho: It feels good! If there is any PCL that me and my team have played and won it would be this one. There is no greater feeling then winning the last PCL and heading into Modern Warfare2.

Apollo:  Speaking of Modern Warfare 2, I know that Infinty Ward has spoken with you about testing the game.  Have any plans been made or have you talked with them at all about it?

Moho: We are not sure if it will be before or after the game releases till they fly us out to the headquarters. But we do know that it will be a competitive gamers meet that we will be participating in.

Apollo: So do you think that means you could potentially be playing against other MLG teams that you know? Or perhaps some WSG teams.

Moho: Well, what they have planned for us im sure they dont have planned for other MLG teams. This was decided back in 08 when we won nationals. Im sure what they are going to do is host a open house building that is lan like and have all competitive gamers test the game out. That is just my speculation.

Apollo: What do you think about what we have already seen about Modern Warefare 2? What are some of your expectations of it?

Moho: I think its going to be hands down the best game anyone has ever played. With the expectations that is applied to infinity ward I DOUBT they will dissapoint. Some of my expectations are that it heads to the pro circuit and it out shines all other competitive games and gets the attention it deserves.

Apollo:  What are your top 5 favorite guns?

Moho:  I dont think I have a top 5. I think its a top 2 type of thing. My main two guns are the Mp5 and the M16 and as for a side arm I like to use the deagle and the USP. The colt 45 is not bad though.

Apollo: Do you have any plans for when Modern Warfare 2 comes out? Any first night scrims of deathmatch or Capture the flag?

Moho: My plans for when Modern Warfare2 drops are to just play play play and get to know the game and try to understand how everything works.

Apollo: With Modern Warfare 2 being a new game, with new guns, do you believe anything will carry over skill wise?

Moho: I think alot will carry over. But the same time I feel that the people that were good at COD4 in the beginning are going to be the good people in this one. It takes time to adjust to any new game. But shooting wise I think its all the same.

Apollo: Are there any teams that you have seen either in the PCL or online in general that have potential to go pro?
Moho: Well, DyNaStY is a team that I think is an up coming team that has potential to make pro status. Other than that, no one.

Apollo:  What do you feel separates a normal team from a Pro team?

Moho: I think the thought process between the two are TOTALLY different. The difference is casual and non casual. The casual team only plays for fun and the pro gamer plays to win

Alright I got 1 last question from a community member that sent me one in, and that question is this

Raseri asks: Whats was your most memorable moment in Rainbow 6 Vegas?

Moho: Probbably losing to professional skills in the MLG A tournament by one of our players disconnecting.

Apollo: Alright that’s about all the time we have, any shout outs before we go?

Moho: Shout to babyyy…the team…..all the fans……DpG Gaming for all the support……Kontrol Freak….Turtle Beach……Evil Controllers……Kiaeneto for gettin our nasty shirts…..and to all the haters

MLGInsider in Rd 3 of Melee in Manhatan

Hey, I would like to invite people to come out to Maumee, Ohio on Friday October 23rd 2009, to cheer me as I represent MLGInsider while competing in the Melee In Manhattan tournament round 3.

Round 1 and 2 summary

I easily won round one only having won 3 games in round 1. In each game the opponent got no more than 5 kills on me.  One game i went 8-1 with my only death being a stick from my own plasma grenade being bounced off a bubble shield.  Round 1 ended quickly

In round 2 there was an odd number of people at the event.  Therefore who ever had the most kills in match 1 got a bye into match 2.  My first opponent did not stand a chance.  With him saying how good he was I defeated him 15 to 0 and got a perfection out of it.   I got a bye into the 3rd set of matches, where i played some like 23 year old guy who was talking a bunch of smack.  He got even more pissed when I would strongside away from him when I was 1 shot.  Game was winding down and with a about 20 seconds left I was up by 1 kill.  He was screaming his head off to fight him like a man and was flipping out swearing at the TV and everything.  When the game was over I reached over to shake his hand and tell him good game.  He told me ” I ain’t touchin your hand dude.(Insert string of swear words here) He’s cheatin over here.”  He proceeded to storm out basically crying and as he slammed the door shut everyone was dying laughing.

After that I was gaurenteed a spot in round 3.  We still played for 1st, and I won 8 to 3.  It was a good game the guy had some skill.

So if anyone is in the area and would like to come cheer on MLGInsider or even boo us out, feel free to show up and say hello, I will most likely be wearing some sort of MLGInsider clothing so I should be easy to find.

On a side note: I will be running Heritic FFA’s and 1v1′s open to anyone who wants to although i would prefer people who are moving into round 3.  Also i would love to meet some of the people i will be competing against!  Feel free to send me a friend request on Xbox Live.  MLGInsiderApolo is my GT.

Gamebattles Qualifier Update

With Anaheim closing in the Halo 3 Gamebattles qualifier ladder is coming to a close.  With only a few more matches to be played the teams are hard at work in preparation.

In the winners bracket Clean Rich Ad(3rd) and OMG…GMm!(20th) are preparing to face off.  Also Sector 7(27th) and Nothing Personal(10th) are getting ready to play.

In the losers bracket Electromovimineto(1st) plays Catch the Fourrrr(26th).  Grimy Halo Playerzzz(21st) plays against Goon Squad(12th).  We are Figure Skating(19th) plays Violent Theory(5th).  Look Dad No Snipers(31st) plays against Intensity Rising(8th).

With the next round being played this Thursday, these teams are hard at work preparing for their chance to claim the number 1 spot.

New Heaven and Earth roster

Our sources here at MLGinsider have informed us that the new Heaven and Earth roster consists of Cpt. Anarchy, Karma, Drew and Pow.

This brings an interesting group of players together and re-unites Anarchy and Karma.  This team has alot of potential and the support players to go big if someone can step up and main slay.  This is defiantly a top 8 team if they can pull it togeather.  It will be interesting to see how this team pans out.

Champions of PCL #3 Crowned

Last night the Pro Circuit Ladder #3 finished up marking the end of the PCL’s of the season.  In Rainbow 6 Vegas 2 Rage defeated Vengeance 3 games to 0.  And in Call of Duty 4 DpG Fear defeated Xtravagant 3 games to 2.

From what i can tell this turned out the way that most everyone expected.  Now, will two games ladders be predictions of Anaheim? Only time will tell and we will find out in a month to the day!

Stay tuned later today for my interview with Moho from DpG Fear, as well as some other interesting interviews coming in the next week or so!

VoD Analysis: Painless

Virtuosity is on the rise! These Buffalo boys have been hot this entire MLG season. So far this year they have made a team change after every event. Through the ups and downs, the two core members of Virtuosity have remained: Jetty, the team captain, and his brother, Painless. They are making the right decisions regarding the players on their team, and their preparation for upcoming events. Virtuosity’s placing continues to improve. This group started the season off fresh with an 18th place finish in the Meadowlands, 14th at Columbus, and 12th in Dallas. We are going to jump on board with one of the most highly recognized voices on the Pro Circuit, Painless, as Virtuosity takes on Final Boss.

http://www.mlgpro.com/content/link/290637/Painless

Painless and Robbie B get to work quickly on Final Boss, and grab the Oddball first. It felt to me like this was the only game of the series that Virtuosity played their own game. The first two games of the series they seemed to let Final Boss control their play-style.

At 13:45 Painless eliminates the threat of Victory X beneath his team at Bottom Gay Jump. He waits for his teammates to spawn Gold, and starts the Virtuosity push for control of snipe tower. I agree with this push to get the Ball out of Final Boss’ hands.

Painless plays very smart with the 10 minute Camo. He waits patiently for his shields to recharge and once again breaks up FB’s set up on snipe tower.

When Painless spawns Bottom Blue at 8:12, he is prepared to lift over to snipe tower, with the rest of Virt ready to support him. Strongside and Victory X shuts down their plan, which results in Final Boss accumulating an extra 30 seconds of uncontested ball time. I think the biggest difference between a Top 16 team and a Top 8 team is the ability to disrupt your opponents game plan. Virtuosity is more of a set-up oriented team, rather than a run-and-gun type team. Final Boss made sure Virtuosity never got into a comfort zone.

Painless wisely plays the Oddball at 6:10. Virtuosity has three players down and is trailing by over a minute at this point in the game. This gap only grows larger in Final Boss’ favor from this point of the game.

NocturnalKernal is starting to heat up at snipe tower, allowing Painless to grab the ball at 3:45. Unfortunately, he goofs up and makes a mistake in playing the ball. Virtuosity may have gotten enough ball time around 3:30 to put them right back in the game, if things had gone their way and they set up on elbow here. Instead, the game went slowly downhill for Virtuosity.

Considering Virtuosity’s improvement as a team, the high level of competition they play at, and their dedication to the game, Virtuosity is still lacking the ability to place Top 8. Virt needs to close games up. They also need to figure out their roles, and  play to their style of Halo in Anaheim. Painless plays objective very smart and focuses on the team. Best of luck in California Virtuosity.

Pro Scrim Updates

Relapse, Carbon, and Instinct have been hard at work scrimaging other teams and putting alot of hours in.  These are a few of the larger scrims they have done.  First Triggers Down faced off against Relapse.  Then Instinct faced off against Believe the Hype.   Instinct then played Carbon.  Then Carbon played Relapse.  There were alot of close games and alot of amazing plays.  This could be predictions on how Anaheim will work out.
Triggers Down vs Relapse (Relapse 3 – tD 2)

Triggers Down- SK, Hysteria, Heinz, Pistola
Relapse- Fearris, Loki, Dersky, SnakeBite

Game 1
CTF on The Pit
tD 3 – Relapse 2
Heinz +13

Game 2
Slayer on Narrrows
Relapse 50 – tD 46
All of Relapse went positive except fearris

Game 3
King on Construct
Relapse 250 – tD 216
Max went huge going +15 with 35 kills.

Game 4
Onslaught CTF
Relapse 5 – tD 2
Snakebite went +9

Game 5
Slayer on The Pit
tD 50 – Relapse 42
Hysteria went +8 with 16 kills.

Instinct vs Believe the Hype (Bth 5 – Instinct 4)

Instinct – Neighbor, Lunchbox, Roy, FearItself
Believe the Hype – Cloud, Demon D, Maniac, Clutch

Game 1
Amp. TS
Instinct 50 – BtH 44
All of Instinct went positive.

Game 2
King on Construct
BtH 230 – Instinct 208
Lunchbox went -16. Maniac went +8.

Game 3
Slayers on Narrows
BtH 50 – Instinct 38
Demon D went huge with 20 kills and a +12.

Game 4
Onslaught CTF
BtH 3 – Instinct 2
Maniac wa s +9 with a flag cap.

Game 5
CTF on Narrows
Instinct 3 – BtH 0
Neighbor was +6 with a flag capture.

Game 6
Oddball on Heretic
BtH 250 – Instinct 122
Maniac slayed well again going +7.

Game 7
CTF on Heretic
Instinct 5 – BtH 3
Fearitself went huge going +18 with two flag captures.

Game 8
Slayer on Heretic
BtH 50 – Instinct 48
Maniac slayed well again with 17 kills.

Game 9
Slayer on Construct
Instinct 50 – BtH 41
Roy had 21 kills with a +16 KD. Neighbor only had 7 kills.

Instinct vs Carbon (Carbon 6 – Instinct 0)

Instinct – Neighbor, Lunchbox, Roy, FearItself
Carbon – Walshy, Shockwave, Defy, Naded

Game 1
Slayer on Narrows
Carbon 50 – Instinct 40
Naded went +6 with 15 kills.

Game 2
Slayer on Heretic
Carbon 50 – Instinct 49
Defy had 15 kills with a +3 KD. Neighbor had 17 kills but a +1 KD.

Game 3
Amp. TS
Carbon 50 – Instinct 49
Defy had 16 kills with a +4 KD. Walshy had 14 kills with a +4 KD.

Game 4
CTF on The Pit
Carbon 3 – Instinct 0
Shockwave was +6 with 13 kills.

Game 5
Slayer on Construct
Carbon 50 – Instinct 37
Naded was +8 with 15 kills.

Game 6
Onslaught CTF
Carbon 5 – Instinct 2
Naded was +7 with 21 kills. Both Naded and Shockwave had overkill
exterminations.

Carbon vs Relapse (Carbon 3 – Relapse 3)

Carbon – Walshy, Shockwave, Defy, Naded
Relapse – Fearris, Loki, Dersky, SnakeBite

Game 1
Onslaught CTF
Relapse 5 – Carbon 2
Snakebite was +10 with 37 kills.

Game 2
Slayer on the Pit
Relapse 50 – Carbon 45
Snakebite was +8 with 18 kills.

Game 3
Carbon 3 – Relapse 0
Shockwave was +8 with 13 Kills.

Game 4
Slayer on Construct
Carbon 50 – Relapse 44
Naded was +6 with 13 kills.

Game 5
Oddball on Heretic
Carbon 207 – Relapse 170
Shockwave was +14 with 32 kills and 123 seconds of balltime. Naded was +14
with 37 kills.

Game 6
Relapse 3 – Carbon 1
Loki went +10 with 33 kills.

Championship updates

With Anaheim being the championships for Rainbow 6 Vegas 2 as well as Call of Duty 4, this last online ladder will determine who will hold what seed for the event.  Both Leagues are in their championship rounds with the best 2 teams of their respective games dukeing it out for first place.

In Rainbow 6 Vegas 2: First place Rage, is going up against sixth place tC Vengeance.  Rage’s roster is AkA LyRiCz, BlOoD n GlOrY,  HOP3Z, and JwHoJcAsH.  While Vengeance’s roster is tC ForBiDDeN, tC KiKLioN,  tC NawK0uT, and tC R4GE.

In Call of Duty 4 we have XtravaganT(2nd) against DpG Fear(1st).  DpG Fear’s roster consists of FeaR Moho, FeaR ASSASS1N, FeaR PuN1sHeR, FeaR xProoFyy.   XtravaganT’s roster consists of BiG TyMeR IXI, DodgeRz IxI,  RaMb0 IXI,  FeaR xProoFyy

Halo 3 Gamebattles update

With  Anaheim coming up in just over a month to the date away, Gamebattles teams are in full swing working towards the goal of the number 1 spot.  Round 2 was played on October 1st.  Round 3 is scheduled to be played on Thursday October 8^th.

The match ups for round 3 are:

Match 1: Electromovimiento(1^st) against Clean Rich Ad(9^th)

Match 2: Grimey Halo Playerz(21^st) against OMG…GMM!!(20^th)

Match 3: We ARE figure skating (19^th) against Sector 7 Anaheim(27^th)

Match 4: Nothing Personal  (10^th against Look Dad No Snipers(31^st)

And in the losers bracket round 2 Is played on the 6th

Match 1:  GreatnesS(18^th) against XX The Lost Boys XX

Match 2: Catch the Fourrrr(26^th)against I The Hollow I(25^th)

Match 3: Lullaby(11^th) against the winner of Counteraction(28^th) and Goon Squad(12^th)

Match 4: Play for Points(3^rd) against Carrying Private Brian(13^th)

Match 5: Rise Again???st(4^th) against TripleDW(30^th)

Match 6 Violent Theory(5^th) against the winner of your friendly pastries (23^rd) and WTF Prokemon[Anahiem]

Match 7: The System(16^th) against the winner of Bullet Symphony(15^th) and NewKind(2^nd)

VoD Analysis: Assault

This week we are going to look at one of MLG’s upcoming Halo 3 pros Assault. With his recent growth in popularity the sky is the limit for this young player.

http://www.mlgpro.com/content/link/290941/Assault

Near 11:28 Assault grabs one of his biggest chunks of time with the ball in the game. You can tell Dynasty’s communication is really on point from here on out through the game. Unfortunately Classic destroyed this set up by sending in two members from Car and one flanker from B maze.

At 10:12 when Assault spawns, his mindset is to clear off Pink Tower. He picks up three quick kills with a very clean BR, showing off his long range shot. Assault provides awesome support in this game.  At 9:50 he is grabbing ball time, and fearlessly puts himself out to put shots on enemies across the map at the A base.

Dynasty is three players down when Assault spawns at 8:52. Assault makes a clutch play by keeping the ball out of Soldier’s hands.

Classic countered Dynasty’s play style to perfection not only in this game but on The Pit especially. They seemed to always know where everyone was. Midway through this game around 6:56 seemed to be the turning point where Classic flipped things around in their favor. At multiple times, Assault appears flustered and loses individual battles he normally would conquer.

When Assault spawns at 4:49 he starts to get things going again, and almost single-handedly abolishes Team Classic.

When you pour your heart into every game inside a series like Assault, and still manage to come up short in the end your team is demoralized. Classic got the best of Dynasty in this Placement Round match up because of their shots being on, and apparently great callouts. I was not fortunate enough to watch the Dallas broadcast but I am happy to see that The Dynasty moved on through their bracket on Saturday into Sunday, and left with an 8th place finish.

Due to its’ tight quarters and being a fast paced Foundry map, Lockdown appears to be the most team-oriented objective game type on the circuit right now. The Car base and Pink Tower are mostly used for protection, and height advantage respectively. If your team has a “lockdown” on these side bases, this opens up opportunities for your team to set up with the Oddball on the A and B bases. Throughout this game you can see Assault has a lot of talent up his sleeve. He maneuvers through the map with his team always in sight. What continued to amaze me was his ability to stay alive. It appeared late in the game that Dynasty knew the series was over and folded.

MLG announces MLG Orlando

MLG has finally announced officially that the 5th and final Major League Gaming Event will be in Orlando, Flordia on January 8 through the 10th.  But we already told you that.  MLG has also announced that Orlando will be an open event for Halo 3 and Gears of War 2.  Which means get your teams together and get ready for another event!  This is a very questionable move.  They have more or less removed a total National Championship event like in the past.  With Rainbow 6 Vegas 2 and Call of Duty 4 being in Anaheim, and the Halo 3, Gears of War 2, and World of Warcraft being in Orlando.

Along with the FPS’s and Warcraft there is also a expanded EA Sports Challange which will feature Madden 10, NBA Live 10, and Fight Night Round 4. Which will offer more than $380,000 in prize money will be awarded over the course of the weekend.  This brings a few questions to mind.  Is this foreshadowing the possibility of an edition of another console to the circuit?  Or another one is, Will we see a new game on the circuit next year?  Maybe something other than a FPS?  Or even, with MLG aquireing a gaming company, and all their new sponsors….Could this possibly be the beginning of a Major League Gaming Video Game?  Only time will tell.