The news has been out for a while, the CPL will be hosting a $10,000 BYOC (bring your own computer) tournament at this summer's CPL. Both a number of teams and CAL administrators alike have expressed interest in going, with operations staff, Louis, confirmed to attend and officiate the event.

The America's Army LAN scene has never been strong or even consistent in the past, with the games format changing, from five, four, to sometimes even six players required at a time, AA has never reached a level of consistency seen in other competition genres. Add in the even more turbulent issue of round and overall match times and you have a game that is by many critics standards, not ready for a LAN. That said, the game has grown tremendously in the past few months and the reason can be attributed solely to the US Army.

Grand Prize, $2,000
Runner Up, $1,500
3rd Place, $1,000
4th Place, $500

Without the continued support from the US Army, the game will forever be a niche market for players who seek realism as their primary motivator to play. With the recent sponsorship to the GGL in the form of 2 million dollars by the US Army, and rumors the Army will begin sponsoring larger LAN events in the near future, things are for the first time looking up.

When CAL picked up the game seven seasons ago the game was changed and sped up considerably, the old notions of 10 minute rounds and 12 round matches set forth by TWL was thrown out the window, and the game finally began to come into it's own, as the premier fps for tactical realism and real to life match situations. Soon after the Army Gaming Championships and CEVO have both stepped in and begun offering cash purses for the first time in the games five year history, creating an explosion of professional teams willing to practice and prepares for these online events.

Will this BYOC be the first in a line of possible LAN events put on by the US Army, or will the event turnout be low and cause both the Army and the CPL to abandon the prospect?

IceNine Gaming

Kevin "banana-!-gun" Lowe
Jon "karnifex" Holt
Juan "bigballa" Martinez
Greg "row" Rowberg

The first team to register and begin promoting the event was the boys from i9, they have a long history in online leagues as being the team to just make the playoffs but fall short in the end. IceNine has really made some improvements in the picking of up former CAL invite player's Banana Gun and Row, and recently placed second in the defunct HTGN-P against Just Cause Project. The real show at the LAN will be banana gun's performance as questions have also been flying around against the previously banned player. IceNine Gaming expects to take top three in the competition, which will make it worth the trip financially for the organization.

Going Live

Noah "$ubsTanCe" Ballard
Brian "ST3ALTH3R" Buzzel
Dan "Tr4g1c" Gaffney
Matt "Trix" Klock

A possible dark horse has entered the competition in the form of CAL main team gL. Home to some LAN experienced players in the likes of Trix and Tr4g1c they have never been the team to step it up online, and for the most part their most treasured accomplishment is beating a CAL invite team online in a single match. They have their travel and accommodations already setup and expect to take advantage of the poor sign ups thus far and place in their first LAN event.