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Publicity is a double edged sword; it gets people excited and also blinds them. Don’t get blinded by this CPL Qualifier this weekend in the UK. Fine, 4Kings has returned, but they didn’t play anyone. Not a single team in this entire event was ranked in the top ten in the World. Publicity is a double edged sword; it gets people excited and also blinds them. Don’t get blinded by this CPL Qualifier this weekend in the UK. Fine, 4Kings has returned, but they didn’t play anyone. Not a single team in this entire event was ranked in the top ten in the World. GG isn’t the team they were even a year ago and hasn’t ever really replaced the team they once were. The only team I look at in this entire event that’s underrated is Asylum. The Danish guys have really been playing well online and are starting to make a name for themselves; they had a decent event and were probably the second best team. Still where are the top teams? Missing in Action Without SK.swe, EYE, Mousesports, The Titans, SpiXel, Astralis, D-Skyline and even NoA; why is this event even worthy of a mention. The group play of these event was atrocious, not a single group fielded unexpected results expect for 5Giants who beat out SSV Lehnitz, but both teams still advanced and SSV Lehnitz ended up better for not winning. The rise of sponsorship among these top teams has allowed them to avoid this unnecessary competition at CPL Qualifiers in Europe. There’s no argument here, a couple of years ago CPL Qualifiers like MindTek use to dominated headlines everywhere and not a single top teams would miss them. The hopes of winning the CPL started at those tournaments and in some cases those tournaments where more competitive then the CPL in Dallas itself. 4Kings, not really back yet UK fans won’t love this but come on, who did they beat? GG would love to say they belong in the elite of Europe, but we all know they aren’t there. That leaves an event that 4Kings needed to win just to prove they aren’t going downhill. The new players added around Mangiacapra passed their first test, but not a truly defining test. Can players like aKuJii, Red or even Goodfella and Harriman play up to the level needed against top teams from Sweden or USA and Germany? I’m not so sure. This event didn’t convince me they are ready. Yes they did the job presented to them but there’s something to be said for quality wins. Does anyone really believe that SK.swe or even 3D or mouz wouldn’t have dominated and won this event? I’m willing to declare they would have won it by greater margins at every step. Confidence is one of the most important things in the game and this will only help that for 4Kings. Still before anyone jumps on the bandwagon, remember this team has a long way to go before rejoining the elite in Europe. |
Monday November 23 2009 | |||||
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User Comments
"Goodfella and Harriman play up to the level needed against top teams from Sweden or USA"
Do you know who these players are? Have you watched any CPL's before? All the 4K players are more than proven to have the talent, its just if they can get the teamwork together for a good CPL run. And get over the old 4K lacking preparation argument that follows them everywhere
i mean, swedish teams are on a superior level, they have their 'something' that distinguishes them from all other countries.
Americans? no. they have 3D and thats all. they do struggle to defeat other american teams, but seem to play 'easier' against euro teams. so they're not just another american team.
Germans? well, they did some noise in recent past but we all know mousesports has been going through some changes and they dont go through eps(esl?) seasons undefeated anymore and lately they dont look like a top5 team they once were.
#4 mouz is heading undefeated in this eps-seasons playoffs. although i still agree that they dont look like the top5 team they once were right now.
concerning the column itself: imo you´re underestimating 4k´s opponents a bit, but overall i pretty much agree =)
the demos GG dominated the tournament until loosing vs a good 4K team ( wow 16 - 9 pure ownage...no )they were a definitely a top team your talking as if 4K was the only BIG TOP TEAM here . sorry but a team with a sponsor like intel that made nothing the last year and have to recruit foreign players ...
(crap english sry )
Very harsh on 4k though..and you misquoted yourself
Actual quote: "Can players like aKuJii, Red or even Goodfella and Harriman play up to the level needed against top teams from Sweden or USA and Germany?"
Adding the even inbetween or and USA makes a big difference.
I'm shocked that an article like this was actually written. There have been many more qualifiers where a top level team beat a whole group of 'nobodies' (eg. Euskal: g.nu and dsky) but there's no article written about them... what's the deal?
One thing i forgot to mention. SSV is not a 'central european' team. It was playtown (from denmark) sponsored by SSV to attend this event. This is a team that finished above Titans in DEL if i'm not mistaken (which i might be since sk.com won't load up properly for me)
As for American teams you've hardly ever had a team consistently place in the top10 at CPL, one year it was ForsakeN "next big thing" lol, then u5, then D!E and Rival. There hasn't been a consistent US team well.....ever. 4K have pretty much placed consistently at every CPL they've attended and tbh I don't even like 4K in particular, I was routing for GG as 4K would attend anyways.
It was a poor qualifier in terms of quality but you can in no way compare UK events to Scandinavian one's, CPL or not.
"Not a single team in this entire event was ranked in the top ten in the World." rofl plz the gotfrag rankings are s***
Lets be honest here, if the CPL was held in europe, we wouldnt see hardly any american teams in it, as there are only a few actually able to compete at the level of european teams, even the ones who cant afford to go to america.
This article has no point other than to wind people up, 4k did well to beat a strong GG side and they are looking good. Where was the writeup about how bad mousesports are when they won their cpl qualifier.
How can you say asylum are underated, they hammered 4k online and got the same treatment back at lan.
You really have no clue about counter-strike outside of america, Open your eyes.
I think someones got a strop on
why didnt they come 2nd then ???????
However, as others above have said, 4k have consistently performed well in most events they have attended, they do have lots of sponsorship yet risked reputation by entering the cpl qualifier (would I be right in saying that by entering the qualifier you are going to be seeded higher?). And as others have already said, the players that played today bar the new guy called Red have performed at the highest level so there is no lack of experience.
What I think Midway has missed is that a team is judged not on consistency, but on victories. And what 4k have never had, nor in my opinion ever will have, s a major victory under their belt. They have yet to really truly upset at any tournament and are always a safe bet to do fairly well without dazzling. If 4k were to win one event, something with a few major teams in, then everything int he world would change, simply off the back of maybe one lucky weekend.
It is just a sign of how fickle the world is!!
Therew as no reason at all with this writeup at all
UK People > Midway, GG.
Its not 4k's fault that there were only crap teams, sponsorship is good for the game stop just making articles for the hell of it.
cause we all hate you and your fatf*** country
very similar to mouz & 4K with consistantly strong yet often dissapointing results, just their players aren't as known as the Germans & English(ish) ~
So on one point, I agree with Midway : 4K are really far from impressive. We'll see at cpl.
there were more good teams at uk cpl than at any other qualifier.
and as for sk or 3d doing better at it... well maybe, but in the knockout stages 4k went 16-5, 16-4, 16-9. that looks pretty dominant to me.
although i think 4k could of been better, they didnt really need to be any better.
fact.
and 3d won't make top8 this cpl, so don't get your hopes up.
That speaks for itself. Your an arse.
As for no big name teams and GG being mediocre, I think the current GG team would wipe the floor with all American teams bar u5, 3D and possibly tec.
:d
seriously, this shouldn't be a US v UK issue. He made his point and controversy was almost certain thereafter. midway has laid his head down on the block, and if 4K pull it off bigtime this winter then it won't be connected to his neck anymore.
i get the feeling that my fellow countrymen can dish it out but can't take it.
"I think midway's bitter because 4k and GG are still better than 95% of US teams, even though they suck in Europe?" -- Zechs
I recall last summer right before the Qualifiers some person from TSN went around to all the top teams and asked their clan leaders a various allotment of questions. This reporter went to Mangiacapra - how they projected they'd finish at CPL, the response being top FIVE....Reality: 4k couldn't even make it to about the top FIFTEEN, and that was after losing the qualifier...
"4K have pretty much placed consistently at every CPL they've attended and tbh I don't even like 4K in particular, I was routing for GG as 4K would attend anyways." -- b0sh
Just because a team gets to a CPL Qualifiers, doesn't mean than they are amongst the top. At ESWC UK Qualifiers, 4k couldn't make it past WOLF, a nascent team that didn't last very long in the actual ESWC itself for whatever reason. While the two teams mentioned above are quite good, they are not by any means amongst the top.
"Why bother writing an article just to cause an argument, that’s the only reason you've wrote it midway... "
It was an article that echoes the opinions of so many gamers, both in the UK-community and outside of it. Sadly, the UK is probably amongst the least competitive and amongst the lower bracket of statistically skilled countries. Looking around Europe w/o venturing to Asia or the Americas we can just take a view to mouz/titans/sk/eye/a-losers/...I could go on and on...meanwhile the list of the UK teams ends after 4k/TAG (who don't make much of LAN appearance)/c4u (who seem to have been half folding for a while now)/calibre...While there are other teams that have indeed taken a noticeable position in UK ranks such as LastChance, they still are only scraping to just lose against mixes or GG, who aren't world class...
I digress.
"Basically America is full of fat idiots and UK owns them pld" c0pe
This comment is both unnecessarily hostile and abrasive, not to mention inflammatory when no other insulator comments have been thrown before. Just asking, but when did 4k actually beat a US team? Going to the most recent CPL – 4k consistently placed in the lower ranges of teams, where’s whomever from the US was at least above. To use for an example, zEx, a team who haven’t been doing as well as they used to, still have a world-title to show for their accomplishments. 4k win nation events only after they get knocked into the losers bracket first (et UKT LAN) or merely their own qualifiers. With exception to c4u/wolf, there haven’t been teams that this small section of Europe has produced to even make an impression on the global E-Sports community.
Ryandeean made solid points. He’s able to make an argument because there isn’t actually any real evidence to go against him. You can flame all you want, but 4k and GG aren’t the top teams. Go to the revered World Rankings of teams or players. You won’t find a member of the UK on there – or if you do they were only recently added. The players you see someone from the US, and then the rest affectively Scandinavians.
Taking a glance at what the community agrees with, go to the recently lauded ‘Best of British’ CS film. The stars there are a few players from various squads, and then two people from TAG, two from 4k, and then I believe the entire of c4u. As long as we stare at media, take the highly appraised ‘Ruination’ who included people from Rival and zEx and NOA, but no UK player as far as I remember…doesn’t that say anything?
As for Midway, he’s voiced the opinion of so much of the community. Maybe his article was too severe for some of you, but it that’s part of journalism. We get to see how obdurate some of you are, just how entranced you are in your own convictions to even briefly consider his view. This is such an ambiguous topic, and yet the majority of you who responded treated like Midway’s article was an act of war, a sign of aggression that just had to be lashed back with hateful and borderline discriminatory remarks. If you look at the standings right now without any loyalty, 4k seems posed to do decent at the final CPL in Dallas. Though if you look at their competitors, you can’t really think that they will really does that well?
To address directly the UK event, it was somewhat of a joke in contrast to other events. The original seeding was a laugh. How the officials who are running the event seed do Landed above teams such as Last Chance or c4u? Furthermore, how is 2s2p and LANimals waitlisted, when teams such as Restyled and calibre are left out to dry. It’s a UK affair, though only one in every four teams to attend are actually from the home teams country, how is that fair? Anyone who was remotely realistic about the event would’ve forecast that it would just be 4k vs. GG in the end, that you could’ve killed the entire three days, popped it into one game, and saved time. There wasn’t any point. When the UK is only able to produce one team that can make it past the first stage, where is the evidence to oppose Midways evermore cogent opinion?
In essence, the UK scene needs major assistance if it is to stay alive for much longer with any shred of respect when compared to the close neighbouring Scandinavia. By no means are 4kings on par with most teams of it’s professionalism out there. GG are good, but if they are pitted against SK like c4u was, it won’t be such a stunning outcome. Those who are so derogatory about the US or whomever need to let themselves have loose and stop being so narrow-minded and loyal (for lack of better phrases). There is no ammunition to fuel a debate against the facts prevailing that 4k aren’t top of their tier. Look at history, there’s just nothing.
this is hardly an issue imo :)
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