Today ESWC started, what's your first impressions of the event itself?



The information from the staff of ESWC has been pretty poor, we didn't get any info about neither how we could get to the event, nor where it was placed. We had to wait for a bus for several hours, that never showed up, and in the end we had to take the subway. But the premises and how everything is set is great. I don't know how the computers at the tournament area are, however, since we won't play until tomorrow. But all in all it looks like it could be a really nice tournament and I hope to both play and watch some fun matches.





What's your goal with your attendance here at ESWC?



Naturally we aim for top 3, but we're also here to get some experience for the team and see a development in the team. We're still a very new team and teamplay and so on takes time, there are no shortcuts to things like that.





Compare a win at ESWC to the same thing but at WEG or CPL!



In my opinion, ESWC can't really be compared to a CPL win, because the tournament hasn't been as proffesional in comparison, but everything around the tournament is much better for spectators and so on. I have never attended WEG so I can't really say anything about that, but I/we hope to attend WEG season 3. This ESWC has some more prestige than CPL, since most teams in the first place have aimed for ESWC while teams that didn't manage to qualify have chosen to go to CPL. But in all, CPL usually is the thing. However, CPL in Dallas has a little higher standard compared to the events at the CPL World Tour stops.





What do you think about your group, Group 7?



I think we have a rather easy group and it will be good as warmup, Virtus.pro will be our hardest opponent.





Yes, what are your thoughts about your match against Virtus.pro? Do you feel extra motivation to win after their win against you and your SK last year?



Yes, it will be fun to meet them again, I suppose they have developed some since our last game, because of their intact lineup. They are really good aimers but a little weaker on the tactical part. I think it will be a really tough match but I certainly hope to take our revenge.





While we're at that specific match – why do you think Virtus.pro won the match last year?



Call it poor excuses but that match was played at stage where you used helicopter headphones with monosound and had to use Ventrilo in order to hear ourself talking. It's really a hard time playing CS with monosound against such a aggressive team as Virtus, who likes playing aggressively and has really nice aim. I think it would've been a little different match during normal conditions, but I can't take it away from them that they did a really great match, and they are really skilled during normal conditions also.





Virtus.pro aside, are there any other teams you would like to meet, or not would like to meet?



No, there are no teams that I don't want to meet, if you want to win you have to dare and be able to beat every team. I look at it more like an experience for the team to face as hard competition as possible.





How well prepared are you? I mean, you haven't had so much time playing together just yet...



Tactical wise we're pretty ok prepared, but teamplay wise we can develop a lot more. Things like that come with time and you can't really speed that up. I think we'll do ok considering that it's two group stages, but how far I don't dare to say.





In spite of you only have been playing once (the qualifier for ESWC) with the new team many believes in you here at ESWC. In a poll here on Fragbite 44 % think you will win the whole thing, has the CS community too high expectations on you? Do you get any negative pressure by that?



I just think that it's fun that many believes in us, I don't think you get any negative pressure just because of that. It's one thing to be a new team with lots of pressure, and another thing to be a team that has won a lot, with lots of pressure – then you feel you're forced to win. Now I see it as a big challenge and experience for us in the future. I think we will only get better and better with time.





What map is your best and worst?



It's hard to tell since we haven't played so many official games yet.





Compare the earlier (SK based) NiP team with the new one, what differences do you see?



I see more hunger to win from these players now, it didn't really feel as everybody wanted to give 100% before. Now with players like ins and zet, who are pretty new and unknown players among the elite, I think they want to show that they belong in the top and will do everything they can to stay there.





As mentioned, you are a quite new team so it would be strange if you don't have anything that needs polishing. Do you have any particular weaknesses in NiP?



Teamplay and to get to know eachother's playing styles. Apart from that I think it has went surprisingly well in the short time we've been playing together.





How do you think it affects the teams when they are playing on the stage? Is it mostly positive or negative? Do you think it can affect the results in some matches?



I went and looked at the stage before and it didn't seem to be a demand for having helicopter headphones this year, which will make the conditions a lot better. You're not sitting directly next to each other this time which is really good. It's hard to tell which teams that will be affected positively and which who will be affected negatively. Some teams get nervous of the public while others get motivated and get a kick out of it. It will be fun to see what happens in the tournament.

How's your relation with the old NiP players in today's SK?



I don't have anything against them, I like most of them a lot. We don't have great contact anymore but that's often how it gets when you play in different teams and so on. I think, however, that it has been a little too much flaming between the teams lately. HeatoN has received a lot of trashtalking like, for example, that he would have something to do with 1911 not being allowed to play at the ESWC qualifier. They asked the NiP organisation some time before the event if they could attend the qualifier and they got a strict no. This because it doesn't do NiP any good to have employees working against the organisation while they're still a part of the organisation. Each player knew this when they went to Dreamhack, so there was absolutely no news for them, as it could sound in their interviews. I think it's obvious that you accept that, even though it would be fun to meet them. But it will come more competitions and we'll surely meet sooner or later. But as I said earlier, I have nothing against them as persons, more accurately I like many of them.





Which teams do you think will get to top 4 here at ESWC?



Hmm, I never dare to predict things like that since there are so many good teams here, and to be honest I don't have a great view of which teams that are good and which that aren't, this is because I have been inactive for approximately eight months.





In the same time as the new NiP team was formed, you did your own comeback. Was it difficult to find your old form back?



I guess I'm far away from my old form since I started playing CS actively again just 5-6 weeks ago. It takes some time to reach my personal top but I just have to keep on fighting and hope to get there again.





Thanks for the interview! Is there anything you'd like to add?



Thank you all fans who have been supporting me and wanted me back again. It's fun to see so many positive comments even though I haven't been playing actively for quite some time. A big thanks to NiP as an organisation and everybody who makes it such a good team to play for. Thanks to all my team mates who makes the team so fun to play in, and finally thanks to my girlfriend who lets me do the thing I like. ;)