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Everything you need to know before CoD XP
As the biggest Call of Duty event of the year rolls around we look at the key talking points.
Call of Duty XP is this week
© Activision
Thanks to the introduction of the Activision-controlled Call of Duty World League, the Black Ops 3 competitive season has arguably been the best in the series’ history.
The structured format, which has been close to identical across the three major regions, has finally given theEuropean and Australian scenes equal opportunities compared to the US and has, generally speaking, resulted in one of the closest years yet.
We have seen big names struggle, teams fall to pieces only to bring it all back together when it really mattered and a ton of new faces have established themselves as top players.
With stage one and two of the CoD World League now distant memories, and the launch of Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare looming, there is only time for one last major event of the competitive season, and that is CoD XP. With $2 million on the line, which is the largest jackpot in CoD history, each of the 32 teams will be fighting tooth and nail to climb up the standings, but only one will be able to walk away as winners.
CoD XP isn’t just going to be the biggest event of the year for Call of Duty players, it's the biggest event in the franchise's history, and should be up there with the likes of The International and ESL One Cologne in terms of entertainment. Of course not everyone can be an encyclopedia of knowledge on every eSport out there, so to get you up to speed in time for XP here are five things you need to know.
This is the first XP since 2011
While the Call of Duty World Championships have been around for the last few seasons, it has been five long years since the first CoD XP event. Back then eSports was more of a side attraction, with gameplay from the upcoming Modern Warfare 3 taking centre stage, along with performances from The Dropkick Murphys and Kanye West. $1 million was still on the line, most of which OpTic gaming took home, but it’s fair to say that only a small portion of the XP attendees were really interested.
This year eSports will be one of the main attractions. Sure, the Infinite Warfare reveal will still be the main focus, but right behind that is the CWL action. CoD eSports has grown significantly over the last few years, so don’t be surprised if most of the other attractions are empty when the grand final is going on.
OpTic win at MLG
© Activision
There will be a ton of matches
Across most of the major eSports, the biggest events of the year usually feature 16 teams. CS:GO majors, The International and League’s Worlds are just a handful of examples, but for CoD XP Activision are hosting double that, with 32 teams competing in the group stage.
With eight groups of four teams, the group stage will feature a ton of games. Each team plays every team in their group, with the top two proceeding to the sixteen team double elimination bracket.
Every match at CoD XP, including the grand final, will be a best of five, with the only variation coming in the final where a bracket reset may be required. If the team that came through the lower bracket to the final manages to win the first best of five, then another will be played to determine the champion. If the team from the winners bracket take the first best of five they will be crowned champions, without having to play the second match.
Of course, all of this play time will be worth it for the eventual champions as they will walk away with $800,000. Second place will take away $250,000, third will get $150,000 and forth will grab $120,000. Prize money then continues for all teams, with those that crash out in joint last still grabbing $15,000.
Splyce take first at Gfinity
© Gfinity/Dominic Allison
Group A is a battle between two of Europe’s best
When looking at the groups most eyes will be drawn to Group H due to the presence of OpTic Gaming and compLexity Gaming, two big names in the US scene. But look a little deeper and you will see that Group A could provide some of the best action.
Group A is a battle of two European powerhouses. Millenium have won both stages of the CWL in Europe, despite almost not having a full roster for the start of Stage 2. Their online form has been questionable, but on LAN at major events they have looked strong, meaning they are perhaps Europe’s best shot at a top-eight finish.
Joining them in Group A is Splyce, who may have only finished third/fourth in stage two, but have proven they can compete on LAN. Victory at Gfinity earlier in the year, along with second at ESWC, falling only to OpTic in the final, shows they can beat even the top American teams when playing on stage.
The battle between these two for first in the group will be intense to say the least, and could end up being the best group to watch, as American side Livin The Dream could pull off an upset.
Millenium celebrate a win
© Activision
It’s all about the game modes
In Call of Duty, one of the biggest factors in tournament success is how comfortable you are on certain game modes. In every best-of-five series throughout XP, excluding tie breakers, the same game modes will be played. Things start off on Hardpoint, before transitioning into Search and Destroy, Uplink, Capture The Flag and finally another round of Search and Destroy if needed.
While all teams will be competent on all the modes, some will specialise and have favoured modes. A team that is exceptional at Hardpoint will usually have the upper hand in most matches due to it being played first. A team that might excel at Uplink or Capture The Flag could be at a serious disadvantage by the time their favoured mode rolls around.
OpTic Gaming could become two time XP champions, despite not winning at champs in between
Ask anyone who has ever followed competitive CoD even slightly who the biggest name in the scene is and they will say OpTic Gaming. In recent years the green wall has expanded out into other titles, but its core is still the organisation's world-class Call of Duty team. It seems like every year they are tipped to go and win the big one, and almost every year they have faltered.
Amazingly OpTic have technically never won an Activision-hosted World Championship event, but they did win the $1 million tournament at the first-ever CoD XP, which technically wasn’t classed as a world championship. Last year the team crashed out in seventh place, despite clearly being the best team throughout the rest of the year.
This year things are a little different; while they are still considered a top contender for the event, they haven’t been quite as dominant as before. This should remove some of the pressure from the players and might just be what they need to finally take home first place. Regardless of if they win or not, with the quality on their roster right now the OpTic games are certainly the ones to watch.
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