Gaming
Gaming
Goodbye Ghosts! Call of Duty pros set for last war
CoD stars compete in the final Ghosts tournament at ESWC this week, but will it be a fond farewell?
Call Of Duty: Ghosts
© Activision
Record viewership, a fourth $1m championship and a place alongside some of the world’s most extreme sports at ESPN X Games. It should all add up to another amazing year for Call of Duty eSports. Yet the money and prestige could not mask what has been tough year for the competitive game.
A cutback on eSports features combined with antiquated gameplay dumbfounded players spoiled by the brilliance of Black Ops 2. Even the scene’s most influential characters have struggled to hide their distaste for the game, having previously dined on the meatiest Call of Duty experience just a year earlier. Yet, heightened emotions and rivalries occasionally distracted from the hollow experience to breathe life into what has been a slow season for the pros.
So, as we get ready for the final Call of Duty: Ghosts tournament at ESWC, players and personalities from the scene won’t be sad to see it go. Epsilon’s Callum Swann admits that while his team has enjoyed some success at Ghosts tournaments, the game failed to take Call of Duty eSports forwards.
“We are satisfied with some of our performances and highlights such as winning the European CoD Champs regionals and placing second at G3," he said. "To an extent, I did feel that Ghosts failed to build on the progress of Black Ops 2 from an eSports perspective, but we’re on the cusp of a new game and my only focus is to help the team play as well as I know we can this weekend.”
Goodbye Ghosts
Call of Duty at ESWC 2013
© [unknown]
Moving on to ESWC, the Paris tournament was a thrilling finale to the Black Ops 2 season in 2013, and although it will be difficult for Ghosts to match the thrills of last year, a decent upset could at least send the game packing with a bang. Epsilon and TCM, Europe’s premier sparring partners, join Evil Geniuses, EnVyUs and 12 other international teams in a four-day brawl for the lion’s share of $25,000. Could we see a repeat of the Gfinity 3 finals between Epsilon and EnVyUs?
This is the final opportunity for a European CoD team to achieve just one crowning glory this year. But with world champions Evil Geniuses sticking around for their last tournament, an intimidating gauntlet stands between the best British players and US talent. The roar of the French crowd needs to be at full pitch for all European teams and not just home talent.
With the imminent launch of Advanced Warfare, it’s hard to imagine that ESWC stands for anything more than financial gain for most teams. Bragging rights count for little on Ghosts at this late stage, although G3 and MLG Season 3 winners EnVyUs will be looking to cement their dominance in the closing chapter of the season. Still, even if most people are looking forward to the new game, Chris ‘Parasite’ Duarte is looking to emulate his success with Faze at UMG Dallas by taking JusTus all the way this weekend:
“ESWC is a prestigious event and although I am looking forward to Advanced Warfare, I will still give this tournament my all,” said Duarte. I want to end my Ghosts career on a high to hit the ground running on the next game.”
Ready to Advance
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare
© Activision
Even Epsilon and TCM, both understanding of Call of Duty etiquette in the top-flight, won't be celebrating wildly if they win this weekend. For both teams have struggled to consistently mount a challenge at the business-end of the biggest tournaments and will be looking to improve with Advanced Warfare. Once considered as North America’s main threats, Epsilon have only a runner's-up spot at G3 to show for their efforts in international tournaments while TCM's best finish was third at MLG Anaheim.
CoD veteran Nick ‘XLNC’ Ward wont be competing at ESWC but he understands what’s gone wrong for the European teams: “It has been another disappointing year for Europe on the world stage but luck hasn’t always been on our side. You can’t blame the game as everyone has been playing on an even playing field, so full credit to the North American teams for their success.
"Advanced Warfare looks like a new experience with a greater emphasis on skill and movement. Hopefully a new opportunity for players to prove their individual ability. The Americans excel in terms of team chemistry, but I feel we're more than their match in other areas."
Players will bin their Call of Duty: Ghosts discs after Sunday's Grand Final, but there is still hope for this weekend’s action. The prestigious eSports event at the glitzy La Ville-Lumière will host the best international teams. Mindfreak of Australia and Macbeth of Japan will be brushing shoulders with European and American greats.
It is a rare opportunity for these teams to share some of the limelight with the usual suspects, and it also presents a tantalising prospect for the neutral fans who are craving to see a giant killer emerge from the fray. Lest we forget T1dotters, also from Australia, who famously stunned several top-flight teams at the 2014 Call of Duty Championship to finish in fifth place.
Unlikely as a giant-killing may be, an all-American podium is still improbable. At least one team from Europe usually manages to perform on home soil, but North America’s representatives arrive hot off the back of two live events, in the form of UMG Dallas and MLG’s season 3 playoffs at the new MLG Arena in Columbus.
With the distraction of Advanced Warfare, everyone will need to be focused if they’re to present a challenge to the all-conquering North Americans. Regardless of the outcome, expect everything to be forgotten when a new era of CoD eSports begins next month.
You can watch the Call of Duty: Ghosts tournament at eswc.com.
