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Articles by Alex Debets
Play to Live: How Gold Farming in a 20-Year-Old Game is Saving Lives
by Alex Debets, Devin Jones, Malcolm Abbas, Brandon Mistele, Miles Hackett, Daniel Rosen 8 minutes ago Runescape. The drunk uncle of the MMO family. For most people, it's a pleasant memory from their adolescence. But for some, it remains a beloved daily ritual. It might not be as popular as WoW, or as embarrassing as Second Life, but there's no question that it’s every bit as enduring.
kennyS is Back: How Foreign Blood Brought G2 to the Top of Counter-Strike
by Alex Debets, Devin Jones, Malcolm Abbas 13 minutes ago KennyS is considered one CS:GO’s greatest players ever, and for good reason. He innovated with the AWP, did things no one else could, and he’s a Major champion. And now, eight years into his CSGO career, kennyS is in the midst of a renaissance. The AWP god’s balling out, tournament after tournament, with G2 considered one of the best teams in the world in this online era of Counter Strike.
A Body That Betrayed Him: How Uzi Sacrificed Himself For Greatness
League of Legends has lost an icon. LPL superstar Uzi announced his retirement from pro play after a long and successful career. The guy’s only 23. One of League’s greatest players ever is stepping away due to injuries and health issues that have plagued him his whole career. For more great videos, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
How the Biggest Scandal in League Destroyed a Team But Built a Champion
by Alex Debets, Devin Jones, Malcolm Abbas 19 minutes ago JD Gaming jungler Kanavi made history this spring. The 19-year-old became the first non-mid laner named the LPL’s league MVP, beating out names like the reigning world champion Doinb. In his first-ever split as a starter, Kanavi achieved what most players spend their whole careers chasing. He wasn’t just named MVP, he became an LPL champion. But just a few months ago, Kanavi’s future as a pro was in question.
Unreliable to Unstoppable: How Cloud9 Created a Monster in the Jungle
by Alex Debets, Devin Jones, Malcolm Abbas 19 minutes ago Blaber is North America’s best jungler, and it’s not even close. In his first full split as a starter, the young jungler helped win Cloud9’s first LCS championship in six years. But Blaber did more than earn his first championship. The guy was also voted first-team all-pro jungler, and league MVP He only just became a starter, and he’s already taken the league by storm. But before he was the MVP, Blaber was the MVP’s understudy.
Rules Don't Matter: How G2 Won Another Championship by Saying F@&K It
G2 Esports are the best European League of Legends team ever. In 2019 they won both LEC splits, made the World Championship finals, and became the first EU team to win MSI. So after finding all this success last year, you’d think the MSI champions and World finalists would simply run it back… But G2’s two carries swapped roles… again. For more great videos, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
Doublelift Didn't Care: How A Trash Attitude Killed His Spring 2020
Team Liquid are out of playoff contention. They bombed out of the Spring Split in what’s now the biggest downfall in LCS history. The guy taking the brunt of the team’s criticism was Doublelift. Doublelift under-performing was bad. But his attitude at the start of spring is what really got the community fired up. For more great videos, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
New Teammates, Same Faker: The Demon King's Continued Quest For World Domination
by Alex Debets, Devin Jones, Malcolm Abbas 16 minutes ago Faker made it back to the top of Korea in 2019. Armed with a new super-team composed of some of the region’s best players, Faker and T1 dominated the 2019 LCK season, winning both spring and summer. But all that success wasn’t enough to keep the T1 dream team together. T1 was forced to rebuild again, with Faker left to lead the new, young squad as the oldest player on the team.
Hyped, Fallen, Forgotten: The Underdog Searching for Redemption on Astralis
Astralis are in the middle of DreamHack Masters: Europe. Eight days away from their first playoff match, they're busy doing their tournament prep, it should be business as usual. Except it’s not, because there’s new players on the starting lineup for the first time in two years. For more great videos, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
How a World Champion Tanked His Career in Just One Month
Crown’s 2020 season has been terrible. He’s been called one of NA’s worst mid laners, getting kicked mid-way through Spring. But, when he came to NA in 2019, he was a world Champion. He’d reached the top of his craft, achieving the greatest prize in League of Legends. For more great videos, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
Back From The Grave: CS:GO’s First Superteam Has Returned
by Alex Debets, Devin Jones, Malcolm Abbas 1h ago When Dignitas announced the signing of Ninjas in Pyjamas' old Major-winning core, it was impossible to escape the negative comments. Sure these players are legends, but they haven't done anything in pro play worth writing home about in quite some time. There are people who think a lot of these players should already have retired. On paper, this roster should fail. But what if...?
Gone, But Far From Finished: Packing Up Sneaky’s Legacy
For the last seven years he’s played for Cloud9 as one of North America’s most beloved players. He’s been with them since the org first entered the LCS. He’s played in the last 13 consecutive LCS splits and made Worlds every year he’s competed. But those records are about to end, because he’s not playing this spring. For more great videos, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
Tyler1 is Saving the Rookies Riot Left Behind
Tyler1 was once known as the most famously toxic player in League of Legends, but now? He's saving North America's amateur scene with his Tyler1 Championship series. For more great videos, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
ZywOo is the Future of Counter-Strike
He’s been called a prodigy. The savior of the french scene. The wunderkind with a heart of gold and an absolute demon with the AWP in the server. But just who in the hell is ZywOo? For more great videos, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
The Hard Luck Story Behind 100 Thieves’ CS:GO Team
When you're a kid you’re told to follow your dreams, that if you work hard enough, you'll succeed. And, look, that’s not always how it goes. But sometimes you witness something that feels like a childhood fantasy come to life. And in CS:GO we’re having one of those moments right now For more great videos, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
Jame is the CS:GO Player Who Became a Meme
How do you know when a player has made it? Is it once they’ve won a Major? Once they’ve earned the respect of their peers? Or have they made once they’re the subject of a meme? Once the community starts to see them as more than just an incredible talent? Because if that’s the case, Avangar’s Jame has made it the only way he knows how. For more great videos, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
This Gun is Breaking CS:GO and Pissing Everyone Off!
How often do you hear about a gun in Counter-Strike being OP or breaking the meta? The SG, or the Krieg as it used to be called, is incredibly powerful at both short and long-range. And it’s the latest rifle to join the list of weapons SO GOOD, they are screwing up the game for everyone. For more great videos, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
The Tekken Hero Putting America on His Back
Anakin has been around forever. He’s played in dozens of tournaments, repping Jack and America in even the hardest times. He’s a fan favourite, but right now? He’s North America’s greatest hope. For more great videos, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
Doinb is Breaking the Rules on His Quest for Glory
He’s been named MVP multiple times. He can make just about every champion a mid laner. And after four years of grinding, he finally has an LPL championship under his belt. Doinb is one of the LPL’s deadliest mid laners. And at Worlds? He’s out for blood. For more great videos, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
Jankos is the First Blood King Rewriting History
He’s the First Blood King. His skills have won the respect of junglers everywhere. He’s won back-to-back LEC titles, and MSI. If you haven't already guessed, we're talking about Jankos. Europe’s MVP jungler has spent a year dominating the League scene, and now he’s one match away from becoming a world champion. For more great videos, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
Faker and kkOma Have Split... Now What?
No one has dominated League of Legends more completely than Faker and kkOma. The two built a dynasty together, creating an unmatched legacy that spans the better part of a decade. But that’s all changing, because kkOma’s leaving SKT, leaving Faker to face an unfamiliar future. For more great videos, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
Benched, Screwed Over, and Alone: Aleksib's Quest for Redemption
by Alex Debets, Devin Jones, Malcolm Abbas 38 minutes ago He’s one of CS:GO’s hottest up-and-coming in-game leaders. He led an unlikely group of Finns to the grand final of a Major, beating some of the world’s greatest teams along the way. Five months later he was cut from that same team, forced to play the Berlin Major on a roster that had already removed him. For months we speculated on where he’d go. But the time for speculation is over, because the guy’s finally got a new team. Aleksib is back.
The Story of Twistzz
by Alex Debets, Dimitri Pascaluta, Colin McNeil 1h ago At first glance, Twistzz seems like your usual, carefree superstar. He’s a cool, cocky nineteen-year-old who’s made well over half a million dollars playing Counter-Strike. His fans want to be him -- and his opponents, well, they want to beat him. Twistzz is living the dream, but that wasn’t always the case. For a very long time, his life was a far cry from what it is today. This is his story.
The Summer of Cloud9
by Devin Jones, Alex Debets, Brian Van Huynh, Christian Pearson, Daniel Rosen 23 minutes ago This isn’t a story about Counter-Strike. This isn’t a story about a championship team overcoming the odds and winning it all. This is a story about five friends who dared to reach for greatness and came up short. A story about how, at a time when North American Counter-Strike was considered a joke, one summer redefined what was possible.
The Story Of The Jungle (League of Legends)
by Dimitri Pascaluta, Alex Debets, Sean Wetselaar 4 minutes ago In nearly a decade of competitive League of Legends, one role has changed more frequently, more dramatically than any other. But in every year, after every rework, and despite every nerf — a resilient group of players have made it their mission to master it. This is the story of League of Legends’ jungle and of those players brave and bold enough to conquer it. For more great videos, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
The Story of FaZe Clan
If anyone deserves credit for changing the mould in this weird fission of gaming and entertainment it’s FaZe Clan. They’ve turned video games and headshots, and wearing expensive clothes and partying into things that are all somehow closely related. And when you take a closer look, it’s all kind of beautiful. For more great videos, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
The Worst CS:GO Tournament Ever
One LAN has lived in infamy as the worst event, ever. It was the Fyre Festival of gaming, with missing computers, confiscated passports, and of course, not a cent of prize money paid out. If you thought iBuyPower Masters or the Shanghai Major had problems, welcome to The Gaming Paradise. For more great videos, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
CS:GO Has a Problem: Why Big Money is Afraid of the Game
by Alex Debets, Daniel Rosen 4 minutes ago Counter-Strike has a problem. It’s not the rampant cheaters, terrible in-client matchmaking or the abysmal tick rate. It’s the fact that some of the biggest companies in the world aren’t interested in sponsoring your favorite teams. I bet that doesn’t sound like a huge deal to you. But behind the scenes, it’s an issue that’s rocking the CS world, and it’s already caused one of the biggest teams in the space to pack their bags and move on.
Sneaky is really, really good at cosplay
Zachary “Sneaky” Scuderi is one of the most prolific AD carries in the history of North American League of Legends. He’s a fixture in the Cloud 9 bot-lane, someone who’s always a threat on the Rift and the kind of work horse you want to build a team around. Oh yeah, and over the course of the past year he’s also become one of the most famous cosplayers on the internet. For more great videos, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
Best Esports Fails and Funny Moments of 2018
by Alex Debets, Colin McNeil 6 minutes ago 2018 was packed with more epic and exciting esports moments than you could imagine, and we’ve got a whole video dedicated to the best of the year across multiple esports... But that's not why we're here. We're here to take a look at the best fails and funny moments of 2018. And there were a lot of them. From CS:GO, to League of Legends, to Dota 2 and everything in between, sit back and get ready to laugh... and cringe.
The Greatest StarCraft Rivalry: Flash vs. Jaedong
by Alex Debets, Dimitri Pascaluta, Daniel Rosen 6 minutes ago Never in the history of competitive StarCraft has there been a rivalry more important and influential than Flash vs. Jaedong. There’s even a strong case that it’s the greatest rivalry in the history of competitive gaming. Before the days of TI, Worlds and the Overwatch League, there was South Korean StarCraft: Brood War.
What happened to Korea at Worlds 2018?
At Worlds 2018, the impossible happened. By now you’ve heard the story. We’ve only made three other videos about it. The defending world champions, Gen.G, lost in groups. 1-5. The powerhouse first seed, KT Rolster, went down in quarterfinals. A close series, but they lost 3-2. And the Afreeca Freecs completed the trend with a 3-0 loss to Cloud9. It’s not just the first time that a Korean team missed the finals since they got a server.
How Method brought the World First WoW race to the masses
Since World of Warcraft released in 2004, the game’s best players have raced to be the first to complete the game’s raids. A raid is like a massive dungeon with complex bosses to defeat. In the old days, raids were as big as 40 players. Nowadays, they can range anywhere from 10 to 30. But the hardest raid difficulty in the game right now, Mythic, requires exactly 20 players — and they all need to be playing at an incredible level if they want to overcome these challenges.
How Fnatic's back-to-back Majors set the tone for CS:GO
In 2015, Fnatic’s CS:GO team did the impossible. They showed the CS:GO world what true dominance looks like. The team won three Valve Majors, a feat no team has been able to match since. More impressively, Fnatic won two of those Majors back-to-back. And they did so at a time when CS:GO was blowing up — when ESL One Katowice hit one million concurrent viewers in 2015. CS:GO was emerging as one of the biggest esports in the world. And Fnatic were front and centre.
Worlds 2018 Fails and Funny Moments
The 2018 League of Legends World Championship has come to a close. We saw some amazing League played, and if you want to relive the epic teamfights, the underdog moments and the jaw-dropping plays from the tournament, well check out our Best of Worlds 2018. But today, we're celebrating the best fails, and funniest moments from the biggest League of Legends tournament of the year. For more great videos, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
The End of The Virtus Plow: How VP Defined an Era of CS:GO
Virtus.pro’s CS team is impossible to hate.The Polish roster was one of the most beloved in Counter-Strike. They defined an era through their incredible skill and big personalities.The team stuck together for four years, through the good times and the bad. But now, it’s all over.In honor of one of the most iconic rosters to ever play the game, this week we're taking a look back at the Virtus Plow.For more great videos, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
The iBUYPOWER bans: CS:GO's biggest controversy
A North American prodigy, two of NA’s greatest minds, one of the regions greatest support players... banned. CS:GO’s 2015 match fixing scandal is still the biggest scandal in the game’s history. Four of the strongest players in North America were banned from pro play right as their careers were starting to take off. All for a few measly skins during a meaningless CEVO pro match. For more great videos, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
Best of Wildcard Teams at Worlds: From Albus NoX Luna to GIGABYTE Marines
It’s that time of year again. Worlds is here and you know what that means: A Korean team lifting the hardware? Nope. NA getting bopped in groups? Nah. It means Wildcard teams fighting for their shot at glory. That’s why this week on Best of we’re looking at the wildcard teams that gave the middle finger to to power rankings and predictions and made history as Davids taking down the Goliaths of League of Legends.
Iconic Esports Moments: Cloud9's historic win at the Boston Major
In Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, the Major is everything. There are other big tournaments, with their own prestige and their own history. But Majors are in a class of their own. The prize pool and the bragging rights stand apart. And, until January, North America had yet to win a single one. For more great videos, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
Iconic Esports Moments: OG's Miraculous Win at TI8
Losing hurts, especially when you lose on the biggest stage your game has to offer, when you lose in front of everyone, when you lose to the underdogs. But there’s something worse than losing. There’s nothing more painful than being betrayed. Seeing someone you considered a friend turn against you, turn against the philosophy you once shared, turn against the band of brothers you put together to win with. And there’s nothing better than getting revenge.
What CS:GO's cheating problem means for the game, and how the community has tried to fix it
CS:GO is not a perfect game by any stretch of the imagination. It has its issues, from tickrate, to smurfing, to toxicity. But none of these issues stack up to Counter-Strike’s biggest problem. Cheating. But the scope of CS:GO's cheating problem doesn't just affect casual players, it has a big impact on top levels of competition. For more great videos, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
How Fortnite's storytelling captured the world
You may think you know why Fortnite is the most popular game in the world, but you’re probably wrong. Sure Fornite is probably the most mechanically sound battle royale game, and it’s accessible to a younger audience who play on console. But what you don’t know is that Epic Games has gotten their audience to be constantly thinking, constantly theorizing about Fortnite and its mysteries. They’ve captured an entire generation of video gamers, giving them an experience they’ve never really had before.
Best of EVO 2018
EVO 2018 is in the books and that’s wrap for the world’s biggest fighting game tournament. There were moments that gave us all goosebumps, ones that made us stand up and scream, and ones that made us laugh. So from the insane pop-offs to the mind-melting improbable comebacks to the filthiest combos, here is the Best of EVO 2018. For more great videos, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
Godlike Trigger Discipline Plays: The Best of CS:GO Pros Holding Their Nerve
You know what they say, guys. Patience is a virtue. Now this is especially true when it comes to CS:GO. Picture this: You’re lurking in a corner when you start hearing some sound cues. The enemy is so eager to get to the site, they run right by and don’t even realize you’re there. Every fibre of your being is screaming at you to pull the trigger as they walk past but you hold your nerve for the big payoff. This is Best of Trigger Discipline plays in CS:GO.
Unlikely Heroes: The Best of CS:GO's Overachievers
The underdog. The long shot. The dark horse. Sometimes, you just have to take the David over the CS:GO-liath. This week on Best of we're looking at those Davids of the CS:GO world. These are the players that went WAY beyond expectations and stepped up a weight class to take down some of the best players, and teams in the world. For more video interviews and highlights, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
Insane champion picks that actually worked (League of Legends)
In some ways, League of Legends is a safe game. When it comes to champions, you kind of have to pick what everybody else does and just play game better than they do. Sure there are counter-picks and the odd fringe meta lock-in, but straying from the pack and going for that truly off-meta pick can be risky, to say the least. You can get rekt, dumpstered and dunked on. But sometimes, going off script and locking in that wacky pocket pick can lead you and your team to glory.
Getting CS:GO'd: The Best Bugs, Glitches and WTF Moments in CS:GO
To be CS:GO’d is to be rekt, to be wronged, to be utterly destroyed, through no fault of your own, by the one they call Valve. The traditional definition of being CS:GO’d involves putting your crosshair over somebody’s head, pulling the trigger, and having the bullets go through them like nothing happened. But for the purposes of this video, we’ve expanded the definition to include those pesky bugs, those glitches, and the general what-the-f--kery that has happened in pro play.
Best of Get Rekt Moments in CS:GO
Getting rekt is quite possibly the worst thing that can happen to you in a game of CS:GO. Now what does it mean to get wrecked or to do the wrecking? Well, it’s about hitting that perfect pixel peak, it’s about nailing someone with a dirty jump shot, or getting that double kill collateral. For more video interviews and highlights, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
Best of Coldzera: The Iceman Cometh
The man, the myth, the beast. Coldzera is a stone-cold killer: a master of the clutch, a wonder with the AWP, and arguably the best CS:GO player in the world.From his days on Luminosity to his incredible highlights as part of SK Gaming, here is the best of Coldzera, the Iceman.For more video interviews and highlights, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
From Frags to Riches: Best of CS:GO eco and force buy rounds
You know, they say the best things in life are free, like headshots.I mean, you know how it is. You spent all that cash on AWP no armour, got your shit wrecked, and now your team’s dirt poor. But have no fear, because even on default pistols or force buys, magic can happen.For more great videos, be sure to subscribe to theScore esports on YouTube.
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