Fnatic dexter at ESL Pro League Season 18 – “We’re Just Trying to Play Our Own Game”

Fnatic are one of the most prestigious names in all of esports. Its CS:GO team is one of the most successful of all time, boasting 3 CS:GO Major wins. Before ESL Pro League Season 18 Group C, we sat down with the team’s new IGL dexter to discuss the team’s chances at the upcoming tournament!

You’ve been with Fnatic for a few months now. What was the first thing about your playstyle that you tried to implement as IGL?

I think it would just be the defaulting phase and what we want out of it and all that kinda stuff.

How do think the players have responded to those ideas so far?

They’ve actually responded pretty good. We’re always trying to learn and just get better ideas of what we want to do, so we always try something new, try to force something new. From there we’ll adjust if it’s not working, or just kinda discuss it a lot.

Is mezii still doing any calling at all, or is that something you’ve taken over entirely on the team?

It’s something I’ve taken over entirely. If he has an idea or whatever, just like with any other player then they can throw out their ideas of what they feel like is a good thing to do on their position, but overall I just do everything. He will do some pistols and whatnot.

Can you see the impact he’s been able to have being freed up in that role? Obviously, you weren’t there when he was IGL, but can you tell he’s more free now?

I think so. I think there’s still a lot of development to go, because he can be more free. We’ll have to see about that. We’re just talking about what he needs and wants, because sometimes he can play for the team too much and yeah, we’re trying to figure out what’s best.

IEM Cologne ended in disappointment against ENCE and GamerLegion, while Gamers8 was a swift exit to Cloud9. What have you guys been working on after those defeats?

Just working on our CT side a lot. I think in all those games our CT side was probably the big factor that lost us the games compared to our T. The big thing has always been our CT side, just discussing set-ups, set-ups, and just more set-ups! So yeah, just getting a better understanding of each other on that side.

So it’s Imperial up first at ESL Pro League Season 18. How have you guys prepared for this matchup?

We’ll do our preparations later but we know the vetos and stuff like that. Overall, we’re just trying to play our own game and try to implement the style we need to play vs. them on the server.

With four spots up for grabs, Playoffs definitely look possible for Fnatic in Group C. Do you feel like there are any expectations on you guys coming into this tournament?

I don’t think there’s too much of an expectation, but our Group is probably one of the easier ones so I would say that we need to have a successful run here because compared to other Groups it’s not so hard. Yeah, it’s just gonna be a test on ourselves because not everything is so free, so we’ll have to be working hard no matter who we’re versing.

Are there eyes on playing any team in particular? Obviously the potential of FaZe vs. Fnatic in the second match is a great prospect.

No eyes right now. We’re just kinda focused on the game we have first, because if you divert energy it’s not going to be good.

Final question for yourself – you’ve been in the competitive scene for a while now. KRIMZ has been here practically since the beginning of CS:GO too. How do you personally stay hungry for success?

I just define my career as having not all of the success possible. I need to win and need to play consistently on stage, so I’m just not at that stage yet. There’s nothing in life that’s going on too much right now so I think it’s my main focus.