FaZe Clan were in a very different place at the halfway point of 2022. Bolstered by the addition of ropz to an already star-studded lineup, they had become the best team in the world and won a string of tournaments that included both IEM Katowice and IEM Cologne as well as the PGL Major Antwerp.

The last team to truly be dominant within tier one, at the time, it seemed like nothing could beat them, but it soon became abundantly clear that their dominance wasn’t to last as long as other great lineups before them.

FaZe would fail to win another event in 2022, only reaching one final as they finished runners-up to Heroic at BLAST Premier Fall Final. A stark contrast to the success they had enjoyed in the second half of the year, thanks to a few disappointing results, their 0-3 record in the Legends Stage of the IEM Rio Major being the standout, they were now labelled as an inconsistent team.

Partway due to the purple patch that each member of the team was experiencing, FaZe’s descent from the podium was always inevitable. A playstyle that was predicated far more upon the success of its late-round stars than those taking the aggressive fights, it was a style built far less for sustained success as it was short bursts of indomitable form.

Still, they had managed to sustain their success, and for six months, they reigned supreme over the Counter-Strike mountain. While they haven’t been back there since, their faith in their roster while almost every other team has made changes just might be their ticket back.

Photo: Stephanie Lindgren

How FaZe can find success again

A wild ride, the 2023 off-season has seen a rostermania that involved both NAVI and Liquid abandoning their regional roots, as well as the current Major champions making a change in order to secure their own longevity. In their tier one ecosystem, it is only FaZe, Heroic, G2, and ENCE who haven’t made changes.

While that means those teams should also be considered dangerous prospects, they each have problems FaZe do not. Heroic hit stumbling blocks most times they face an important game, now taking the mantle of Danish chokers from Astralis pre-2017, their trophy cabinet is far more bare than their ability suggests it should be. In the case of G2, despite a strong start to the year, it’s clear that thanks to their disappoint early exit at the BLAST.tv Paris Major, they now have the mountain of restoring their own confidence to climb. As for ENCE, although they possess great players of their own, they simply can not consistently match the firepower of the other teams mentioned.

The only issue FaZe had, as stated multiple times by Twistzz, was the exhaustion caused by a hectic tournament schedule and the constant travel that comes with it. Given they’ve just had a break, that should no longer be a problem, so now FaZe will be ready to wreak havoc once more and exploit the issues all other teams are likely to face.

The key thing to consider with all of the other teams within the tier one system is how much just one change can shake up a team, so what happens when so many teams have made more than one?

Photo: Michal Konkol

Consider teams like MOUZ, NIP and FURIA who have changed their in-game leader, a team like Cloud9 who are also reported to be changing theirs. It takes time for an in-game leader to put their stamp on a team, it comes with changing systems, potential role and positional swaps, all things that FaZe can exploit.

It remains positive when you look past those teams too. OG, BIG, and Liquid have all made multiple changes, so too have fnatic, NAVI, and Astralis. Another cause for stylistic changes in teams, it can take a while for incoming players to get up to speed and for teams to build up momentum following a change.

These are obstacles FaZe won’t have to overcome. Their players know each other well, and they know their system well, while other teams are bound to make mistakes as they suffer from growing pains, FaZe can thrive in that chaos.

When FaZe were the dominant team, it used to be the case that every disadvantaged situation felt like an advantage to them. broky, Twistzz, and ropz all looked capable of clutching every round out, and so often did as they shut down team after team.

The most important thing in clutch rounds is to exploit gaps that opponents accidentally leave open, and those gaps are bound to be present while the new players on teams still build chemistry with each other.

FaZe’s success in the coming months is not guaranteed, plenty of the new teams will enjoy honeymoon periods, while those teams that haven’t made changes will also be looking to strike.

Every team in the world will be looking to seize control and ascend to the top of the mountain, there’s never been a better time to do so. FaZe know what it takes to get to the top and stay there, it’s just a matter of them finding their best form again.