Pimp: "Denmark will continue to produce talents and dominate Counter-Strike"
Player, analyst, the star of his very own documentary, and a human Twitch highlight reel (even if not always for a reason he’d want it to be), Pimp is of the stalwarts of the Danish Scene and Counter-Strike as a whole.
At IEM Cologne, we sat down with Pimp to discuss his changing attitudes towards Astralis, what Heroic need to win more trophies, and the wider Danish scene.
You've been fairly critical of Astralis, now that they've qualified for Fall Final and made the Group Stage at IEM Cologne, are you feeling more positive about this new roster?
Yeah, I think ever since they made the roster change it's been looking better for them. They got off to a slow start at BLAST, losing their first two games, and you just had the feeling it was too early. But I think they way they've redesigned their squad, the way that they're now fitting into specific roles that now enable each other instead of disable each other like it was the case with the old lineup, I'm very positive in regards to Astralis. I think the way they're playing right now is probably the best Astralis we've seen in a couple of years to be completely honest, and that's so early on. Whether or not it's a honeymoon phase, or whether we can expect more in the future, I'll stay on the fence for now, but so far so good.
You said you'd stay on the fence, but do you think this is an Astralis that could win trophies again?
I have a hard time imagining that, as of now, have enough quality to win tournaments. I will say so, if they continue the progress we're seeing, I'm not against saying that, perhaps in six months time, they're in playoffs consistently and maybe saying they're one roster change away from being a real contender for trophies. I think there's some interesting players now, Staehr coming in being 18, Buzz is still young, b0RUP I think he has a ceiling, a limitation, but so far he's doing his job to a good enough extent. For the future? Maybe, but for now though, I think if they can establish themselves as a top ten team that doesn't lose to teams they're not supposed to, that will be enough for me for now.
What about device's comments about blameF being better than gla1ve? What's your thoughts on that?
I've always had the impression that blameF is a hard worker. I think he's been grinding it out for quite some time, and I think it's fair to assume that gla1ve lost that grind mindset and a bit of passion for the game, he had a kid, a family, he's got other things that started pulling him, whereas it feels like blameF is Counter-Strike through and through. So I fully buy into it, I can't see a reason why, over time, blameF can't become a better IGL than gla1ve was in the later stages of his career. In my mind, having played with gla1ve, when he's motivated, when he's focussed, he's probably the best IGL in the world, but if he's only at 50%, then sure, blameF can be better.
Heroic won Spring Final, they've come close at other events, do you think maybe this is the moment for them to go on and do it more consistently? If not, what more do they need to be able to do it?
They're running out of chances, basically. I think IEM Cologne will be the last tier one tournament in CS:GO, Counter-Strike 2 is on the horizon, whether or not Pro League will be CS:GO or CS2 is yet to be seen, but I see Heroic as the best team in the world regardless. They're the most stable, they have the most synergy, the best teamplay, they've perfected the way they play, they have an entire generation of players looking up to them and wanting to imitate and copy what they do, so I can't see a reason why we shouldn't assume that they are one of the favourites to win the IEM Cologne trophy. I think Heroic can do it, they have this habit of falling a little on the stage, but they've won a couple tournaments and they're getting more experience now as well.
What about the wider Danish scene? You've lost Copenhagen Flames, and one of the best upcoming IGLs Mankz has just moved to NA to play with M80; what's your thoughts about lower down the chain?
There's plenty of talent in Denmark. There's so many great role models you can look up to, so when Danish players start playing FACEIT, or LAN tournaments, or Danish Power League that Dust2.dk hosts, you can't get by just by being a great aimer in Denmark. You need a certain skillset, you need to be able to communicate, you need to be a decent teammate, you need a brain, you need to be able to read the game and make sure you're not a liability, where, to be honest, when I look at some of the other scenes around the world, it feels like aim is enough and if you have aim the rest will maybe come over time. I think our scene is way more mature down the ranks so that when you have a tier three of four player in Denmark, they're still twice as far as a tier one player from another country who is maybe a better individual player. I'm confident Denmark will continue to produce talents and probably dominate Counter-Strike for the future as well.
Photo: Michal KonkolSo you think there's no worry of 'losing' the scene in a way that Sweden or France have where the players have had to go international?
It's a natural course, at some point you stop dominating, at some point someone will come in and take over. So whether or not we're going to 'dominate' Counter-Strike for a year more, two years more, or three, it's hard to say. I hope other nations will light up and fight us for it, there's of course Eastern Europe that produces a lot of talent left, right and center, there's other countries starting to produce more and more talent, so it's not like we're untouchable in that sense, but my point is that just from playing FACEIT and playing pugs, it's aa world of difference playing against Danish players who take it seriously to other players. Individually speaking, we're not better than everyone else, but in terms of using your brain and understanding the game and what it takes to be a great player, we're just a couple of steps ahead of everyone else right now.
What about the wider scene then? You've been very excited by the Cloud9 roster, do you think they could be number one by the end of the year? Maybe someone else even?
I think Cloud9 definitely have the potential to be number one, it comes down to how well electroNic can tie the team together. If you look player for player, pound for pound, there's no doubt they can contest to be one of the best in the world. There's no doubts in one of the most stacked lineups we've ever seen, with Ax1Le, sh1ro, and electroNic coming in, Perfecto, H0bbit, there's so much firepower and there's no weak link, so to speak. They've got no HooXi, they've got no IGL that can't frag, they've got electroNic, so if he can tie it together, they'll be a contender to be the best in the world. Whether or not it takes three months, six months, or maybe never happens, who knows, but I'll be disappointed if they're not contesting for trophies pretty soon.
You recently made the AFK documentary with BLAST, what did it mean to you to get to tell that story?
It meant the world to me. I think the AFK project is probably one of the most important projects in esports I've ever done, to be completely honest. Sure, I'm proud of having a career as a pro for seven years and doing broadcasting for the same amount of time, but honestly, nothing comes close to the achievement of losing weight and the way I did it and now trying to inspire people to do the same. I feel like that's the most giving part of my job right now. Of course, it's nice to do a good [desk] segment, it's nice to present Counter-Strike and do well in that aspect, but if I could choose, I'd definitely go with the AFK project as the thing I'm the most proud about.