We spoke to Andreas "Cr1t-" Nielsen in an exclusive interview just before BLAST Slam I. He talks about joining Team Falcons, his growth over the past year, the great start to the new season and their disappointing exit from The International 2024, among many other things.
Dive right in!
You’ve been winning a lot since joining Falcons. What is the main difference between Team Falcons and the other teams, especially North America, you’ve played on?
In terms of mentality and the way it works, I think we are pretty much the same, even in North America, so that’s not that different. However, the biggest difference is probably the practice environment and that Europe is more competitive and being able to scrim against teams in this region is always good.
Why did you stick to a North American team for so long?
I stayed in North America because I believed in the teams I was on. I still think that we had a team that could win tournaments at multiple points. We were very close to winning tournaments as well but there’s no regret staying because we were a very competitive team and I enjoyed playing with my teammates.
If there are tiers for each region, which tier would you put NA in? Be honest!
Multiple regions are going downhill; North America and MENA being the two. Both regions have a similar problem: they only have one really strong team. After Nouns disbanded, NA is basically down to just Shopify Rebellion. It's not healthy for a region to have only one good team. Compared to other regions, which have at least two strong teams, NA and MENA look pretty weak so I’d place them at the bottom.
Have you noticed any big changes when you first joined Team Falcons? How do you adjust to them?
I was used to playing with the same people in North America for years, so joining a new team and playing with kids like Malr1ne and ATF was a big change. They're young, confident, and have their own unique approach to the game. It took some time to adjust to their style, but everyone on the team works the same way – everyone trying to win and be good teammates, so it was a smooth transition overall.
As for my own playstyle, I'd gotten stuck in a routine of playing the same role on Shopify and EG for so long that I had to play one style around the year. Moving to Falcons made me rediscover some old things, get back to old habits and play position 4 in ways I hadn't in a while. It took a month or so to get back into the swing of things, but it was a good opportunity to rediscover my role.
What made you join Falcons?
Falcons was the only team that offered me a spot. I knew that I wanted to play with Skiter and Sneyking, and they wanted to team up with ATF and Malr1ne. That’s how the team was formed.
How have you grown personally and professionally over the past year?
I haven’t experienced much personal growth over the past year. I've reached a point where I've experienced a lot and I'm not expecting major changes. On the professional front, my role on the team is well-defined, and I contribute through my experience – that’s what I bring to the table.
As a team, we've focused on integrating Malr1ne, especially since this is his first pro team. It was a bit challenging at first, especially without a coach, but things improved significantly after Aui joined. Once we all got on the same page, we started playing as a team.
We’ve had our own journey of ups and downs, success and bouncing from setbacks. When you get a lot of success, it’s not always easy to maintain consistency, even after achieving so much success. We've had to relearn some things, and we'll continue to do so, as we did after TI13, as Dota is a complex game that requires constant adaptation and learning.
How pivotal has Aui been towards the development of the team?
It’s hard to put it into words on Aui’s contribution towards the team. He’s very good at keeping us individually focused. He is the biggest reason why we are able to play as a team. He’s good at telling people individually what they need to work on and he’s also very calming. It’s easy for us to not get very emotional when he’s talking to us between games.
You’re off to a great start in the new season, appearing in three finals and winning two. What went wrong against Heroic in the PGL Wallachia S2 final?
At PGL Wallachia, we were a little bit rusty as we had been on a break after The International 2024. We were not playing well and if more teams were playing at the tournament then I doubt we’d have even reached the final.
On the final day, Heroic had a lot of games to play and was just in better shape than us. To me, Parker had one of the best individual performances in a very long time that I’ve seen. I don’t remember seeing anything where one person outperforms everyone else and he was by far the best player at the tournament. That’s why we lost as he was just on another level that day.
The series against Tundra in BetBoom Dacha was a nail-biter. Please share your thoughts.
We weren't in great form at PGL Wallachia, and while we improved a bit at BetBoom Dacha, we still weren't playing our best. We made a lot of mistakes, especially in drafting, and we were lucky to beat Tundra, who could have easily won if they had played better.
Our experience and team chemistry helped us through BetBoom Dacha, as our individual performances weren't up to par. In the grand final, we fell behind early, but we knew we had a chance to come back if our opponents made a mistake. Once they did, we capitalized, but we still had our fair share of errors.
We kept making mistakes, they kept making mistakes and that’s why the series was so much fun for the viewers.
What weakness did BetBoom Team exhibit in the DreamLeague S24 final that allowed you to win?
The biggest advantage for us was that we had a good read on their drafting. We knew what they were going to draft and were confident enough to play against it. Towards the end of DreamLeague, we started playing well and things started to fall into place.
It wasn’t necessarily that much about BetBoom but when we reach a grand final in a tournament that long where we get time to get better then it’s very difficult to beat us.
How disappointing was it to not win TI13?
This was our first TI together, and Malr1ne's first TI. It's hard to pinpoint exactly why we didn't win, especially considering our strong performances in some of the lower-bracket games. We took a gamble in the first game against Tundra, which didn't pay off. Once you're on the brink of elimination, the pressure intensifies, and it's easy to let your emotions get the best of you. We need to look at TI from a different perspective compared to other tournaments.
How important is it to you to win a TI, especially now when the prize pool isn’t as it used to be?
It has been my life’s goal to win a TI but I’m very proud of what I’ve done in my career. If it ends right now, without winning at TI, I’d still be proud of what I’ve achieved. Nowadays, there is also the Riyadh Masters which is also important to us since we represent a Saudi organisation.
What are your thoughts on BLAST Slam’s tournament format?
We are very interested to see how it goes. The group stage gets done on the first day itself with four Bo1’s and we find it very different. We don’t really know what’s going to happen but it’s nice to try something new.
It might just be a good thing for us because if we top the group stage then we qualify directly to the semi-final. But if we lose all the games, we have to start from scratch which is fine regardless.
Which team would you like to face in the BLAST Slam final?
I'd love to face Team Liquid. They're the reigning TI champs and just won an online tournament.
We hope you're ready for a BLAST! Stay tuned to our website for more interviews, features and the latest updates from the tournament. You can watch the streams on our website for a pleasant viewing experience.
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