Antwerp eSports Festival › The Shoutcasters Thoughts

Deman's Overall Predictions - QuadV Caster

This is by far the hardest prediction list I've ever had to make with so many top teams in attendance. I've listed where I think the top 10 teams will come but to be honest I think there's about 14 teams attending that on their day could win it. A few clutch plays breads confidence which suddenly leads to those few extra rounds needed for victory and almost all of the 10 teams listed below has a player capable of pulling them off against the best in the world.

[img|right]http://www.quadv.com/deman.png[/img]1st - Team EG
2nd - eSuba
3rd - MYM
4th - Dignitas
5th - Fnatic
6th - Pandemic
7th - H2K
8th - TEK9
9th - Speed-Link
10th - KomaCrew

Reasons for my predictions

Team EG for me have built on an already strong team they had at I33, they've continued on winning just about every online and LAN tournament in North America and have a very much complete team that's swimming in experience. If they don't win they will almost certainly be in the top 3.

eSuba managed 3rd at CDC4 and could a few rounds of gone differently could easily have been finalists. Online they have stayed active and stuck with a solid lineup for many months. When I look at the team I see 5 players who could individually pull out a clutch play should the need arise.

MYM picked up 2 very good 2nd places at CDC4 and I33 and may well go on to win at TEX or I34, however I'm not sure they will be quite ready for AEF. They've had chronic problems lately fielding the same 5 players and while the bootcamp they are now on will undoubtedly get their game back it might not be enough.

Dignitas lost a massive player with PlaZma stepping down, despite Zenith stepping in to fill the gap it will be a big role to play. With the saga of ClanBase behind them and internal issues with Mick they will certainly be ready for AEF, I'm just not sure they will win this one.

Fnatic picked up LINQAN to replace zsilts some months ago and he has certainly made the place his own since. However with some players struggling to meet the teams required commitments I'm not convinced they will be firing on all cylinders for AEF. With no bootcamp planned last I checked all work will begin at the event and online beforehand, not the ideal situation for a top team to be facing.

Pandemic have been in just about every final alongside Team EG and each time have just fell short. They've certainly picked up maps off their counterparts though so shouldn't be looked down upon as they could easily cause a few upsets for the top european teams attending. They have possibly the best sniper in America in their team and that alone could win vital rounds.

H2K Gaming have proved they have what it takes on LAN to pull out results when needed. The problem is they sometimes need to be losing a match to get themselves fired up as has been proven at Acer Challenge and iPower 08 recently. Granted they won iPower 08 but left it too late at Acer to get themselves back into the game and this is if anything their only downside. If they let themselves trail against the long list of top teams attending they will find themselves going home early.

TEK9 will have the home support in Antwerp and have started to take things seriously practising for the event. Stevy stepping in appears to have worked well for them considering many believed kammyz irreplaceable. They will have a good chance at finishing well but I don't believe they will win.

Speed-Link have been onliners lately winning it all and should their abilities indeed be genuine they have it in them to win at AEF. The problem is as shown at iPower 08 they are very much troubled on LAN. However I think they will get to the playoffs and by then have settled any nerves they will have with the help of Trigger.

KomaCrew have proved their abilities on and offline lately winning at the Acer Challenge, finalists at iPower 08 and winning the CODQCUP. The question is how will they deal with the top teams when they play to their full potential? Lack of sleep was an issue for them at Acer and it showed in some of their performances picking wins up playing at 50%. They can't get away with that at AEF and I'm not sure they have the discipline to avoid those late night poker games!

So there it is, I can't believe I don't have teams like Infused, LowLandLions, SK Gaming, Reason Gaming or Roskilde Ravens in this list who could all probably grab a top 5 place. There was just so many to choose from it really will be a fantastic Call of Duty event.



TosspoT's Overall Prediction - That guy

Firstly its going to be very difficult to make predictions for such an event. There have been some huge changes since the last LAN, and alot of teams will have got their act together greatly in terms of practicing more and improving their cohesion. I'm going to go on consistency on LAN to make my predictions rather than the online tit for tat since the last big LAN, something that has always served me in gaming predictions is that its A LOT easier to win again than it is to for the first time.

[img|right]http://www.quadv.com/tosspot.png[/img]1st - Team EG
2nd - Dignitas
3rd - Fnatic
4th - eSuba
5th - MYM
6th - Pandemic
7th - TEK9
8th - H2k Gaming
9th - Komacrew
10th - SK Gaming

Reasons for my predictions

I find it hard to look past Fnatic and Dignitas at the top because of how successful they've been and whilts it is questionable as to whether they can continue to keep their dedication up which is the crucial point of staying at the top. I also see this as the return of TEK9, Stevy may not be KammYz but he brings determination to win which is what TEK9 need, now their exams are out of the way determination is what will bring them back to the top. Team EG should do well, I wont be surprised if they win it, having replaced their sniper since I33 they're gonna be alot stronger and a great deal more accustomed to European strategies, something they certainly got caught out with in the early stages of i33. The reality is that there will be no easy matches at AEF and this is going to throw up some great upsets for the spectators!




Kee_Ring's Overall Prediction - QuadV Caster

As you know I have been away from the scene for a little time now so I struggled as to where to place some teams. In some (most :p ) places pure guesswork with a little research thrown in here and there this is the list I came up with .....

[img|right]http://www.quadv.com/kee_ring.png[/img]1st - eSuba
2nd - Team EG
3rd - TEK9 Networks
4th - Dignitas
5th - Team Pandemic
6th - Fnatic
7th - SPEED-LINK
8th - LowLandLions
9th - MeetYourMakers
10th - SK Gaming

Reasons for my predictions

eSuba have recently been proving themselves online. After watching them beat speed-link the other week it was an impressive sight and based on that performance I feel they have what it takes to win.

Team EG are used to finishing 1st and arguably the top team over the water. Hard for me to place as haven't really seen them play but there achievements speak for themselves.

TEK9 have had there ups and downs but are consistent and prove themselves regularly. They find themselves in a winning situation frequently however have a tendency to give people heart attacks when they occasionally loose momentum towards the end and bring about close results.

Dignitas have also had a tough time in the past but have started to shine recently. Confidant that they have now got themselves sorted.

Team Pandemic seem to find themselves finishing 2nd to EG frequently but will be interesting to see how they fair up against Europe's finest. Definitely a team to watch in the tournament.

Fnatic went through a phase of impressing the community but seemed to get overshadowed when they hit a few issues. Back and training hard though for the event I am sure we will see the Fnatic we all know.

SPEED-LINK has some controversy around the team at present. Especially after there last LAN performance, however with the addition of Trigger at AEF people are hoping to see them perform as well as they do online.

LowLandLions is another team that shows great potential especially looking at some of there recent results. Will being close to home give this team that little bit of extra incentive to prove themselves as they have been doing recently?

MeetYourMakers are again a team who have struggled recently. However they have recently been in Denmark boot camping and with stat back I am certain they will be ready to show us again what there made of.

SK Gaming were a team that when taken on by SK-Gaming when they dominated the online leagues and everyone obviously expected great things. Recently however with a few line-up issues they struggled to get back on track. We are assured by iFEARdilemma however that the team is ready and adapted there playstyle away from the aggressive smg rushes we remember this team for. Cant wait to see what they have in store for us.

To be honest I think I could of given a list of the teams attending AEF to my budgie and had it pick out a top10 that's more accurate than mine above. The only thing certain about AEF is that its going to be a VERY close heart stopping tournament that will force each and every team to perform to the very best of there ability to walk away victorious.