Championship Gaming Series: It’s a wrap!

Last Monday marked the end of the second season of the Championship Gaming Series (CGS). The season concluded with the climatic World Final match between the San Francisco Optx and Birmingham Salvo. The Salvo won the match, making the British team the league’s first international champions. With the season finished, GGL is here to take a look back at the 2008 competition and provide a possible glimpse into what 2009 may hold for the CGS.

The Competition

This year’s competition was certainly more intense than that of season one. An influx of new talent combined with the improved performance of many season one vets resulted in matches whose outcome Nostradamus would be hard-pressed to predict. There were fewer players who absolutely dominated their respective fields. Returning players often faced tougher battles. Perhaps the best example is San Francisco’s Dead or Alive 4 (DOA4) female player Vanessa, who experienced her first two regulation losses ever this season to Dallas’s new fighter, Phoenix. Likewise, Carolina Core’s DOA4 male player OffbeatNinja, who went nearly undefeated in 2007, stumbled a bit at the start of season two. OffbeatNinja’s missteps was one of the factors that allowed Dallas’s Master to rise up and dominate much of the DOA4 male competition.

Season two featured no shortage of surprises. No one expected that last year’s North American and World champions, the Chicago Chimera, would perform so poorly. The team seemed unstoppable in 2007, but this time around the Windy City franchise did not even reach the North American play-offs. As a result, expect some major shake-ups with Chicago’s Counter-Strike and DOA4 roster come the 2009 draft.

Another surprise came from the fall of 3D.NY. The team held a flawless record through much of the North American season.  Nevertheless New York faltered in its last few matches.  It suffered defeat at the hands of both L.A. Complexity and Carolina Core.  A final loss to the San Francisco Optx in the wildcard qualifier sent New York home before the team could reach the World Finals. This left many fans and observers scratching their heads and wondering what happened.  In retrospect New York’s fortunes seemed dependent upon the performance of its Counter-Strike and Forza 2 squads. If either squad experienced a mediocre match, there was not a lot for New York to fall back upon. Both DOA4 female fighter Coolsvilla and FIFA star WiZaKor had mixed seasons. This being said, the real albatross around New York’s neck was the team’s DOA4 male fighter Cheppelle. His 2-10 record was downright abysmal. His frequent 5-2 losses or worse were too big of a burden for the rest of the team to bear.  Those would-be DOA4 male contestants had better start practicing now. New York will have an open spot in 2009.

GGL would be remiss not to mention L.A. Complexity. Many wondered how and why Jason Lake’s team ended its season with a 2-10 record. A lot of people blamed Lake’s DOA4 female fighter, Belle. This blame is somewhat misplaced, for while her performance was lackluster, piling blame on her ignores the reality that the team as a whole underperformed. Because his team came in last, Jason Lake will get to pick first in next year’s draft. It wouldn’t be surprising if he tries to dump as many players as possible, especially his DOA4 fighters and Forza 2 racers. The Dallas Venom really showed this season that having first pick in the draft can significantly improve a team’s chances. Dallas went from last place in 2007 to become one of the top teams in season two. Jason Lake should take this example to heart. There is nowhere to go but up for L.A. Complexity.

Perspectives on Season Two

Jason Lake (General Manager, L.A. Complexity): “Overall the season was a great success for the league. Statistics across the board were spectacular and the players provided an incredible couple months of gaming. On the Complexity side, however, I am obviously disappointed and I’ve already begun working for 2009 and beyond.”

Michael “ODEE” O’Dell (General Manager, Birmingham Salvo): “Well of course for me the season for the Birmingham Salvo was absolutely fantastic and even after a few days I still do not feel that it has completely sunk in. We are now home in England and we able to watch the series on Sky TV as it is currently showing the finals so we get to bask in our glory again. I hope next year we get a longer season with regular season play as this will be useful. Our players put a lot of effort in over a short period of time compared to the American teams with their full season so our achievement is even more remarkable. Next year will be tougher as I need to try to hang on to my stars and also I need to win it again. That is my challenge and I am looking forward to it.”