The Group Play phase of the 2015 Call of Duty Championships ended late Friday night in Los Angeles. There were few surprised by the victors of these preliminary matches, as giants such as Optic Gaming and EnVyUs swept their pools.
Thirty-two teams competed in eight groups of four. Each team played the other all other teams in their group in a best of five matches set. Only two from each group move on to compete in the remaining days of this years Championships, while the latter half’s journey in this battle for glory comes painfully to an end.
This year’s Call of Duty title, Advanced Warfare, adds a vertical skill requirement that has never been seen in the series before. The Exo abilities allow the player fast quick dashes in any direction, including up with a double jump-like maneuver. The pro gamers competing in this year’s championship had to adapt as the game play is drastically different than in previous years. I feel it is the equivalent of a Pro Street fighter player, expecting their skill to easily translate to Mortal Kombat.
This change in mobility makes the already fast-paced series even more frantic. There were many times I found myself suddenly unaware of what was happening on the screen, as the competitors gave a new meaning to twitch gaming. I was impressed by the lighting fast commentary by the casters as they seemed to flawlessly capture the moment.
The North American teams dominate today’s starting bracket, but it is hard to believe that both the first and second ranked teams from the EU Regional Finals have been eliminated. Epsilon Esports (1st Place EU) and TCM Gaming (2nd Place EU) won’t be slaying any more foes in the 2015 Championship.
This leaves a total of three teams from outside NA, and only the Australian team, Plantronics.Mindfreak, appear to be a serious contender. I say this because neither G2, nor Aware Gaming could prove themselves to be formidable foes when the had their chance just over a month ago in the EU Regional Finals. If they can’t rise up to Epsilon or TCM, I just can’t see them stacking up in a battle against the merciless teams they will face in the bracket.
All of the emerging teams have brought great level of skill, proving that this years competition will be fierce. Below are the results of the first day’s Group Play Phase. The 1st and 2nd place teams in each group move on.
Group A
1st Place – OpTic Gaming
2nd Place – Team Orbit
3rd Place – NxG.Rapid
4th Place -Vitality.X
Group B
1st Place – Prophecy
2nd Place – Denial eSports
3rd Place – HyperGames
4th Place – Klar1ty Gaming
Group C
1st Place – FaZe Red
2nd Place – Automatic Reload
3rd Place -fabE.De
4th Place -fabE.AllStars
Group D
1st Place – OpTic Nation
2nd Place – Gamers2
3rd Place -Exile5.T1
4th Place – SSOF Gaming
Group E
1st Place – Team EnVy
2nd Place – Plantronics.Mindfreak
3rd Place -Team Menace
4th Place -UnderratiX Gaming
Group F
1st Place – Team Revenge
2nd Place – Aware Gaming
3rd Place – 3sup Enterprises
4th Place – Team infused
Group G
1st Place – FaZe Black
2nd Place – Below Zero
3rd Place – TCM Gaming
4th Place – Ascentia Gaming
Group H
1st Place – Team KaLiBeR
2nd Place – Strictly Bussiness
3rd Place – Epsilon eSports
4th Place – Integral Nation
