From the earliest of the Halo days, Clint "Maven" Evans has been a staple in console esports communities, having done it all from player, to player coach/manager, to Esports Broadcaster of the year (2018) we go down memory lane and discuss early Console esports and the current state and the future of Call of Duty Esports.
"BigTymer" considered the original Call of Duty GOAT, a name synonymous with OpTic Gaming, and his transition from Professional Call of Duty player to an internet entrepreneur, this podcast takes us on a behind the scenes look at what Post-retirement looks like for many early adopters of the esports opportunity.
Considered one of the founding fathers of American esports, having established Complexity in 2003'ish, the dude has been around, the name Jason Lake is synonymous with NA Counterstrike, but the expansion of coL would eventually lead him and his team to a Call of Duty world championship, there his esports history that I personally don't know, and Jason is the right guy to put it in perspective for me.
Behind every strong man there's an even stronger woman, luckily for me she's always been standing right besides me, not behind... Enjoy this Christmas Eveasdrop Special.
When I first decided that OpTic would be entering the CSGO Scene I had to do a ton of research, this research led me to one of my favorite people and YT content creator by the name of Richard "RLewis Reports" Lewis, an expert in CSGO (and more) who's journalism has been pivotal in the health of CSGO and esports, super excited about this episode, enjoy my conversation with 2016 Esports Journalist of the Year.
Ian "Crimsix" Porter, a name synonymous with winning, with 32 Major championships under his belt, an XGames Gold medal, 2 Call of Duty World Championship Rings, 5 back to back ESWC Medals and endless MLG Championships the Man knows 1 thing, Winning, in 2018 however the WWII season brought nothing but pain and despair to an illustrious career, going into the 2019 season there's a storm brewing with hopes and speculations on whether or not OpTic can regain its rightful place in the CWL Rankings.
Rob "LUNKERSTV" Terkla, American hero, YouTuber, Businessman, Fisherman, Hunter, this guy does everything and he does it well, there isn't enough space in this description that would adequately describe this dudes incredible life and story, enjoy the episode and grab a hold of something.
In June of 2013 a pivotal moment in OpTic history was cemented in time, a small house in the NW Suburbs of Chicago became home to Mark, Nadeshot, Big Tymer and Scump, and from there a re-invention of the traditional "Gamer House", we redefined by re-focusing the purpose to Content Creation, a decision that would positively impact our future. Listen in to some of the never before told stories of our time at 6050.
From the NW Suburbs of Illinois, Edwin Castro the 27yr old Fifa phenom has taken twitch by storm, as the first ever FIFA Twitch streamer he had to grind to build a non-existent livestream audience, now with over 1M Followers on Twitch, 1M Subscribers on YT and over 1M followers on Twitter in just a short 5 years, the man sits at the top of the FIFA Livestream game and there is no signs of slowing down.
Mike Rufail aka "Hastr0", a name synonymous with OG Esports personalities, a true Gaming renaissance man, Pro-Player, Caster, Team Owner, you name it this dude has had to do it all, some say career progression, I say it was a deep rooted "need" to do it all, to learn it all, to learn it all to be able to succeed, Mike's been making moves in esports for close to 15 years, a true OG of our scene, listen and learn to some never before heard stories of our come-up.
From a top talent Call of Duty World League Caster, Jack Courage Dunlop has amassed an army of "Courageous" who tune in everyday to follow along a story-line that transcends age and demographic, from Competitive Call of Duty matches, to Fortnite Battle Royale, you can find his high energy and unrelenting passion for live streaming!
One of the most prolific Call of Duty content creators to touch YouTube, Pamaj's journey as a YouTuber has taking him places unimaginable, from gameplays to bar setting Sniping Montages this dude has really set the tone for new up and coming directors in the scene. His new journey begins as he rejoins FaZe Clan, the movement, the culture Austin "Pamaj" Pamajewon created in his home-town of Perry Sound Ontario, scholarships and sporting goods donations have made him a home-town hero!
From the moment I saw him play at MLG Orlando 2011 I knew that the young King was going to be a staple in OpTic, not only was he an incredible Call of Duty player, but he was also incredibly funny the second the camera went on, a 2 time back to back XGAMES Gold medalist, with over 25 Championships, Scump has been winning championships every year since 2011 until this past 2018 Season, we dive deep on this one.
"Nadeshot" a gamer tag synonymous with "first of his kind" Esports and Gaming superstar, Matt's ascension to stardom came not from right place right time, it came from hard work and dedication, an unrelenting drive to be the best, we sit down today, a short 8 years later and have a couple of conversations over a couple of drinks.
I first met David at Machinima's Inside Gaming Awards, where Treyarch won Best Controller + Best Multiplayer for Call of Duty: Black Ops, since then Von has gone on to revolutionize Competitive Call of Duty (COD Esports) by always pushing the limits with an emphasis on expanding the reach of Call of Duty Esports to a more "causal" audience, he's got some intel on the upcoming Call of Duty Game "Black Ops IIII" and the current fan favorite "Black Out" Treyarch's Battle Royale Multiplayer.
Ryan "FWIZ" Wyatt is the Global Head of Gaming at Google/Youtube, but first he was a student working part-time for MLG's Gamebattles.com (esports tournament website) first as a referee, to head referee, press play now to hear his path of assencion to being the Head of Gaming, AR/VR at the largest internet company in the world.
