Jkaem “excited” about CSGO future: “I feel I’ve still got it”

In an distinctive interview with Dexerto, Joakim ‘jkaem’ Myrbostad mirrored on EXTREMUM’s failed qualification efforts for PGL Foremost Stockholm and the group’s option to bench the entire roster.

The Norwegian participant is at current exploring his decisions after EXTREMUM benched their CS:GO roster in the aftermath of the team’s failure to qualify for PGL Major.

EXTREMUM had been ranked third in North America’s Regional Foremost Rankings (RMR) ahead of IEM Fall with a barely comfortable lead over their closest suitors. Nonetheless, they decrease a irritating decide inside the match and accomplished in sixth place, merely exterior of the elements. In the long term, that they had been leapfrogged by Evil Geniuses, paiN Gaming, and GODSENT inside the RMR standings.

Renegades had been one in all many winners on the Berlin Foremost; now, the group couldn’t even qualify

It’s been pretty the autumn from grace for Oceania’s most storied CS:GO group. Merely two years previously, having fun with beneath Renegades’ banner, that they had been leaving the StarLadder Foremost as heroes after reaching the semi-finals — the furthest {{that a}} group from the world had ever gone at a match of this stature.

“Clearly, I’m gutted,” he suggested Dexerto. “It’s what we labored for and what saved the group collectively over the past 12 months, I’d say.

“Going to the semi-finals on the ultimate Foremost and never with the flexibility to attend this one is crazy. Nevertheless it’s been two years, so it’s not like we should always routinely qualify for the Foremost. And we started [the RMR process] with some elements, so we positively had like a head start.

“Nevertheless the one issue that I could say is that this closing RMR meant so much. The sooner ones meant nothing in contrast. There are teams that didn’t even play the first one which positioned prime 5 and obtained the Foremost spot. We had been third inside the earlier one and sixth on this one and we didn’t attain the Foremost.

“It’s a little bit little bit of a bitter feeling, to be reliable.”

EXTREMUM’s factors

As beautiful because it’s to see ‘The Boys’ miss out on the first Foremost in two years, the foreboding indicators had been there. The group had spent numerous the 12 months exterior the very best 30 in HLTV’s world ranking and, aside from competing inside the RMRs, had made solely sporadic appearances in tier-two European tournaments and fairly often with mixed outcomes.

In March 2021, EXTREMUM captain Aaron ‘⁠AZR⁠’ Ward had already alerted that the players didn’t have the best mentality going into these grueling European tournaments, which often break unprepared teams, irrespective of how achieved they’re.

Jkaem admitted that, regardless that observe outcomes had been encouraging to some extent, he “positively feared” that the group might falter at IEM Fall. In his opinion, the scarcity of appropriate planning over the course of the 12 months hurt them finally.

“With 100 Thieves, we had all the event spots, we had been partnered with ESL and BLAST,” he talked about. “Going into EXTREMUM, we ended up with no spots, so we had been left to play lower-tier tournaments.

“I consider we had the wrong mindset at first of the 12 months. We should all the time have merely carried out these tournaments and grinded all of the items that was potential to grind. Nevertheless in its place, we had been like, ‘Ah, we deserve increased’, that type of feeling. If we might re-do the 12 months, I consider we’d have carried out all of the items, truly.

“I consider we anticipated points to be a bit easier. It was like, ‘we’re merely going to ship once more all of the items from 100 Thieves, we had been doing successfully finally, we had been in numerous finals in a row in NA’. And points wouldn’t be that robust, nonetheless in a couple of months, CS developed, and now these teams had been working exhausting and taking footage exhausting.

“And people wanted to adapt to some new roles. Liazz, as an illustration, had a singular place when jks was on the group. He took over jks’ place, nonetheless they’re not the equivalent type of participant. So it was just a bit bit regarding the roles and just a bit bit about underestimating the exhausting work that needed to be carried out at first.”

Counter-Strike future

EXTREMUM are however to announce their future plans, with a selection anticipated shortly. The Russian group are currently entertaining offers for all members of the team.

Jkaem talked about that he was significantly shocked that EXTREMUM opted in direction of rebuilding the roster for 2022. Other than spending massive to keep up their Oceanic trio and Indonesian star Hansel ‘BnTeT’ Ferdinand in Europe, EXTREMUM moreover made a crucial effort to provide distinctive, genuine content material materials throughout the squad all 12 months prolonged.

“I consider all of us had been acutely aware that there was a chance that it could happen,” jkaem talked about when requested about EXTREMUM’s selection. “We knew that they’d put a wide range of sources into this problem. And we didn’t have the hardest path to the Foremost, so we should all the time have made it.

“That was their most vital goal and our private. So as soon as we failed to realize that goal, we knew there was a chance.

“I believed that probably they’d decrease some avid gamers, make some modifications, and rebuild the group on account of they’d invested so carefully into this major 12 months of CS. So not directly, I was just a bit bit shocked, nonetheless we had been acutely aware that this would possibly happen.”

Quizzed on his future, jkaem acknowledged he doesn’t know what he’ll simply do however, though he dominated out a transition to Valorant. “I’m too outdated to change video video games,” he talked about, laughing.

“All I can say is that a few teams have reached out,” he added, “so there is perhaps one factor inside the making.”

Not carried out however

It’s virtually a 12 months to the day since jkaem left the Australian team and 100 Thieves, and signed for Norwegian organization Apeks with the target of contributing to the occasion of his native scene.

Two months later, he was out the door, bringing his fast tenure with Apeks to a surprising end. The prospect of reuniting collectively along with his former Renegades and 100 Thieves teammates proved too tempting to cross up.

Jkaem believes that the avid gamers is perhaps going their separate strategies

This time spherical though, it’s a singular story.

“I don’t suppose the [EXTREMUM] group goes to remain collectively,” he talked about. “Presumably like a duo might stick collectively, nonetheless I consider that people might go their separate strategies.”

Jkaem is assured that he nonetheless has masses to provide teams in need of an expert entry fragger, pointing to his EXTREMUM sort as an indicator that he can “nonetheless ship on a extreme stage”.

No matter EXTREMUM’s shortcomings, he was on a regular basis a reliable performer for the group. He accomplished IEM Fall with a tournament-high 1.35 HLTV rating, moreover topping the event’s charts for ADR (95.9), kills per spherical (0.88), have an effect on (1.49) and headshots per spherical (0.48).

“I actually really feel in good situation individually,” he talked about. “I think about I put in good numbers and I’m a job participant. I play pretty exhausting entry and I’m moreover very aggressive on the CT side as successfully. So sometimes which is probably not the only place to play.

“Regarding attaining points, I’ve been in a bunch of semi-finals and some finals, nonetheless have certainly not lifted an infinite trophy. It’s on a regular basis been like a step or two fast.

“If there’s one factor I want to get hold of, it’s to start lifting some trophies. I’m not getting youthful, nonetheless I actually really feel I’ve nonetheless obtained it. I’m excited regarding the future.”