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Page 4: English version, part two
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How does this change of players occurred in Titan? To come back on the making of these changes, after our elimination in Cologne, I had a long talk with Titan’s management and we concluded that it was necessary to restructure the team. The most pertinent thing to do seemed to release Eddy and Adil and make an offer to Maniac and apEX. We were going on holidays for a week and wanted to use this time to take some distance and take a decision when we came back. Then, at the beginning of the week I called Nathan to explain him the decision we wanted to make, and he seemed to agree with it but asked for time to think this through. Later, I called Kenny for the same reasons, and despite his strong affinities with Adil, he shared our opinion about the changes. At the same time, I heard by an anonymous source that a team was being created by Nathan. Kenny confirmed me this was true, after having declined an offer he received from them. Two days later, Nathan and Eddy contacted me to plan a meeting at which they told me they wanted to leave the team. In the meantime, I decided to contact apEX and Maniac. After a few hours of reflexion, they decided to take a step further and to find the missing player… everybody agreed on KQLY. This is when you found out everything on VaKarM. We still haven’t spoken to KQLY, neither we had contacted LDLC or informed our staff and partners. I would have liked things to be different, but VaKarM did its job, and I don’t blame them for this. Why choosing Maniac, apEX and KQLY and why not shox, Happy or Kioshima? Gaming-wise, Dan and Mani are both actively implied in the communication and the strategic decisions. With only a few hours of training, we can already feel the positive effects. Add to this the freshness and the outstanding capacities of Kenny and Hovik and we have, I think, a well-balanced team who can achieve big things. Beyond in game homogeneity, the mindset and the personalities of every played were decisive aspect in our choice. This trio seems to be the one which will work on the long term with Kevin and Kenny. The end of an era Could you tell us more about what motivated this trio to join the team despite the good dynamic they had with Team-LDLC? First of all, you have to know this is not a question of money, as LDLC made a counter offer to Titan’s proposition. My first question was concerning the game: “can this line-up be better than the one we already have?” The answer to this question was essential for me to take a decision… And I think that with a strong personality such as Kevin, who works hard for the team, and an outstanding sniper like kennyS, I was convinced at 1000% that this team could fill the flaws we had with LDLC and make this team the best I have ever played with. With LDLC we were missing a real "leader", someone one step ahead of us… Happy is a great superstratcaller and a great player, but in this role, he wasn’t the best. Vincent has an individualistic side which makes him a great player, but this limits him as a leader. Organization-wise, Titan has a lot of assets like Jérôme who works really hard for the team. The manager is essential for the team, and I know this because I had part of these responsibilities with LDLC… which was bothering me as it took a lot of time… The communication between the players is one of the great assets of Titan, and it’s an essential factor for a team to succeed on the long term. You might have the impression that I question a lot of things about my former team and organization, but I really enjoyed the months I spent with them and all the moments we shared… with Cologne as defining moment! A big thanks to LDLC, Vincent and Kevin for all of this, I wish them the best. This is the end of a chapter in your respective careers, how do you live this change? We found ourselves in a situation where we had to play two times more than our opponents to achieve the same productivity. The homogeneity has been our biggest issue even though there were other problems… It was time for all of us to breathe. On a personal point of view, the new version of Titan is kind of a godsend team to me. I never would have believed that KQLY, Mani and apEX would accept to join us. They are players who fit me both humanly and in the game. To be totally honest to those who know me, it’s been a long time I wanted to play with Maniac. I had some issues in the past with Dan but behind his big temper, he is a truly kind person who is important in the game. He managed to show the impact he could have in a team with LDLC, I have a lot of respect for what he achieved. And then there is KQLY and kennyS, the two ultra-performing players. This is the new breath I needed! I think we are all on the same page and I think we have the required qualities to be on a constant evolution. To be honest, I am really confident about the long term. This team might be less appealing than the others on the paper, but I really like it ;) Maniac: I will try to be the most honest possible. When Jérôme contacted me for this project, I felt euphoric at first. Why? Because I knew directly that it was the opportunity I had so long awaited, and that it was probably the last step of my career. After all the excitement and enthusiasm, I had to think this through and to evaluate the situation, as we were in a good dynamic with LDLC and everything was going well with the team. I had to choose between two opposite ideas: either following my instinct and trying to play with Titan, or playing it safe and staying with LDLC. When I realised the morning after that my will to join Titan was still as strong as the day before, I realised I had to try my chance. It’s not a secret for anyone that after I left Crystal-Serv on CS:Source back in 2014, I have been tested one month in VeryGames when NBK didn’t knew if he still wanted to play. After a rather conclusive test, they decided to continue with Nathan (which was the best solution at that time). Nonetheless, I experienced with this test a new way of working which was really close to the way I see Counter-Strike. Kévin and I have a similar approach to the way a team should behave to be at its best level, and the opportunity to play with this team arrived, I knew that if everyone tried hard enough and do the right efforts, we would have no limits. I am not scared to say that if we keep questioning ourselves regularly for the team, we can aim at the first place. This is a big challenge for us, a long term challenge. We have all the tools we need to succeed. If I look at the 5 players, I see raw talent, reflexion, determination, desire, calm and maturity. We will have to be the best in our domain and to coordinate our strengths and weaknesses. If we work rigorously I’m convinced it will pay out. And this will be the last step of my career, whether it lasts 6 months or 5 years! A turning point in Maniac's carrer Could you please explain to us the new Titan setup today? How do you manage playing with two snipers? Who will help Ex6TenZ with the lead? The advantage? We will be strong. The disadvantage? A lot of you will say I restrain my players. On the middle-term, we need to create new strategies to go with our basics. These strategies will be used as "Jokers" during big matches. Then, on a long term, we need to adapt our game to the one of our opponents, which we can’t really do right now as we are still building the foundations. Regarding the tournaments, we can’t focus only on the results but on the way the team works under stress and competition. Even if our participations are not confirmed yet, there will be at least 6 lans before the end of the year (DreamHack Stockholm, ESEA, StarSeries, ESWC, DreamHack Winter, Faceit....) which is a really tight schedule. As I said it before, we will need to watch at our short term result with distance to achieve big in the long term. Whether we win or we lose, the important thing is to understand WHY, in order to face the problems we have. The only goal (as far as I’m concerned) will be the following: never make the same mistake twice at two different events, to always improve, tournament after tournament.
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Thanks to Titan for answering and to Sickness for the translation
Première partie - Deuxième partie
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Page 4: English version, part two
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