[ENG] Take a look back at the Gauntlet with HammerKick !
Hello dear members of the hen house! Today, we’ve prepared an interview with one of the best analysts and casters of the French scene: HammerKick. He’s here to give us his view of what went down at the Gauntlet.
First of all, how do you think the Paris players performed ?
Daan played in a team that looked more like a mix of styles and performed well on the majority of his picks.
Onigod and ELLIVOTE were the two pillars of New Kings, who sadly lacked a little experience together to beat the Top 3 in EU.
Naga and Kaan were excellent with Obey, Naga on Echo and Kaan on various support picks.
Are you satisfied or disappointed by the performances you saw at the Gauntlet?
Yes, New Kings as a whole had trouble getting set up because they were a new team, but the individuals made the difference, like those with Paris. For the rest, each individual proved they were on the top of Europe.
Can we say EU > NA?
Complicated after a showmatch with ping for each team at a time. In the showmatch, Europe won more maps. If you take away British Hurricane and American Tornado, Europe seemed more solid. AT is really strong but there’s a hug gap with the rest of the teams, unlike BH with Obey and Sheer Cold.
Is there a real difference between the EU and NA style at the moment? What about the KR scene or the Chinese one?
EU focuses more on teamplay, NA on individualities, for Asia they manage to combine the two a bit more.
Do you think the meta we’ve witnessed over the past weeks will last, or is it still evolving?
It’s gonna last till the next patch, Ball is strong, Echo and Ashe are the best DPS at the moment, Tracer and Sombra, Brig, Bap et Zen are top tier.
If it stays the same, do you think Paris will stand a chance?
All the players have mastered one of the current meta picks, but the meta will probably move again before OWL starts again.
Did the Gauntlet reassure you for Paris Eternal next year?
It’s neither reassuring or concerning, I want to see the collective play together, not individualities. It’s good that each can perform on their own, but I want to see the 6 play together against OWL.
Which of the Paris players impressed you the most during this Gauntlet and why?
Kaan, best flex support in EU, still as strong, consistent and keeps clutching, rather incredible.
After this Gauntlet and this season of Contenders, for you, what are the strong points of this Parisian line-up? Some that might seem more obvious but also those that the general public might not notice?
Individualities and the fact that some have previous experience playing together will help, but we’ll have to see the collective, and how they shape up against the general level in the rest of the League now.
Is there something where you think they might surprise us? (A pick, a comp or something else)
I think it’s too early to say.
Personally, which player in this new team will you keep a particular eye on?
Kaan, because he can really surprise the scene, and Tsuna because he’s the second best Tracer in EU after SoOn and he’ll finally get a chance to prove it.
And who’s your favorite, the one you’re happiest to see in the team (except Tsuna, maybe) ?
Tsuna :)
Otherwise, ELLIVOTE, who’s deserved a real OWL team for far too long.
