team immunity

WCG 2008 Day 3: Immunity Goes Down Fighting

11:03AM Seamus Byrne | After Team Immunity turned heads with their upset progression beyond the group phase of Counter-Strike 1.6, the heat was on to see if they could roll on and take down another big name. This time it was highly rated Gameplay, from Finland, who had some recent top results on the international stage that ranked them as a podium contender. The Aussies proved once again that they know how to cause a stir, with a win on the pistols round launching the team into a rousing chorus of cheers that pumped them up while deflating the very surprised Finns. On their favourite map, Immunity showed the world they are not to be taken lightly, running out to take a 1-0 lead in the best of three match. Gameplay were visibly shocked, heads in hands followed by a quick exit to recover and regroup. On return, some nasty exchanges in the game chat channel occurred, with the Finns showing some bad sportsmanship toward the dominant frag factor on the Australian team, Ben O’Reilly (BenoR). More »

WCG 2008 Day 1: Australia’s Counter-Strike Nail Biter

7:38PM Seamus Byrne | Well the Australian Counter-Strike 1.6 team could not have gotten away to a better start. Facing their major competition in Group B, the UK, in the very first match of the tournament, Immunity took out the very tight match with one round to spare, playing out for a 17-13 win. This was a massive moment for the Australians, and a lot of spectators started to stop by to watch them play having seen that result. The boys had made a mark on the international scene. Things got even better from there, with comfortable wins against Greece (21-9) and Portugal (20-10) putting them in an excellent position to advance to the next round. Norway were the second big threat in the group, and a win here would see Immunity a sure thing to top Group B, which would be a major shock to most tournament onlookers. After losing the toss and starting on the weaker side of the map, Immunity had a cracking start, but failed to capitalise and struggled to get back in the game before dropping the match (11-19). From here, a devastating three-way tie for first loomed, which could see our boys miss out based on a points countback… More »

WCG 2008: Immunity Bootcamp with SK Gaming

9:40AM Seamus Byrne | I mentioned late yesterday that I’m here in Germany covering the progress of the Australian teams at World Cyber Games 2008. Thought I’d share a quick ‘behind the scenes’ moment of Team Immunity CS 1.6 team training with one of the best teams in the world, SK Gaming. Whatever else happens, the guys have had a great opportunity here to spend a lot of time playing a team most would consider in a different league. This should help the Aussies be a ’surprise package’ in the tournament, but its also a good start in bridging the divide between the quality of play Australia’s best get to experience. Through their new friends at SK, the team has now met many other top teams in Europe this week. Later today we’ll find out how this experience has prepared them for the main event… You see the posters on the wall? That’s a bunch of novelty-sized cheques SK has won. The next shot is the other end of the room, along with a crapload of trophies. I even spotted more giant cheques tucked behind furniture! Hit the jump for the trophy shot. More »