X Games, Now The Dust has Settled

In what was seen as a shock move by the X Games, it was this time last year that for the very first time they hosted their own professional eSports event. Call of Duty: Ghosts was the flavour of the day back in June 2014 and MLG brought it to the adrenaline junkie-fuelled X Games in Austin, Texas.

After some intense action it was OpTic Gaming who proved victorious in a somewhat unexpected upset as many were expecting the truly dominant Evil Geniuses to take the top spot. And so it was that OpTic Gaming were the first professional esports team to win a gold medal at the X Games.

There was only one problem with the whole event, nobody realised just how popular it would be. The tournament was held in a tent, a large tent but a tent nonetheless. It quickly filled to capacity, a line formed that wrapped around the side of the ‘venue’ whilst many anxious fans waited for hours in line to get the chance to see their favourite gamers in action. Seating was snapped up immediately with many spectators more than happy to sit on the floor, watching the games being broadcast to numerous screens throughout the tent.

By Day 3, MLG reported that over 152,000 people were watching the action unfold on its own channel. To say that the whole affair took some people by surprise would be an understatement. Nonetheless, X Games saw the potential and it has not floundered in its success with esports.

The latest X Games, again held in Austin, Texas, are now over and the results may not be as shocking as they were last year!

With the competition starting two months prior to the X Games itself, the best eight teams from the MLG Pro League came together to find the Season 2 champions. It was OpTic Gaming, last years ‘surprise’ winners, who came into the competition as the firm favourites and they did not disappoint.

OpTic Gaming take down MLG Pro Season 2 at the X Games (Photo courtesy of MLG/Enrique Espinoza)

Reaching the grand final whilst only conceding two maps the entire weekend, they beat FaZe in the grand finals with a raucous 4-0 white-wash. Taking home X Games gold medals and a share of the $75,000 prize pool, it was a very successful end to OpTic Gaming’s impressive, and dominating, season.

OpTic Gaming now hold two sets of X Games gold medals, whilst the only surviving member from last year’s squad, Seth "Scump" Abner, now holds two for himself. A cursory glance at Scump’s gaming resume quickly shows him to be one of Call of Duty’s greatest players of all time and this achievement simply nails another nail in the coffin of arguments to the contrary.

This gold medal gives OpTic Gaming their fourth consecutive winning event and closes out what has been a simply heroic month for the guys. Looking back over the whole of Advanced Warfare to date, OpTic will surely now be recognised as the best in the world, if they weren’t already firm holders of that title.

FaZe show off their second consecutive runners up result (Photo courtesy of MLG/Enrique Espinoza)

Putting up a valiant effort, although unable to put much of a dent in the immovable force of OpTic Gaming, FaZe came in to take the silver medal. FaZe are proud to hold one of the biggest fan bases in competitive CoD despite their up and down performances and numerous roster changes. Despite that, it’s hard not to look at the achievements they’ve made in the past and realise why they are so popular.

Complete Breakdown of Placements:

1st: OpTic Gaming (Gold/$30,000)

2nd: FaZe (Silver/$15,000)

3rd: Team eLevate (Bronze/$10,000)

4th: Team Kaliber ($6,000)

5th/6th (tied): Denial eSports/Rise Nation ($4,000)

7th/8th (tied): Team EnVy/TCM Gaming ($3,000)