Interview with Monte’s br0: Ambitions to Reach Bigger Heights Than Other Teams

In an exclusive interview with Fragster, Counter-Strike professional player br0 from Team Monte delves into the intricacies of his team’s dynamics, strategy, and aspirations in the competitive world of Counter-Strike.

The interview takes a deeper dive into Monte’s innovative strategies, such as their double In-Game Leader (IGL) setup, which br0 credits for the team’s complete and adaptable gameplay. Sounds interesting? Check out the full interview below!

“Enjoying our Mood and Keeping the Friendly Spirit Alive”

Fragster: Congrats on 2nd place at the Roobet Cup. Are you happy with your performance?
br0: Very happy with our performance, but I felt like we could’ve finished first.

Fragster: Monte is currently a top 10 team and performing really well in tournaments. How is the atmosphere inside the team and what are your br0: objectives for the coming season?
br0: We are enjoying our mood and keeping the friendly spirit alive – we also spend our free time together and just overall enjoy eachothers company.
Our main goal is probably to keep up the pace and progress and by that we will be a dangerous contender at the major and other upcoming tournaments.

Fragster: One of the teams you used to play for is Falcons Esports, which has recently been acquired by Saudi Arabia. Now that Magisk and zonic joined the team, how do you think they will do?
br0: Zonic is the danish godfather of CS, in my opinion, he carries an insane legacy and he has his master student with him – I think the proper tools and players, they will make a solid team.

Fragster: You played your first big CS2 Tier 1 event in Sydney, how was the event for you as a team and are there big differences between playing CS2 on Lan?
br0: The event was great, every team needed adjustment including us, obviously – the game is very different on lan, in a positive way – the subtick is less noticeable and overall the gameplay is just way more smooth.

“We are Ahead and Behind in Some Aspects”

Fragster: I heard that you guys use a double-IGL setup. Sdy calls for part of the round and another player calls for another. Is that true?
br0: Yes that is true, sdy carries a loud and respected voice within the team – and that is something we all enjoy I think, the combo of sdy and Woro is just amazing. But to not take away credit, I feel like everyone is contributing in one way or the other, which makes the puzzle complete in many different scenarios.

Fragster: Your schedule of CS2 events is quite full, do you feel better prepared for the new Counter-Strike than other teams?
br0: I feel like we have the talent and the ambitions to reach bigger heights than many other teams, and by that I also think that currently we are ahead and behind in some aspects right now.

Fragster: Before you joined Monte you played for the academy team of Astralis. br0: How big is the difference between Danish CS and Ukrainian CS?
The difference is there, the style of CS but also the details of the communication – took me a solid month to fully adapt to the english ingame, but the style is unique in a way – it makes the talent of every player shine.

Fragster: Since our roots are in the German community, a question that interests every German CS player/professional. How do you see the German scene as a Dane and international player? And what would you say is the biggest difference compared to the Danish scene?
br0: I feel like the german scene compared to the danish is similar – at least from what i’ve heard – it is very structured and strict and leave no opportunity for a dice roll.

Internationally the style is more of a freestyle, where if its nationally there is more culture and guidelines to follow.

“I Love My Team”

Fragster: You’ve been with Monte since July, how are things in your new team? Have you settled in well?
br0: To be brutally honest, I love my team and I am actually very comfortable both inside and outside the game – They were always welcoming and willing to help whenever I had difficulties in the beginning.

Fragster: What do you think of CS2 so far? Is the game as bad as s1mple makes it sound? Or is it better than people give it credit for? And what would you change about CS2 right now?
br0: It’s fiiiine – when you play for a bit, it’s not as bad as s1mple says, but I wouldn’t say that the game is good, AT ALL. I would just add 128 tick and develop subtick on a test system and then I would add cl_bob and cl_righthand.

Fragster: Which player do you think will be the new big star in CS2?
br0: No discussion, donk – but it is not safe to say, if he will be the only one!

Fragster: When did you start playing Counter-Strike?
br0: 2013 I started playing casually.

“Keep Believing”

Fragster: For how many years did you play CS before joining a professional organization? And how did that process look like? Were you training a lot? Did you receive support from your family? Etc.
br0: 4-5 years I think it was – and to be honest, I was playing for fun and I thought it was fun playing in a team aswell and I still do – not a lot of training from my side.

And no, I actually didn’t get that much support until I reached FPL in 2018 – Now I get all the support in the world.

Fragster: What tips would you give to young aspiring players who want to become professionals? What helped you the most as a young player?
br0: Keep believing, if you trust your talent and believe that you will succeed and that you have an edge on other players – keep working hard, work harder than everyone else and have faith.

 

Header: ESL | Helena Kristiansson