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GUIDES
Simple Radar
© 2026 TLDR Media, All Rights Reserved.
And why HEROIC are the next big thing
The new season is about to begin, so let’s once again rejoice as we have to watch online CS at BLAST Bounty. At least there’s some good-looking games, right guys?
The ENC qualifiers have now also been played, which is actually quite fun, and HEROIC might be back, which is equally as fun. Just not quite as fun as the interview with Gizmy that features in this edition.
Stake Ranked wrapped up this weekend, and we can honestly say… we didn’t see much of it.
Fortunately, thanks to HLTV’s new Round Swing illustration on match pages, we didn’t have to!
HEROIC came into the event as heavy favourites, but as they were debuting with a new roster, to us, there was still a looming risk of flopping hard. Were Brollan and Martinez going to work out well enough to make good on those expectations, and where was susp going to be after the break? We certainly had our doubts.
But deliver they did. Despite Brollan ending the event as the lowest-rated player on the team after two weak showings in the final two games, HEROIC took a flawless win in the grand final to pick up their first LAN trophy since February.
Well, a bit of a Mickey Mouse trophy. But an important one nonetheless.
You might not even have noticed, but despite just having played in the Cologne Major, HEROIC had slipped well outside the top 30 in recent months. Starting the event 37th in the world means, per VRS, they were almost as bad as FlyQuest.
This win catapults them back into the world top 30, still with a fair way to go to get back to their previous highs, but we’re seeing some very promising signs. In his best maps, Brollan had true impact on the server, susp managed to deliver strong performances under pressure, and nilo was - as always - phenomenal throughout.
Mischief hasn’t dropped his first edition of the Major qualification odds yet, but once upon a time, HEROIC missed the Major despite at one point having a 96% chance of making it. This time, we reckon they’ve got about a 96% chance of not making it to Singapore… but we think they might just do it.
Go get it.
The Esports Nations Cup teams are now confirmed, and honestly? We’re actually pretty excited about it.
And not just because we think there’s a decent chance of it coming home.
There’s also just some pretty fun teams involved, with ScreaM and Nivera combining for Morocco, steel getting a shot with Canada, and a German team that might not actually be rubbish.
Weirdly, though, our biggest hope lies with Australia.
Although the boys no longer play together, their team is mostly just current or former FlyQuest players, so there really is no excuse for them not winning this one.
That’s until you remember they’re Australian CS players, so they’ll likely crash and burn. And that will be good fun for everyone.
We’re really glad BLAST have seen the light and decided to change BLAST Bounty starting next year, because online CS f-cking sucks.
That said, after a break from CS - XSE Pro League is NOT canon - we’ll take what we can get, and there are actually things to be excited about.
Aurora are debuting their new lineup, so too are MOUZ and Liquid. We’ll get our first chance to see r1nkle in a G2 jersey - not that we expect to be any less confused about why he’s in a G2 jersey after the event - and we’ll also get to see FUT with xfl0ud.
More importantly, though, we’ll get to see FaZe once again test themselves against EYEBALLERS.
It’s a game that, had you not watched CS for a long time, you’d assume would be an easy win for FaZe, but given that they’ve already lost to EYEBALLERS in a BLAST Bounty this year, it could be another one for the history books.
We do think FaZe will win this time, though. JBOEN looked solid on his debut, and Twistzz isn’t the brainlet he was on Liquid. This is a great way for them to get their season underway.
The biggest excitement, however, lies with 100 Thieves, who will finally be making a tier one appearance as they take on Falcons.
Which probably isn’t who they were hoping to face.
Reinforced by English gla1ve, we reckon 100 Thieves are in for a solid season and that we’ll see them in the Singapore Major at the end of the year. If they can start their season with a win here, that’ll be a real statement of intent.
How did you get into Counter-Strike?
I was playing Minecraft first, as we all do, then my brother started playing CS; he also started playing Mine-Strike at the same time. Which was like CS in Minecraft on MinePixel or something, whatever the name was. So I was insane at the Minecraft version of CS and then switched across; it was pretty bad, but obviously I'm here now.
That's probably the most unique answer we've ever gotten. What was your first memory of CS?
I guess just sending it up long with a P90 on Dust 2. I remember doing that with me and my brothers. It was good fun.
What about your favourite memory of CS since then?
I guess it has to be qualifying for the Major; that was definitely the biggest one. Even though it wasn't as crazy as an RMR because of the new system. After the LAN win against Alliance at DraculaN, it was just a very unique and happy feeling. All of the work we'd done over the past year or so came together and got us enough points to qualify. That was great.
What's the deadliest animal you could beat in a fight?
I reckon I could take a cow; I'd outsmart them to begin with. Just put a bit of grass on the ground, then the brother goes for it. Bam, left hook, see you later.
If you were struggling in that fight, which teammate would you tag in?
Maybe rainwaker, flag check; he's Bulgarian. I can just unleash him if you know what I'm saying.
How much is a can of Monster?
Like two bucks?
If you weren't a CS pro, what would you be doing with your time?
I would've completed university, and I'd probably be in banking right now. That was the career path that I was expecting to go into for a lot of my life. Then obviously I fell in love with CS, and here I am.
Who has the right to pick the music in the Monte team?
Me, for sure.
What are you into?
Right now I'm listening to a lot of American rap, but I'm into all genres so I'd say I have a decent playlist. Definitely not as much as some of my other mates from the UK; we've got some try-hards back there with the music, but compared to my teammates it's easy money.
If you had to pick one teammate past or present to win a 1v1 for the fate of humanity, who would you pick?
You know I'll big up the UK here then, comparatively for our skill at the time I'd say Giraffe. When I look back, he was getting some insane clutches against much better teams at the time when we were all a bit worse at the game. He was the guy on the team where you see him in a 1v3, and you actually believe.
If you were stuck on a desert island with any of your current teammates, who would you want it to be and why?
Probably Afro. The French are in the know with sea creatures. He might know some banger meals for when we catch a fish; we can eat some mussels together. Some stuff like that.
Who would you least like to be on the island with?
Probably AZUWU, he would die within a few days. I would be left alone, unfortunately.
But would he be a tasty snack?
I would not indulge.
If you could pick any map in or outside of the map pool, which one would it be?
It has to be Italy, right? That's probably the nicest one, or Venice or whatever it's called. The one with a bunch of fruit stands everywhere and the narrow streets. That one is nice.
Are you a cat person or a dog person?
Can I say both? I've grown up with both my entire life; my cat and dog are friendly with each other. I love them equally.
