DH Stockholm Invitational preview

发布时间：2025-04-20 14:55:00 来源：cs cases simulator 作者：case drop

DreamHack Stockholm Invitational 2014 kicks off tomorrow afternoon so here is our preview to get you ready for the $10,000 tournament.

Despite the small number of participants and by today's standards a relatively average prize pot, DreamHack Stockholm Invitational packs a ridiculous amount of storylines for the fans.

First and foremost is the chance for a repeat of DreamHack Winter's grand final between the two Swedish giants NiP and fnatic. We also can't overstate the importance of Titan versus NiP.

TV studio where DH Stockholm Invitational will be played

fnatic also have a history with Titan; coming close to beating them at ESWC and then falling short weeks later at MSI Beat it! in Beijing, just a week before their DreamHack triumph.

Finally, Dignitas also has quite a history with the Frenchmen, including a devastating DreamHack Winter quarter-final loss. Continue reading for more on tomorrow's event.

NiP (f0rest, Fifflaren, friberg, GeT_RiGhT, Xizt)

NiP have had a long break to get re-energized for Counter-Strike after their busy fall, and have also now had plenty of time to whip themselves back into shape in time for tomorrow's event. They are one of the top two teams in the world with Titan, and are definitely favorites to make the grand final in Stockholm tomorrow.

Although the prize money isn't amazing and there's only four teams, these squads are arguably the top four teams in the world and NiP must still be bitter from their DreamHack defeat and this serves as a great chance for the Swedes to vindicate themselves and bring up their confidence, which they lacked before DreamHack Winter due to multiple VeryGames defeats, back to a very high level in time for EMS One Katowice.

The Swedes have bootcamped in their house in Stockholm for one day and practiced plenty online. They are surely prepared for the event as far as putting time into the game goes, but the big question mark for NiP is their leadership. After Richard "Xizt" Landström stopped calling in December, they've gone through star player Christopher "GeT_RiGhT" Alesund before settling, as far as we know, on first in-game leader Robin "Fifflaren" Johansson.

This will be a tough test for Johansson who hasn't led NiP since the Fall of 2012, and will be a good show for the rest of the scene to see what NiP can do with Johansson at the reigns. Will Landström improve his individual play now that he can focus more on fragging? Time will tell, but I think NiP's chances for topping the competition tomorrow are great, and they are likely the favorites to win DreamHack Stockholm Invitational.

Prediction: 1st

Having Fifflaren call makes NiP impossible to study for now

fnatic (Devilwalk, Flusha, JW, pronax, schneider)

fnatic are, in my opinion, the most intriguing team going into tomorrow's tournament. They played lights out at DreamHack Winter, but we have no idea if they can replicate those results again. It took the former Epsilon core nearly six months to get back to the podium of a big event with all the top teams in attendance after DreamHack Summer's cinderella story, and you just never know if this version of the team has it in them to make it back much sooner or not.

fnatic struggled in FACEIT cups, but had problems with ddossing and had to resort to stand-ins, so those results don't hold much value, especially being fairly old by now. So far in fnatic FragOut League's third season they've defeated H2k 2-0 in the opening round, but it doesn't say much as fnatic should be a much stronger team than the Norwegians in the first place. Most of how fnatic will do will come down to individual plays, and how well Wallsten uses his players' abilities.

At DreamHack players like Jesper "jw" Wecksell excelled thanks to the freedom Wallsten gave them, but that sort of playing style has often yielnded inconsistent results. Time will tell whether fnatic can break out of that mold or if their playing style has changed, but for now they remain a slight question mark as we simply haven't had enough proof, despite their first major win at DreamHack Winter, to determine them as one of the top three teams.

DreamHack Stockholm Invitational will therefore say a lot more about fnatic than other teams. They must have a sizable chip on their shoulders because people keep questioning their win in Jönköping, and tomorrow they have a chance to prove all those doubters wrong, once again on their home soil. Although I think this format is excellent for fnatic, I think this time the others will prevail, and fnatic will have to bounce back in Katowice.

Prediction: 3rd

fnatic need flusha's consistent play to win on Friday

Titan (Ex6TenZ, NBK, ScreaM, shox, SmithZz)

Titan were still the number one team in the world in my books after their NiP loss at DreamHack Winter, but losing to iBUYPOWER not once but twice at ESEA Invite Season 15 global finals last month has called that into question. Adil "ScreaM" Benrlitom hasn't been himself since DreamHack started, and it has been a major reason as to why the French-Belgians, now living together in a gaming house à la NiP, haven't played as well as they did in late fall last year.

I assume they will be in much better shape now that every team is practicing and they are also getting quality preparation time in, something Kévin "Ex6TenZ" Droolans' team has always taken advantage of. Before ESEA teams were still taking a break, and due to the upcoming move to their gaming house in Belgium, it would have been understandable if the players spent more time out in the real world with their friends and families before embarking on a move to a different city, or a whole other country.

Titan, like fnatic, have a lot to prove in Stockholm. They disappointed, though only because their standards are set so high anything but a top two placing is disappointing, at DreamHack Winter, and ESEA offered no solace; in fact it made it much worse. Now with the team backed by Titan and living together in a gaming house, the stakes are higher than ever and they really have to prove they can get back to the number one spot in the world rankings.

Edouard "SmithZz" Dubourdeaux' entry fragging plummeted for the final day at ESEA, and due to Nathan "NBK" Schmitt and Richard "shox" Papillon oftein being so consistent, a lot of weight to pull Titan across the finish line lies on Dubourdeaux and Benrlitom, who have struggled at recent events. I think Titan will be back in the grand final tomorrow, but I think NiP will once again prevail on their home soil. In Katowice it could all go so differently, but not being able to study NiP and playing in Sweden I think Titan are at a disadvantage.

Prediction: 2nd

ScreaM will make or break Titan's performance

Team Dignitas (cajunb, device, dupreeh, FeTiSh, Xyp9X)

The former Copenhagen Wolves team have yet to play an official match since replacing star AWPer Nicolaj "Nico" Jensen with René "cajunb" Borg, which makes them even less predictable than everyone else. Only Titan has played on LAN in 2014 and fnatic online, but the Danes have yet to even play together officially since their latest add-on. They did well at DreamHack, but Jensen's strong AWPing was a big factor there, and we have no idea how Henrik "FeTiSh" Christensen will make up for it in his leadership style.

Team Dignitas are a good match-up against everyone in Stockholm, and the best-of-one setup definitely favors them as the underdogs. They've often done really well in group stages, also one map matches, but then struggled to make their mark in long and straining playoff series. Tomorrow is a good time for dignitas to bridge the gap by doing well in one map games, which could easily translate to more confidence and therefore best-of-three success come Katowice.

It's important for dignitas to do well that Andreas "Xyp9x" Højsleth, who was on the verge of becoming a real star towards the end of his fnatic tenure in the summer of 2013, picks up his game. He hasn't showed the same flash since starting to play with the Danes, and his individual play could be the one factor the former Wolves have been missing all fall as they've faltered time and time again in the third through eight region, a fair estimation on their placing in the world rankings.

Out of these four teams dignitas are the clear underdogs, which is why I've predicted them to place fourth. In a best-of-one double elimination tournament the saying 'anything can happen' rings more truth to it than in almost any other event, and it wouldn't surprise me much if the Danes did much better. They are surely motivated, but will that be enough to top the world's arguably best three teams? Only way to find out is to watch it all play out tomorrow.

Prediction: 4th

Xyp9x hasn't been at the top of his game in dignitas

DreamHack Stockholm Invitational 2014 will kick off tomorrow at 16:15 with the first match of upper bracket. Bracket isn't known yet, but our viewer's guide is out.

HLTV.org will be covering the event as usual, so stay tuned to our site for updates on the bracket, hot matches, statistics, GOTV demos and stream links as the games get underway.

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