Following the news of the new 4v4 competitive format in Call of Duty, JKap announces his retirement from competitive COD after a decade in the esport. Here is his statement:
I’m officially retiring from Call of Duty. It was an incredible 10-year run that gave me some of the best memories of my life, but it’s time to move on to another challenge. Thank you for all the support over the years ❤️
26-year old Jordan “JKap” Kaplan has been playing Call of Duty for 10 straight years, and played under numerous teams. Some of them being: OpTic Gaming, Luminosity Gaming, eUnited, and most recently OpTic Gaming Los Angeles. JKap has an approximate total of $459,850 in esports earnings. Here are some of his best achievements:
The new competitive format for Call of Duty has been rumoured for a very long time now. This has led teams to start making decisions with regards to who they’re dropping from the roster. It’s a very disturbing time in Call of Duty as we’re seeing a lot of players either heading into retirement or switching to an entirely different team. Pro players like Clayster have complained that the timing of the new format was the main issue, as this should have been introduced back when they implemented the franchised league.
Credits: MLG
JKap has certainly left a mark in the competitive Call of Duty scene and will always be one of the legends to ever touch the esport. Will definitely be interesting to see if JKap pursues a career as a coach for a future Call of Duty team.
Make sure you don’t miss out on any important esports news by keeping yourself updated on www.esportsguide.com!
Clayster parting ways with Dallas Empire – Why was Clayster benched from the Dallas Empire roster?
As you all may be aware, Activision, Blizzard and Treyarch have announced that a new Call of Duty will be releasing on the 13th of November 2020. Its codename is Call of Duty Cold War and it’s multiplayer competitive mode will be played strictly in a 4v4 format. Following Dallas’ victory in the first season of COD League, they hosted a press conference, where Clayster said that the team has been extremely hard working and if one player of the team had to be cut, he would prefer it to be him. Here below is a clip of the press conference:
The @DallasEmpire post-Champs Press Conference is one of the best ones I have ever attended. @Clayster's take on the CoD 4v4 situation really sums up how close these players are and how much they care about each other, such a shame we won't see these 5 win more titles together. pic.twitter.com/Iw4HlsSmAh
Image of Clayster under the Dallas Empire Credits: Blizzard (Ben Pursell)
Here’s what Clayster had to say about his departure:
“I was beyond happy to represent Texas and live my legitimate childhood dream, and I can’t thank all the staff and players from top to bottom for making it feel like a family. I really hope I maintain a friendship with these guys because we accomplished greatness this year, and I truly wish them nothing but success in the rest of their careers.“
Clayster is considered as one of the most legendary players to touch Call of Duty, and even though it’s a shame that this is how he had to part ways with the team, there is still a possibility for him to succeed with another roster.
Another day of emotionally tweeting as a grown man?
Nahhh, nah, we keep it moving. Got some things in the works 🙂
Heading into its inaugural season, the Call of Duty League has many doubters. Indeed, questions were asked. Will it be a success? Is CoD Franchising a good idea? In this episode of State of the Community, we look to answer these questions following the end of the first season – let’s dive right in.
The aims of the inaugural season of the CDL were simply as follows:
To set a precedent for future seasons
A gauge for the potential of the franchise
Stepping up production
Better media coverage of competitors and events
Offering a framework for amateur players and new viewers to enter the scene
Credits: Call of Duty League
Accordingly, all of these were tackled. Bearing this in mind, it wasn’t all sunshine. Like any other inaugural season, there are some growing pains for CoD franchising.
In addition, the global situation of swapping to an online format did not help.
Quick Season Review
A total of 13 events or Home Series made up the competitive season. Across each one, 8 teams were invited to compete in a double-elimination format to crown a champion. Notably, this format was opted for weeks before starting the franchise instead of league matches thanks to a player vote – a massive plus for the league.
Credits: Call of Duty League
Each performance garnered teams points. Indeed, it’s with these points that teams are seeding for Call of Duty Championship 2020. The season finishing with a crowned world champion through it’s post-season.
How Do We Measure Success?
To measure success we’ll be looking at how the aims were satisfied. Also, I’ll be throwing in some opinions too. Firstly, here’s what the franchised league did great:
All things considered, LAN Home Series organizing was great – stages looked super
Content from the CDL was super – including Warzone events and pre/post-event content
The level of competitions between teams shook the league – inviting only 8 out of 12 teams each time resulted in half the league winning an event at one time!
Tier 2 competition was upheld nicely and allowed for multiple amateurs to break through the scene and make a name for themselves
Obliging each team to have a substitute played a massive part in the competition
Call of Duty League 2020 Season 2020-02-09 / Photo: Robert Paul for Activision Blizzard
Conversely, there are some negatives we’ll have to dive into below:
Albeit, events were great, but online series offered many technical issues
Occasionally, viewership would falter as a favourite team wouldn’t be present
In-game mechanics for Modern Warfare suffered from a lack of balancing and tweaking
Concurrently, a lack of competitive integrity was present at times
Furthermore, for a better idea of the season’s performance, we’ll have to compare it to the inaugural season of the Overwatch League.
Comparing CoD Franchising to OWL
To illustrate the comparison, the inaugural season of the OWL is ideal. Accordingly, both franchises are organized by Blizzard-Activision: that’s all we need to compare.
To demonstrate, we’ll compare viewership for the largest event. For OWL, it’s the Overwatch League 2018 Playoffs. For CDL, the Call of Duty League 2020 Finals. Here’s a comparison thanks to Esports Charts:
Evidently, it’s a very tight comparison. Chiefly, in terms of viewership, the OWL Playoffs edges out in each category. However, do note that the CDL event was online. Hence, the viewership experience was less involved. Bearing this in mind, I consider the statistics to be equal. We can say that in terms of viewership, the Call of Duty League ended with a bang.
Conclusion – What’s Unknown and the Future of CoD Franchising
Unfortunately, it’s impossible to say whether the inaugural season of the CDL was a complete success. This is because we have no access to the most important statistic – profit. Money does make the world go round. In the end, millions of investment need to be returned eventually.
Call of Duty League 2020 Season 2020-02-08 / Photo: JOE-BRADY for Activision Blizzard
Personally, as a viewer and superfan of Call of Duty, I’d say the inaugural season was great despite the resistance – being online halfway and inaugural. Accordingly, the league is still growing and feeling itself out.
In terms of future, Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War has been confirmed and will host 4v4 competition. One massive negative already is the potential fact that expansion will not be taking place – though it’s all speculation so far. Apart from that, we’ll have to see how community retention is affected when swapping games.
Indeed, with the end of the inaugural season of the Call of Duty League, everyone’s excited for next year. Days ago, Dallas Empire were crowned the 2020 World Champions for Modern Warfare. However, since then, Activision has revealed a massive announcement for next year which will affect all teams. Call of Duty League 4v4 is happening!
The announcement was confirmed through a cryptic tweet:
So, why is this a big deal? Two years ago, through Black Ops 4, the franchise moved to 5v5. Accordingly, this involved a tonne of roster changes – rostermania – as everyone needed a fifth player. Now, the reverse is about to happen. All teams, including the recent winners of Dallas Empire, will have to think about dropping one player for Call of Duty League 4v4.
Hopefully, the league will be expanding the number of teams to accomodate for the players having to move. Otherwise, many difficult decisions will have to be made – 12 of them. The franchised league will be reforming almost entirely from last year for Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War.
In conclusion, note that this is what the community wanted. 4v4 is less hectic, more tactical and easier to watch.
Indeed, as we previewed, the Call of Duty League Championship 2020 was incredible. With the set stage by Playoffs last week, four teams engaged in a final battle. Accordingly, it’s the largest event in competitive Call of Duty history. Dallas Empire are officially the Call of Duty League Champions!
Here’s how the bracket progressed to make it two teams from four:
Right off the bat, the games were incredible. Dallas Empire began their run to the final with an essential victory over Atlanta FaZe in the Winners’ Bracket. Hence, they received a 1-0 advantage in the grand finals. Otherwise, the fan favourites of Chicago Huntsmen couldn’t kick FaZe while they were down.
Just like that, we’re at the Finals. Both Dallas Empire and FaZe Atlanta desire to be Call of Duty League Champions. It was here that a brand new record was set for viewership in the Call of Duty League. A raving 331,558 concurrent viewers peaked at one time!
Rather decidedly, Dallas Empire destroyed FaZe Atlanta in the final. Everyone was hoping for a series which would go the distance, but it was done in 5 out of 9 maps.
Dallas Empire walk away with $1,500,000 in their pocket and the title of World Champions apart from the plentiful of swag.
Indeed, in a previous article we already looked at how the Call of Duty League Championship event has progressed. In this article, we’ll be taking a closer look to the future, previewing the Championship Weekend with all the necessary details. Read on for more!
Firstly, there’s one thing to keep on mind – the $4,600,00 prize pool. Accordingly, it’s the craziest prize pool in Call of Duty history! The majority of it is now in the hands of the final four teams in the competition.
Here they are:
Atlanta FaZe
Dallas Empire
Chicago Huntsmen
London Royal Ravens
Credits: Call of Duty League
Three of the four teams fit into most predictions. However, the way London Royal Ravens slipped their way through was incredible. From the four teams, only Chicago Huntsmen and Atlanta FaZe have encountered one another at the event so far.
Indeed, this was the rematch everyone wanted, though FaZe quickly dispatched Chicago to the Loser Bracket. Here, Chicago played OGLA in one of the greatest series of the season so far.
Predictions and Stream for Call of Duty League Championship
In terms of predictions, it’s honestly very tough to call. My gut says that it’ll all come down to the day, though I’m leaning towards either Dallas Empire or Chicago Huntsmen taking it. Although the favourites, Atlanta FaZe have been cracking in the past few months.
Call of Duty League 2020 Season 2020-02-09 / Photo: Robert Paul for Activision Blizzard
As we previewed in our How to Watch article, the Call of Duty League Playoffs took place last week. Accordingly, an absolutely thrilling level of competitive Call of Duty enthralled the community. Sidelining the top four teams for next week’s final competition, here’s a recap for the Call of Duty League Playoffs.
All 12 teams dived into the action on the 19th August, vying for survival and a piece of the prize. Here’s how the bracket went down:
Take a moment to decipher to double elimination bracket. A total of eight teams were eliminated in epic fashion. Specifically, the series between Optic Gaming Los Angeles and Chicago Huntsmen was particularly insane. Accordingly, it was here that a record-breaking viewership peak for the league of over 140,000 concurrent viewers struck!
For a game by game analysis, the Call of Duty League has you covered.
On the back of the most exciting series of the entire competitive season, we have our final teams for the Championship Weekend. London is sitting in a den of lions here. With each guaranteed $450,000, here is the bracket:
Indeed, the inaugural season of the franchised Call of Duty League boils down to one final event. Accordingly, following thirteen events, the post-season remains. A total of $4,600,000 are on the line for the world’s largest console esport. Read on to learn How to Watch the 2020 Call of Duty League Championship!
Heading into this season of Call of Duty, many mourned the loss of the traditional sense of ‘CoD Champs’. In earlier years, it used to be an Open event, where any team can beat anybody. However, for the franchised model, only the 12 Call of Duty League teams will be participating in the event. Earning their seeds by placing across the multiple events, the stages of the tournament have spread out the action.
Here are the twelve League teams taking part, ordered by season placings:
Regardless of the growing pains of an inaugural season, the competition has held up. Without question, this will be the greatest competitive Call of Duty event in history.
Format
Credit: STEWART-VOLLAND for Activision Blizzard Entertainment
For dramatic effect, Activision has split up the event into two consecutive weekends. Initially, Playoffs will take place from August 19-23rd, setting things up for Championship Weekend August 29-30th. In terms of format, the two weekends are identical and follow the same bracket.
Indeed, a double-elimination BO5 bracket serves the competition. However, the Grand Final will in-fact be a BO9 series! Accordingly, the team emerging from the Losers Bracket will start off with a 0-1 impediment.
Based on the season standings, here’s how the bracket stacks up:
Watch the 2020 Call of Duty League Championship stream on esportsguide.com
You can also watch the 2020 Call of Duty League Championship live stream via our very own website. Providing an extensive list of the biggest esports together with streams for each esports match live today or upcoming matches.
Predictions for the 2020 Call of Duty League Championship
For the majority of the season, there have been four teams on top of the entire competition. Evidently, this has been reflected in the standings. The following are the favourites to take the entire event:
Constantly, these four have been vying for pole position. On the whole, from the four, many have written off FaZe Atlanta as the team to win it. Defined by consistency behind two of the five Call of Duty League 2020 MVP nominations, ‘Simp‘ and ‘Cellium‘, they have seemed unstoppable at times.
Meanwhile, the only teams to show them up consistently are the other three. Dallas packs a combination of veteran experience and young talent which has put them as the second favourite. Since both Dallas and FaZe start off one series away from the Winners Finals, their chances of winning are very high.
On the other hand, both Florida and Chicago have fallen off as seen at the last event in Toronto.
Speaking of which, an underdog that has had everyone shaking their heads is Toronto Ultra. Managing to take down the top four teams in the league at the last event, nobody knows what to think of them. Was it a fluke?
Otherwise – should the rest of the league be counted out? Well, due to a lower seeding, other team’s chances are much worse. Regardless, this is competitive Call of Duty – everything can change in a month. During this post-season, teams are learning each others strategies and doing their best to study opponents. Competitors such as NY Subliners and LDN Royal Ravens have massive upset opportunity.
Finally, the conclusion of the Call of Duty League has taken place last weekend. Happily, the inaugural season of the Call of Duty League has drawn to an epic end at the CDL Toronto Ultra Home Series. Resultantly, the post-season seeds for CDL Championships in August are completed.
Respectively, a total of $4.2 million are on the line for the largest event in the history of competitive Call of Duty. After a season of battling it out, the following are the Call of Duty League Post-Season seeds:
Conclusively, the most exciting change from the event is probably Toronto Ultra. By beating out three top teams and claiming victory, they made 7th seed. Bearing this in mind, the following is the seeding for the Call of Duty League Championship:
In conclusion, the Call of Duty League hasn’t had its flaws this first season. Apart from the successful switch to online, the format and rulesets are still being experimented with. Finally, all that’s left is the Call of Duty League Post-Season before the final event in a month.
After 8 months, the inaugural season of the franchised Call of Duty League is finally drawing to a close through the Toronto Online Home Series this weekend. Running from the 24-26th July, there’s so much more than $100,000 as the 8 competing teams desperately fight for points ahead of the seeding for the largest event in the competitive Call of Duty League history – Call of Duty Champs 2020.
The following are the eight teams attending the event according to their groups:
To begin with, one could say that this is the most stacked event of the season, as the top 4 teams in the standings are here and all have the opportunity to finish in first place this season with ATL Faze at 250, Dallas at 240 with Chicago and Florida at 220 points respectively.
Credits: Call of Duty League Twitter
The other 4 attending teams have the opportunity to shake things up too – by denying and upsetting supposedly better teams and also shaking things up at the lower end of the leaderboard.
In terms of predictions, for Group A, it seems clear that the two favourites to emerge victoriously are the Chicago Huntsmen and beside them a strong Optic Gaming LA. Seattle Surge is looking too weak to shake things up at this stage of their roster while although Toronto managed to take down FaZe last event, nobody can rely on them to step up again.
Credits: Call of Duty League Twitter
Meanwhile over on Group B, things are a lot trickier, it would seem. Rokkr sits between a rock and a hard place as they helplessly sit between one large dog fight. Most have Florida Mutineers and Dallas Empire coming out on top – having to doubt FaZe Atlanta due to their poor showing in the last few events.
The stakes for the 2020 Call of Duty League Championship:
