Press conference - Hicham Chahine & Nicolai "dev1ce" Reedtz

Tech issues, we're just going to continue. I think Sebastian got an answer to his question. And we will continue with Daniel Neussen from a Danish outlet. Welcome.

Thank you very much. Yes, congratulations. Nice to see you. I'd like to see you in another jersey—it's a little bit weird for me to see, but nice. Can you try to put into some words what was the decisive factor for you to...

Yeah, thank you, and I think the colors look good on me. So thank you. I mean, there were a lot of decisive factors in this. I've lived in Sweden for a long time and there's been a lot of—I would say not stress—but there's a lot of time that goes into going back and forth between Denmark and Sweden. And as I've judged upon a little bit, I think that the energy that takes is just something that I could put elsewhere into becoming a better player. And I think that opening up that possibility of me having more time to put into the training hours is a big factor for me, other than just looking at the setup. I didn't even have that big of a knowledge when we started talking together. Just knew that they were investing in the same things that I believe in. And I'm so surprised—positively surprised—about the setup here. And I really think that I've landed in the right place to elevate myself to a new level. Even though I might be old in Counter-Strike, I'm only 25 years old and I don't believe I've hit my peak in individual performance. And I think that the team—everybody knows they're really talented, right? Everybody knows that the sky is the limit and I hope that I can bring that experience and know-how on some elements. And then the performance team takes care of the rest. But yeah, I think that was probably the most decisive factors—mainly time efficiency. Not having more time to relax or chill, but to actually get better.

Thank you very much. We're moving on to Lucas Osnar. Welcome.

I mean, I think every individual always thinks about a career plan and the future, right? And I haven't been thinking about it too long. The thought always comes into your head. I think with COVID happening, having a lot of time to reflect on what do I want for myself in my career, how can I create the best legacy possible for me as a player and achieve my goals. I think that the challenge here at NIP is a brilliant one, honestly. Bringing a major trophy to Sweden, having this Major Stockholm, and in general achieving championships at another home is probably what defines you the most, right? And it's not only been because we've had a few bad results at Astralis—we've done that a lot of times before. And I believe that the team will be able to get out of that small slump. I mean, when you look at Astralis, we still competed at playoffs, but it's not enough, you know? So here I have a totally different challenge and I'm looking forward to that aspect of my career. And it takes time to make such a decision, but I think that I used the time needed and I had the right people around me to make sure that I made the right step in my career.

Thank you, Nicolai. And then for Hicham, the first question is regarding the reported transfer fees. A journalist has reported that his sources told him it's around one million, and a Danish outlet reported that was double what device signed for at Cloud9. Could you tell me something about the transfer fee—is there some truth to these reports?

Okay, thank you. And one more question if that's okay. This is regarding ztr—he was sharing leadership duties with Hampus. Bringing on one of the best players ever in the game, how is that going to be for such a young up-and-coming player to try to give orders to somebody of device's stature? Is that something that has been thought out? Will he keep sharing those in-game leadership roles?

Great, thank you so much. And we move on with Kalle from Swedish outlet Fragbite. Welcome.

Thank you very much. I have one question for device and one for Hicham. We can start with device's—he's getting the mic now. Were there other teams in discussion? Since reports stated it was Astralis and you that contacted NIP, have you been in discussions with any other teams or was it just NIP from the beginning?

Simply—or no. Around two weeks ago, I kind of let the team know and the organization, kind of spoke a little about what the opportunities were. And we only really pursued one option, so I'm really happy that it worked out. No, I didn't really think about any other team or were in talks with any other team at all. I think when I was looking at the structure and what I'm used to—performance culture as Hicham just mentioned—I think that this was the natural selection for me. And yeah, no other teams included, and I'm really happy for that.

Okay, so the next question for Hicham. Ztr—as I understand it, he's still not a full member of the main team and is still under contract with Young Ninjas. Have there been any changes there? Is it still just a Young Ninja player standing in for NIP?

Okay, thank you very much. Moving on with Effie Karaboota from Swedish Radio.

Hi. Are you okay with doing this in Swedish, or do you want to do it in English?

Okay, cool. Okay Nicolai, you're saying that you want to reduce stress and work closer to home. Are you transferring to NIP only because of practical reasons, or what attracted you to NIP?

I mean, in some way I think that's a little bit misleading. What I was touching on in the beginning of this press conference is reducing stress doesn't reduce workload. So I think that you have to take all of the different aspects into what is stress, how do you recover, and how do you try to move your workload to a higher level without achieving chronic stress or burnout, you know, which is a word that gets thrown around quite often within performance. So for me, having stress-related issues previously in my career, it's not a step towards a more balanced lifestyle. We're trying to be the best in the world. Being the best in the world is not healthy—it's not gonna make you the healthiest guy, but it's what we live for. And doing this, it allows me to actually push myself more towards the limit without having the irrelevant stress involved with the practical stuff. So it helps me on all aspects, but it's still not just a choice for a better life. I think that a better life for me is a life with trophies, and I'm pretty sure we're gonna make that in a pretty fast fashion. I think that with how the Counter-Strike environment is and how the performance culture and team works here, I think we are on a really good path to achieving what I want and everybody wants.

And also just one question left—how are you going to help NIP become a stronger team?

There are a lot of different ways I think I can contribute, but the most important one is that I don't come with the experience I have and say this is how we did it at Astralis. I'm coming into a culture that works. I think that with the experience I have—been on the journey for a longer time than most of the guys here—and I've tried winning and losing and achieving goals. So in general, I hope that I can push the players and the team to elevate into the consistency that he was talking about, and in general to lift trophies. I think how I will do that—it's hard to explain as an athlete how you actually do that—but if you just look at the history of what I've achieved, I think that I have a pretty good track record.

Thank you, Effie. I think we have Sebastian Parquela next.

Hi. So you've been playing in Astralis for the last five years under a certain system. So I wanted to ask you how different it will feel in NIP, and will it be hard to adapt to a new way of playing?

It's a really good question actually. I think obviously it's going to be a massive challenge on a lot of aspects and a lot of different things I have to learn. I have to ask a lot of questions and be brutally honest when I'm maybe misunderstanding stuff, you know, but that's a part of the process. And I think that it's also really exciting to have that challenge involved with the whole project. I've played with my previous team in Astralis for five years and some of the guys even for like eight years. So coming to a new team with new energy and learning new people, getting to know them is really exciting for me. So of course you gotta love the journey you've been on, but this is definitely a challenge I chose and I am beyond excited to just get going.

I also wanted to ask you—I know you speak Swedish—but do you think it will be a transition into doing comms in Swedish? And do you know all the calls and stuff in Swedish as well?

Of course it's going to be a transition. As you mentioned, having that many years in the Danish team, you kind of have your way of how you communicate and what you call certain areas of the map. So that's just going to take a little time to get used to. But yeah, I speak fluent Swedish and I don't expect it to be the biggest challenge. It's just about time and using the time efficiently leading up to the RMR tournament, which is right around the corner. But we still have good time to be fully prepared.

Thank you, Sebastian. We have another question from Daniel again. Welcome.

Thank you. Yeah, just one more question for you, Nicolai. The last time we spoke about a month ago, you also talked about how much it means to you in terms of your legacy and what you'll be remembered by. Do you think that you'll have a better chance to become the world's best player in NIP than in Astralis in the end as well?

Yes, I do. It's a different system, it's a different way of playing. Speaking with Björn and the performance team, it's an obvious side goal for me. I've been pretty honest—I've always wanted to be the best in the world. It's one thing I don't have. But winning a major trophy and winning tournaments and being on this new journey of creating an era—which is ultimately always the goal when you change to a new team—I think is my biggest why. When you are an athlete, you gotta ask yourself why do I sacrifice so many things to achieve these things, right? And I think I leave a better legacy and a better mark on the history of Counter-Strike if I can actually do that in another team rather than becoming the best player in the world, which is always going to be subjective. So achieving the ultimate goal, which is the Major, and creating an era with NIP, is actually my number one dream. And then if I become the best player in the world doing that, or if one of my teammates becomes the best player in the world doing that, it will make me immensely happy, honestly.

Just one last question, then I'll stop talking. I know that all the time in Astralis you were like one big family, which is more than just a Counter-Strike team, right? How hard was it for you—I know you're close friends with Xyp9x—how hard was it to deliver that message and how was it received?

Yeah, as you said, I think we were mainly considering ourselves as a band rather than a team. It becomes a different bond when you've been together for so long. And yeah, it was rough—there were tears involved and everything. I think that with time and having spoken to the team, there's no bad feelings. We leave each other as friends and family and will definitely still have dinners at events and stuff like that when there's time. But there's also a time for new challenges, and I think they also understood that. And as a lot of people have mentioned, there's some practical things that make this a pretty obvious reason as well, because I really believe that I can be a way better player than I've been for some time. And I think that this space and whole unit just allows me to elevate. I think that they believe in that as well, and we still love each other.

Thank you, thank you very much Daniel. Don't seem like we have any further questions... yeah, we have one from Deepak. Oh, welcome.

Hi everyone, thank you so much for the time. I'm Deepak from Talk Esports Media and Broadcast. First of all, Nicolai, my question to you—you have played over thousands of matches and have your very own style of play. I know you've answered part of the question already, but how will you be fitting into the role of the new NIP team? Will you be reworking the strategies, or simply fitting in the role of an AWPer?

So that's a work in progress. This is the first day I actually meet the team, you know, so starting out slowly. Haven't really gone through all of the different aspects on how and why, but definitely I want to challenge myself more than just fitting into the role. And I think that everyone here wants that as well—you want to get the best possible version out of yourself. And I think you can't just one-to-one copy another player or come in with how we did it at Astralis and try to mimic that. It's about finding the right balance and achieving the highest performance from everyone. And that means sometimes, like we did in Astralis, you don't always just set up the star player. It's about finding the right elements of where every player is good. And I think if you look at this team, there's so many options and I'm just dying to get out of this press conference to get started. I've been waiting a little bit to actually get on the server with the guys and just really excited, honestly.

Two more small questions. Since you mentioned this was more than a team, it was a family for you—you've been playing from a very early age in CS. What kind of role do you think your family played in this decision-making? Did you consult your family as well when making this big decision of moving to Sweden?

My core family is in Denmark. And when I moved here a few years ago, it was a big sacrifice I did for the love of my life. So that's something you have to do when you grow up—you have to take responsible decisions in that regard. And that meant that I probably sacrificed some family time, but with what we do, that's a part of the culture. You can't really have everything in life, and if you want to pursue being the best, you have to constantly try to push yourself towards new limits. But this choice, joining NIP, is not anything I've done to make life easier for the family as a whole. I'm obviously going to have a little bit more time not in an airplane or traveling, but I think that time will be spent on Counter-Strike and getting better.

My final question would be, if that's okay—playing against Astralis whenever you see them next. They're aware of your play style and they know how you look and how you operate angles. Have you thought about what that experience will be like?

I mean, I'm really excited to play them, honestly. It's going to be a whole new aspect of my career as well. I want to beat them so bad and they want to beat me so bad—it's a love-hate relationship in that sense. Everyone wants to have the bragging rights between each other, and it's going to be really fun to play them. As you said, in regards to how people play and everything, it goes both ways. There's going to be a lot of change-up in their system and in the system here at NIP, so I don't think that would be one-to-one counterable. But in general, it's just going to be really awesome to play them. I'm really excited for that.

So don't think we have any further questions online. Maybe—any final words from Hicham or Nicolai to wrap this up?