OpTic Gaming has finally done it, taking down Team EnVy two times to win the 2017 Call of Duty World Championship.
Hardpoint
Both teams came out shooting straight, to the delight of a lively Amway Center. After two hills, the score was tied at 30. Scump was 0-5, but his teamamtes carried him in the early going. It was JKap wanting that third ring, starting off at 13-4, but a strong team effort from OpTic built a 90 point lead despite Scump's double negative halfway through.
John picked up a double to stop the bleeding, but FormaL's hill presence kept the Green Wall in a comfortable lead. Much like in the Winners Final, OpTic Gaming controlled map 1 Hardpoint, never looking threatened on the way to a 250-117.
Search and Destroy
FormaL grabbed a sniper for round 1 of S&D and got a 2 piece for an easy opening win. John answered with a flying snipe of his own to give EnVy a 4v3 advantage, but OpTic still got the bomb down. It was Slasher v Scump with 20 seconds left, with Slasher getting the kill and defuse to even it up for EnVy. John continued his hot streak picking up another snap snipe in round 4, but it was another 1v1, this time between Apathy and Crimsix, to decide teh round. Crimsix found a hurt Apathy to bring the round count to 2-2.
Slasher grabbed yet another first blood, and Envy jumped ahead with a 4-2 lead as a less than confident OpTic chant was heard in the Amway Center. FormaL was playing well with 10 kills, but did not get the help from his teammates and EnVy closed out map 2 with Apathy's Reactive Armor.
Uplink
The match moved to Uplink, with OpTic trying to be the first team to beat EnVy at Uplink this weekend. Slasher came out firing with the NV4 to give EnVy middle map control in the opening stages, but it was OpTic with the first scoring opportunity. They wasted it however, and JKap was able to throw the drone out for a reset. Scoring was hard to come by with the only points early on being throws from JKap and Karma.
The game found an offensive rythym however, with a few more throws and dunks leading to a 5-2 score at the half. It was OpTic controlling the pace in the second half, holding on to the drone to keep away any EnVy threats. A dunk from Crimsix was the dagger to bring the score to 6-2, and the Green Wall became the first team to beat EnVy in Uplink at the 2017 Call of Duty Championship.
Hardpoint
OpTic and EnVy headed to Hardpoint, with OpTic one map away from resetting the bracket. Crimsix's 6-3 start put OpTic out in front again. JKap was having a horror game, starting off 2-1, yet somehow EnVy closed the gap to 161-150 on Turbine. The casters cut to collected EnVy team chat, who remained confident despite OpTic keeping a healthy lead. Crimsix and OpTic put an end to their hopes soon after that, closing out Scorch Hardpoint 250-204 to reset the bracket.
OpTic Gaming vs Team EnVy: Match 2
Hardpoint
EnVy tried to end their map 1 struggles against OG, scoring the first 15 points on Throwback Hardpoint to take the early lead. A big push from Crimsix tied up the score and brought the Amway Center to life, but EnVy broke in the Barn again to wrestle the lead back. The match started to resemble all the others, as OpTic held Bike Path to build a 50 point lead. EnVy decided to give up Bike Bath for an early rotation to Baseball, and the move paid off as the teams headed to the trains seperated by only 12 points.
EnVy built a lead of their own as the teams battle over a contested Bike Path. FormaL took the zone with a clever FTL jump, and Optic briefly grabbed the lead. It was JKap making up for his dissapointing first match to keep EnVy in this one, but the Green Wall started to show signs of being the best Hardpoint team in the world. Similar to EnVy's earlier decision, OpTic punted Bike Path to set up at Baseball with only 6 seconds needed to take map 1. The move worked, and OpTic grabbed Hardpoint 250 - 171.
Search and Destroy
OpTic became the first team to beat EnVy at Uplink, and face a similar Herculian task in trying to beat them at S&D. OG came out hot, taking the first 2 rounds of Search. EnVy had the answer, taking out Karma in a 2v1 to get on the board then Scump in a 3v1 to get on the board. OpTic grabbed round 5 with an impressive kill on Apathy, with three OpTic players getting bullets on him.
It was John's turn to show off, grabbing a two piece to bring the series back to 3. Both teams were playing at a level that no one else has reached at the Call of Duty Championship. OpTic grabbed two straight rounds to bring the Amway Center to its feet, with OpTic chants getting louder than ever. Karma led the way at match point, quickly taking down EnVy to be one map away from OpTic's first ever Call of Duty Championship.
Uplink
The opening minute was a defensive struggle, with both teams maybe feeling the nerves of the championship. it was OpTic opening the scoring with a Crimsix throw as Karma led the way. A dunk from John got EnVy on the board, but a throw from Karma tied the score at 2. The Amway Center then got loud for a Crimsix dunk that sent Optic into the break up 4-2.
EnVy had a chance for a throw, but FormaL made the defensive play of the tournament, skying for an interception to save a certain point. Two minutes remained, with EnVy unable to move the drone. A cheeky play by SlasheR saved an Active Camo dunk, but Opic still grabbed a throw to bring the score to a two posession game.
The fans could feel the result, as the noise level rose with each second. A final dunk from OpTic sealed it, and OpTic Gaming are World Champions.