<img src="/images/wcg2006/wcg_esr_q4_preview4B_garpy.png">

Q4 GGL World Ranking : 18
Q4 Prize Money : $1,150

Results

2006 Kode 5 UK : 3rd
2006 Quakecon : 9th-12th
2006 Intel Summer : 13th-16th
2006 WSVG Dreamhack : 5th
2006 Covlan : 4th
2006 ESWC UK : 2nd
2006 i27 Creative Cup : 4th
2006 ESRi : 4th
2005 ZA LAN2k : 4th

The former HLDM World Champion took to painkiller like a duck to water and even finished ahead of his long time friend and PK mentor, Zaccubus at the CPL Grand Finals in 2005. His transformation to Quake 4 was similarly swift, although in recent months, as the big tournaments have arrived, his form has taken a dive.

Some say it’s the influence of a certain young lady in his life, but he himself dismisses this. “I am pretty active at the moment, more than I have ever been, probably playing 20 maps a day”. So what is it that stops this likable and well supported Englishman from making it big in Quake 4?

His talent is not in question. Anyone who witnessed his destruction of players in HLDM or the speed of his reflexes in a one off tournament in UT2004 last year can vouch for that. What is under the microscope however is his mental ability. He seemed ready and pumped up to defeat his UK nemesis, 2GD, during the recent Kode 5 UK Qualifier, yet lost in the upper bracket final against him, again. He played well, but then lost to k1ller in the consolation final and his mental game seemed totally shot.

Gareth jokes, “My strength at the moment in quake4 is dying, if u wanna know how to die watch me! I love to eat what ever you throw at me!” and continues with “I would say my movement sucks donkey cock”. Although it is obviously light hearted, it does show that he still has a low self-belief right now, but something is on the horizon that might just help him.

So how does Gareth see the 1.3 patch?

“Well 1.3 is a lot more fun than 1.2, so much faster makes the game so much more interesting... but I think my problem with the game is I get too happy and start running around like a headless chicken and start eating everything, so even though the game has been speeded up a lot, I think the game still needs to be played at a slower pace. For me anyway, but the patch overall is awesome”

The switch to 1.3 should in theory play into his hands, especially with faster movement and fast flick hit-scan being something he always thrived on in past games. He played in a recent 4Q4 online cup (that used 1.3) and whilst he didn’t win it, he showed glimpses of brilliance, giving a small hint that perhaps 1.3 could be his patch.

The fact remains, he is one of the top 20 players in the world right now, but he could be so much higher and he knows it.