<img src="/images/wcg2006/wcg_esr_q4_preview4B_ztride.png">

Q4 GGL World Ranking : 5
Q4 Prize Money : $16,500

Results

2006 Quakecon : 3rd
2006 Intel Summer : 3rd
2006 WSVG Dreamhack : 6th
2006 ESWC Sweden : 6th
2005 CPL Winter : 5th

Alex made the transition from Painkiller to Quake 4 with consummate ease and was highest placed of all of the ex-Painkiller players at CPL winter in 2005, finishing 5th. It was mystery as to why he did not feature in a tournament again until the summer of 2006, although in his own words there were “no big tournaments” to attend.

Never one to practice for the sake of it, his World of Warcraft was more appealing than playing Quake 4 for much of the year, but once the big tournaments came along in the summer, he was back.

Whilst he hasn’t yet won a tournament, he has been close, with his results at Quakecon and Intel Summer placing him top 3 and he has shown that even without the constant dedication to the game, he is able to pick it back up again and play to the very highest standard.

His win over av3k at Quakecon in the lower bracket may well be put into context as the young Pole gets better and be rightly regarded as an excellent win. He hardly practiced for Quakecon either and yet finished 3rd in a strong field.

If he has a weakness though, it would certainly be his periods of inactivity. You have to wonder sometimes how many tournaments he might win if he was active more often. He does have sublime aim, although sometimes even he admits he can play “stupid sometimes”.

The 1.3 patch however seems to have given him a little of the fun back. “1.3 has made the game more fun to play and I enjoy playing q4 more then q3 now, and I think all the changes are good for my style of play”.

Personally, I don’t think there is a more naturally talented individual in gaming right now, but part of me wishes that he was more interested in the game itself. Who knows what kind of domination Alex could bring to Quake 4 if he truly enjoyed playing the game. Let’s hope that his enjoyment of the 1.3 patch makes him more active and that he can truly challenge for a tournament win. An on form, motivated Ztrider is a formidable force to be reckoned with.

There are plenty of Swede’s vying for a place in the Eight that will attend WCG, personally I think this one deserves to be there, but only you can make that happen.