Two Americas teams see exit at Cologne Play-In day one

Things started off less than stellar for the Americas region on the first day of the IEM Cologne Play-In, as both paiN and Complexity of the five teams are already on a flight back home following 0-2 records.

Complexity continues unforgettable slump

The Dallas-based organization saw yet another quick exit after another winless campaign at an event. The woes began with an opening round match against Spirit. It didn’t take long to get out of control for Complexity, going down 5-10 to close their CT side first half on Ancient. The team was unable to answer back despite a strong showing from AWPer Paytyn “junior” Johnson, only managing six offensive rounds before losing the BO1 11-16.

Just when things couldn’t get worse for Complexity, they do. A 00 Nation upset over Astralis meant a rematch between the Danes and Complexity with tournament life on the line. Complexity offered little resistance against Astralis on both maps, winning less than 20 rounds in their 0-2 elimination loss. This marks their fifth event in a row attended without winning a match, and the consecutive loss streak is now at ten, dating back to the PGL Antwerp Major.

At this stage, there are no answers left for the Complexity lineup. They’ve been unable to right any of the wrongs plaguing their growth this year, and the only option left is an overhaul of some sort.

paiN gets pushed out

One of Brazil’s representing teams fell victim to a MOUZ comeback on Nuke after mounting a strong 10-5 first half on T side. After such a strong lead on Nuke, paiN looked poised to bring it home in the BO1. Unfortunately, the lack of LAN experience got the best of them, and the more experienced MOUZ successfully mounted a comeback to force and win overtime, 19-16.

After failing to close it out against MOUZ, paiN was forced to rally back against Sprout. Despite their best efforts, they could only close out a win on Dust2, dropping both Vertigo and Ancient 10-16, and the series 0-2 against the international squad. paiN has struggled to replicate its online success in LAN, and its quick exit at Cologne Play-In is another example of the team’s LAN inexperience coming to light.

MIBR barely miss on Ancient

Brazil’s MIBR was paired against Movistar Riders on Ancient to start their Play-In experience. Things started off quite favorably for MIBR as they won six of the first seven before closing out their CT side 11-4. With things very much in MIBR’s favor, they looked poised to ride out the map into a solid BO1 victory. Unfortunately, it did not pan out that way, as they also blew a massive lead, winning only two rounds on T side before losing 13-16.

The match against Movistar was the only time we saw MIBR on day one. Tomorrow, they will settle their elimination BO3 against TYLOO, with the winner advancing to face MOUZ, putting the team in a position to get revenge for their fallen Brazilian brothers.

Imperial thrashed on day one

Like MIBR, Imperial was only made to play one game on day one. To start the event, the former Major-winning core was pitted against Outsiders on Inferno. To put it bluntly, Imperial were abused on their T side. After winning pistol, Outsiders went on a ten-round tear to force Imperial into a 1-10 deficit. Imperial clawed back to a 5-10 half, but then was victims to the same Outsiders onslaught. The Brazilians managed just one of seven rounds on the CT side, with Outsides closing the BO1 out 16-6.

After a one-sided affair such as that, Imperial should feel blessed they did not have to play their BO3 today. With an opportunity to reassess and fix their mistakes, they can come back stronger in the elimination BO3 tomorrow against ORDER.

00 Nation dunk on Danes

The new look 00 Nation impressed many in their day one efforts, taking out the No. 12 ranking Astralis with what appeared to be relative ease. In the battle of Mirage, young stars shined for 00 Nation, as AWPer Santino “try” Rigal and Bruno “latto” Rebelatto both exploded for 1.65+ rating performances en route to a 16-6 victory.

Things didn’t start off as well for them in the BO3 against Spirit, as they were demolished on their Vertigo pick, 5-16. 00 Nation didn’t falter, however, taking it right to Spirit on their map pick of Dust2, winning 16-14 to force an Ancient decider. Despite the sound defensive efforts, they couldn’t match Spirit’s intensity in the eleventh hour, falling to the Russians 13-16 on map three.

After going 1-1 on the day, 00 Nation patiently waits for the winner of ORDER and Imperial, for the two teams will face off in BO3 competition for a spot at IEM Cologne.

For day two, the Americas schedule looks like: