Former SK Gaming Captain Carlos 'Ocelote' Rodriguez throws his scarf back into the competitive scene with his new team, Gamers2. Announced this week with a cheesy dramatic *video meant to generate hype for his still unproven mates, Ocelote's clear desire is to return to the EU LCS. But are they any good?
The new team's line up includes Ocelote in Mid, Jesper 'Jwaow' Strandgren (Top,) Sebastian 'Morden' Fernandez (Jungle,) Soler 'Yuuki60' Florent (AD,) and Hugo 'Dioud' Padioleau (Support.) If you're familiar with Ocelote's former team, 'OceloteWorld,' you'll recognize this entire roster, save for the ditching of 'Haydal' in favor of Salade Tomate Oignon's 'Yuuki60.'
Ocelote's fledgling team does have a few things going for them. They've got strong sponsors already on-board (G2A.com and Ozone,) a mansion set up in Madrid to be their gaming house, and some interesting if not entirely innovative ideas. To quote their announcement, "Our mansion will be opened up to the community where they will be able to meet the players, play some paddle or basketball, have a BBQ and truly integrate and immerse themselves in the player lifestyle and get to know the team on a personal level like never before."
But across many forums today, fans and foes of the former SK mid-laner questioned if his team has any real chance of living up to their lofty LCS goals. And we're prompted to question, what is really going on with this seemingly pre-packaged package?
Ocelote has been very successful at marketing himself and he's no stranger to the idea of branding. To me, what he's put together here is more than just a team of LOL players - it's an attractive team of LOL players, because he's not just looking at competing here, he's looking at the future of eSports and its media potential, and he knows exactly what draws the media's eye. For anyone in the business who can see the explosion brewing, it's hard not to think this team is gambling on fandom much more than any true hopes of competing on the stage at Worlds.
Not that that stops Ocelote from dreaming.
There was a pro-wrestler back in the 80s named 'The Nature Boy' Ric Flair, who used to step into the ring wearing the long, gold satin robes trimmed at the sleeves with white feathers. He was a bad guy in pro-wrestling terms, hated for his ego and vanity, and he laughed all the way to the bank with this carefully cultivated act.
Sometimes I feel like Ocelote dances on that line, although he doesn't do it intentionally. But that only makes his act all the more bizarre. Truth be told, I actually like the flamboyant Ocelote, the same as thousands of other fans. He's a caricature of himself, but he's innocent and fun and his arrogance is born out of some reality. The man is beautiful. And he's hungry. And he believes in the future of eSports. And I can't fault him for any of those things.
Insane or Genius?
