For the second straight year, no LAN event will be present for the ESWC US qualifiers.

Nelson, regarded as the most prolific player in the American Quake scene, not named Johnathan Wendel, will be on the sidelines for now. The ESWC 2005 runner-up and winner of the last major Quake 3 event, CPL Winter 2006, cites a busy school schedule for his inactivity. It's been months since he last touched the game, let alone received adequate practice time.

The man also gave a second explanation for his absence. "I would only sign up if either (1) fatal1ty signed up and ZeRo4 did not, or (2) the total number of registered participants were divisible by 12. Neither condition was met," Nelson explains.

Fans and competitors wishing to see Nelson in action this year shouldn't fret yet as the inaugural ESWC Masters event is a second, albeit much harder entrance qualifier to the finals. Only the top three finishers will qualify this way. "Maybe, just maybe, I'll apply for ESWC masters. I'll have time before the Masters to get in shape", says Nelson confidently. "I mean, when was the last time I didn't place top 3?"



As noted by Nelson, Hill, ESWC 2003 runner-up and QuakeCon 2003 champion, has also decided to watch from the sidelines. After a long inactivity spell, Hill has been spotted playing under alias Online for the past month against top players from the American scene. Although looking rather weak compared to his old self in various practice games early on, top tier competitors from the community have said that his deadly aim has come to fruition in recent days. After signing up for the qualifiers early on, Hill decided against it, placing much of the blame on the reason why there are LAN qualifiers in the first place.

"I think the US qualifier is full of cheaters," Hill said emphatically. "Either the USA has the top 10 players in the world, or somebody found a way to shoot 70% rail and 40% LG without even trying to control the map. I'd really love to see who's legit and who isn't." When asked on who he of the signed participants he thoughts cheated, Hill replied that he would not name names, but that it would be evident once LAN play rolls around.

On the status of the Masters event, Hill is still undecided. "Masters is a maybe right now. If I do apply and get selected, I'll be in shape."

Although Quake 3 is supported by Even Balance's PunkBuster for anti-cheat purposes, the program has not been relied on for several years. Most current CPMA servers even have PunkBuster turned off due to choppy gameplay experienced by some players. There is currently no other anti-cheat for Quake 3.

As a surprise to many, the infamous US dueler Walter "walter" Outlaw signed up, paid, and confirmed his appearance in the qualifiers, matching up with Kevin "kgb" Holowchik in the second round. Last week Outlaw wrote on ESReality that he would not participate in the qualifiers due to his schizophrenia, piling medical bills, and the lack of drive to attend a LAN event. Outlaw has never attended a LAN competition before.

"I still stand by the statement that if I attempted to qualify I would make it," Outlaw wrote in a forum post. "This is based on me seeing who is active and who is not in the North American Q3 community, and my performance against them. But as of recent I just like to play for fun, as it is one of my only leisures."

Outlaw told us that he will most likely opt out of the qualifier, and that his sign up was only a precaution if he changed his mind, which seems unlikely.

In August of 2006, Team EG's Chance "Chance" Lacina called out Outlaw as a cheater after losing to him in a tournament run by the GGL. "His rails felt like BS, and the shaft kill at the beginning, [too]", said Lacina about his match. "Autofire, probably". Since then, Outlaw gas gained increased respect throughout the community, but still receives criticism from a varied few.

Former compLexity and Mousesports star Sylka currently lives and works in the Caribbean, and doesn't have the drive nor Internet connection to compete. Sylka is currently undecided over the Masters application. He has expressed his dislike for the use of CPMA over OSP, and may the determining factor on his participation.

With several of the elite American players out of action, the door is open to several players to climb atop the throne. Among the competitors includes current Championship Gaming Series' Chicago Chimera General Manager Brian "destrukt" Flander, veterans Jared "cha0ticz" Cugno and Sean "daler" Price, and relative newcomers Shane "rapha" Hendrixson, plus the not unknown Viju “Vijal” Patel and Daniel "carnage" Sturdivant.

The tournament brackets can be found here.

--
photos: ESReality