We’re Still yet to See shox and kennyS

At least what the pairing was billed as.

Now approaching their one year anniversary, what should have been the marriage that reinvigorated French Counter-Strike back to its former heights has not borne out as the dual pronged lighting rod we had long been in anticipation of.

Four years of musical chairs

VeryGames would enter Global Offensive by retaining their esteemed CS:S roster. The opening twelve months of competition would see the Frenchmen jostling for at best second fiddle to the tyrannous Swedes; Ninjas in Pyjamas. The team’s AWPer in kennyS had struggled to fully flourish under Ex6TenZ’s structure, and despite scoring commendable numbers, Kenny’s tenure within this iteration of VeryGames was short lived, it being cited that a lack of experience has been the move’s premier motivator.

Famed for his excellence in Source, where he was widely held in the conversation for the greatest ever, shox entered the frame as Kenny’s replacement. The Frenchman’s contentious past with his new found teammates cast doubt as to whether VG could overcome the internal frictions that had led to his prior dismissals. Before long this scepticism would be dispelled. In establishing VeryGames as the best on the planet, shox would eclipse GeT_RiGhT as Counter-Strike’s number one player.

The opening months of 2014 would see shox’s team — then under organisation Titan — have their world beating status questioned. Following a quarterfinals elimination at Copenhagen Games, shox would announce his departure from Titan. This shocking revelation appeared career suicide, it being speculated that the organisation’s decision to relocate their players into a team house had not resonated well with shox.

Having grafted for a year within the French underbelly, kennyS would once again receive the call to join Ex6TenZ’s side. Although the AWPer performed to the best of his abilities, Titan were soon slipping down the rankings and shortly after the major in Cologne a French shakeup would occur. Following a peculiar period at the helm of Epsilon, shox would again find himself amongst teammates commensurate to his talents, however he would not be accompanying Titan, but rather their newly-formed challengers to the French crown; LDLC.

KQLY’s ban would mean kennyS’ ascension to the best in the world was in vein, his teammates lacking the required ability to capitalise on their AWPer’s incredible performances. shox’s time aboard LDLC (later EnVyUs) would see him take a step back from the monster he’d been in years prior, nevertheless shox still exhibited some stellar reminiscent showings. The April of 2015 would bring Valve’s controversial AWP update, and with the weapon’s restricted mechanics causing its effectiveness to be dented, as was the confidence of Kenny.

With rumours of an EnVyUs fracture amidst the scene, shox’s frustrations saw him occupy a more focal position within the team. However, even the Frenchman’s improved play was unable to counterbalance nV’s fast emerging deficiencies. Kenny’s gradual return to form coincided with the end of EnVyUs’ fuse and before long Global Offensive’s second French revolution was upon us. Here, shox and Kenny would switch teams; the latter certainly awarded the favourable side of the trade.

Photo credits: (Left) Helena Kristiansson, ESL; (Right) Patrick Strack, ESL

Now under the nV banner, the closing stages of 2015 would see kennyS reassert himself as an elite tier player, seizing upon the grand accolade of the major MVP award in Cluj-Napoca. Despite being condoned to a team of outcasts, shox defied his adverse circumstances and held Titan to a ranking they would have no right of claiming without him. The new year brought updated round and bomb timers alongside the sharp decline of the major champions in EnVyUs.

In the April of 2016 — then under organisation G2 — shox would supersede Ex6TenZ as his team’s captain. Across the subsequent couple of months following his transition the Frenchman reminded us as to why he’s considered amongst the Global Offensive greats. Alongside his sidekick in ScreaM, shox’s sublime play would spearhead his team to a duo of world class placings. Over in the EnVyUs camp, in spite of Kenny’s consistently good performances, his squad’s fall from grace continued throughout the year, a disparity to the elite side they had been during late 2015.

World’s finally collide

G2’s regression during the latter half of 2016 would have French Counter-Strike hitting rock bottom. With both sides scrambling to retain even a top ten ranking, rumblings of change would soon reach the surface. Having been the standouts of their respective teams it seemed inevitable that this cycle would see shox and kennyS coalesce. Shortly after the Atlanta major these rumours reached fruition; France’s greatest would be side by side on G2.

It had taken until Global Offensive’s fifth year of competition, but with abstinence comes heightened excitement and this eventual coupling was a truly tantalising prospect. With some distinguished French names rounding out their supporting cast, expectations were rightfully set upon Counter-Strike’s top step. The community watched on in awe of the fireworks that were surely to follow.

2017’s one-sided duet

The recently past year would have kennyS back in contention for Global Offensive’s best AWPer. The Frenchman’s performances across 2017 would be the sole stability throughout his team’s erratic year, and being the shining player during both of G2’s prominent titles kennyS has certainly fulfilled his end of the bargain. Unfortunately, the same cannot be ushered for shox. Perhaps his Achilles heel has always been an overly modest perception of his own talents, and over 2017 shox’s reluctance to assume a star position has seen the Frenchman descend to relative mediocrity for his superlative standards.

G2 would be a team plagued with violent inconsistency over the course of 2017, on any given Sunday they could arrive in championship winning form whilst equally capable of plummeting out in the group-stage before the weekend is even upon them. Being a team ridiculed for questionable economic decisions, shox’s leadership appears an inadequate trade-off for what he’s relinquished in individual performance.

Although G2 has witnessed momentous highs, the pairing in isolation has been an underwhelming affair. With no signs that shox will relieve his captaincy role the immediate future looks bleak for us connoisseurs of this butterfly’s finesse. However, to doubt that shox can return to Counter-Strike’s elites is an naive belief, for he is not a player guided by the pursuits of clinical precision but rather a person piloted by his emotions and when shox’s cogs align, he’s a force to be reckoned with. The Frenchman’s reemergence from desertion in leading his band of outcasts past EnVyUs as their region’s premier hope is proof enough that shox’s brilliance transcends ordinary supposition. It’s simply a matter of time before shox is atop to the world; let’s just hope he does so with kennyS beside him, granting us the French superstar duo we have thus far been denied.