It was fitting that Championship Sunday of Season Three showcased some of the best matches of Call of Duty we’ve seen throughout the year of Advanced Warfare. As the day dawned, OpTic Gaming, Epsilon eSports, FaZe and Team eLevate were the final four contenders of the title of Season Three Champions, but at the end of the day, only one would win. OpTic Gaming earned their place in the Grand Finals after sending Epsilon eSports to the Losers Bracket Final on Saturday night, but the big question would be who would join them. (Check out our Friday and Saturday recaps if you missed any of the incredible action.)
FaZe vs. Team eLevate
FaZe, hungry for a rematch against Epsilon, got on the board first during their series with Team eLevate that kicked off the action on Sunday. They took Retreat Hardpoint 229-174, and squeaked out a 6-5 win on Skyrise Search and Destroy to go up 2-0 in the series. Team eLevate would finally get on the board with a narrow 9-8 win on Bio Lab Uplink, but FaZe would go up by two again in the series after taking Detroit Hardpoint 222-212. Solar Search and Destroy would go all the way to round eleven, where eLevate would stay alive in the series after taking the win, but it wasn’t enough as FaZe would take Detroit Uplink 8-5 to move on to the Losers Bracket Final.
Losers Bracket Final
The showdown for the big rematch between FaZe and Epsilon would begin on Solar Hardpoint, breaking for Epsilon as they took the map 225-181. Big plays from Epsilon would bring the series within match point as Skyrise Search and Destroy and Detroit Uplink went in their favor, 6-4 and 9-7 respectively, but FaZe turned the series around after a 224-206 win on Drift Hardpoint. This time, it was the members of FaZe showcasing big plays, as they took Bio Lab Search and Destroy in round eleven, and dominating Bio Lab Uplink 8-3 to force the game to the seventh and final map. The series would come to an end on Riot Search and Destroy, as FaZe took the map in round eleven to complete the 0-3 comeback, moving on to face OpTic Gaming in the Grand Finals.
Grand Finals
Map one of the Grand Finals would take place on Compound Hardpoint, FaZe firmly in charge as they took the game 231-183. Six of eight first bloods on Riot Search and Destroy went to FaZe as they took the map 6-2, Enable and ZooMaa leading the way for them to go up 2-0 in the series.
Everyone on OpTic Gaming contributed at least one Uplink as the action moved to Parliament, Karma leading the way with four as they took the map 9-3 to finally get on the board. The first half of Solar Hardpoint showed OpTic narrowly in the lead, with Crimsix doing the share of the objective work, while ZooMaa’s slaying opened up opportunities for Attach to break hills for FaZe. The map went for FaZe, 208-207, as they were able to flood the last hill in the final seconds to keep it in contested territory. Recovery Search and Destroy was tied through the first six rounds, but back to back rounds from FaZe led to a rally to end the map 6-4, taking the first series 4-1.
FaZe opened up with a 30 point lead on Bio Lab Hardpoint thanks to Attach, but OpTic quickly evened the score as the lead went back and forth through the map. A streak from Formal would help OpTic begin to pull away in the final two and a half minutes of the game, but once again, it would go down to the final seconds as key contests from the Greenwall kept it in their favor 213-209. Detroit Search and Destroy trade rounds to go to round eleven, where FaZe would tie the series after taking the map.
The first half of Comeback Uplink would feature FaZe on the ‘avoided’ side of the map, where they would gain a 7-1 lead. OpTic would net a few more points in their favor, but Attach would lead FaZe with 33 kills and ZooMaa would end with 4 Uplinks as Faze would go up 2-1 in the series with an 11-6 win. Textbook rotations from FaZe garnered them a large lead through the first half of Drift Hardpoint, and they were able to sustain that momentum as the final tally on the map read 250-177 to put themselves within one of taking the series and the Season Three Championships.
FaZe opened up Skyrise Search and Destroy 3-0, only allowing OpTic Gaming two kills through the first three rounds. They would power through the next two rounds, going up 5-0 before OpTic would finally put a round on the board, but it wasn’t enough as FaZe would take the next round. FaZe would complete a weekend of insurmountable comebacks with the win on Skyrise, taking the title of Season Three Champions and $40,000.
See below for a full list of placings:
1st – FaZe ($40,000)
2nd – OpTic Gaming ($25,000)
3rd – Epsilon eSports ($18,000)
4th – Team eLevate ($14,000)
5th/6th – Denial eSports ($12,000)
5th/6th – iSolation Empire ($12,000)
7th/8th – OpTic Nation ($11,000)
7th/8th – Team EnVyUs ($11,000)
9th/12th – Rise Nation ($8,000)
9th/12th – Team Kaliber ($8,000)
9th/12th – Team Orbit ($8,000)
9th/12th – TCM Gaming ($8,000)
Congratulations to all teams and players involved!
With only one major LAN left in Advanced Warfare, the MLG World Finals, be sure to follow @OpTicIntel on Twitter as we keep you updated with news, scores, stats and everything else Call of Duty.