Interview with WARDELL

Joining me today is Matthew "WARDELL" Yu. WARDELL is a top prospect in CS:GO and VALORANT. He is also regarded as one of the best AWPers in North America. He has recently competed in the first season of FLASHPOINT for CS:GO and the T1 x nerdstgamers Valorant Invitational.

WARDELL, how's it going over in Toronto?

Things are going pretty well over here. The quarantine life hasn't impacted my life because all I do is game anyways. 

Let's talk a little bit about Matt instead of WARDELL for a moment. What do you enjoy doing when you aren't playing CS or VAL?

I enjoy improving in other aspects of life. Such as working out or listening to audibles to make myself better every day. I strive to become better every single day. 

What did you plan on doing before your career in CS happened? Tell me about the backup plan in case CS didn't work out if one existed.

I always wanted to become a CS professional. I was going to university at the time because it was what everyone was doing, even though I had no idea who I wanted to become or what I wanted to do. I still went through the generic route. I didn't really have a backup plan. I jumped with two feet in and never looked back ever since.

How did you come to the realization that you were good enough to make a career out of CS? Was there a pivotal moment, or did it just kind of slowly progress until you signed with Ghost Gaming?

I knew this when we qualified for ECS and ESL Pro Leagues. Ghost Gaming was essential in helping me grow as a player. When they recruited the members from Torqued, they transformed me into a better player. 

After your contract with Ghost ended in September 2019, you entered the world of free agency. How has it gone in comparison to your expectations?

I've definitely learned a lot, passed up on some wonderful opportunities, but I don't regret a single one. It went really well. I reunited with Subroza and met some pretty cool people in Infinite, Yay, FNS, and Tailored. 

Recently, you were a part of Orgless and made a pretty deep run in FLASHPOINT 1. Then, during ESL One: Road to Rio, it was announced that the team was disbanding. Without releasing details you aren't comfortable with, what happened with the team? It seems some members wanted to stay together, Subroza, for example. 

There was no reason for us to stay in CS as no Orgs were picking us up. There were a couple of teams ahead of us that would get picked up before us. Valorant came out, and this was our one and only chance to capitalize on a wonderful opportunity. That's pretty much it. 

While we are talking about CS, tell me about your thoughts on what Astralis is trying to do with six or even seven-man rosters. How do you think something like that will play out?

Yeah, I believe it would work out. Since there are a lot of tournaments, they would just swap out whoever is having a bad day and potentially swap in some fresh legs. 

You've been playing a lot of VALORANT recently, what're your thoughts on the game? What would you change about it? 

I'd change walk shooting, movement, and some abilities.

Tell me your opinion on AWPing vs. OPing. Which do you favor, and why?

I prefer CS AWPing because the AWP has 10 bullets instead of 5, and you can quick scope and no scope.

Are you able to confirm or dispel rumors that seem to be floating around regarding your future in CS or VAL? I know you have been playing both, but which will be the game we see you competing in moving forward, and why did you choose that one? 

I'll be playing Valorant because I feel that this game will take me places. 

Without releasing details that would harm your position, do you have some opportunities that you are considering? Will we see WARDELL competing at the highest level again soon?

Yeah, I've signed my contract. Soon to be announced. I'll be back and better. I'm grinding real hard for this game. So expect me to be competing at the highest level.

Thank you for your time today, Matt. Before I let you go, what is the best way for people to keep up with you, and where can they find your content. Anything you wanted to say to your fans out there?

I'm always streaming Valorant when I'm not scrimming at twitch.tv/wardell, Twitter @WVRDELL, and YouTube @wardellcsgo.

I'd say to my fans, thanks for the love and support, everyone.