Player-Portrait: Lambo

Yojimbo & tudy
28 oct. 2015
4 min de lecture

In the next few weeks we will interview some of Natural Selection 2's finest competitive players. We ask them about their humble beginnings and why they own today. How did they become so good at flashing lifeforms? And which strategies or hardware do they employ to achieve that ever elusive "50 - 5 br0"?

Our very first interviewee is known to the NS world as "Lambo" you may have heard of him..., without any further ado over to Lambo.

Lambo posing in topographical with Godar emblazoned on his shoulder pad

Yojimbo: Please introduce yourself.

Lambo: When everything began I was just another 16 years old Viking from Iceland. I originally went under the name Lamb back when I started playing Natural Selection 2 roughly 4 years ago. My playtime was limited to publics for a few weeks but I learned the basics of the game really fast, since I had a few hours in Natural Selection 1.

One day I saw talk about a website called www.ensl.org while playing, the thought of competitive play quickly got me interested and the same day I played my first gather: the experience was a whole different yet better game. Coincidentally, another Icelandic player was in the gather and was determined I had potential. He offered me a spot on an Icelandic team called Goðar (translates to priest/chieftain) regardless of how inexperienced I was with competitive play. We started training early and without knowing I found myself playing official competitive matches with them. I didn't know what my role was, since I was so unfamiliar with everything going on.

As time passed I quit Goðar and joined duplex, one of the oldest teams, which had gone through some roster changes and was in need of players. As we played, I was made the res-biter, because they thought I did a good job in both staying alive & dealing with re-cappers. It wasn't decided it just kind of happened.

It was now September 2013: I had stayed with duplex for 5 months when I made the decision to take a break from the competitive scene to focus on both work, college & trying out new games. It wasn't until August 2015 I started playing again. I quickly got re-introduced to the game and got picked up by Do it yourself - previously known as 2eZ. They already had a full team, so I stayed as a substitute for them during Season 6. At the beginning I was made Lerk, but I wasn't really fond of it and once we cycled lineups I changed to Fade. Recently I made the decision to quit the team mid-season due to unfortunate events.

Presently, I'm the European League Admin for www.ensl.org & waiting for Season 8.

"Now there's something you don't see everyday, thank god!

Yojimbo: Can you describe your team’s playstyle?

Lambo: I don't think I ever went that far with my first team Goðar. To me it was just a group of friends having fun, laughter; and synergy got me pretty far.

My experience on duplex was completely different, since I got a lot better. Our Alien play could beat every team there was during that time. We were the ones who abused rushing the Marine base due to poor laning, leaving the marines on constant defense. Some say that version of duplex was the reason the laning meta was changed. People had to enforce it.

Do it yourself's playstyle was hyper-aggression on Marines. Most teams didn't know how to respond which led to quick victories.

Yojimbo: Is there a specific hardware you believe to give you an advantage?

Lambo: Definitely a 144hz monitor. The difference is insane and is a must have for most, if not all games. When it comes to mice & keyboards, I think that's purely personal preference, but I've gone through several mice and the Razer Deathadder has always stood out. Headsets usually perform equally to their price. A good & comfortable headset is always good to have for that extra wallhack.

Yojimbo: New players often struggle in their first games. What advice would you give them?

Lambo: Natural Selection 2 is far from the easy-to-learn section. Have patience while learning, spend time in the tutorials and watch videos/livestreams. To my experience, most new & present players have no ambition. If you don't show any effort in learning or becoming better you'll be left with either never fully experiencing the game or dull gameplay & eventually give up on it.

We all know Natural Selection 2 relies on teamwork but that's not always an option in some games due to arrogant or inexperienced people. If you're seeking to improve, try focusing on your own game. Set yourself a goal before playing: defending resources, staying alive, supporting teammates, and so on. Not a lot of people realize but positional play & gamesense is far more important than aim.

Yojimbo: What would you like to see in the future of NS2?

Lambo: That would be quite a long list, but top of my head worth mentioning is a matchmaking system, a fix to hit-registration, new balanced/playable maps, an actual skill system & player retention.

Yojimbo: What was your most embarrassing moment in NS2 competitive play?

Lambo: When public players could identify my cheating but competitive players could not. Kappa

Thank you for taking the time to answer these questions Lambo! Stay tuned for more interviews coming soon!