Alexey "Cypher" Yanushevsky (Serious-Gaming)
LAN form: strong, second only to rapha in Dubai
Despite still failing to truly reproduce his untouchable form of 2008, Cypher looked a class above his fellow Europeans at the Extreme Masters in Dubai and will now travel to Dreamhack as the hot favourite. There are four, maybe five, players at this event that the Belarusian will be thinking about but he'll know he has what it takes to overcome them all. The 'ESWC style' map elimination system is also likely to favour Cypher as he will be free to remove T7, a well-known weakness of the Serious-Gaming player.
Going up against fooKi in the group stages should cause few problems for Cypher, who is likely to already be considering his options in the playoffs. DaHanG and Cooller are the players he'll be looking to avoid, the former pushed him to five maps in Dubai while the latter is practically his mentor. Both could prove a stumbling point but will be equally hoping themselves to avoid him until the later stages. Victory in Sweden will set Cypher up for an epic clash with rapha next time around but anything less will be viewed as a step backwards by both the player himself and the Serious-Gaming management.
Prediction: an easy choice for the top two, at least
Magnus "fox" Olsson (mousesports)
LAN form: impressive until the semis as per usual
The great fox bandwagon rolled on in Dubai with another stunning start to an event that ultimately ended in disappointment for the Swede. Victory over rapha in the group stages proved that he has the talent but elimination at the hands of Cypher the following day looked to be all too straightforward for the Belarusian. If there's one thing that fox will have hoped to develop playing alongside new mousesports teammate Cooller it will be the mental side of his game, an attribute you'd have expected to be strong in a player with the Swede's years of experience.
fox's group stage tie with av3k looks set to be a classic, with two diametrically opposed play styles on show. av3k's offensive, risk-taking play could cause problems for the precise and calculating fox, who prefers only to fight at a time and place of his choosing. With the pressure off, you'd expect the mousesports player to hold the advantage but, if his Polish opponent is back in form, fox's efforts on home soil might stutter even earlier than expected.
Prediction: Heart says top two but head suspects he'll drop out a round or two beforehand
Tim "DaHanG" Fogarty (Evil Geniuses)
LAN form: consistent but yet to hit top three
DaHanG is considered by many to be a thoroughly underrated player and this might just be the event for the American to cast off this label. Performing in rapha's shadow is a tough task for any player but DaHanG will at last be the USA's number one going into a major tournament and there'll be no excuse for failure this time around. A quarter final defeat in Dubai was harsh for the Evil Genius player but pushing Cypher to five maps is no mean feat and victory over Z4muZ in the group stages should see earn him an easier opening playoff tie.
One worry for DaHanG might be the ability of his opponents to remove T7 from the map pool in any potential tie due to the 'ESWC style' map selection. In the past he has been practically guaranteed a map win from it against the Europeans, even taking down Spart1e 24 to 0 in a particularly harrowing ten minutes for the Swede in Dubai. Now the American will have to rely on his unpredictable style to pick off victories on what will be more familiar territory for his opponents. Despite this, DaHanG still has to be considered one of the top favourites at Dreamhack and if he has continued to improve on ZTN and DM6 should prove a testing opponent for the best Europe has to offer.
Prediction: definitely top four, could make the final with a bit of luck
Anton "Cooller" Singov (mousesports)
LAN form: looked dangerous in Dubai, unlucky versus noctis
After seeing their hero fail to crack the top four in Dubai, Cooller fans feared the Russian would drift back to his recent inactivity but this looks not to be the case as he gears up for another go at Dreamhack. A string of strong online performances proved Cooller is taking this event seriously and he'll know that with rapha absent it's likely to be his best chance of claiming a major QuakeLive title for some time. As a former Dreamhack champion, the mousesports star will be on familiar ground in Jönköping and will be hoping to repay the adoration of his supporters with a big performance this weekend.
A group stage tie with l1nkje should be well within Cooller's capability. Even though the French player beat fox in Dubai, Cooller should be better equipped to think his way around a player with superior aim. Speculating on how far he'll progress from there looks easier than in Dubai and you can be sure he'll retain a certain 'fear factor' for any opponent he faces. Improving on his Dubai placing won't be easy but if he can avoid Cypher he'll definitely fancy his chances.
Prediction: a smart choice for a place in the final if he's been practicing hard
waoh di woah