Tom B. July 2, 2019
In a recent stream, former Counter-Strike: Global Offensive pro and popular streamer Michael "shroud" Grzesiek dismissed suggestions he was a "gaming god," insisting anyone could reach his level of play and revealing his keys to success.
In a discussion regarding shroud's ability to advance to the top rank in any first-person shooter he plays, a fan on stream asked the question whether he considered himself a "gaming god." Shroud dismissed such a title and the very idea of it.
“Do I think I'm well above your average player? Absolutely, but there's so many people that have the same skill sets as me," Shroud said. "I’m not unique, unfortunately. I might have made a unique impression but I am not unique."
To anyone hoping to replicate shroud’s success, he gave a simple explanation for his improvements and the impressive aiming abilities he has demonstrated across a multitude of FPS games. Shroud emphasized both dilgent practice and making sure that one is taking the right lessons from that practice.
“It’s not that hard. You’ve got to play a lot of games and know how to learn,” Shroud said.
With all of the practice and the matches that shroud has played over his four-year competitive career, he has likely experienced thousands of games played at a high level, giving him a bit of a leg up on most amateur players.
While the idea of "practice makes perfect" is widely known, knowing how to learn from one's practice suggests a level of reflection and analysis of a player's own game that many might not engage in. Perhaps while any aspiring professionals continue to absorb tips from shroud, they should also start to focus on the minutiae of their own game to better iron out mistakes.
Shroud retired from Cloud9 and CSGO in April 2014 and has since become one of the most popular streamers on Twitch with over 6.5 million followers. Among his greatest achievements with Cloud9 were a first-place finish at ESL Pro League Season 4's finals and a second-place finish at ESL Cologne in 2017.