Interview with FoRePLayy about his return to competitive gaming

There has been a lot of excitement around the former Pro Gamer Skyler "FoRePLayy" Johnson making his announcement that he was going to be returning to competitive console. After the recent BlackOps: 2 announcements the 23 year old decided that it was time for him to once again pick up the pad for console domination!.

It is possible that is one of the greatest decorated console gamers around today and at the mere age of only 23 has achieved what most console gamers cannot even imagine within their gaming careers, most view as a legend within the console scene due to the sheer numbers of wins and performances him and his team mates have made over the last 5 years taking over 1400 Call of Duty: 4 wins and racking up a mind-blowing 500 wins over the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and black ops series.

He was one of the original co-founders of the greatly respected North American Team EnvyUs which is still currently in the top 3 North American teams. The team consisted of the four man roster Fierce, Nemesis, Stainville & FoRePLayy which was a force to be reckoned with.

We had a chance to catch up with after his recent announcement and he proceeded to shed insight into his gaming career up until now. Enjoy!

 

Can you give our viewers a quick summary of how you entered the competitive side of gaming?

FoRePLayy: I first started playing video games after I got hurt in college football. I never really played video games at all except for occasional Madden tournaments at friends' houses. I wasn't your traditional gamer, I guess. Then after I got hurt I picked up Halo 2 and loved playing FFAs in that because of me being so competitive, and I started learning more about MLG and tournaments for cash prizes. Then in 2008 I participated in the first ever Pro Circuit Ladder event for Call of Duty and ended up placing third and never placed outside of top 4 the rest of the year. I guess that's what jump started me in competitive gaming.

 

For all the fans wondering could you give some insight into what attending your first MLG/LAN event is like & past experience?

FoRePLayy: It was a National Championship in 2008 I believe, and to be honest it was nothing but a good time. We ended up placing second and I was extremely happy with my team's performance because we were the only team in the whole 2008 season that stuck together.

 

What are your views on the Call of Duty community as it stands?

FoRePLayy: It is good. We have a lot of potential and everyone in this community seems driven. Everyone wants to be a part of something or is creating their own piece of history, at least amongst the competitive crowd. I have the utmost respect for most teams and players in this community.

 

 What are your hopes for the upcoming Call of Duty title?

FoRePLayy: My hopes are that Call of Duty competitive players will finally get their wish and have not only LAN capabilities from the beginning of the game but also that maybe the awareness of competitive gaming can spread, so that all the millions of people who purchase the game will know that there are more to video games and some legit tournaments. I guess I just hope the next Call of Duty can thrive in eSports.

 

If you had to pick a single attitude in your gaming career that you consider being the most important attribute to where you are now, what would it be and why?

FoRePLayy: It would be never quitting and my teammates never quitting on me. There have been so many ups and downs in my gaming career that it got to a point where winning seemed like the easier part and everything else was hard - like sponsors, funding, etc.

 

When preparing for a tournament, what's an average day like for you?

FoRePLayy: Everything is fairly normal I think whenever I would get ready for tournaments. We had such good team practice the weeks leading up to them I would always be fairly confident. The hardest part would always be not getting over hyped during games. I remember my teammates always telling me to calm down or not be so hyped at certain times.

 

Thank you for viewing and I hope you check out the Team Dignitas front page for more in-depth looks into the console gaming scene.

Interview by Kieran 'Player1' Wickham.