eblacks blog - xLAN

Eblacks Blog moved

(Dee-Zilla)

Show your support for the 7 eblacks competing in Chengdu, China at the World Cyber Games Grand Final 2009.

We will be updating the eblacks blog which is now on http://forums.gamerhub.co.nz/ with updates, photos and videos.

2009 eblacks team competing at the WCG Grand Final

• Byron “simcore” McLean  CounterStrike 1.6 (PC)
• Nicholas ”nick” Shaw  CounterStrike 1.6 (PC)
• Bruce "infidel" Lodge  CounterStrike 1.6 (PC)
• Feroz "evolution" Brouwer CounterStrike 1.6 (PC)
• Nathan “rapture” Holden  CounterStrike 1.6 (PC)
• Jacques “skunk” de Vries TrackMania Nations Forever (PC)
• Shane “AskewDread” Langley Carom3D (PC)

Post your support here

The road ahead

(MordenNZ)

The 2009 WCG Asian Championship is at an end for the eblacks as they prepare to return to New Zealand. They return with their heads held high with one Gold medal and a silver placing for New Zealand retaining a position in the ranks of esports greatest nations. The eblacks all thank you for your support over the past few days. This isn't the end however, xLAN begins next weekend for a full weekend long esports experiance right in New Zealand where the next eblacks squad will be chosen and possibly compete at the WCG Grand Final in Chengdu, China. Our coverage of this event isn't quite over either check out the photo gallery as more photos have been uploaded and Mason's matches will be uploaded over the next couple of days. Thank you again for all your support, we at xLAN all look forward to seeing you at the national finals next weekend.

The eblacks

Closing Ceremony

(MordenNZ)

The closing ceremony of the WCG Asian Championship is done closing with it the last day of competition here in Singapore. Mason "Massi4h" Maddox received his Gold medal for Guitar Hero and with it a placing for New Zealand in the second position in the medal tally just behind Vietnam. An awesome result for New Zealand. Mason has defended his title of Asian Guitar Hero champion and the eblacks have maintained a position for New Zealand along side the greatest Asian nations in esports, a proud achievement. Following the prizes a few speeches gave us a sneak peek at the WCG Grand Final that will be held later this year in Chengdu, China. Check out some pictures of the Closing Ceremony below.

One of the closing ceremony speeches

Mason receives his medal

Mason celebrates victory

Mason wins Gold!

(MordenNZ)

Mason has once again done it and Come out on top, winning Gold for his nation for the second year in a row, a first for New Zealand and a feat that we are all proud of him for. Masons last match up was intense, Singapore picked "Hot for teacher" as his choice of song and at the last moment pulled out the win for that first song. Mason then came back at him with "Scream, Aim, Fire", Mason's favourite song scoring a win on the second song. So it came down to the tie breaker song, "". The last song was so intense, the whole crowd was holding their breath with mason pulling out a better strategic Star Power placement than his rival, securing Gold in The Asian Championship.

Mason competes while the crowd gathers

Mason takes a few questions after his win

Mason Makes it to the finals

(MordenNZ)

The match against Korea proved to be one of Masons toughest Matches with the two songs played being far closer than any previously. Video to follow. This victory however puts Mason one step closer to a Gold medal here at the WCG Asian Championship. Masons final challenger will be Singapore whom Mason has already faced but comes at him with renewed vigor, hoping to claim the title.

The Korean fails to knock mason out

Mason's fellow eblacks show him support

Masons first ladder match

(MordenNZ)

After a long delay Mason has faced his first opponant of the day, the representative from Malaysia and has come out on top making his way through the first stage of the single elimination with only two matchs between him and a Gold medal for his nation. His next match will be between Korea a nation who Mason has faced in the past and looks forward to besting this time round. Wish him luck.

Mason take on Malaysia

The Final Day

(MordenNZ)

It is the morning of Day three here in Singapore, the final day with one goal in mind, Gold. Mason is still in the running for a gold medal at this years WCG Asian Championship. his first match is against Malaysia at 1:15pm local time, 5:15pm for the folks back home, we will keep you updated on his progress through the tournament ladder as the day goes on. Meanwhile this morning Mason took a short break from his practice to calm his nerves by competing in a Virtua Fighter mini-comp, Taking all-comers and winning a free Samsung T-shirt.

Mason and his Samsung T-shirt

The state of play for the eblacks

(MordenNZ)

The end of day two is here and two of our three tournament teams have been knocked out. Fobski our FIFA player is now out of the tournament as are our DOTA team with Mason 'Massi4h' Maddox left standing. So give him all your best wishes and keep tuned as he enters the final rounds of guitar hero tomorrow. Meanwhile i have uploaded more photos from today's activities to the gallery so be sure to take a look.

Mario does raise a few questions

FIFA wraps up

(MordenNZ)

At the end of the night FIFA has wrapped up with Fobski being knocked out of the tournament in favor of the Indian and Malaysian players who will go on to play in the single elimination tomorrow. Fobski however is very positive vowing to practice now that he has some contacts and friends overseas who are also FIFA players and come back next year and wipe the field clean.

FIFA Wrap-up

New Zealand vs. Chinese Taipei - WIN

New Zealand vs. India - LOSS

New Zealand vs. Malaysia - LOSS

FIFA winds up for the day

The Final Goal

(MordenNZ)

Fobski has fought a good fight here tonight in Singapore but alas its all over with a loss to Malaysia in a match that was plagued by bad luck for the New Zealand player. 1-0 at half time with fobski about to score the equalizing goal when half time clicked over much to the teams horror. The deal was finally sealed with a rare and unlucky penalty shootout that sealed Fobski's fight.

New Zealand vs. Malaysia - LOSS

The Malaysian FIFA champion

Fobski scores one against India

(MordenNZ)

Fobski has scored a goal against the toughest competition in FIFA here in Singapore but sadly let four goals through, but not without a fight making sure India payed for each of the goals in full. With one game left against Malaysia its going to be a nailbiter.

New Zealand vs. India - LOSS

Fobski beats back India

Cosplay Contest

(MordenNZ)

To kick off the nights entertainment we were treated to the visual fiesta that was the judging of the Singapore national Cosplay competition finals which was an incredible show with people showing up in a variety of costumes from anime, comic and game fame. the winner was eventually crowned however all of the characters were superb and added a little something different to this years WCG Asian Championship.

Some of the fantastic looking Cosplayers

The Cosplay Champion of Singapore striking a pose

Enter Fobski

(MordenNZ)

Fobski after a long wait has finally started his matches for the evening. first up was Chinese Taipei which Fobski has now beaten giving him a great start to the FIFA tournament here in Singapore.

New Zealand vs. Chinese Taipei - WIN

Fobski with support crew

The Fastest Geek

(MordenNZ)

Another one of the very popular and long standing competitions here at the WCG Asian Championship has been "The fastest Geek". The competition seeks to find the individual who can assemble a full working PC in the shortest amount of time. There was some heavy competition with the winner scrapping through just milliseconds ahead of his closest opponant with a time of 2:41 which is quite frankly incredible.

Who will be the fastest Geek

One of the winners and a mountain of prizes

Arcade challenge finals

(MordenNZ)

While the WCG proper has been raging on over the last few hours attention has shifted to some of the heavily contested arcade tournaments going on at the Arcade Challenge, a tournament that has brought together some of the biggest names in The fighting scene. The final of Street Fighter IV just finished placing Itizan from Japan at the top, feared and respected by many as one of the true arcade masters.

The Street Fighter IV final match gets under way

Cosplay Orchestra

(MordenNZ)

While theres a lull in the action as the eblacks wait for their final member to start his first match the team decided to check out some of what is happening around the venue. At the moment we have a fantastic Cosplay Orchestra performing on the main stage. very different from anything ive seen before but alot of fun to watch as scenes are acted out on stage to a full piece orchestra at the foot of the stairs. Here are some pictures although they don't really do the event justice.

One of the orchestra Cosplayers

Part of the Orchestra

DOTA Team Farewell

(MordenNZ)

The end is nigh for the DOTA team sadly with two losses and a win bumping them out of the competition here at the WCG Asian Championship. The team has done remarkably well in a very tough pool, with all of their opponants comprised of great players stitched together with some great teamwork. we at xLAN are all very proud of their progress this year in Singapore.

New Zealand vs. Korea - LOSS

New Zealand vs. India - WIN

New Zealand vs. Singapore - LOSS

KNOCKED OUT

Minhae moving furiously to defend

DOTA struggle ends

(MordenNZ)

Our DOTA team has just finished up their last game against Singapore, A very hard fought battle lasting over an hour. The team fought very well but in the end lost to the Singaporean's teamwork and excellent micro abilities. The team has done remarkably well against some very impressive competition.

New Zealand vs. Singapore - LOSS

A strong effort from Simon and Sharon in the last match

DOTA Scrubs up India

(MordenNZ)

I'm pleased to announce that our DOTA squad has pulled back and won against India in a well fought match with a superb draft by the New Zealand team and some great micro in game. Simon and Minhae certainly led the team through the match with some spot on calls.

New Zealand vs. India - WIN

A solid performance from the team

Gallery Update

(MordenNZ)

The Gallery has just been updated with 50 new photos from this morning's action, be show to check them out.

one of the referees lay down the law

Mason through pool play

(MordenNZ)

With mason winning all threee of his pool play matches it means that he makes it through at the top of his pool and faces another few opponants tomorrow on his climb to the top of the single elimination ladder which begins tomorrow morning here in Singapore. Just to recap today's results.

New Zealand vs. Philippines - WIN

New Zealand vs. Australia - WIN

New Zealand vs. Singapore - WIN

This is an amazing result once again from Mason, so keep tuned and show your support for him tomorrow as he fights his way to gold for New Zealand. In the meantime keep tuned for more results from the DOTA team and Fobski in the FIFA tournament later tonight.

One of Mason's impressive scores (left)

Mason levels Singapore

(MordenNZ)

For the final time in the round robin pool play Mason has pulled out a win against Singapore, one of the tougher representatives in the competition. Mason however showed him the New Zealand way and pulled out all the stops to take a commanding lead out of pool.

New Zealand vs. Singapore - WIN

Mason Confidently reflects on his victory

Mason continues his streak

(MordenNZ)

Mason has once again grasped victory in another resounding win against Australia, once again proving who are the true Guitar Hero masters in the pacific. Both songs went to mason with commanding leads in both, knocking the Australian player out of the competition.

New Zealand vs. Australia - WIN

Mason vs. Australia

DOTA suffers a loss

(MordenNZ)

The results of the first DOTA match are in and New Zealand has suffered its first loss of the morning against Korea but gave a strong fight against a very experianced Korean team and made them pay for every inch of ground. wish them luck as they go into their second match against India.

New Zealand vs. Korea - LOSS

The DOTA team put up a strong effort against Korea

Mason wins against Philippines

(MordenNZ)

Mason has just beaten the Philippines in a solid show of skill, beating the Philippines representative on the first song by 150,000 points and gaining such a lead in the second song in the best of three series that he resigned from the match. A solid win Mason show your support for him as he continues his matches.

New Zealand vs. Philippines - WIN

Mason plays the Philippines

FIFA Matches

(MordenNZ)

Fobski is spending the morning cheering on his team mates while he waits for his matches later in the day at 1800 local time giving him plenty of tiem to scope out his competition. His lineup is as follows.

FIFA Matches

6:00pm New Zealand vs. Chinese Taipei

6:30pm New Zealand vs. India

7:00pm New Zealand vs. Malaysia

Fobski supports his comrades with the flag in back

Guitar Hero Matches

(MordenNZ)

Mason is a picture of cool at the moment as he helps the referees to set up the new LED TV's which have been having some significant delay issues, possibly game breaking ones. He is due to start a little bit later today with his first match at 1130 local time.

Guitar Hero Matches

11:30am New Zealand vs. Philippines

12:00pm New Zealand vs. Australia

12:30 New Zealand vs. Singapore

Mason chills before his first match

DOTA Matches

(MordenNZ)

The DOTA squad have a tough day ahead with their pool containing some of Asia's finest teams. Listed below is the matchups and times for the DOTA pool play today.

DOTA Pool Play

10:00am New Zealand vs. Korea

12:00pm New Zealand vs. india

2:00pm New Zealand vs. Singapore

As you can see the competition is fierce so wish them luck.

Sharon prepares for the upcoming match

Dawn of Day 2

(MordenNZ)

As day two of the competition dawns, the first trials of the eblacks begin. after hastily waking to catch the buses to suntec the eblacks took tiem to get their game faces on and prepare for their first match ups of the day. With some tough competition looming, the eblacks have a long day ahead so keep checking back for updates throughout the day.

Samla gets ready for the day ahead

End of Day One

(MordenNZ)

The end of day one is upon us now, the eblacks have wrapped up their practice for the night and are hitting the hay for some much needed rest for tomorrows competition which begins early morning with the first DOTA match begining 10am local time or 2pm NZ time followed by Guitar hero begining at 1pm or 5pm NZ time and FIFA starting off later in the day at 4pm or 8 at night back in New Zealand. So tomorrow show your support for the eblacks as they go into pool play. I will be updating you tomorrow all day long and am hoping to live blog some of the DOTA matches for all the fans back home. Meanwhile catch Masons matches as they are uploaded to Youtube throughout the day. While your waiting however check out the photos uploaded into the new WCG Asian Championship gallery to see some of what we are seeing over here in Singapore.

massi4h and fobski prepare to head back to base

The Nights Activities

(MordenNZ)

With the evening winding down after the Opening ceremony the eblacks have split up for the night to prepare for the coming day. The DOTA squad have headed off for some practice matches in the WCG Gaming arena against Bangladesh. Massi4h is checking out the finals of the Singaporean guitar hero national finals to see who he is up against meanwhile Fobski is sitting down to a few practice matches against India back at the hotel, its looks to be a long night ahead.

The DOTA squad get their practice on

Some serious competition brewing

The Singaporean Guitar Hero Final wraps up

Bearing the Flag

(MordenNZ)

No opening ceremony at the WCG would be complete however without the Flag procession, Each country takes its turn to let a representative carry their nations flag on stage and recite the WCG oath of fairplay stating that their teams and nations will obey the rules of the WCG and help provide a fun and competitive atmosphere for all nations. Our flag bearer this year was a no brainer with Mason taking the stage proudly with the New Zealand flag.

VIP's and Guests with the flag lineup

Mason proudly bears the NZ Flag

The New Zealand flag

The Opening Ceremony

(MordenNZ)

The opening Ceremony has just come to a close after some welcome messages from some of esports most influential people in the Asia region. The directors of the various sponsers also gave messages highlighting the spirit of competition that is behind every WCG event, and the desire to bring honour and glory to both individuals and nations over the coming days. we were also treated to a few videos of the upcoming torch relay as it journeys from Germany, the site of the previous WCG Grand final through various nations including New Zealand and finally making its way to China for the 2009 WCG Grand Final. Rounding off the night were the messages of fair play from the head referee here in Singapore.

Our first speaker and honorable guest

Mr Kim takes the stage

The WCG Expo

(MordenNZ)

While the competition on stage is certainly the main focus at this years event, there are numerous other booths and stands to be checked out including a massive Samsung booth with some of the latest Samsung technologies, one of which being the new generation LED TV's which the guitar hero players will be using tomorrow once the competition begins. Retailers and other companies have set up booths and areas to test out their wares, check out the photos in the gallery later on today to see some of the best. One of the highlights though is the massive arcade area set up for the fighting comp's which have been spectacular to watch.

One of the arcade setups at the event

Some of the latest motion capture technology at work

Registration

(MordenNZ)

The eblacks have finally traveled into Suntec city, home of this years WCG Asian Championship and have just undergone the registration process which this year was fairly painless, every member of the team receiving a tag to identify them as part of the New Zealand team and one of the official Asian Champs T-shirts which must be worn at all times while competing in the gaming arena or in any stage matches, now the waiting game begins until the start of the competition tonight.

This years entry tag to the WCG Asian Championship

Day One Dawns

(MordenNZ)

Day One of the Asian Championship dawns over here in Singapore, With the eblacks rising early for some practice and what has become the breakfast of champions for successive years of eblack Squads in Singapore, the Iced Milo from McDonalds. Perhaps the best drink ever made, it serves to invigorate the eblacks for the day ahead. Following breakfast the team broke up with the DOTA players checking out the competition and Massi4h and Fobski checking out the area surrounding the Hotel. This afternoon the team will be heading into Suntec city, this years venue for the Asian Championship for registration followed by the opening ceremony at 9pm New Zealand time which is looking to be quite an event with Massi4h serving as our flag bearer. Keep tuned for updates later in the day as well as some photo uploads later tonight.

eblacks set out for Breakfast

The Iced Milo, the stuff of legends

The eblacks Headquarters

(MordenNZ)

The New Zealand eblacks have settled into their new headquarters, and getting some practice and rest in for the coming day of tournament play. Our luxurious accomodation happens to be Hotel 81 in Dickson st in the heart of Singapore. Close to the venue and with some great internet for some good practice matches. Close by are the Sri Lankan and Indian Teams. the day is set to be fantastic with the opening ceremony tonight. Stay tuned.

Hotel 81 on a steamy morning

eblacks arrive in Singapore

(MordenNZ)

Early this morning the eblack squad for 2009 arrived in Singapore for this years Asian Championship. The team comprising of 7 members this year with players competing in one of three esports diciplines; DOTA, FIFA and Guitar Hero World Tour. Returning champion Mason "Massi4h" Maddox is returning this year to defend his gold medal and again take out this years competition. Another addition is that of our first female eblack, Sharon who competes on the DOTA squad. we will be posting up some interviews with each of the eblacks soon.

In the meantime ill leave you with this photo of this years eblacks squad.

This years eblack squad

Check out the eblacks blog for updates

eblacks finish up in Germany

(MordenNZ)

Now at the end of the Grand Final the eblacks comtemplate the flight home to New Zealand after a very successful campaign here in Cologne with one player getting out of pool play and the other members of the team doing better than any other New Zaland team previously. more photos have been uploaded from the final days activities for you to check out and make sure you keep tuned over the coming days and months for our final coverage of this event and events in the future. Thus ends the long year for this eblacks squad with numerous victories, medals and awards if you think you have what it takes to be one of the eblacks keep tuned for information on the next WCG NZ Qualifier.

The 2008 eblacks

The Closing Ceremony

(MordenNZ)

The WCG closing ceremony was a spectacular event, which contained a preshow of epic proportions with some of Germanys best music talent, after the preshow the medals were handed out to all the place getters as well as the prize money. Following that the WCG was then taken down and folded away for another year waiting for its revival in Chen'do in China the host city for the 2009 WCG Grand Final. the end of the night also revealed the overall winning team for this year and the prize went to Korea for a total of seven medals earned, a fantastic effort.

One of the German techno pop stars

State of the nation

(MordenNZ)

At the end of day six the mood around the New Zealand camp is positive after a fantastic WCG Campaign with one player out of pool play and the other members of the team doing very well in their individual pools. Tonight the New Zealand team goes out to celebrate the campaign and we will be back tomorrow with more interviews, stands, photos and videos on the final day of the WCG Grand Final so keep an eye out for that in the meanttime check out the gallery which has been updated with more images for you to browse including shots of Grubby, a pro gamer getting rushed for photos and autographs just like any otehr superstar.

Grubby gets overwhelmed by fans

The bus...

(MordenNZ)

As is mentioned in the video words can not quite express the bizarre look of the one of the Samsung mobile buses, to the point where it is just easier to show you. So take a look below at one of Samsungs stranger creations.

The Samsung Bus

The Main Stage

(MordenNZ)

the main stage was pumping today as many of the final matches for each of the WCG titles was played, We thought we would show you the amazing crowds that get pulled to watch these games, especially the high profile titles such as Warcraft and Starcraft and their incredible followings.

The Korea vs. Korea stage match

All fun and games

(MordenNZ)

one of the stands at the Grand Final was all about mobility and getting gamers from A to B in all sorts of weird and wacky ways one of which was none other than the Segway which we took the time to check out and have some fun with while showing you the other toys on offer.

Upcoming game releases

(MordenNZ)

Microsoft as one of the premier partners of the WCG showed off some of the upcoming releases on both the XBOX 360 and PC, of which included the Quantum of Solace, the new Tomb Raider and Prince of Persia. Some very cool games which are well worth checking out when they release in New Zealand. We bring them right to you from the Microsoft dome.

Ambx and you

(MordenNZ)

In the Phillips stand, the company was showing off its awesome ambx system, a cool piece of tech that helps bring the gaming environment to life. The full kit includes a speaker system, Fans and a lighting kit which all change depending on the environment you are in. We try it out in the video below and I fail at guitar hero, I still maintain it was the lag.

Samsung primary stand

(MordenNZ)

The Samsung main stand was also worth checking out with a ton of new gadgets and toys from Samsung including new HD digital camcorders with onboard memory and its next gen mp3 players. In this video we show you around the stand and give you a look at all the new toys.

Samsung mobile stand

(MordenNZ)

Today after the team finished up their final campaign efforts we decided to check out some of the local stands. To start we checked out the Samsung mobile stand where Samsung is showing off its latest mobiles and Asphalt 4.

Masons final word

(MordenNZ)

Mason "Massi4h" Maddox has put in a tremendous amount of effort in this years WCG Grand final after winning the Pan Asian Championship earlier this year he came into the grand final with a gold already under his belt and blazed through the opposition in his pool, being unbeaten in pool play. Finally conceding defeat to the italian representative in a close, hard fought guitar hero battle. Mason speaks to us about his final match, the WCG in general and his plans for the future.

Mason talks of guitars and heros

Qtr Final Match vs Italy

Its all over for the eblacks

(tmdude)

The eblacks campaign at the World Cyber Games 2008 Grand Final is now over; with Mason “Massi4h” Maddox being the only New Zealand player to make it out of pool play this year and he was defeated by the Italian player on Guitar Hero 3, moments ago, Mason has done New Zealand proud by making it this far through the tournament and Anthony and I are extremely happy with his performance this year.

We have a video interview with him after his match and this will be uploaded this afternoon.

Anthony and I would like to thank you all for the support and kind words.

Guitar Hero 3 Final Results for New Zealand

Rounds	vs	NZ Time	Songs	Win/Loss
Round 1	USA	12:00am	Weezer - 'My Name is Jonas'	Win
Round 2	Philippines	1:00am	Guns 'n' Roses - 'Welcome to the Jungle'	Win
Round 3	Switzerland	1:30am	Metallica - 'One'	Win
Round 4	Austria	2:00am	Disturbed - Stricken'	Win
Round 5	Portugal	2:30am	Slipknot - 'Before I forget'	Win
Round 6	Germany	3:00am	Heart - 'Barracuda'	Win
Round 8	Italy	12:00am	Slipknot – Before I forget	LOSS
			In Flames – Take This Life	LOSS

The morning of day six

(MordenNZ)

Day six has dawned on us here in Germany and the atmosphere is tense as our last remaining player in the tournament, Mason "Massi4h" Maddox prepares to take on all comers in the final portions of the Guitar hero tournament. Only three songs stand between him and victory. Show your support people as this awesome player prepares himself for his upcoming matches. Meanwhile the rest of the eblacks have come to support and cheers on Mason as he proudly represents his country.

Mason, a picture of cool

Status at the end of day five

(MordenNZ)

At the end of day five we have seen another two of our compeditors knocked out of the running after some superb efforts, great matches and epic plays. Wugga has been knocked out of the running after some very hard fought Virtua Fighter battles and Kowi after a long struggle between a three way tie with Mexico and Belarus has been knocked out with belarus going forward. Both these eblacks have done their nation proud and put up a tremendous effort against some fearsome odds. Soon to follow are wrap up videos with both of these compeditors and more. Keep tuned for tomorrows day six coverage including Mason's continuation through the tournament later. show your support people.

Kowi fights on

Kowi, beaten but not broken

(MordenNZ)

After a three way tie battle that lasted the better part of three hours, Kowi has sadly been knocked out but despite that he still performed incredibly well considered the odds. He talks to us below about his matches today in his pool and what his plans are for the future.

Kowi wraps up the day

Wrap up with Wugga

(MordenNZ)

Wugga has fought the long fight today at the WCG, not qualifying for his pool but still taking alot of rounds from his rivals. He speaks to us in the youtube video below about his reflections from the event and his hopes for the future of Virtua Fighter.

Part #1

Part#2

Battle of the WCG bands

(MordenNZ)

Over the course of the WCG a number of bands have taken to the stage to try and win over the crowds with their versions of the WCG spirit theme song, some have tried a more traditional approach, others rock and metal and yet other opera even. These bands are in to win huge prizes from the WCG global sponser Samsung. Be sure to check out some of the photos of the bands, we will also eventually post what we have of them on video post event. Meanwhile more photos have been posted be show to check out the photo gallery for more images from the WCG here in Germany.

A WCG guitarist struts his stuff

Singer/Guitarist shows off his skills

WCG singer rocks out

The Halo squad fights to the last

(MordenNZ)

The eblacks Halo squad has finished up its grueling back to back matches in a pool described by some as death itself with some of the highest ranked Halo teams in the world. Admirably our boys made every enemy team work for every drop of blood finishing most games very closely behind their rivals. Sporting superb communication and impressive aim the lads represented their nation with pride. in the below video they discuss their successes and what they can do to improve their game as well as thank their supporters. Show your support.

Halo squad discusses their successes and things to improve on

Wugga and Yomamba VF match

(MordenNZ)

Wugga has just played the Canadian Champ Yomamba in what has been an tight match indeed coming down to the wire and resulting in Yomamba pulling ahead to finish only one round ahead of Wugga, an impressive effort for New Zealands own Wugga against a rival described as one of the best. We will keep you updated on Wugga's efforts in the meantime check out Wugga and Yomamba chatting about the game below.

Wugga and Yomamba chat about Virtua Fighter

Kowi battles to the death with Belarus

(MordenNZ)

Kowi has just played Belarus in an epic match that came down to a full tier three battle complete with three high level heros per side and some truly impressive plays, great micro and alot of tense moments. A match to check out without a doubt. After the match we chatted to Kowi about his postgame result and his thoughts on his next matches.

Kowi on his upcoming games

Kowi discusses his match with Bulgaria

(MordenNZ)

Kowi has just come off his match with Bulgaria and what a match it was with Kowi coming out of it victorious after some awesome plays. Kowi discusses the match with us and his upcoming match with Belarus.

Kowi discusses his match with Bulgaria

Halo3 Match Results - Updated

(dee-zilla)

Date	vs	NZ Time	Map	Win/Loss
Round 1	Canada	2:30am	Narrows	LOSS
Round 2	UK	3:00am	Onslaught	LOSS
Round 3	Netherlands	3:30am	Guardian	LOSS
Round 4	Mexico	4:00am	Construct	LOSS

Warcraft III Results Updated

(tmdude)

Rounds	vs	NZ Time	Map	Win/Loss
Round 1	Switzerland	12:00am	Secret Valley	WIN
Round 2	Russia	1:00am	Turtle Rock	WIN
Round 3	Bulgaria	2:00am	Twisted Meadows	WIN
Round 4	Belarus	3:00am	Terenas Stand	LOSS
Round 5	Slovenia	4:30am	Gnoll Wood	WIN
Round 6	Mexico	6:30am	Secret Valley	LOSS
Tie Breaker	Mexico		Turtle Rock	WIN
Tie Breaker	Belarus		Gnoll Wood	LOSS
Tie Breaker	Mexico		Turtle Rock	LOSS
Tie Breaker	Belarus		Turtle Rock	LOSS

Halo squad prepares

(MordenNZ)

The Halo team is currently preparing for their matches this afternoon against the other nations in their pool, all of them are amped and looking forward to getting their hands on some battlerifles and taking it to the enemy.

The Halo team prepare for their match

Zeth prepares his equipment

Kowi continues his streak

(MordenNZ)

Kowi has just managed to achieve a sizable victory in the late game against his Russian opposition. Kowi is feeling very confident going into his next match and talks to us in the clip below about his victory and other successes in his pool.

Kowi speaks about his upcoming match

kowi feeling confident after win

(MordenNZ)

Kowi has just come out of his first match with a resounding win against Switzerland and talks to us on camera about his recent match and his next rival.

Kowi ready for his next match

Kowi talks about his upcoming match

Virtua Fighter 5 Match Results - updated

(tmdude)

Rounds	vs	NZ Time	Win/Loss
Round 1	USA	12:00am	LOSS
Round 2	Korea	1:00am	LOSS
Round 3	Canada	2:30am	LOSS
Round 4	Netherlands	3:30am	LOSS
Round 5	Mexico	4:30am	LOSS

Wugga's Match with the USA

(MordenNZ)

Below is the clip of Wugga's match against the USA, Wugga put up alot of great hits against the USA player who is one of the best in the world, show your support to Wugga as he goes into his next match.

Wugga enjoying his game vs. the USA

Wugga vs USA

Interview with Wugga, Tetra and Danny

(MordenNZ)

This morning before Wugga's first Virtua Fighter match against the USA we have a chat to him about his feelings regarding today's lineup, Virtua Fighter and his thoughts on his last minute change of player character.

Wugga, Tetra and Danny on Virtua Fighter

Our Counterstrike efforts come to a close

(MordenNZ)

Sadly our Counterstrike efforts have come to close but our team has performed admirably in a pool that put up some incredibly tough competition ranking fourth out of a pool of seven. Congratulations to the CS team for their efforts and thank you to all the support we saw from back home, the CS team is very thankful for every word of support.

The Counterstrike team gives thanks for their supporters

Day five dawns

(MordenNZ)

Its the morning of day five here in Germany and day two of the tournament proper. There is alot of action going on today and plenty to keep an eye out for including the Halo squads pool play matches later this afternoon as well as Wuggas advancement through his virtua fighter pool. also today we have Kowi face his first challengers in Warcraft 3. All up its going to be great so keep an eye on the sie as the day progresses and we will have all the up to date information about the eblacks right here for you. So show your support in the support thread and keep tuned.

Mason takes interviews from the media

Massi4h vs. The USA

(MordenNZ)

Massi4h early this morning took on one of the powerhouses of the guitar hero competition, The USA and came out on top with a victory on the tie breaker song welcome to the Jungle and now we bring you the epic match in glorious youtube definition.

Massi4h takes on the USA

Massi4h on the main stage

(MordenNZ)

the below youtube video is of Massi4h's stage match against the German national champion, both players had to deal with terrible video and audio lag issue, despite these challenges Massi4h pulled through in a commanding win against his challenger finishing up his unbeaten winning streak in his pool.

New images up in the gallery

(MordenNZ)

There are another 100 images for you to check out in the photo gallery, check out some of today's highlights including the Counterstrike games, Massi4hs matches and images from interviews and events happening throughout day four.

Massi4h on the main stage

Counterstrike squads commanding win lifts spirits

(MordenNZ)

The counterstrike squad has high spirits after a commanding win over Hong Kong, an impressive match which culminated in an exciting finale, well worth the watch. Now the CS team go to face perhaps their toughest competition, MyM from Poland. show your support to the team in this final match.

The team on their victory

Massi4h on his pool play white wash

(MordenNZ)

I sit down with Massi4h to chat about his recent pool play domination and on his recent stage match against Germany. He also chats about his feelings coming into the elimination phase of the tournament starting Saturday.

Massi4h talks about his recent victories

Counterstrike pool progress

(MordenNZ)

The Counterstrike squad have done remarkably well so far and we are all very proud of their progress through what has been an incredibly difficult pool to play in. The below Youtube videos include both Byron speaking about his teams progress and a small snip of the CS action as it unfolded.

Byron on the CS squads progress

Just a snipit of the CS Action

GH3 - Match Results Updated

(dee-zilla)

Rounds	vs	NZ Time	Songs	Win/Loss
Round 1	USA	12:00am	Weezer - 'My Name is Jonas'	Win
Round 2	Philippines	1:00am	Guns 'n' Roses - 'Welcome to the Jungle'	Win
Round 3	Switzerland	1:30am	Metallica - 'One'	Win
Round 4	Austria	2:00am	Disturbed - Stricken'	Win
Round 5	Portugal	2:30am	Slipknot - 'Before I forget'	Win
Round 6	Germany	3:00am	Heart - 'Barracuda'	Win

We are out of pool play for Guitar Hero 3, he has qualified first in his pool with an undefeated run!

Well Done Mason!

CS 1.6 Match Results Updated

(dee-zilla)

Rounds	NZ Time	vs	Map	Win/Loss
Round 1	12:00am	Korea	De_Nuke	LOSS
Round 2	1:00am	Slovakia	De_Tuscan	WIN
Round 3	2:00am	Estonia	De_Train	DRAW
Round 4	3:00am	Brazil	De_Dust2	LOSS
Round 5	4:00am	Hong Kong	De_Tuscan	WIN
Round 6	5:00am	Poland	De_Inferno	LOSS

The Counterstrike squad soldiers on

(MordenNZ)

Here is a small interview with Byron and the CS squad as they relay their feelings about their first match against Korea, also the photo gallery has been updated with photos from the first few rounds of matches and the opening ceremony from last night, be sure to check those out.

Byron, Bruce and Khaled chat about their match against Korea

Counterstrike underway

(MordenNZ)

The Counterstrike squad is now deeply entrenched in their first game against Korea and is looking to be a close match indeed, more updates as the game unfolds.

Simcore in the zone

The CS squad in midgame

Mason wins against the USA

(MordenNZ)

Mason in a stunning and tense first match against the USA has emerged victorious with the game coming down to an intense final tie breaker. Show your support people. Youtube video to follow shortly.

Massi4h playing USA

The Games afoot - Masons first match

(MordenNZ)

Its early morning on Day four, the first day of competition in this years WCG 2008, up today we have both Mason "Massi4h" Maddox and the Counterstrike squad led by simcore competing in their pool play and we will be updating their results throughout the day as well as posting videos of their matches and progress which we will excitedly follow throughout the day. Keep tuned for all the eblacks action starting today at the World Cyber Games 2008 Grand Final.

The Opening Ceremony

(tmdude)

The opening ceremony for the World Cyber Games was held tonight and proved to be a spectacular event to say the least. The event started off with the preshow event which included an impressive performance from German rock band H-Blockx, while BMX bikers did various stunts on the purpose built halfpipe set slightly behind the main stage, following their performance the main ceremony began. The ceremony highlighted the WCG spirit of competition, the ideas of fairplay that bind the WCG into the worldwide event. The event incorperated opening speeches from both the president of Samsung and the mayor of Cologne who both helped to get the games underway. A procession of nations flags gave each country competing here at the WCG time to make their pressence felt. BOth the flag of the WCG and of the host nation Germany were raised as well as a symbolic passing of the WCG virtual torch which went from nation to nation over the past year in the road to the WCG. we were also treated to an opera rendition of the World Cyber Games hymn. Following the close to the ceremony the eblacks headed back to the village to get some rest before tomorrows start to the competition. On day 1 of the WCG we have both Mason "Massi4h" Maddox playing his pool play of Guitar Hero and our Counterstrike squad play in their pool as well both teams looking for a place in the final elimination part of the tournament.

H-Blockx guitarist struts his stuff

The lead singer takes to the crowd

The German flag enroute to its position to the left of stage

Connagh with the New Zealand flag

Connagh takes his place

The flag lineup

Setup at the WCG venue

(tmdude)

We take a look at the setup of the WCG Grand final as the event gets built around us. Check out the youtube video below.

Mason on the WCG main stage

(tmdude)

This morning we took the time to have a quick chat to Mason about what he thought of the Main stage setup and his chances for his stage match against Germany tomorrow. Check out the youtube video below.

Practice makes Perfect

(tmdude)

Today has become the day of practice for the eblacks today with everyone bunkering down in various locations around the city to get in some long, hard hours of practice for the coming tournament. Byron and the Counterstrike team have headed over to the ESL headquarters here in Cologne to practice using their facilities which include a ping sitting at around the 3 mark which is fantastic for the crew to practice at LAN speeds against some of the european teams. Wugga has joined Tetra, the singaporean representative for Virtua Fighter in his room for some sparring today to keep his game warm. Meanwhile Kowi and Massi4h have holed up in the New Zealand headquarters here accross the city in order to get some serious practice in. Kowi is practicing up some new strats to keep his opponants off gaurd while Massi4h practices his starpower timing and keeping his note streak up. The Halo team is sitting down with their australian counterparts to run some strats seeing as they are differant pools for the first part of the compitition. Connagh has not joined his team making the strats as he has been chosen for the honor of carrying the New Zealand flag at tonights opening ceremony. More updates on the opening ceremony tonight.

The Halo team taking in the venue

Mason and Kowi practice

The Welcome Party

(MordenNZ)

The team just got back from the welcome party for all the players that have now arrived in Cologne for the grand final. The party itself was held on a cruise ship as it sailed down the river and back up again to port. During the journey we sat down to a buffet meal and some light snacks while we were offically welcomed to the WCG 2008, a few promotional videos were shown for the city of Cologne highlighting the city’s features and instructional speeches were made about what was to happen over the coming days. The eblacks then spread out to catch up with friends and foes from previous years of WCG grand finals while those new to the WCG made new friends and chatted about the upcoming tournaments. Wugga spent the night convincing people that he was indeed himself just now with beard as many didn’t recognise him in his new incarnation. Following the close of the party everybody disembarked and headed back to the village to relax. So ends day two of the WCG, tomorrow is the opening ceremony which will beign the games proper.

The welcome party main floor

Players mill about at the welcome party

Sightseeing and Shopping

(dee-zilla)

We met up with some of the players to do some sightseeing in the center of Cologne, the first stop was the Dom; it’s a huge cathedral in the center of Cologne that looks absolutely amazing. We then went through the retail area of town doing heaps of window shopping however we spent a while at the Lego store, mason found a gladiator helmet he is considering wearing during his stage match with Germany.

A big surprise today was that Wugga might have got his first member of his fan club; the ice cream man actually was a big fan of virtual fighter and was quite proud to have met him.

That’s all for this update, just going to get ready for the welcome party and will do an update later tonight about that.

Dee and tm day 2 update

(dee-zilla)

WOW it is cold, reminds me of Dunedin!!

While the eblacks were off sightseeing and practising myself and Anthony tried to get a sneak peek at the venue, we didn’t have to much luck getting inside but we took a few photos of the outside.

Sign to Koelnmesse we might be going the right way ;)

Outside the venue

Shuttle bus stop for the gamers

World Cyber Games Flags out the front of the venue

tm and dee outside the venue

We are going sightseeing shortly and will update with photos etc later today.

The Players Village

(dee-zilla)

We arrived at the players village in the early evening, eventually finding our way here by way of giant posters, google earth on tmdudes blackberry and cryptic comments from random strangers. The village itself is housed within one of Colognes premier Youth hostel facility which has the perfect blend of relaxation facilities and sleeping quarters for all players to lay their head down for the night. At the moment the place is still relatively quiet with New Zealand being one of the first teams to arrive accompanied only by the German national team and a few of our old friends and rivals from the Asian Championship. We will show you round more of the village tomorrow but for now let me leave you with this image of the village in the setting sun.

Outside the Players Village

Mason chills out in the players lounge

eblacks on the plane!

(dee-zilla)

Arrival in Germany

(MordenNZ)

eblacks arrive in Germany the eblacks have made it all in one piece and touched down in Dusseldorf international airport. What has ensued however is a tale worth telling. Once we had touched down on the ground in Dusseldorf, we collected our baggage and began to test our German on the unsuspecting populace in an effort to get directions to the WCG players village. Our first train ride got us to the train station in Dusseldorf not too long after we were headed by train to Cologne, as the German countryside rolled by, everyone took the time to drink it in while Zeth decided to practice up his dance moves perhaps in an effort to win over the few locals on the train who remained in our section. His attempts were fruitless. Further down the line we disembarked at what we thought was the right connector station to the underground, we were incorrect. A few minutes later we were back on the rail one stop over to cross the River and arrive at the underground terminal. Thanks to the help of some locals the team managed to find the right underground train to take us to the village but not before Wugga once again caused a disturbance in the locals or rather his beard did. The mans beard had attracted a few stray looks here and there, clearly admiring its full and uniquely Hamilton nature but one German citizen seemed engrossed even more so by the wugbeard. While sitting at the underground station waiting for the number 18 train this one gentleman arrives on the station floor and makes a beeline straight for Wugga disregarding all in his path, he then gave Austin a very intense expression that the team decided could only mean he needed a shave. Wugga was not the slightest bit concerned.

The team waits for the next train

Kowi works on his zombie impression while Wugga shows off the beard

The Journey Continues

(MordenNZ)

24 hours into the journey, the eblacks have settled back into yet another aircraft for the final flight leg from Dubai to Dusseldorf before heading to Cologne, their final destination. Day has dawned local time in Dubai and spirits are high once again after a few hours downtime in Dubai airport to chill outside of an aircraft. Now everyone is settling in for the journey ahead with Wugga and his mighty beard taking on Kowi in some epic Tic Tac Toe matches, complaining about how the game has a load time for the help screen. Simcore is engrossed in his blackjack match while the others try to figure out how to play a movie, so far to no tangible success. The plane food continues to sit well in the teams opinion, Zeth especially seems to be quite taken by the idea that food gets delivered to your seat like clockwork, also by making small videos of himself pretending there is an increasing amount of turbulence, I have attributed it to cabin fever. At the end of this leg of the journey by air we will continue by train to our final destination.

Kowi showing off his soft side in Dubai

eblacks are in the air!

(dee-zilla)

This post is a little late due the the some of the Counterstrike team booking their shuttle bus for the wrong day and making us a little late.

We have just arrived at our first stop in Brisbane only been a few hours of travel so most of us are looking quite fresh at the moment.

Not sure when i will post an update but I am guessing the hour in Dubai will give me a chance.

Eblacks @ Auckland International Airport.

eblacks match schedules

(dee-zilla)

The timetable for the eblacks for the Grand Final has been announced and is as follows in New Zealand time and dates

Date	Game	vs	NZ Time	Map
06 Nov	CS	Korea	12:00am	De_Nuke
	CS	Slovakia	1:00am	De_Tuscan
	CS	Estonia	2:00am	De_Train
	CS	Brazil	3:00am	De_Dust2
	CS	Hong Kong	4:00am	De_Tuscan
	CS	Poland	5:00am	De_Inferno

Date	Game	vs	NZ Time	Songs
06 Nov	GH3	USA	12:00am	Weezer - 'My Name is Jonas'
	GH3	Philippines	1:00am	Guns 'n' Roses - 'Welcome to the Jungle'
	GH3	Switzerland	1:30am	Metallica - 'One'
	GH3	Austria	2:00am	Disturbed - Stricken'
	GH3	Portugal	2:30am	Slipknot - 'Before I forget'
Main Stage	GH3	Germany	3:00am	Heart - 'Barracuda'

Date	Game	vs	NZ Time	Map
07 Nov	VF5	USA	12:00am
	VF5	Korea	1:00am
	VF5	Canada	2:30am
	VF5	Netherlands	3:30am
	VF5	Mexico	4:30am

Date	Game	vs	NZ Time	Map
07 Nov	WC3	Switzerland	12:00am	Secret Valley
	WC3	Russia	1:00am	Turtle Rock
	WC3	Bulgaria	2:00am	Twisted Meadows
	WC3	Belarus	3:00am	Terenas Stand
	WC3	Slovenia	4:30am	Gnoll Wood

Date	Game	vs	NZ Time	Map
07 Nov	Halo 3	Canada	2:30am	Narrows
	Halo 3	UK	3:00am	Onslaught
	Halo 3	Netherlands	3:30am	Guardian
	Halo 3	Mexico	4:00am	Construct

For the full listings of the timetable in German Date/Time please click here and to see the broadcast schedule please click here

To discuss this please click here

Support the eblacks

(dee-zilla)

Show your support for the 12 eblacks competing in Cologne, Germany at the World Cyber Games Grand Final 2008.

We have a dedicated photographer and videographer travelling with us so he will be uploading photos, videos and posting in to the eblacks blog

If anyone wants to come to the airport to see them off they will be at the international departure hall from 3:30pm - 4:30pm on Sunday the 2nd November.

2008 eblacks team competing at the WCG Grand Final

Feroz ‘evolution’ Brouwer Counter Strike 1.6 (PC)
Bruce ‘infidel’ Lodge Counter Strike 1.6 (PC)
Khaled 'hellscraper' Salem Counter Strike 1.6 (PC)
Byron ‘simcore’ McLean Counter Strike 1.6 (PC)
Ryan ‘toonz’ Campion Counter Strike 1.6 (PC)
Hamish ‘kowi’ Parker Warcraft 3 – The Frozen Throne (PC)
Connagh ‘IZeRo” Heath Halo 3 (Xbox 360)
Kurtis ‘KurtiZ’ Papple Halo 3 (Xbox 360)
David 'Bob69er' Beaton Halo 3 (Xbox 360)
Ben ‘Zeth’ Price Halo 3 (Xbox 360)
Mason "massi4h" Maddox Guitar Hero III (Xbox 360)
Austin "wugga" Sedgwick Virtua Fighter 5 (Xbox 360)

We be great to see some support at the airport to see them all off.

Post your support in this thread.

If you require any further information on the eblacks please contact us

eblacks after prize giving

(dee-zilla)

Quick wrap-up with eblacks after prize giving.

OMG New Zealand Wins

(mordennz)

It is my honor to announce that New Zealand has come First at the 2008 WCG Asian Championship, cleaning up all opposition and taking home the grand prize, the Asian Cup as well as 6 medals in total and two awesome oversized novelty checks. This ends our coverage of the 2008 WCG Asian Championship. Thank you for all your support over the last few days and be sure to keep up with the site and look out for our coverage of the Grand Final in Cologne in November as well as numerous other events. In the meantime look out for the video of the team interview. Morden out.

Team Interview

Massi4h on the Podium

MCC takes out Silver

The New Zealand Team on Stage

The Asian Champions

Team Photo

The Asian Cup Now Coming Home to New Zealand

MCC Win Silver

(mordennz)

It is a pleasure to announce that MCC has managed to win Silver at the 2008 WCG Asian Championship. The final match against China was an intense affair with the New Zealand team making the chinese fight for every inch of the field of battle. A huge congratulations to MCC for their fantastic performance at this years Asian Championship.

DOTA Results

New Zealand vs China 0 - 1

Silver Medal for New Zealand

The Chinese Opposition

The Commentators

The Team in Action

MCC move to the Finals

(mordennz)

As I write MCC plays in the Final vs China after beating a strong Malaysia. The boys are in high spirits and at this very moment are beating back the Chinese. Its anybodies game at the moment and the minute we get results we will post them. Stay tuned. A win here would mean a second gold medal for New Zealand.

Slava Waits

MCC Plans Ahead

Massi4h Takes home Gold!

(mordennz)

Our boy Massi4h has taken out the Gold Medal at this years WCG Asian Championship for Guitar Hero 3. A fantastic effort by Massi4h during his final match vs the Phillipines led to New Zealands first ever Gold Medal at an international gaming event. Let me tell you it was close right to the end and it ended the only way a Guitar Hero tournament could, with "Through the Fire and the Flames. A huge congrats to Mason, a wonderful achievement for New Zealand.

Massi4h at his Best

Mason Soaks in the Winners Limelight