Christopher ‘GeT_RiGhT’ Alesund is widely regarded not only as one of the greatest players of all time, but one of the most innovative and influential.

In a career that saw the Swede become one of the great forces of Counter-Strike 1.6, before being part of the legendary 87-0 Ninjas in Pyjamas CS:GO roster, GeT_RiGhT’s legacy still lives on today in the meta that he helped to create.

Esports News UK caught up with GeT_RiGhT at the StarLadder Budapest Major to discuss his early innovation in the game, whether he sees that influence in today’s players, and his views on Gabriel ‘FalleN’ Toledo’s newfound success in Furia.

Esports News UK interview with Christopher ‘GeT_RiGhT’ Alesund

A lot of people consider you one of the most influential players of all time. Can you kind of explain in your own words what innovations you felt that you brought into the server when you were playing?

Well, I think the difference between me and most of the players at that time, which is so common today, (what everyone is doing, the players and teams) is analysing their own game.

Watching people’s matches, learning their patterns, knowing what to do in situations, and basically replaying the same scenario over and over and over again to find literally what is the best choice you can make in that scenario.

That’s what I did before everyone else, and before YouTube, or a lot of different programmes where you can easily shorten or cut down the footage, etc.

For me, I’d sit for hours in and out, and basically analyse every player’s patterns, what they do to get themselves into the game.

Basically, I would always explain it to people, so they can maybe get an understanding of like why I had success, was because I played chess; everyone else played checkers.

Because in my books, I was never talented enough as a superstar in a way where I got the most highlights, the most one-taps, the nice deagle round, or something like that.

I love to basically out-brain you, to be smarter than you in the server, and basically play with you. That’s what I like to do when I’m playing.

“Everyone tried to copy what I did, but people never actually understood what I did.” – GeT_RiGhT on those he influenced

During that time, I was already ahead with doing what is so common today, so it’s not even an issue for me to know, ‘All right, we have no money, but I will get a gun for my team, I will just figure this out.’ I didn’t question it, you know?

But I also had teammates who let me do that, because they really believed in what I knew about the game and what I could do in every scenario.

And I would even give them tips like, ‘Do this a little bit differently, and maybe take one more second, or do it faster or just hold this position. And, around this time, give or take 10 seconds, someone’s going to come there.’

Then they’d become kind of mind-blown, like ‘Do you have wallhack? How do you know this is happening?’

I’m like, ‘I spent hours in and out just watching how people react and behave in the game, and just learning the patterns.’

I also played like insanely many hours in the game. I’ve said it before, and I probably say different numbers every time, but I lived and breathed CS, and that was the only thing I did.

So if someone said that ‘I played eight hours [per day],’ I would double that because I just wanted to be better than you.

So, I did everything to an extreme level, and that’s why I think I was as successful in the game as I was.

But if there was someone else doing the same, I think that would be a little bit more of a struggle for me.

Like I said before I did I never saw myself as that kind of player, the highlight machine, or this one tap machine, where I secured that 1v5 clutch easily every time, or something like that.

There were so many other players who were so much better in that way. I just knew how to counter them because I just knew how they did everything.

“I counted every nade on the map: explosions, smokes, flashes, and molotovs to know exactly how many nades they have on both of the bomb sites.” – GeT_RiGhT on his understanding of the game

In terms of the current crop of players, is there any player that you kind of see as your successor, playstyle-wise?

I think about this every year, and if I’m gonna be honest, I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone close to what I did.

Because I think a lot of players do it so differently than me that I think it suits them, and then they make it even look better than I did.

It’s just because I don’t really see it as that role that I had; it’s not really that die-hard anymore.

Because when I started this lurker role, to some degree, everyone tried to copy what I did, but people never actually understood what I did, which I don’t see most of those players that they can potentially reference to me, or someone else before me.

What do you mean by that they didn’t understand? For example, they were holding an angle you’d hold, but they don’t know why they’re holding the angle?

Yeah, basically. Straight up like that.

You take any given map, and my role specifically was that there’s a unit of four players, and I was the lone player on the other side of the map, basically.

So what I did was that I counted every nade on the map: explosions, smokes, flashes, and molotovs to know exactly how many nades they have on both of the bomb sites.

I was basically just sitting and listening, and I’m holding this angle, and when I’m holding an angle for potentially 15 rounds in a row at that time, I could also figure out what they’re doing on that position that I’m holding.

Then I can find a timing to counter that timing because I know exactly what is going to happen, even if they will go and do a standard on, let’s say Dust 2.

They are defenders on CT, and I’m attacking on the T side, and if I go against long, for example, I know exactly what’s going to happen.

Most teams, they do either double molotov or they double nade it, or potentially now, which is common, there’s an insta smoke that comes in, and so on.

I will see that as that’s the start, and I’m already counting down how many nades are gone.

I’ll tell my teammates those nades are gone; they can’t use this on this bomb site. I hear another nade on the other side, explosion, or a smoke pops off.

I count that one, I say they literally have two smokes left, they have one made, four nades, whatever it can be.

Then I’m telling them so they know what to do and counter it to attack the right bomb sites.

https://twitter.com/CSmomentsss/status/2000851154134331420

Then what happens is they just tell me we’re going to go for an attack on short, for example.

Okay then, I know they will not have someone holding behind at the same time, so someone can come behind them on a random timing. But I also got to check up for long at the same time.

Where do I put myself? Should I be more aggressive to go out long and attack with them at the same time, or should I go mid and actually hold the flank or potentially kill a rotator guy who’s coming from B to the A bomb site? What do I do?

Well, I don’t tell my teammates because if I tell them, they’re gonna be like ‘Okay, good,’ and then that can change the mindset that they already have. because their mind should just be focused on this area and doing their thing.

‘Let me take care of the rest of the headache of the other things, so you don’t have to worry about it.’

And that’s why I can see that to some degree, with some players today.

But I see them as potentially not understanding the timings and not understanding when they should do x or y thing on the map.

Because of the role that I had, you have to change it up all the time, so that I don’t give them the pattern.

Because if I give them the pattern, they will know exactly what I’m doing every round, and that’s that’s how my role basically disappeared and is not working anymore.

That’s at least how I see how my role was played out.

“All five human beings on that team have something to prove. Combine that together, and it becomes a fist, and they’re here to give a fight to everyone.” – GeT_RiGhT on Furia’s second season success

You’ve worked a lot with FalleN over the years. How do you feel about how FalleN has built this roster and how he’s calling this year?

I’ve talked to FalleN actually, a few times about it, and I’m to some degree kind of surprised he still plays because what he told me it feels like he’s he don’t want to play.

But I don’t know, I think he has that competitiveness that drags him in right, which is kind of hard to resist when you’ve done something for so long.

But this Furia thing of going international, bringing molodoy, getting YEKINDAR, which was a wildcard… I think a lot of people were like, ‘What is this?’

Like basically, I’m sorry to say it, but YEKINDAR was not good towards the end in Liquid.

But what Fallen is doing, I don’t know what he does. He has some sort of miracle hands or brain or whatever.

https://twitter.com/nessyteras/status/1999597641450074623

He can bring a kid from Kazakhstan, who has what is basically barely any Tier 2 experience, probably more Tier 3 CS.

Then you have YEKINDAR, after he was rough in Liquid, and people were like, ‘It’s probably done,’ his career, and bringing them back to becoming superstars again.

And then you have KSCERATO, yuurih, who are really good players, and everyone’s debating that maybe they should not be there anymore, maybe they should have gone international, right?

I think the biggest reason why he does what he does is that he sees CS where I come from, and he comes from where it’s like the team itself feels like a family, best friends and friends overall.

“What FalleN is doing is he’s using what everyone desires and is desperate to do, and combining it to make it something wonderful.” – GeT_RiGhT on FalleN motivating Furia’s roster

Those three core things are very important and make the group a unit in everything, even outside the game, inside the game, and make it a good time.

You can see it in the videos they are releasing, like YEKINDAR is dancing and having a good time, and they’re sitting, eating and having a good time.

Then they’re so determined to prove themselves, because look on FalleN’s career, it’s not been the best couple of years, right?

We’ve discess the potential that he’s gonna stop playing, so he has something to prove. YEKINDAR was having a rough time, he wants to prove himself.

molodoy is a new kid who wants to prove himself, you have yuurih and KSCERATO who’s been like, ‘Hey, you should probably go to Liquid or any other team,’ right?

They want to prove themselves.

So all five human beings on that team have something to prove. Combine that together, and it becomes a fist, and they’re here to give a fight to everyone.

So that’s that’s how I see the team, and basically what FalleN is doing is he’s using what everyone desires and is desperate to do, and combining it to make it something wonderful and just make it work.

And you gotta give credit to him because I don’t know what he’s doing, but he’s just doing something, and it’s working, and everyone is on the same boat basically and fighting for their lives to see where the boat ends up with them.

It’s just wonderful to see what he’s doing and cooking up in this Furia team.

“FaZe Clan, I don’t know what’s happening there, but it’s just fun to watch. You’re always counting them out, and then they’re still here.” – GeT_RiGhT on FaZe’s Budapest Major miracle run

What players or what teams do you really love to watch right now?

Well, if I’m gonna be completely honest, the teams and players that watch the most are actually two Swedish teams, EYEBALLERS and Johnny Speeds, mostly because of the revamp in the industry, which is kind of interesting to me to watch.

But, other than that, you’re always seeing a good game from donk in Spirit. It’s always fun to see. You know it is crazy good.

It’s always fun to watch ZywOo doing ZywOo things in Vitality, and knowing how good they’ve been this year, can it continue? Can they do even better than before?

You see Na’Vi coming back again, it feels kind of nice to see. FaZe Clan, I don’t know what’s happening there, but it’s just fun to watch. You’re always counting them out, and then they’re still here.

I think we’re in a place where I can’t point out, ‘Okay, I want to watch this team or player specifically in Tier 1 CS,’ because the level of the teams and players is so high now.

It’s all about, at the end of the day, are they gonna be mentally prepared for the game coming up, are they on the right foot right out of the gate? If not, then they’re out basically.

But I think it’s just fun to watch again in a different way, if you’re asking me, and we’re in a good state in terms of the level of CS.

So I can’t point out specifically a team or players right now, because and also like I said before I watch EYEBALLERS and Johnny Speeds more, because for some reason my brain likes that more. [laughs]