s1mple: "seized the secondary sniper"

Earlier this month Natus Vincere announced the signing of Oleksandr "⁠s1mple⁠" Kostyliev, who replaced former in-game leader and veteran Danylo "⁠Zeus⁠" Teslenko on the active roster.

In their first week of playing together, Natus Vincere already showed some of the strength of the new lineup, winning all four maps in ESL Pro League Season 4, against elite-level teams Astralis and G2.

We finally got to talk to the new addition about his teamless period after definitively leaving Liquid, and found out which other offers he received during that time.

He also explained what the first week of playing with Na`Vi has been like, how they distribute AWPing duties and what his goals for SL i-League StarSeries Season 2 Finals are:

Let's first talk about the few weeks when you knew you weren't going to stay in Liquid after Cologne, can you share anything about the offers you got?

I had like 4-5 offers to join a team, one of these offers was FaZe, that was the closest offer to Na`Vi.

Had you stayed in Liquid, how do you think that particular lineup would do over the next few months, considering what it accomplished in only weeks?

I don't know, I can't say when everything is over. Maybe we would do better after the Major, or become worse, it's a very hard question, but I think we might have been even better if I stayed in Liquid.

What about their new roster with Pimp, who is an entirely different player, can they match Liquid's previous success?

I believe in this team and I believe in Jacob, they didn't start their season of ESL Pro League well enough, but there are a lot players with a huge amount of experiece, especially after the second place at the Major. They should just practice and everything is gonna be good in this team.

When did you first get in talks with Na`Vi and with whom specifically? Did you immediately say yes or were there other offers you were considering as well?

seized invited me to join Natus Vincere after ELEAGUE. As I said, there were other offers. I was thinking about it for a few days and after that I answered Na`Vi that I want to play with them and be part of this organization.

While skill-wise I don't think anyone argues this move is very exciting, there are questions about you fitting into the team personality-wise. Do you think being surrounded by five experienced and respected teammates helps you in that aspect?

I fit in this team very quickly. Everyone helps me - players, coach, our manager. To be honest - I'm happy to be here, it has become my new home for the next years.

How are the AWPing duties split between you, GuardiaN and also seized who used to be a secondary sniper?

Seized is the secondary sniper, I'd like to play without the AWP if it's working and my team is winning.

You've won all four Pro League matches and practised for about a week now, how confident do you feel prior to your LAN debut at SL i-League StarSeries? Would you only be satisfied with a win or would another high placing be acceptable considering you've only just joined?

We should just play our game that we're gonna practice before SLTV finals. Like all other players I want to win our first LAN tournament and make a lot people that support us happy.

You're attending a bootcamp alongside SK Gaming, what is the idea behind doing a joint bootcamp such as this one?

The idea is to practice with the best team in the world, spend some time together, get to know everyone better and become better.

Any last words?

Thank you everyone for the support.

Natus Vincere are currently attending a bootcamp alongside SK during their week off in ESL Pro League, preparing for their LAN debut, SL i-League StarSeries Season 2 Finals, set to take place in Kiev from September 7-11.