Stewie2K: "Hopefully, this event shows I can still hang at this level"

The Smoke Criminal discussed his potential return to professional Counter-Strike after G2's dominant win over FaZe.

With captain Rasmus "⁠HooXi⁠" Nielsen out of commission for his side's campaign in IEM Dallas, the team's penultimate event of the first half of their 2024 season, G2 called upon the services of well-known American rifler Jake "⁠Stewie2K⁠" Yip.

In his first LAN event in two years, Stewie2K shocked the world, helping propel G2 to the semi-finals of IEM Dallas, besting big names like MOUZ, Liquid, and FaZe along the way.

After helping to facilitate a runaway victory over FaZe in G2's quarter-final matchup, Stewie2K spoke with HLTV about playing in front of an American crowd for the first time in years, the experience of working with stars Nikola "⁠NiKo⁠" Kovač and Ilya "⁠m0NESY⁠" Osipov, his own personal development over the course of the event, and the details of his potential return to professional Counter-Strike.

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Can you tell me a little bit about that game? As a viewer, it felt like FaZe was really out of it. Did you have similar feelings when playing the game? What was going through your head?

I think it's the aura the team is bringing from us. Before the game started you could feel some type of fear. I wouldn't necessarily say it's like that literally, but you can definitely feel there was a false sense of security on their side. We're just coming out here, we're not worried about anyone, who we play, we're more focused on ourselves and making sure we have fun and try our best.

So you think it's a combination of low pressure for you guys and the crowd, do you think that was what pushed you?

I wouldn't say it's low pressure under the circumstances that G2 is under. We're coming out and we're showing people that we can beat them and we don't care who we play. It's more about anyone in front of us, the job is just to eliminate them.

I think it's two years since your last LAN and five since the last in front of a North American crowd. How does it feel to be back?

Man, even before the game, there was a moment where it was almost like tears of joy. Having been gone for so long and the fact that I can be not even just relevant but also coming to any event and having things align this way, and having almost the entire crowd just cheering for me, I think it's something special. I can't be asking for anything else, to be honest.

You've been working with some legends of the game, TaZ, NiKo, m0NESY, tell me about what that's been like through the whole event?

Working with this trio, I think they have something special going for them. Hopefully after this event, when they get back to the starting lineup, I hope they can bring this type of energy and remember what was good for them and apply it to their game. I wanna see them succeed.

I like NiKo, we've been playing against each other for so long, we know each other personally, and, like I said, he's the best rifler in the game. The next three players that are in front of him are all AWPing, so for me he's the best player in the game, and the accolades that he has, he definitely deserves a Major and I wanna see him succeed.

He's also been calling this event. I talked to him at the beginning and he talked about it being difficult circumstances, calling with a stand-in. There's a lot of work put on him, and so he said that a lot of people were contributing including yourself. How has his calling developed throughout the tournament?

The hard part in the beginning when I joined was that I am a vocal player naturally. I didn't know how they liked to operate, so whenever I see things that I've been through, gone through, and know the answers to, and know what's right and wrong, I try to contribute by telling him my thoughts. I realize in the beginning that the response that I get, it doesn't feel right, it almost feels like he doesn't want it. I'm not here to hurt or add things that he doesn't want. I'm here to help as much as I can.

For me, I just try to speak less if he wants me to, I try to help more if he wants me to. There is even at this event, at a certain point when we were losing so many anti-ecos, I said, 'Hey, I know how to play these rounds, put some trust in me and give it a shot.' It's nice to have that trust in each other.

Talking about your contributions a little bit, I talked to TaZ the other day too, and he said that one big thing that you bring to the team is that you helped cool you guys down and keep you laid back in some of these situations. What do you think you're contributing to the team right now?

Let's say what TaZ said is probably one of the biggest keys to this team. It's not that they go chaotic or feel the pressure, it's more that they're so into the game that they speak to much, and it's almost like they don't hear each other, and there are no breaks. It's always on the gas when it comes to comms. Sometimes, I've been on the stage so much that I know it's about poise, about being calm, and if you can do that, you'll be better than the team on the stage.

I wanna know about your individual growth. You've been away for quite some time, how do you feel you've improved game by game?

I'm definitely improving game to game. Maybe the stats don't say it, but I'm not the type of player looking at my stats and thinking it says everything. I think when each game, even from the very beginning of this tournament, the first day there were maybe a little nerves here and there, but the second day after our first loss, it was almost like, 'Do I wanna lose this tournament and go out playing scared and not doing what I think is best, or do I wanna go out and make the mistakes doing what I think is best?'

I came out trying to trust myself, trust in the team, and I felt like everything started clicking. Each day I try to look back at what I did wrong and what I did to hurt NiKo's calls or the team, and what can I bring to tomorrow to make it better?

I wanna ask about your potential return to Counter-Strike. You talked about it a little over a year ago, and you basically said, 'when the time is right.' Now with this result and having some time since that message, how do you assess that? How do you feel about a potential return?

I would say life hit me hard these past few years, and it had nothing to do with Counter-Strike or anything to do with my past that the public might know. I would say it's more on the personal side. During this time it showed me a different perspective, a different approach. I feel like this time around, even as a stand-in, my mentality is not the same as I was before. It's way different, it's healthier, it's better, not just for me but for the team I'm playing with.

Coming back, what I realized is that there's really no time that is right. I won't ever feel ready to come back. It's about going, taking that leap and facing for what it is. Whatever happens, you have to accept it, and that's why I say sometimes you gotta let things pan out for yourself because you're not in control of it, and you might as well just appreciate the moment in the present.

What do you think your approach to a return would be? Some of your teammates like RUSH and stanislaw are in the tier-two, domestic North American scene, but you've shown here you can still kick it with the tier one. Do you have any idea about what direction that might take for you?

I don't really have any idea what direction it wil go. Hopefully, after this event it shows the public but also to the scene that I can still hang at this level, and it's not something that you can just drop when you do it your whole life. You can't just transition to something else and immediately forget about CS. I correlate it with the gym. You just took a break from the gym, and you need to get back in there, get some reps going, and it's gonna be like riding a bike again.

The difference between me and any other NA player that has played at a tier-one level is that I'm not like them. I'm like a sponge, I retain information, I will remember things, and I know what's best. I won't forget. If I was on a team before G2, I'm not gonna forget what I learned from the previous team. I'm gonna remember everything, I'm also gonna add what I learned from G2, and it's just gonna be in the back of my head at all times.

Tomorrow you've got an interesting matchup against 9z. Do you have any thoughts about the matchup?

Definitely not gonna underestimate 9z. I even told my team this when we got the info that we will play 9z, I feel, regardless of their previous tournaments and results, they're in the playoffs now and they're gonna be our next opponent. We can't underestimate them. It's one of their first times on stage I believe, and it's about, they're hungry. They want to play in front of this crowd and want to feel this pressure. They're gonna come out swinging and we can't underestimate them.

The last thing I wanted to give you a chance to do, I wanted to ask if you had anything to say to the fans.

I feel like a lot of the fans have had a change of heart during this down time or my time away from competitive. I say this all the time, I'm still the same person I was before, and I think I've shown that throughout my entire career for the ones who have seen me grow.

Coming here, even before seeing the crowd, the amount of love and support all my fans give, I see you guys, I know who you are, and I don't need it to be said all the time. The fact that I can come back two years later, play in front of an NA crowd, and have almost the entire arena cheer for me, no words can show my gratitude and appreciation, but just know that it's definitely there.