esports.gg speaks to Lou of Virtus.pro at the Esports World Cup.
Virtus.pro are in Riyadh looking to bounce back from a disappointing ALGS Open performance. Lou, Zach and Slayr are looking to rediscover the form that saw them take fifth in at the ALGS Championship in Sapporo.
The Virtus.pro Apex team have a strong blend of experience, chemistry and versatility. Lou and Zach have been on and off teammates across Apex's lifespan, and Slayr has rapidly grown his competitive credentials since getting a big break with Luminosity.
esports.gg spoke with Lou from Virtus.pro ahead of their Pool Play action at the Esports World Cup.
Competing at the Esports World Cup feels "surreal" for Lou
The Esports World Cup is a event on a scale like no other - with all the biggest and best esports, players and figures gathering in one place across the eight weeks. As a player, how does Lou find being at an event of this magnitude?
"So I want to say that this is my seventh or eighth LAN in Apex and it's extremely obvious that this is how you're supposed to do it. They put their all into it financials and effort wise, you know what mean? So I want to say that being here is super surreal. A lot of people, this is going to be their first Esports World Cup. Like Slayr, my teammate, this is his first one. And I know that this is like a bit of a culture shock and like a LAN shock, if that makes sense.
"We've never experienced something like this before. I remember last year when I did my first one, it was just the most wild thing ever. This is just how you're supposed to do it, this is how they're supposed to be ran. I know that for everyone who's here, this is the standard now for all the players."
Size of event helps players elevate their performances
The grandeur of the event, Lou adds, helps players find that little bit extra in their performances.
"The competition is as fierce as it gets here. The environment that they put us in here, almost feels like we're in our... It feels like we're in an area that was made for us while we're here.
"I love that they put into this place, specifically this venue, specifically what they do to the hotel, just the simple things when you walk into the hotel. They've gotten all the elevator doors to say Esports World Cup, and it makes it feel like that hotel that's so grand and big, hundreds of thousands of people go through it every year.
"During this time, anybody who goes through sees that, this is for the gamers that are here, this is for the people that are playing, we've devoted this, we've given all this energy for you guys to know that we've dedicated this space and invited you guys here for you to do what you do best. That's just a great feeling."
Lou feels he can break into the top tier of Apex competitors
Lou is one of the most notable Apex Legends players. From some of the most iconic clips, insane performances and mastering both inputs he has been around Apex since the games beginning.
However, from a results standpoint, he has never quite broken through. LAN success has been few and far between with his best performances with Sentinels coming during the COVID-era when LANs were not happening.
Lou feels that he is close to a breakthrough into what he describes as the top 15 or so players.
"There's a pool of maybe 15 players in this entire game throughout the past seven years who have reached those heights and that's like what everyone's going for obviously. You have Alliance, you have the old TSM roster, you have Falcons, you have [Shopify Rebellion], you have a handful of players who have reached those heights.
"I want to say that we're still reaching. Our team has a lot of problems, a lot to overcome. Although we've made a good amount of progress, there's still way too much progress still to make. I want to say that whatever we do, whatever happens moving forward, at the end of day, our goal is to reach that, to become one those handful of players.
"I see myself maybe hitting that. It's very circumstantial. It isn't always in your control but all you can do is give your 110 % and go on that stage and play well. That's sort of what happened for me last Esports World Cup. The last Esports World Cup was a huge pivot moment for me because people started to notice that individually that I was a player that maybe could step into that pool of players. And since then I've just been reaching, just like everyone else."
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Lou admits that the VP team are "all over the place"
Lou has been part of some very strong rosters across the years in Apex Legends. From Rogue with Sweet and Dropped, to Sentinels with Crust and Senoxe. This current Virtus.pro team seems, from the outside, the most settled Lou has been since his time on Sentinels.
However, Lou still feels he has been on some other rosters that just didn't quite work out.
"I mean I guess if we're comparing like okay we have Sentinels and then everything after that I guess you could say maybe but I've had teams where like we didn't have the potential to do great but like I loved the team.
"For example, I had a team with Doop and Koy, just a very chill like awesome good vibes team. Who knows how it could've been - Doop just yesterday IGL'ed the team to first place in groups and you have Koy who is just widely recognized as one of the best players in the entire world.
"I've had a lot of rosters in my time that definitely could have been great and I was very happy with them like vibes wise. But this roster now is like all over the fucking place - like I'm not gonna lie we are all over the place!
"You get the VP that you get on stage that is just how good we are. We could go on that stage today get first and I'd be like that's how good we are we're one of the best we go on that stage and get bottom 15 I'd be like well that's just how we are and that's just how we play it!
"I wouldn't say this is the most settled I've been on a roster because it's really hard to meet the level I had with Crust and Senoxe.
"We never had any arguments or anything like that. It was never intense. We just showed up every day. We barely practiced and when we played we just dominated. I don't think I can ever replicate that feeling. It would be very hard. I don't think anyone, any team will ever be able to replicate that type of vibe. It was just one of a kind."
Long term association with Zach is a big benefit for Lou
Lou and Zach's history in Apex competitive goes right back to the games origins. They competed together at the Apex Preseason Invitational in Poland for FlyQuest and have played together on and off.
That bond and association is a big driver for Lou.
"It's crazy to think that me and Zach have been playing technically for seven years together. Not straight through, we've had our times where we had these gaps of absence. Me and him have been through it all and there's definitely a lot to work on from both of our ends. But it's been an overall positive experience and I would love to win a LAN with him It's the only reason why I'm here so I can do well with Slayer and Zac and do well for VP. I'm not here for anybody else, you know?"
Lou takes motivation from his Dad to keep going
The reasons iiTzTimmy shared for retiring from Apex Legends competitive was a stark reminder of just how much it takes to compete in Apex at a high level. Lou is part of a ever-shrinking group of players that have competed since the very beginning, with only a few breaks along the way.
When asked how he stays motivated after all these years, Lou recalled a heart warming and emotional story from Poland with his Dad, who sadly passed away in 2020.
"I got very lucky in Poland, which was the first LAN I played in. People took Poland extremely seriously. It was a hard LAN. I want to say match point finals went to 13 games, which is rare. And I brought my dad to that event. My dad passed a couple months later after the LAN. But during the event, we climbed through group stage - just barely. We made eighth and ninth, just getting that top 10 barely, scraping by. We got into finals, and we ended up getting 18th overall.
"Prior to that LAN, my father wasn't really up for me doing esports. He didn't think this was a good career path for me. I always had to struggle to explain to that this is what I wanted to do. I always had to struggle to convince him that this is what I needed to do.
"So we get 18th in finals in Poland. I had just turned 18 on finals day and I tell my dad how discouraged I was and how heartbroken I was that we played so bad and I was like, I don't think this is for me. I think you were right the whole time. This isn't what I should be doing. I don't know if I'm good enough. And this was the first time that my dad really like expressed his support for what I was doing.
"My dad was an artist so he understood the world of doing what you want to do because you want to do it. My Dad says to me, instead of the normal you shouldn't be doing this... you were put on earth to do this, you were made to do this and this is why you're on this earth. So, if you quit right now I would be extremely disappointed in you. He said that with a little bit more profanity!
"But since then, staying motivated has been pretty easy for me, because before he passed that is one of the last motivational things I have from him. So whenever I think about quitting I revisit that memory and I am like okay no matter how tough it gets the person I put the most merit in their world, my father, has told me this is what I was made to do. He's not here anymore so if I were to quit because of some emotional tether, or struggle, I'd be disappointing him and that is just not a possibility for me."
Lou will be looking to keep making his Dad proud across the rest of the ALGS Midseason Playoffs at the Esports World Cup. Stay tuned to esports.gg for full coverage of the ALGS and all things Apex Legends.
