Filip "NEO" Kubski Opens Up About Kinguin Legends Tour & His Future

The Kinguin Legends competition invited six veteran players in Counter-Strike:Global Offensive (CSGO) to take part as captains, forming their own teams. It was a fun event where the fans rejoiced at the sight of their heroes playing like old times.

One of the six captains was Filip “NEO” Kubski who you cannot ignore while talking about legends who shaped Counter-Strike into the game it is. He is one of the greatest players in the game’s history and his participation in the Kinguin Legends tournament is a burning example of the same.

NEO spared some time to chat with GINX Esports TV about the competition and his future after CS:GO.

Interview With NEO

The concept of the Kinguin tournament

NEO highlighted the positive points about the tournament. Kinguin held the tour to relive cherished memories and see the players who conquered CS:GO once again and it delivered on many fronts. “I really like it and I think it’s a great idea. It is really nice to have all those nicknames back on the server.”

The 35-year-old also suggested a few changes which could improve the tournament in the future. “I think there should be some small changes to the rules of the tournament. We had four old-school guys having fun together and GuardiaN (Ladislav ‘GuardiaN’ Kovács) on the day before the tournament told us he couldn’t compete. With the age limit, we could have taken a 10-year-old to the team. So it feels like the age limit average could be a little higher to bring a more old vibe to the event.”

NEO also wished for the tournament to be offline and not online. Back in the day we hardly saw online tournaments. Whereas, offline LAN events were the real deal, and they still are. “I wish the tournament was offline and not online because online is always something different. Offline gives you a different vibe.”

Team practice and the recruitment process before the competition

NEO described how he formed the team. “My obvious choice went with f0rest (Patrik “f0rest” Lindberg). I was really hoping that he would agree to play with me because after all these years of competing against this guy,  at the moment when we don’t have a team, we still have more free time and we still enjoy the game from what I have seen on his streams. He was like the first pick, and when he agreed, I knew that it’s gonna be awesome, no matter who else we got. Then Olof (Olof “olofmeister” Kajbjer Gustafsson) agreed to the thing and then friberg (Adam “friberg” Friberg). I had some declines from other players. Some players were still busy with their schedules because at the end the event date was at short notice."

The 2014 Katowice champion also added that he was happy with the squad he assembled for the event. “I would say it’s the most legendary lineup”.

While Team NEO couldn’t beat Edward’s squad in the Semifinals, the joy of watching him alongside f0rest, friberg, olofmeister, and Filip “tudsoN” Tudev was something else for the fans. In the end, the event was more about having a good time looking at these extremely talented players going all out once again.

Playing with a legendary lineup

NEO was happy with the squad he had put together. After clearing the groups, he shared his thoughts on the games. “I really enjoyed playing those games. It’s so much fun and there is so much good vibe during the game. Of course, when you are losing, you don’t like to lose. But, we keep up the chemistry of the team all the time and it’s so much fun when we are playing together. It felt like a different game.”

Message for friend Pasha

Jarosław “pashaBiceps” Jarząbkowski was leading his team in the Kinguin tournament. Unfortunately, things didn’t work out for the fan’s favorite. When asked about giving a message to his old friend, NEO said, “Too bad that when we met, they were already out of the tournament, because our game wasn’t that important for them. But it was still nice to see them on the server. It definitely brought more emotions to the server than the regular games. It’s definitely more pressure than the other games, but it was fun.”

Favorite moment in CS:GO career

NEO has always replied by naming the Katowice tournament win as his favorite moment. However, he wanted to add to that choice. “Winning the ELEAGUE Atlanta Major, because Katowice was a short tournament. With Atlanta, it was group stages, the going back and coming back for relegation. I think it was more effort than any other tournament. The prize pool was bigger, and we had proven ourselves again. So it was another good memory.”

Thoughts on Valorant

NEO explained his experience with Valorant and what he felt could change about the game during its early phase. “I was in Dublin to try the Alpha or Beta version of the game. I really enjoyed the game, but I found that there is too much happening in the game with all the skills.”

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The Polish professional explained how Valorant was a little overwhelming with the number of abilities it featured for the agents. He compared the abilities of agents to the CS:GO utilities and insisted on having one less ability for them. This would make the game a little cleaner and shift the focus on aim and raw skill. “It’s a fun game and the feeling of shooting and moving is very similar to Counter-Strike 1.6.”

Love for Counter-Strike

Playing with a team and having people around him to compete against motivated Filip. “When I started playing Counter-Strike it was mostly playing with other guys, and it was the start of online multiplayer games. Then to be in a team and cooperate with them to play against other guys was something new. That got me into it.”

NEO explained how playing CS 1.6 was different and how you could express yourself through the game. He also spoke about the competitive nature of the game and how it was a motivating factor.

Future after Counter-Strike

NEO is in the midst of deciding what is best for his future. He explained how there are multiple career options compared to when he started playing the game. “Back in the days, we didn’t have coaches, analysts, or big tournament organizations like now. So there are many options to choose from.”

He also expressed his desire to give a hundred percent to whatever he pursues in the future. “If I want to become a coach, I will first educate myself first.”

Filip is trying different things to see what suits him the best. He is associated with Honoris and has cast a couple of its games recently. However, he has plans of streaming different games if it fits his liking. He is open to trying new things.

Opinion On The Kinguin Legends Tournament

The Kinguin Legends tournament was successful in bringing together popular players who have achieved massive recognition in their careers. Fans rejoiced after seeing their favorite players team up and face each other in lanes of euphoria and nostalgia.

Kinguin checked most boxes while organizing the event. According to the release, the organizers have plans to bring more events similar to this in the future. We can hope the event grows and involves more CS:GO legends in its next iteration.

For more on the game, please check out our section dedicated to CS:GO esports, guides, news, and much more.

Featured image courtesy of Kinguin.