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Magnus 'fox' Olsson (mousesports)

The former FPO and LowLandLions player has been off of our radar for a very long time now, with his last International event being the IEM World Championships, an event which saw him crashing out at the hands of Maciej 'av3k' Krzykowski in three straight maps after successfully reaching the play-off stage.

The mousesports star famed for never being able to finish when it matters, will be ever present at Dreamhack this weekend after recently claiming his spot for the Kaspersky Championship via online qualifier, taking the victory over his fellow Swede fooki, stating that he “had the mental upper hand [during the game]” because “Fooki didn't really think he was going to win”.

Olsson will be expecting to make it to the play-off stage, and anyone supporting him will be shocked if this is not the case. His outcome in the group standing will purely rely on his match against our very own Sebastian 'Spart1e' Siira. If Fox can find a win, he will emerge first in Group A, if he loses, second. Neither Romain 'dem0n' Leclercq nor Marius 'GUard' Ivanauskas will cause much of a problem for the Swede, maybe claiming a single map between them.

Prediction: Second in Group A, could stumble in the play-offs.

 Sebastian 'Spart1e' Siira (FnaticMSI)

Siira has, similar to fox, been off of our competitive radar for some period of time now. His last public offline appearance was of course at the IEM EU finals in Cologne, Germany, where he was sent home early during the group stages of the tournament following a bizarre three-way tie between himself, mTw's calipt and Serious-Gaming's av3k; a series of events which left the fanatical Swede baffled and in the dirt after only dropping one map to British dueler GaRpY.

Now looking for redemption, Spart1e will certainly be coming into this Dreamhack event expecting a much higher placement than that of IEM EU. The second place ESWC Athens finishers should technically be either first or second in Group A, with fox being the only real challenge for such an accomplished e-sportsman, but as we've seen before, upsets can happen, and this player in particular has been dealt that unfortunate hand of cards in the past.

Prediction: First in Group A, potentially within the top six if well practised.

 Romain 'dem0n' Leclercq (LowLandLions)

Dem0n comes into this event as the single low-seeded player, and unfortunately this is how he is going to leave, accompanying the three unconfirmed BYOC participants who will be decided at the event. I never like to count a player out before the event has started, but Dreamhack is going to similar to his flash in the pan experience at IEM EU in January.

Personally I can't see this Belgian dueller making an impact on either of Olsson or Siira, and as such his only real opposition will be GUard, and even then I can't see him taking more than a single map off of the Lithuanian.

Prediction: Fourth in Group A.

 Marius 'GUard' Ivanauskas (Druidz)

Ivanauskas is the dark horse in Group A, and could be the one to upset either Spart1e or fox, given the opportunity. The only obstacle that he needs to overcome is himself, and hoping that first-LAN nerves do not effect this rising talent when push comes to shove. This is the player who will steal a map of either of the two higher seeds in Group A.

GUard may be new to LAN, but is no stranger to online competition however, as he has competed in almost all of the recent GDATA and ZOTAC cups, more times than not being within the top four of said tournaments, having faced the likes of av3k, strenx, noctis and k1llsen in recent months.

Prediction: Third in Group A, could upset either higher seed.

Anton 'Cooller' Singov (mousesports)

Group B holds ownership of three Quake Live players who on any given day could pass through to the play-off stage if they bring their A-game. One name is particular however protrudes and overshadows both Richard 'noctis' Gansterer and Alexander 'Z4muZ' Ihrfors, and that is Cooller, the two time Quake III ESWC champion, a name alone which acts as an express ticket to the play-off stages of any tournament.

Having earned in excess of $140,000 USD in his gaming career through winnings alone, Singov will be heading into the Dreamhack event as one of the select few expected to be standing on the podium come the prize giving ceremony on Monday. I am without doubt that the Russian has no intentions of leaving Sweden without a medal, and with that in mind I can foresee a Cooller unlike the one who attended the ASUS Spring 2010 LAN, and took a thrashing from Alexei 'Cypher' Yanushevsky.

Both the Austrian and Swede in his group can certainly play close games with Cooller, but I can't see either defeating the legendary Quaker. At the very best both players can steal a single map off of the Russian, leaving the unconfirmed BYOC player to fear for his life as Singov controls all of the items. This group is a clear win for Anton.

Prediction: First in Group A, expected in the grand finals.

 Richard 'noctis' Gansterer

The high seed in Group B is the 23 year old Austrian Richard 'noctis' Gansterer, who famously turned down an offer of Fatal1ty sponsorship for Quakecon 2009, but shortly after joined up with Vitriolic-Gaming ahead of the Intel Extreme Masters Dubai in October, resulting in a third place finish right behind both Shane 'rapha' Hendrixson and Alexei 'Cypher' Yanushevsky.

Noctis is my personal bet to continue out of this group in second, however the match between him and Z4muZ will assuredly be an exceptional one, with neither aspiring for an early exit from the tournament. Prior to this match however, Gansterer will have to face his fears and go toe to toe with Cooller, however I feel that the Russian giant will be too much for noctis, and at best noctis can expect a single map to his name.

Prediction: Second in Group B, close match with Z4muZ.

 Alexander 'Z4muZ' Ihrfors (excello)

The last, but by no means least impressive player in Group B will be second place finishers at least years November Dreamhack, Alexander 'Z4muZ' Ihrfors, coming into this year's tournament as a middle seed.

Similar to noctis, Z4muZ will not be expecting an early train journey home, and as such you can envisage one of the best opening matches of the tournament between Ihrfors and the Austrian. Unlike Gansterer however, I feel that Z4muZ will be unable to challenge a potentially on form Cooller, and his only chance to continue out of the group stage will be a victory over noctis.

Prediction: Third in Group B, will not topple noctis.

The fourth and final spot in Group B will be filled by a BYOC player who will qualify for the tournament on the Saturday afternoon at the Dreamhack event.

 Maciek 'av3k' Krzykowski (Serious Gaming)

Leading Group C is last year's Dreamhack winner and former ESWC world champion, Maciek 'av3k' Krzykowski of Poland; one of the favourites going into this tournament, alongside Cooller and Cypher to name but just two.

Merits alone will not grant Krzykowski with that sought after golden ticket out of this group stage however, as Group C is undoubtedly one of the toughest of the Dreamhack tournament, being refuge to both Marcel 'k1llsen' Paul of Germany and FnaticMSI dueller Kévin 'strenx' Baéza, either of whom can challenge the nineteen year old Pole for that number one position.

Despite a shaky start to his Quake Live competitive career, av3k have returned to his natural winning, or at least high placement ways, and it would be a safe bet to consider this Serious Gaming dueller in the playoffs, but he has a gigantic mountain to climb if he wishes to do so.

Prediction: First in Group C, top three finish if on form.

 Kévin 'strenx' Baéza (FnaticMSI)

The second of the two FnaticMSI duellers present in Sweden this weekend will be lightening gun extraordinaire, Kévin 'strenx' Baéza. Famed for his pin-point accuracy and his hyper-aggressive play style, this young Frenchman has a lot to prove to his many critics who still do not believe he can play Quake with the heavyweights, particularly within a LAN environment.

Despite this fact, not a single person can deny that strenx has consistently improved as an individual player since IEM Dubai in October last year, following the announcement that he would be focusing the majority of his Quake Live time to the duel game type, and since having won almost every single GDATA and ZOTAC cup announced.

Baéza will once more be looking to improve on his most recent placing which was 7-8th at IEM World (alongside Group D participate stermy), and this Dreamhack event is certainly the platform to do so. As such I feel anything less than a top six placement will be a bitter disappointment for the French Quake talent, and anything more will be a major upset. However k1llsen will have a lot to say about that prediction, and whether the nineteen year old even manages to leave the groups, but I have faith.

Prediction: Second in Group C, finishing in the top six is the most to expect.

 Marcel 'k1llsen' Paul (ESC Gaming)

Personally I think it's ludicrous to see this accomplished German player and ESWC finalist sitting in amongst the mid seeds of a tournament, but then quite frankly out of the high seeds who could you possibly swap him for? That is either a merit for the strong pool of talent at this event, or a sign that k1llsen has been out of major European competition for way too long!

Actually it's a bit of both, but hopefully the most recent EPS Germany Quake Live champion can bounce back to his previous form, which saw him narrowly miss out at a spot in the IEM World finals earlier this year, along with fellow countryman calipt.

Similar to strenx, Dreamhack presents the perfect opportunity for k1llsen to make a return to Quake supremacy, and ironically the match between the Frenchman and the German will be the one which determines who will continue to the play-off stage, as I can see neither defeating av3k. My heart wants k1llsen to progress, my mind tells me strenx; he is just too on form as of late.

Prediction: Third in Group C, fantastic match against strenx.

The fourth and final spot in Group C will be filled by a BYOC player who will qualify for the tournament on the Saturday afternoon at the Dreamhack event.

 Alexei 'Cypher' Yanushevsky (Serious Gaming)

In late November last year, while in attendance at the previous Dreamhack Quake Live tournament, this Belarusian wonder child was sent packing from the star-studded tournament by this events high seed in his current group, Alessandro 'stermy' Avallone, resulting in an un-Cypher like placement of 5-8th. Unlike most however, Cypher bounced back from an unfasionable early exit from the tournament, with two stellar back to back top three finishes at both Quakecon 2009 and IEM Dubai.

Coming into 2010, Yanushevsky has continued his dominant form, taking gold at the IEM Europe event in Cologne, Germany, and fourth at the IEM World tournament, behind the likes of Shane 'rapha' Hendrixson, Anton 'Cooller' Singov and fellow Serious-Gaming dueller, Maciek 'av3k' Krzykowski.

To add to that, Alexei included Cooller on his list of casualties at the ASUS 2010 Spring LAN in Russia, and personally I cannot see this form changing anytime soon, spelling annihilation both stermy and fazz in Group D. I believe that this twenty year old is destined to be the Dreamhack Quake Live champion, and that no one can falter him.

Prediction: First in Group D, Dreamhack champion.

 Alessandro 'stermy' Avallone

The man. The myth. The legend. You know you have a real Quake tournament on your hands (if twelve of the best players in Europe already isn't enough) when the face of competitive one on one death match is in attendance. None other than the self sponsored Alessandro 'stermy' Avallone, the Italian legend and former Championship Gaming Series FIFA star.

Stermy is one of the few European Quake players who has competed at almost every event since the beta release of the game in early 2009; Quakecon, IEM Dubai, IEM Europe and IEM World just to name a handful. Despite this, Avallone's placements do leave a large amount to be desired, having not successfully placed in the top four at any offline tournament, apart from last year's Dreamhack Winter, where he beat group rival Cypher in the quarter final.

Alessandro is consistent, and you can expect an early upset from the Italian, be it either giving Cypher a run for him money, or giving Söderman a free professional lesson courtesy of Stermy.com. The equivalent of the Ferrari in the eSports world is out for a top four placement, and my money is on him to do so.

Prediction: Second in Group D, no less than a top six finish.

 Pelle 'fazz' Söderman (excello)

Bringing up the final non-BYOC slot in Group D will be excello dueller Pelle 'fazz' Söderman, who unfortunately I foresee not being able to cause much resistance to either Cypher or stermy in his scheduled matches come Sunday afternoon. By no means am I counting him out of giving either of the two a close game, but I honestly do not believe that the Swede can take a map of either the Belarusian or the Italian.

Frankly I would like to see Söderman cause an upset to spice up the somewhat predictable outcome of the final group, however it is a long shot. Let's just hope that fazz brings his A-game to the Dreamhack tournament.

Prediction: Third in Group D, very little challenge for either higher seeds.

The fourth and final spot in Group D will be filled by a BYOC player who will qualify for the tournament on the Saturday afternoon at the Dreamhack event.