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XBox (Games) First Person Shooters (Games)

The Story of a Halo 2 Champion 49

Posted by Zonk from the plenty-of-asskicking-to-go-around dept.
Sam Machkovech writes "My buddy Paul Kix of The Dallas Observer did some digging to uncover the life of Matt Leto (aka Zyos), whose track record places him in the top rankings of worldwide Halo & Halo 2 competitions. Professional gaming leagues are nothing new to those who know about the CPL, but this story shines a light at console-focused leagues like the MLG that may very well get the mainstream crowd interested in gaming as a viable sport, along with gamers like Zyos who buck negative stereotypes associated with hardcore gamers -- 'perhaps surprising, Leto's not a nerd. He's an athlete' -- while still kicking virtual ass. Show this article to your parents/spouses next time they harass you about your habit."
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The Story of a Halo 2 Champion More

The Story of a Halo 2 Champion

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  • We are the champions ! (Score:2, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward
    He's never kissed a girl. He lives in his mother's basement. But, by golly, he sure is good at Halo !

  • An Athlete? (Score:3, Informative)

    by MonkeyCookie ( 657433 ) on Thursday January 06, 2005 @11:38AM (#11276667)

    ...Leto's not a nerd. He's an athlete

    An athlete? Oh please! I have no doubt that he's very talented and skilled at Halo, but sitting and moving your fingers on a controller does not make you an athlete.

    If playing Halo is athletics, then kids get plenty of physical exercise, and we no longer need to worry about them getting fat because they're playing Halo all day. In fact, we should just considered chess and go games to be athletic events as well. They actually have to pick up the pieces and move them by hand.

    If Halo players are athletes, then I don't see what's preventing an Olympic Halo event. We'll have Olympic Counterstrike, Enemy Territory, and UT 2004 events as well, so that all deserving athletes can complete!

    Not those turn-based stategy gamers though: they aren't athletes. They spend too long thinking and don't twitch their fingers often enough to make them athletes.

    • Re:An Athlete? (Score:3, Informative)

      by MikeD227 ( 546924 )
      read the article. he's a swimmer. lettered in swimming in hs. they're comparing being an athelete to being a nerd (which i suppose infers very little physical activity).
    • reading the article...;)

      ...it mentions that he has an athletic frame and holds awards for swimming etc etc. I think thats what they mean, that despite being a gaming nerd he's not following the steretype completely by being a fat sits on his ass all day gaming nerd.

      Rather than Halo being exercise..!

      Kev
    • Too much for you to read the next sentence?

      He lettered in swimming at Allen High and still holds the build: His shoulders stretch wide the white T-shirt he wears tonight, and his quads and calves fill out his sweat pants.

    • Re:An Athlete? (Score:1, Informative)

      by Anonymous Coward
      athlete n. A person possessing the natural or acquired traits, such as strength, agility, and endurance, that are necessary for physical exercise or sports, especially those performed in competitive contexts.

      nautural or aquired traits in question: agility, intelligence, decisiveness

      sports in question: video games

      So the real question is, are video games (or in particular, Halo) sports?

      The relevant dictionary.com entry is:

      sport n.

      1. a.. Physical activity that is governed by a set of rules or customs and

      • Physical activity? Yes. Using a controller or keyboard mouse is physical.

        That's just silly. By that logic, most corporate jobs would be sports. By "physical activity," the definition refers to activities which are primarily physical (take a look at the second definition for clarification). Video games certainly are not.

        Rob
        • By that logic, most corporate jobs would be sports.

          Except for the fact that you completely disregarded the second and more important part of the definition Mr. AC provided.

          ...governed by a set of rules or customs and often engaged in competitively...

          I suppose in many corporate settings this would hold true as well, but for the purposes of this discussion your comparison fails. In the strictest interpretation, video gaming DOES fulfill the requirements for classification as a sport.

    • Kids and people get fat because they take in more calories then they expend in a day. Americans are getting fat in part because they don't excercise much but also becase they over eat. I currently don't excercise (A bout with psumonia kinda kills that) but i haven't gained a pound while I've stopped. My metabolism is in sync with how much I eat. I actually haven't been excersising regularly for months and I am softer but not fatter.

      The people may not be athletes but they are accomplished in the things they

  • Great Player? (Score:3, Funny)

    by Psychor ( 603391 ) on Thursday January 06, 2005 @12:00PM (#11277037) Homepage
    Come on guys, with a name like 133to, he is obviously good. Where is the story?

  • Time to cut the cord. (Score:4, Funny)

    by SkyWalk423 ( 661752 ) on Thursday January 06, 2005 @12:08PM (#11277153) Homepage Journal
    What I want to know is how come a 21 year old guy pulling down almost six figures playing Halo 2 is still living with his parents.
    • Because this way he doesn't have to cook, clean, wash his clothes, or anything else the rest of us have to take time to do. If he needs to spend 12 hours practicing he can do that, because his mom will bring him food and answer the phone and shoo diversions away from the front door.

      For a 41-year old married guy with a kid, mortgage, job, etc, it sounds like a pretty good life. I'm lucky if I get more than an hour in before bedtime. And if I do, it's usually because I'm cutting into my sleep time.

    • Where I grew up, you were expected to stay with your parents and take care of them when they become old.

  • Correction... (Score:4, Interesting)

    by hollismb ( 817357 ) on Thursday January 06, 2005 @12:13PM (#11277223) Homepage
    As far as I know, Zyos is a Halo Champion, and not yet a Halo 2 champion. He's arguably the best 'professional' Halo 1 player, but I've seen nothing regarding his Halo 2 skills. Obviously, they'll transfer over for the most part, but there are differences (lack of the original pistol, for example) that do significantly impact how one plays the game. I know plenty of people that aren't nearly as good at Halo 2 as they were at Halo 1 for that reason alone, so I thought I'd make the distinction about which game truly made him a 'champion'.
    • there are differences (lack of the original pistol, for example) that do significantly impact how one plays the game
      Heh, my friend was complaining about that to me yesterday. He told me two guns that are similar to the original pistol, but they've slipped my mind.

      • Re:Correction... (Score:4, Interesting)

        by hollismb ( 817357 ) on Thursday January 06, 2005 @01:34PM (#11278337) Homepage

        That would be the battle rifle and the covenant carbine, respectively. Anyone who says the thos weapons suck (which I read a lot) obviously doesn't know how to use them very well, because you can destroy people from a decent distance with a few well placed battle rifle shots to the forehead.

        In fact, in most of the custom games I set up, the battle rifle is the starting weapon because it's so useful in most situations, aside from having a shotgun liberally inserted in your nostril from a foot or two away. It's an invaluable tool on larger maps like Coagulation (the new Blood Gulch), Headlong, and Burial Mounds, for example, where you'd otherwise start out in the middle of the field with an SMG, which'll normally get you killed pretty fast.

  • Just because he's not fat doesn't mean he's not a nerd. The simple fact that he devotes so much time to playing a videogame indicates nerd to me. And why is that a bad thing?

  • False dichotomy of athlete/nerd (Score:2, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward
    This guy is definitely a nerd.

    Slicked back hair? Check.
    Shirt tucked into sweatpants? Check.
    Glasses? Check.
    Living in mother's basement? Check.
    No girlfriend? Check.
    14-year-olds begging to play Halo with him? Check.
    Makes a living playing video games? Checkmate.

    Come on, just because a guy can play sports doesn't mean he's any less of a nerd.

  • Correlation between Athletics and Video games (Score:3, Insightful)

    by PylonHead ( 61401 ) on Thursday January 06, 2005 @02:03PM (#11278816) Homepage Journal
    It doesn't suprise me that he's a swimmer. I've noticed that many of the best gamers I've met have been athletes. Geeks too, but athletes all the same. One was a championship fencer, another ranked 6th nationally in the pole vault.

    I think it's a combination of reflexes and a competative streak that will not allow them to lose.

  • "Show this article to your parents/spouses next time they harass you about your habit." And don't forget to suck in your gut while yer at it.

  • Ha! (Score:1)

    by Apreche ( 239272 )
    Saying you're a Halo champion is like saying you're a Formula 3000 champion, or a minor leauge baseball champion. When you find the world Counterstrike champion give me a call.

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