Maciej Krzykowski (born April 1, 1991), who goes by the pseudonym Av3k (), is a professional Quake and ShootMania player. He has Polish nationality and resides in Ostróda. He actively competes in international Quake competitionsSerious Gaming and was signed to Razer and Dutch electronic sports team Serious Gaming and French organization Millenium, but is now signed to British organisation Endpoint.Serious Gaming On July 8, 2007, at age 16, he became the second youngest Quake champion ever after winning the Electronic Sports World Cup 2007 in Paris without losing a single map. Mark "wombat" Larsen won the first ever tournament for Quake 3 - 1999's CPL GroundZero in New York City, at the age of 15.
Biography
Quake IV (2006–2007) Av3k is widely regarded as the best Quake IV player ever alongside former Swedish professional gamer Johan "Toxjq" Quick and was defeated by only four other players: Anton "Cooller" Singov, Alex "Ztrider" Ingarv, Magnus "fox" Olsson, and Toxjq. He faced Johnathan "Fatal1ty" Wendel three times in competition and has gone undefeated. One of Av3k's victories is considered to be the sixth biggest moment in professional gaming by GamePro.
He was considered a prodigy player due to his young age. In 2006, he was nominated for Player of the Year and Quake Revelation of the Year by competitive gaming media around the world.GGL.com: Sky, Lucifer, Toxic, av3k, archi, f0rest Players of 2006 In 2007, he was awarded the eSports Award's 'Breakthrough of the Year'.
Quake III (2008) Following Quake IV, he focused on Quake III competitions in 2008, as it became the main competitive first-person shooter. He took third place at his first competition in the game, losing to Magnus "fox" Olsson and Alexey "Cypher" Yanushevsky at the ESWC Masters of Paris event. Later that year, he won two major competitions (DreamHack and GameGune) and took third place at the ESWC Masters of Athens in Athens, Greece. He was unable to defend his Electronic Sports World Cup title as his visa to the United States was denied.
Quake Live (2009–2012) Following the beta launch of Quake Live, it became the main competitive first-person shooter starting in 2009, a year in which no Electronic Sports World Cup took place. This, combined with the previous cancellation of the World Series of Video Games, resulted in few remaining professional competitions. In 2010, the Electronic Sports World Cup renewed their lineup with Quake Live, as did Intel Extreme Masters. Av3k proved himself as one of the strongest players, taking second place at the European championship of the Intel Extreme Masters in 2010 and third place at the world championship. He additionally defended his DreamHack championship in 2009 and 2010.
During DreamHack Winter 2012, Av3k announced his retirement from Quake Live due to his inability to win any major tournaments in the last two years. He stated, "I just decided to not let people down anymore." After his victory of the FaceIt Legends Cup, however, Av3k retracted his previous announcement and relabelled his retirement as a hiatus. He cited his repeated losses to fellow progamer rapha demoralized him, and in response, he would take a break from Quake Live and improve his mental state.
ShootMania (2012–2016) In June 2012, French organization Millenium signed three players to represent their ShootMania team, consisting of three current Quake players Kevin "Strenx" Baeza, Alexey "Cypher" Yanushevsky, and Av3k.
Overwatch (2015-17) In late 2015, Av3k began to play Blizzard Gaming's new first-person shooter Overwatch, along with fellow former Quake players Cypher and Cooller. He played with Russian organisation ANOX and French team Owly Six, achieving few notable results. On 14 June 2017 it was announced that the Owly Six roster had disbanded.
Quake Champions (2017-present) Av3k returned to the Quake franchise in August 2017 with the release of Quake Champions, the most recent game in the series. On August 21 he signed with Virtus.Pro, famous for their successful Counter-Strike: Global Offensive lineup, also from Poland. His signing came after Virtus.Pro player Cypher was denied entry to the United States ahead of QuakeCon 2017.Virtus.Pro On 13 June 2018, Virtus.Pro announced it was closing its Quake Champions division.Virtus.Pro
On 19 September 2018, Av3k and Cypher signed with Belarusian organisation Nemiga Gaming. While with Nemiga, Av3k achieved a runner-up finish in Dreamhack Winter 2018. On February 16, 2019, Nemiga announced that Av3k's contract had expired and he and Cypher left the organisation, which closed its Quake Champions division.
On July 23, 2019, Av3k signed with British organisation Endpoint. On 10 August 2020 Endpoint announced that Av3k had renewed his contract for another year. Av3k co-hosts Endpoint's Quake podcast, Quake: A Game of Champions, with British commentator Zoot.
Notable tournament results
Quake Live 2013DreamHack WinterElmia in Jonkoping, Sweden4thDuel$1,5362012FaceIt Legends CupOnline1stDuel$658. Retracted retirement announcement, relabling it as a hiatus2012DreamHack WinterElmia in Jonkoping, Sweden3rd/4thDuel$1,508. Announced retirement from Quake Live2012Zynaps' CupOnline1stDuel$6002012AdroitsWzzrd in Enschede, Netherlands3rdDuel$8002012The Arena: Quake Live Invitation #3Online1stDuel$5002011DreamHack WinterElmia in Jonkoping, Sweden3rdDuel$1,4272011DreamHack WinterElmia in Jonkoping, Sweden3rdTeam Death Match$357. With the team tRainspotting2011QuakeCon TDM Invitational MastersHilton Anatole in Dallas, Texas1stTeam Death Match$4,0002011Asus SummerOnline1stDuel$2172011DreamHack SummerElmia in Jonkoping, Sweden5th/6thDuel2011DreamHack SummerElmia in Jonkoping, Sweden3rdTeam Death Match$195. With the team Serious Gaming2011Intel Extreme Masters Season V World Championship FinalsCeBIT in Hanover, Germany5th/6thDuel$6002011Intel Extreme Masters Season V European Championship FinalsKyiv Cybersports Arena in Kyiv, Ukraine2ndDuel$2,0002010DreamHack WinterElmia in Jonkoping, Sweden5th-8thDuel$3,9082010FnaticMSI PLAY BEAT ITElmia in Jonkoping, Sweden5th/6thDuel2010Intel Extreme Masters Season V Global Challenge: CologneGamescom at Koelnmesse in Cologne, Germany3rdDuel$8502010Electronic Sports World CupDisneyland Park in Paris, France2ndDuel$4,0002010DreamHack SummerElmia in Jonkoping, Sweden1stDuel$3,9082010Intel Extreme Masters Season IV World Championship FinalsCeBIT in Hanover, Germany3rdDuel$1,6002010Intel Extreme Masters Season IV European Championship FinalsCologne, Germany2ndDuel$1,5002009DreamHack WinterElmia in Jonkoping, Sweden1stDuel$3,5862009QuakeCon Masters ChampionshipGaylord Texan Resort Hotel & Convention Center in Grapevine, Texas9th-12thDuel
Quake IV 2007Multiplay i32 CupNewbury, Berkshire2ndDuel$3,5002007World Series of Video Games TorontoToronto, Ontario, Canada4thDuel$1,2002007Electronic Sports World CupParis, France1stDuel$10,0002007World Series of Video Games LanwarLouisville, Kentucky1stDuel$5,2502007Multiplay i30 & Belkin TournamentNewbury, Berkshire1stDuel$4,0002006Poznan Game ArenaPoznan, Poland1stDuel$1,5002006World Cyber Games All StarsMonza, Italy3rd2v2With the player Stermy2006World Cyber Games All StarsMonza, Italy6thDuel2006DigitalLifeNew York, New York2ndDuel$3,5002006QuakeConHilton Anatole in Dallas, Texas4thDuel$3,0002006QuakeConHilton Anatole in Dallas, Texas9th-12th2v2With the player forever2006The GatheringHamar Olympic Hall in Hamar, Norway1stDuel$8372006Samsung NetgamezNieuwegein, Netherlands1stDuel$360
Quake III Arena 2008DreamHack WinterElmia in Jonkoping, Sweden1stDuel$1,8002008Electronic Sports World Cup Masters of AthensAthens, Greece3rdDuel$2,0002008GameGuneBilbao, Spain1stDuel$3,9232008Electronic Sports World Cup Masters of ParisParis, France3rdDuel$1,000
Awards and nominations
|2007 |Quake 4 Player of the Year |Global Gaming League
|2007 |Breakthrough of the Year |eSports Award
|2007 |Best FPS Duel Player |eSports Award
|2006 |Quake Revelation of the Year |Global Gaming League
References
External links on QLRanks Profile on Quake History Configuration on Gamingcfg