Three Inducted into the ESI Hall of Fame
Esports Insider recently had an inaugural announcement for their Hall of Fame hosted at the Natural History Museum in Boston, Massachusetts. The announcement, as well as the Hall of Fame itself, is focused on recognizing outstanding esports achievements for long-standing members of the community.
The Hall of Fame is also interested in recognizing history and importance to the foundation of esports. This is evidenced by their first three picks for the Hall of Fame—the first three to enter the Hall of Fame are some of the primary influences of PC and FPS gaming.
Without further ado, here are the first three inductees into the ESI Hall of Fame!
1. Michal “CARMAC” Blicharz
Michal Blicharz used to be known as a troll and an all-around humorous player, but he has been working behind the scenes for top organizations for over a decade.
We took a perusal through Blicharz’s resume on LinkedIn to list some of the highlights, but his career in esports is so prolific that it would be completely futile.
He started off as a simple player, infatuated with the Unreal Tournament series. From there, he started gaming at a higher level, then running his tournaments, and the rest is history.
Blicharz has consistently taken more and more responsibilities throughout his lifetime, and he’s done every duty in the esports world you could imagine. He’s hosted tournaments, he’s written and edited articles, and he’s been a significant pillar of the community.
He’s worked for SK Gaming. He’s worked for the Global Gaming League. For almost a full decade, he’s worked for ESL, and he is a massive part of the Dreamhack events that go on yearly.
CARMAC doesn’t have an incredibly loud and boisterous personality, but he is always one to make sure tournaments are fun, competitive, and smooth experiences for everyone involved.
2. Jason Lake
Before CS:GO, there was CS: Source. Before CS: Source, there was CS 1.6. Not every team or esports organization from that early 2000s era has survived to today, but Jason Lake’s sure has.
Lake is the founder of compLexity Gaming, one of the most important esports organizations during the development of the original CounterStrike scene. Back in 2003, Lake was in the trenches, running events, transporting players, and doing all of the hard work that makes esports function.
He’s hit some hardship in the fifteen-year span of his esports career, of course. You can’t work that long without hitting a few roadblocks. Lake is known in the community for persevering in the face of these obstacles, and he’s got the success to back it up.
In 2017, John Goff and Jerry Jones invested a significant amount of money for a stake in compLexity gaming. If you don’t know those names, John Goff is a real estate mogul, and Jerry Jones is the owner of the Dallas Cowboys.
If anyone’s organization has hit the big time, it’s compLexity. Nothing says “success” more than sharing your offices with one of the biggest sports franchises in the world.
Oh, yeah, he also has a Law Doctorate, and he was an attorney before he ever even started compLexity. Jason Lake truly has an unstoppable work ethic—one that has yet to be matched in the world of esports.
3. Chris Puckett
Chris Puckett is perhaps one of the most prolific esports hosts and organizers of all time. Puckett’s first serious competition game was Halo. His career evolved naturally through his education and the events he would help run.
At nineteen years old, Puckett was offered a job that did not require him to complete his Marketing degree at Ohio University. He chose the job over education and went on to help run MLG in New York City.
Puckett has helped build the foundation for so many franchises and games. Arguably, esports events, specifically FPS ones, might not look the same without him; those original Halo and Call of Duty tournaments set many precedents for how organizations should run their competitions.
If you have only been following esports in the past few years, you might instead know Puckett from his work on the Overwatch League. There, he is a caster and announcer, and can always be seen in front of the camera delivering the coverage to fans all around the world.
MLG may not be as big of a name as it used to be, but Chris Puckett remains a superstar in the world of esports. Puckett has been there every step of the way as esports has kept growing and growing. He’s seen every partnership, he’s seen organizations rise and fall, and his career shows no sign of stopping—only expanding and developing.
In decades to come, Puckett will be a name to be remembered, and we sure are glad he is one of the first inductees into the ESI Hall of Fame.
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