APEKS to exit Counter-Strike temporarily; citing ‘challenging economic circumstances’

The Norwegian esports organization, APEKS, has announced their intention to cease activities in two esport titles, namely: Counter-Strike 2 and Fortnite. The organization was by no means a giant within the industry but over the course of its many years of activity within the esports scene, had fielded some truly special individuals.

According to their official notice earlier today, APEKS will be issuing a temporary pause for their Counter-Strike 2 division and exiting the Fortnite scene entirely. Both moves will happen simultaneously as APEKS cites the motivation of the decision came from ‘challenging economic circumstances.’

Heading forwards, APEKS intends to consolidate their resources and focus on their VALORANT division, whose roster is currently competing in the VALORANT Challengers League – Northern Europe: Polaris to be precise.

In 2023, their roster was widely considered the best EMEA representative within the Challengers circuit and were favorites to win VCT Ascension in EMEA. Unfortunately, the roster fell at the final hurdle against Gentle Mates in the Grand Finals, leading to the latter qualifying instead for VCT EMEA.

APEKS to Pause Counter-Strike Division Temporarily

“As Chairman of the Board, I feel it is important to act on these challenges directly. These difficult decisions, including the temporary layoffs and the pause of our Counter-Strike division, were made with a heavy heart to secure a sustainable future for Apeks. Investing in Apeks has been a labor of love for me. My commitment to the team and to the vision we all share remains unwavering. We are determined to overcome these challenges and emerge stronger than ever. Thank you for your understanding and continued support.” – Chairman of the Board, Ole Anfinnsen.

The biggest highlight for Apeks came last year at the Paris BLAST Major, where their roster reached the semifinals and faced against the eventual winners Vitality in a thrilling series.

However, despite their monumental successes in the industry, amidst the ongoing esports winter, APEKS find themselves with the difficult decision to layoff many of their employees heading into the latter half of 2024. In their official notice, APEKS stressed that the layoffs are meant to be temporary measures, in an effort to create a ‘stable economic environment.’

At the start of May, it was reported that the organization had transfer-listed their entire CS2 roster. Martin “STYKO” Styk was the first reported member off the roster, followed shortly by Joakim “jkaem” Myrbostad and Tim “nawwk” Jonasson. STYKO ended up with Monte while both jkaem and nawwk found their way onto the BLEED roster.

It remains to be seen what fate has in store for the remaining members of the former APEKS roster: Aleksandar “CacaNito” Kjulukoski and Ådne “sense” Fredriksen, as well as coach Torbjørn “mithR” Nyborg.

The History of Apeks

Beginning their humble beginnings all the way back in 2013 as Temp.no, they initially had a focus on recruiting Norwegian talent in an effort to field competitive rosters to battle internationally. They rebranded in 2017 to Kingpins Esports, shifting into a player-owned organization model. However, the rebrand just over a year before changing to the now globally recognized Apeks brand in early 2019.

At the time of the final rebrand, they still held onto their Norwegian roots, only fielding players from Norway even during an era where international rosters were beginning to pick up in popularity. It was not until 2021, when they picked up their first non-Norwegian member, Rasmus “kreaz” Johansson.

Since then, they have only sharpened their focus on international excellence. In 2020, they fielded former Fnatic player Dennis “dennis” Edman. In 2022, French legend Richard “shox” Papillon joined their ranks. Perhaps one of the most recognizable names in today’s CS2 landscape would be Lithuanian player and Major winner Justinas “jL” Lekavičius, currently of Natus Vincere.

Apeks remained a relatively less-recognized organization for most of their existence. It was only in 2019 when they began competing more internationally, finally facing bigger teams such as forZe, Gambit and Copenhagen Flames. Today, they are recognized as one of the premier CS2 organizations and were regular contestants in the biggest CSGO and CS2 tournaments.

For the latest breaking news in the Counter-Strike esports-sphere, follow Strafe Esports.

Credit: APEKS

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