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NiKo on kyousuke's growth: "He's already trying to look for different tools that he can use on maps, because it's not just about aiming in Tier-1"
After coming in third at the 2025 Esports World Cup, Team Falcons will be hoping to take their game to the next level and come away with the trophy at FISSURE Playground #2. With top teams like Team Vitality or MOUZ missing from the tournament, Falcons know the time to make a statement is now.
Following the Falcons' exit from the EWC, Strafe had the chance to speak to Nikola "NiKo" Kovač. During the interview, the star rifler discussed what the team seems to be missing, as well as Maxim "kyousuke" Lukin's adaptation to Tier-1 Counter-Strike.
An Inferno of a Problem
A third place finish at the Esports World Cup isn't exactly a bad result, especially considering Falcons defeated the dominant Team Vitality 13-3 in back-to-back maps to close out the tournament. Despite this, NiKo still feels there's much to learn from the event, particularly in the map pool department.
"I think at the EWC one thing that we lacked was that we were bad on Inferno, you. We had a really bad Inferno the whole event. We lost three in a row; we got slaughtered."
Having a weak Inferno proved vital for the Falcons, costing the team a crucial first map in the semifinals against Aurora. NiKo expressed confidence that, without Inferno, the team might have been able to make it all the way at the EWC: "I think if there were no Inferno, I would say that the event probably would have been a bit better for us."
With FISSURE Playground #2 about to kick off, it's time to see whether Falcons have had enough time to up their game on Inferno as they chase the trophy.
"This is one thing that we should learn from the EWC and try to see what we can do on this map because it hasn't been going well even before [kyousuke] joined. For us, it's just about extending our map pool, making sure that we don't have really a weakness in our map pool."
Kyousuke's Growth: Adapting to Tier-1
It's now been over a month and a half since kyousuke made the jump to Tier-1 by joining Team Falcons. Hailing from Team Spirit Academy, the 17-year-old had yet to have a chance to play on the big stage ahead of the move.
At first, kyousuke arrived with a bang, being the best performing member of the team at IEM Cologne. The Esports World Cup, however, saw the rifler's numbers take a hit. NiKo credits this to himself and Ilya "m0NESY" Osipov stealing the spotlight, though: "It's because maybe me and Ilya played good, so it's hard to have everyone having the same numbers."
When it comes to kyousuke's growth, NiKo showed full confidence in the rising star. The thing that surprised NiKo the most? Kyousuke's ability to remain unaffected by the pressure, no matter the size of the stage.
"I have no doubts in him. It's just going to take time for him to gain some experience in this, but I'm really happy that he's relaxed. I don't really feel any difference when he's playing a group stage game or a semifinal or any pressure. I don't really see it. That's very good."
While NiKo acknowledges that playing at the highest level is a whole different beast, the Bosnian showed praise for kyousuke's willingness to change and adapt his game.
"I think when it comes to growth, he's starting to kind of understand that it's a bit more difficult to play in Tier-1. I think he's already trying to look for different tools that he can use on maps, because it's not just about aiming in Tier-1. It's way more than that because people prepare for you and stuff like this, but he has been doing amazing."
Is the NiKo-m0NESY-kyousuke Partnership Enough?
When it comes to competitive Counter-Strike, few trios in the scene have as much firepower as the Falcons do now with the arrival of kyousuke. For NiKo, though, it's clear that winning at the highest level is about more than just firepower.
"There's a lot of good teams with a lot of good players. You know, Vitality has a strong trio. Spirit has a strong trio as well. MOUZ, they all can play very good. So, you know, it's more about team play. It's more about making sure that we are consistent with the things that we have."
And teamplay will often come down to communication in the end. Kyousuke, being just 17 years old and hailing from Russia, is understandably still trying to find the most effective way to communicate in a second language on the server. Once that is ironed out, though, sky's the limit for Team Falcons.
"Maxim is still learning English. He knows how to speak English, but just more in-game, when it's chaotic, that he can speak a bit faster, that he can direct teammates a bit more. So these things will take time, but I have huge hopes for this team."
Kyousuke and the rest of the Falcons have now had more than two weeks since their EWC exit to continue to develop synergy before their next contest. Whether this time proved enough to see the team elevate their game further, though, remains to be seen.
The Falcons are set to play their opening game of FISSURE Playground #2 on Friday, September 12th, at 5 pm CET. There, the team will hope to kick off the tournament with a victory against the new-look Virtus.pro.
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Featured image source: Esports World Cup
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