Anyone who’s followed competitive Call of Duty for a long time knows about Anthony “NAMELESS” Wheeler. He’s one of the longest-tenured veterans in the scene who’s well known for his second-place finish at CoD Champs 2014 with Team Envy.
But halfway through the WWII season this year, Evil Geniuses made a roster change that left NAMELESS without a team. After failing to qualify for the relegation tournament for Stage Two of the 2018 CWL Pro League, NAMELESS started to prepare for the next phase in his gaming career.
Related: NAMELESS’ new podcast is exactly what the competitive Call of Duty community needs
Not only did NAMELESS join the analyst desk for the last few Call of Duty World League events in the WWII season, but he also began his own show called The CoDCast—which can be viewed on his Twitch and YouTube channels. The show features NAMELESS talking with other professional Call of Duty players, and it saw immediate success as the community seemingly rallied behind this new endeavor.
NAMELESS spoke with Dot Esports at the 2018 Call of Duty World League Championship about his experience on the analyst desk, what he has planned heading into Black Ops 4, and the future of The CoDCast.Â
What has this Champs been like for you, being on the analyst desk instead of competing?
NAMELESS: I’ve been to pretty much every CoD Champs other than the very first XP because I wasn’t old enough. But it’s been an awesome experience. It’s a little saddening not playing, and seeing people play, especially former teammates that I played with this year who are top three already. It’s been a great experience though, I’m enjoying it.
What is it like to watch your former teammates compete against each other after splitting up earlier this year?
Honestly, the split wasn’t too bad. We realized our team wasn’t going to work. It’s interesting seeing them up there. I knew they all had it in them, our team just didn’t work at the time. I’m very happy for them. I’m in a good spot with how I am, and I’m happy that they’re making a run. And to see EG turn it around, it’s extremely satisfying for me because Apathy and ACHES are good friends of mine, and then SiLLY and Assault are good guys as well; they put in the time. And Enable is one of my best friends, so I’m extremely happy to see him doing well.
What do you want to do going into next year with Black Ops 4?
I don’t want to make any announcements, but I like what I’m doing.
Do you have any plans for The CoDCast going forward?
Oh yeah, for The CoDCast, there’s going to be some extreme upgrades. There might be a little bit of a delay in the episodes for now because I’m making a lot of changes. But I got a lot of backing (sort of an announcement for that). There’s going to be an extreme increase in production and it’s going to be amazing going into Black Ops 4. It’s going to be a really well-round, good show.
What has all of the support behind The CoDCast meant to you so far?
It’s been awesome. The community backed me 100 percent. There’s always a worry about what you’re gonna do after you stop playing, and I think that the show is something new to Call of Duty—having a player talk to other players. I’m friends with them, so I can kinda get them to open up a little bit. And it’s been super fun, just talking about their lives and stuff a little bit outside of the game so [the fans] can get to know the players. I’ve had a lot of people who loosely follow the esport say that it’s nice to get to know people and the players in a different way.Â
Do you think that being so close with the pro players makes it easier for you to produce the show?
Well I think it’s a couple of things. I know everybody and I’m really good friends with them, so it’s easy to get them on the show. And then I know about them, so that’s also easier because I’m actually friends. I’ve been in Call of Duty esports for a very long time, so I know the struggles they go through, and the triumphs as well. So I think they’re able to relate to me, which allows me to produce a show that’s really unique as opposed to a new show that someone else could create. It’s just a combination of me knowing them and having done what they do. It’s easy for me to speak to them.
Be on the lookout for NAMELESS’ next episode of The CoDCast—it seems like he’s trying to plan a show with the 2018 world champions, Evil Geniuses.
