Map loss, tech pause, no matter: Vitality win Gamers8 to close off CS:GO era

The international superteam secured another big event win as the Global Offensive era continues its long goodbye, defeating ENCE in a three-mapper that only seemed to get easier for them as the show went on.

It’s another feather in apEX’s cap and one more MVP medal for ZywOo—and further proof the flameZ pickup was the right call at exactly the right time.

“If we are not the best team in the world, I don’t know who is”—this is what Vitality in-game leader apEX had to say in the post-match, reflecting on how his team has reached four of the last five grand finals, winning three in the process.

It’s tough to argue with his sentiment, as Vitality dispatched MIBR, NAVI and G2 along the way before facing ENCE in a matchup worth $220,000 on its own. Despite a slow start and a loss on Anubis, they turned on the heat on Mirage, racing to a 9-6 lead and managing to maintain their momentum through an embarrassingly long tech pause that saw both teams leave the stage while the organizers were looking for a solution.

Related: Gamers8 CS:GO 2023: Scores, brackets, results

Nuke, the decider, was just a playground for ZywOo, who claimed another MVP award and further cemented himself as the number one contender for any end-of-season awards. Ultimately, the final map of the affair wasn’t close, and it was a fair reflection of the series as a whole. ENCE put up a good fight, but it just wasn’t enough to go all the way.

ENCE continue to make waves in the Counter-Strike scene, earning well-deserved plaudits with their deep tournament runs, but they can’t seem to break their duck against elite-level teams when it truly matters. The team’s big win at IEM Dallas came at the expense of MOUZ in the grand final, though they did have to dispatch FaZe along the way.

Still, the plucky international underdogs proved that they deserve their continued spot in the top five of the HLTV world rankings.

This victory also underscored the positive impact of Vitality’s controversial post-Major roster move as flameZ, dupreeh’s replacement, posted a 1.12 rating across 10 maps played, going positive in three out of three events in his new team so far.

While there has not been any confirmation of CS2’s official release date, it is widely assumed that this Gamers8 event was the final big competition played on CS:GO. As the winners of the final CS:GO Major, Vitality has now gone on to close another chapter—and is poised to start the new one as favorites.