Dev1ce, one of the superstars of CS:GO, has been inactive from pro play since December 2021, when he was still representing Ninjas in Pyjamas.
The Danish AWPer spent most of 2022 on medical leave to take care of his mental health before rejoining Astralis, the organization he helped win four CS:GO Majors, in October. Due to dev1ce spending so much time on the sidelines, part of the community doubts he’ll go back to the prime form he displayed between 2015 and 2021.
Do you miss watching dev1ce play professional CS:GO? Here’s everything we know about his status.
Why isn’t dev1ce playing CS:GO?
Astralis opted to not field dev1ce at Elisa Masters Espoo, the first tournament the team played since he joined, which only raised further questions on dev1ce’s form. Kasper Hvidt, Astralis’ director of sports, said before Elisa Masters Espoo that dev1ce is playing well and the team is all about “creating room for the best version of dev1ce we have seen.”
Hvidt wasn’t the only one to give a public statement regarding dev1ce’s form. Astralis in-game leader gla1ve said he’s been good as well.
“We wanted him to play [at Elisa Masters Espoo], and I also think he’s holding back a bit because he has been out for nine months,” gla1ve said. “You need a slow start, especially with all the traveling we do.”
So, as far as we know, the reason why dev1ce didn’t play at Elisa Masters Espoo is that he and Astralis don’t want to rush his return to pro play.
When will dev1ce be back to playing pro CS:GO matches?
Dev1ce’s return to pro play was unclear after Elisa Masters Espoo since Astralis didn’t have any events scheduled for the rest of 2022. But with Astralis being invited to the CCT North Europe Series two playoffs in December 2022, the organization said dev1ce will debut in this online tournament that will also feature OG, GamerLegion, and HEET.
The CCT North Europe Series two playoffs will kick off on Dec. 4 and dev1ce will play alongside gla1ve, Xyp9x, blameF, and academy player stand-in Mikkel “MistR” Thomsen. Dev1ce has taken the place of Kristoffer “kristou” Aamand, another academy player who stood in for Astralis at Elisa Masters Espoo.
