ELEAGUE caster James Bardolph is a Counter-Strike legend both on and off the casting desk, and he spoke to FanSided about the role of personality in esports.
The biggest strength of Turner and IMG’s ELEAGUE is its personalities, and one of those is James Bardolph, the caster and analyst who never fails to turn up with deadpan wit and the willingness to take on any game, be it at the desk or on the server.
As the ELEAGUE CSGO Premier playoffs begin this week on TBS, Twitch, YouTube and ELEAGUE Game Command, FanSided spoke with James to talk about how personality matters in esports and if he’s looking for a little revenge against his regular casting partner Daniel “DDK” Kapadia.
ELEAGUE: You’ve been with ELEAGUE from the beginning, so what was it about this brand that got you onboard?
James Bardolph (JB): It’s Turner Sports. I’m a wrestling fan and Turner used to to do WCW, so you know you’re in good hands when they’re going to have that madness on TV. So I thought it would be the best traditional company, if you will, to make this kind of offering and I think it turned out well.
FanSided: What would you say is the biggest strength of ELEAGUE, as far as how it’s evolved over four Counter-Strike tournaments, including a Major?
JB: They’ve always given us a lot of freedom. They haven’t told us what to wear or how to behave, what to say, what not to say. They’ve let us be ourselves. They’re big on personality, which is good, so they’ve been pretty on point from the start. And as it’s evolved, we’ve got a good team here. Some people I know back from the day, as well as back in London actually. So they have their own personality, which is important, and they have attitude.
But they do every game right. They don’t do anything bad that I can see. They do it tastefully but they’re not trying to be overly cautious, which is something that’s been seen in the past. They have a good balance.
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FanSided: What are your favorite ELEAGUE memories?
JB: One of the biggest memories for me was when NiKo had that one versus five with the Desert Eagle on Cache, which is one of the most bizarre things cause it’s very hard to use that effectively and wipe out an entire team. That is quite something, so for me that stands out.
It was fun when we had that Christmas jumper day and I had a Christmas suit out. The staff gave me a standing ovation, which was kind of cool.
The one thing that stands out for me is just the production meetings every morning. Everyone getting together and talking about what they were doing. Everyone on the same page. That’s pretty awesome and a great way to start the day. Not a massive highlight thing but it’s important.
FanSided: How do you prepare for your day at ELEAGUE? Is there a particular method that you follow to be on your “A” game?
JB: Normally I would just chill out and wait for the production meeting. I get the parts that are relevant to me, and I’ll mark them and what I’ll need to prepare. Like if I’m doing the desk, I like to look at the team histories and what they like to veto and what they like to play. Generally for commentating at big events, [Dan and I] listen to really aggressive grind music and we sit and shout along to the lyrics as a warm-up.
But those are the main things. Just making sure I have everything I need for commentary [including] in terms of water. You don’t want to go in there and have a dry throat halfway through. I might go harrass people here and there as well.
FanSided: You’re getting to cast a very exciting time in Counter-Strike right now, with all of the changes that have taken place. What do you think of the current scene?
JB: I’m always looking forward to seeing how these teams will do the next two to three months. A team which has big changes can have a good run for one to two months, and part of that is going to be unfamiliarity for other teams. When everything’s been seen and done, the dust settles and you see where these teams will shape up in the latter. The journey to that point is quite exciting as well and once we get there we’ll see what’s what.
I love roster changes as long as they make sense. Some come with pressure, like if you don’t make it this far in a tournament then we’re going to make changes … [But] it’s a great period and it’s very curious to see new strategies and people playing different roles, learning things, so it’s exciting for everyone.
FanSided: We’d be remiss if we didn’t talk about your Counter-Strike playing career. Fans love to watch you play. When’s the next time we’ll see you on the server?
JB: It’s most likely to be at the next Major. Hopefully. I’m always ready, I always have my equipment on me, so I’m always good to go.
FanSided: Speaking of Dan, he and Team DDK beat you and Team Bardolph at the PGL Krakow showmatch. Are you aiming for a bit of revenge against your co-caster?
JB: I think his teammates might get revenge for him, because he killed almost half his team in that match. So I think the revenge is more focused for his team, but you know, I did my job.
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For more with James Bardolph, be sure that you’re following him on Twitter. The ELEAGUE CSGO Premier playoffs take place this Friday, Oct. 13 at 10 p.m. ET on TBS.