This article was originally published on GameSpot's sister site onGamers.com, which was dedicated to esports coverage.

　　As exciting as matches and tournaments are on their own, I always find the context surrounding matches to be a key factor in enhancing the experience of watching the matches unfold. Knowing the historical component of the impact, a win or loss can have on a player's or team's career heightens the excitement. Seeing how individual performances can shape the way we think of players, make the big pressure moment they rise to or fall from only more intense. Thorin's threads picks out key story-lines to follow, with their historical and cultural context explained.

　　With the ninth offline Season finals of SLTV's StarSeries tournament upon us, here are seven story-lines to follow.

　　

NiP vs. Titan's next phase by way of an older phase

The departure of shox from Titan also spells the end of an era of the French-Belgian lineup's fortunes against NiP which stood out from their past. With shox in their team, VeryGames/Titan had a winning record in all regards against NiP in offline competition. They led the series record 3:2 and were up in maps 8:6. Bearing in mind the incredible level of shox's play, it's difficult not to attribute a lot of that to his arrival and subsequent consistency.

　　With kennyS returning in his stead, it sends our minds back to the two VeryGames line-ups he was a part of in the early part of CS:GO. The first, when RpK was also a member of the team, had VG go 0:4 in series and 0:8 in maps against NiP, who were the unbeaten offline gods of the game at the time. Despite the extreme nature of those results, the team had been good, finishing second in all four of their events. That was a VeryGames that could beat any team in the world, minus NiP.

　　The team had then brought in ScreaM, replacing a retiring RpK. The ScreaM era of the team, not including the time after shox joined, was initially quite a disappointment. The team failed to finish top two in any of the events which also featured NiP. Their record against the Ninjas over that time was almost as bad, going 0:3 in series and 0:6 in maps. At this point their history against NiP offline was seven straight offline series losses and 14 straight offline map losses. NiP were their unbeatable nemeses.

　　That the arrival of shox quickly granted VeryGames their first offline title at a tournament featuring NiP and then would, in a couple of months, spur their win-streak against their rivals, really did herald a new era for them. Now shox is gone and they must adapt to reintegrating kennyS into the line-up. On the bright side, their results this year have been bad enough that even a return to always finishing seconding a losing to NiP would be an improvement. Then again, if they begin losing against NiP then it will be hard not to see their confidence shaken.

　　The past does not always have to define the present or the future, at least not unless we let it. So will this be a different phase in the Titan vs. NiP rivalry or will it be a return to a familiar storyline of old?

　　

kennyS vs. shox

shox won't even be in attendance in Ukraine but he will be in everyone's minds as Titan plays their games. For a player like kennyS, very skilled and capable of huge offline performances, it may seem unfair to continually compare him to one of the few players in the world who is better than him, but that is the context of the specific situation he has walked into. shox was not just Titan's best player, he was one of the top two players in the entire world. Losing him means that his absence would be noticable regardless of who replaced him, but to be replaced by a former VG player and someone else looking to take a starring role means that kennyS will constantly be judged on a shox scale for this weekend.

　　kennyS is a very good player and this is a new era of CS:GO, where his AWPing may well be more useful to Titan. If Titan have learned their lessons from the last time he was in the team, perhaps this can even be a better Titan team. Still, with the heights they reached in late 2013 and their problems with kennyS in the past, it's difficult to see that being the case right now, until we've had some evidence. On the one hand, kennyS finally has the chance to legitimately win some offline events again, where he has spent the last 10 months or so toiling away with potentially MVP level performances only to never reach any significant finals. On the other, he will be compared and contrasted against one of the best CS:GO players of all time.

　　

Titan desperately need a big result

Even qualifying for this tournament has afforded Titan their first offline top four finish in three events, such is the dire situation they find themselves in. Falling in the group stage of EMS Katowice and failing to reach the semi-final of Copenhagen Games were disasterous results for a team of the calibre of Titan. This is a team which should be contending for the title at every offline event they attend, not battling off lesser names to even make it deep into said tournaments.

　　Titan's result in Denmark already dropped them out of my world top three ranking, a failure to finish top two here would see them stripped of "elite" status. I had hoped to see the old Titan line-up play here, so I could be sure their form dip wasn't just a matter of losing to lesser teams. Getting to see them potentially play NiP and Virtus.pro in Bo3 series would have quickly answered if all hope was gone for the line-up which had been so good in late 2013.

　　With this new line-up, perhaps we are entering a new era for the team and that can begin in Kiev. Whatever the narrative, Titan need a top two finish here to stem the bleeding of 2014 and bring back their winning ways.

　　

Na`Vi's big chance

fnatic deciding it was too risky to head to Kiev means a gold opportunity for Na`Vi. The team have often surprised with their offline results, grabbing one when you don't expect them to, but their form at the two majors in CS:GO has been terrible. At this tournament, they are facing only top level teams and they won't have any warm-up against a name more around their level. Still, it also means that if Na`Vi can win even a single Bo3 then they'll have accomplished something significant for their team and proven themselves better than perhaps we imagined them to be.

　　With Titan brandishing a new line-up, that side is potentially vulnerable to being upset in their first outing by the primarily Ukrainian side. Na`Vi aren't going to win the event, but they are in a no lose situation where they can only improve the standing of their stock.

　　

Virtus.pro still under pressure

Making it to the final of Copenhagen Games relieved some of the pressure of the emphatic fashion in which they won EMS One Katowice. Had they bombed out prior to the final, then likely many would have begun to label the result in their native Poland a fluke, a one-off miracle run. Instead, they solidified they are a quality team by making the final and testing NiP once more. The pressure has not entirely left for Virtus though, especially due to the nature of their previous runs.

　　In Katowice they only faced lesser names in the Bo3 phase, defeating LDLC and LGB, prior to the final against NiP. That didn't matter as much, being as they did beat NiP in the final. The problem arises in that in Denmark they again faced the same two names in their side of the bracket, again beating them, but then lost to NiP. Virtus are an elite team, but they have so far only beaten one other elite team in a Bo3 series. In Kiev they get the chance to face NiP and Titan, who are, for now, both still considered elite sides.

　　This is a perfect chance to prove their status with wins, while losses will raise a few questions about if LGB aren't perhaps just NiP's bad match-up.

　　

The first potential meeting of VP and Titan in a BoX

The most disappointing outcome of Copenhagen Games, for me, was that LDLC robbed us of the chance of seeing Virtus.pro and Titan play in the semi-final in a Bo3. Seeing Virtus beat Titan on one map in the group stage of EMS Katowice was far from conclusive for me. I need to see them play a full Bo3, with each team knowing the maps to pick and ban, then I'll have a good sense of who is better. In Kiev it's pretty likely we'll get to see such a match, albeit with a different Titan line-up now.

　　How will pasha, byali and snax fare against ScreaM, NBK and kennyS in a full Bo3? Will Ex6tenz have his master plan in place on how to deconstruct the Virtus.pro offensive machine? These questions could all be answered.

　　

NiP look to solidify their spot at the top

A win in Copenhagen was the final piece in NiP ensuring they are the undisputed best team in the world again. They have the resume, never finishing below second for months on end, they just didn't have a win over that same time span. With their win in Denmark, now they are looking to remove any potential contenders to that number one title for the next couple of months. Even if they lost and finished second, NiP would have a claim to still being number one, with their incredible consistency, but a win would put it entirely out of question.

　　Facing Virtus.pro and Titan, the two teams with a history of playing well against them, NiP have a good chance to show just how dominant this era will be for them. Will they edge out wins narrowly or can we see a return to the NiP who front-runs and steam-rolls opponents?

　　Photo credit: fragbite