Anyone who has been around since the early days of League of Legends has watched the competitive scene evolve and shift into the polished production that it is today. I had the opportunity to interview Michael 'XHazzard' Kuhlman about the changes in the competitive League of Legends scene since Season 1, as well as his experience playing on Meat Playground and as a sub for early CLG.

XHazzard has gone head-to-head against early Team SoloMid and played on teams with big names such as PhantomL0rd, Pobelter, Doublelift, and HotshotGG in his career.

Image taken from GameSpot video interview

When were you most involved in the League of Legends competitive scene?

XHazzard: I was most involved playing competitive league of legends when I subbed for CLG and played with the team "Meat Playground." CLG placed 2nd in the MLG tournament, and Meat Playground was only two games short of qualifying for Season 1 LCS.

What was it like playing with CLG?

XHazzard: Playing with CLG was a dream come true for me. When I first started playing this game I wanted to play with the top Solo Q players. I figured, since I was new to the game, that I should watch a pro player and copy most of everything he did. Once I was close to his skill level then I could try my own builds, champions, and branch out as a player. I looked at the Solo Q ladder and on streaming websites and found HotshotGG as a very successful Nidalee player.

Studying, watching and enjoying HotshotGG quickly made me become a big fan of him and of CLG. Doublelift scouted me from a Solo Q game. Oddly enough, he "saw my potential" after I supported him as Alistar. Talking and playing with these "celebrities" made me extremely motivated to play the best I possibly could.

Was this a stressful experience?

XHazzard: The night before the flight to meet CLG, being too excited, I got absolutely no sleep. Going into the tournament, I was fairly confident and ready to prove myself as a good player. I played a practice game on the tournament monitors and then became very nervous. The monitor size and aspect ratio was completely different from what I was used to. For the first two CLG games, I tried my best champion, Nidalee, and was disgusted with how hard I had to concentrate just to last hit minions. I played pretty poorly and 100% relied on the rest of CLG to carry me. The third match, I felt pretty used to the new setup, but they banned Nidalee against me.

About one week before the tournament, I picked up Malphite (seeing his potential after I saw westrice play him once in Solo Q). I picked him in the tournament as often as possible and became known as the "Malphite player" (only playing him about 8 times in Solo Q, and once in scrims). Losing to TSM in the finals was sad, but I was still very happy that we beat so many great teams, including an awesome comeback against CLG's European team with Wicked as the top laner. I also received a $2,000 check and the "breakout player award," which made losing not so bad!

What is the biggest difference between the competitive gaming scene when you were involved with CLG and now?

XHazzard: The level of commitment from each player has changed drastically since I played. There is a big difference “playing” in League and "training" in League. I think the amount of hours logged in on League of Legends per professional player hasn't changed too much, but the effectiveness of those hours has changed a lot. The top teams in LCS have coaches and gaming houses whereas back then pros were mostly practicing on their own without as much focus on improvement.

What kind of involvement do you have with League of Legends eSports currently?

XHazzard: Currently I have little to no involvement with the eSports scene. I have decayed my Diamond 1 50 pt account into almost Diamond 3 and only watch the big tournaments.

Do you still keep in touch with any current LCS pros?

XHazzard: I have many contacts in both Skype and League of Legends from the pro scene but I rarely talk to them. Before quitting League of Legends, I frequently talked with challenger players and sometimes Q-sniped high elo streamers.

How did this experience change your life?

XHazzard: Becoming a professional gamer boosted my confidence. I set out a goal and reached it, which always feels amazing. I got to meet amazing people, new friends and had a blast the entire time!

Do you have any intentions of trying to get back into the competitive scene?

XHazzard: As tempting as it is, I believe it is best for me to focus on school and work right now. Becoming a professional gamer is every guy's dream but I feel the risk is not worth it and I am ready to move on with my life.

Where do you see eSports going in the future?

XHazzard: I believe eSports will continue to grow and many opportunities will arise from that. But, becoming a professional video game player obviously is extremely risky. The only way I could see becoming a professional player "worth" in terms of making money throughout your life would be either a) you are a great streamer, b) you are on a top 4 team in LCS or c) you have a good job or strong plan ready if you get kicked or don’t make it.

Finally, I'd like to thank you for taking the time to do this interview! Are there any shout outs you'd like to give?

XHazzard: I would like to give a shoutout to: xHalo, Dr. Twine, ilysuiteheart, The Great Arshee and my big bro BK.