Jason Lake reportedly wants to buy his brand complexity back
Jason Lake is reportedly looking for investors to separate it from GameSquare amid FaZe Clan merger agreement.
21st Dec 2023 15:35
Image via complexity
Jason Lake reportedly wants to buy his brand complexity back
Jason Lake is reportedly looking for investors to separate it from GameSquare amid FaZe Clan merger agreement.
21st Dec 2023 15:35
Image via complexity
Complexity founder Jason Lake wants to take his brand back. As a report by Counter-Strike community website hltv.org outlines, Lake has been on a tour to find investors to buy out complexity from parent company GameSquare.
The news arrives amid an ongoing process of GameSquare's interest in lifestyle and esports brand FaZe Clan, which raised questions of competitive integrity in various competitions both organisations field rosters in - likely requiring the suspension of some programmes if the deal was to pass.
Two decades of recognition
Complexity was initially founded around 1998 as a CS 1.3 team. It would later incrementally professionalise and become a recognised entity in the emerging North American esports scene.Â
Over the years, the brand went through various organisational structures and ownership hands, going through phases of majority ownership by Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, and currently residing with Canadian international gaming and esports company, GameSquare.
As Bloomberg reported in October, GameSquare has entered agreements to acquire FaZe Clan. This move would see both brands face off against each other in various esports both organisations field rosters in while under the same parent company roof.
The resulting conflict of interest would take hold in various esports scenes, though a meaningful number of recent departures of squads from both organisations has cut down on the severity of the issue.
The elephant in the room is Counter-Strike, a scene in which both organisations currently field top-tier rosters and played against each other as late as November 25, during the BLAST Premier Fall finals.
Decoupling complexity
According to hltv.org, Lake has been trying to find investors to decouple complexity from its ownership group once again, even meeting with potential investors from Dubai and Abu Dhabi.Â
It wouldn't be the first time for Lake to re-acquire his brand, having already gone through the same motions after the dissolution of the Championship Gaming Series in 2008. While complexity is a brand with a long history, FaZe has established itself as a lifestyle brand with a larger cultural impact.
This is despite its recent struggles to hold its lofty evaluations that ultimately led to the pending deal with GameSquare.
After GameSquare's merger with FaZe, it stands to reason that complexity’s brand would lose significant exposure, potentially becoming dormant as a recognisable brand in esports. Moreover, a dissolution of one of its Counter-Strike rosters would likely be forced by tournament organisers.Â
This could particularly sting as complexity just recently assembled a solid roster around star player Jonathan "EliGE" Jablonowski, winning the Blast Premier Fall American Showdown against regional rival Team Liquid and finishing third/fourth at the fall global finals.
By comparison, the FaZe roster is currently one of the best CS2 teams on the planet, sitting in first place in the official Valve regional standings in Europe.
About The Author
Sascha Heinisch
Sascha "Yiska" Heinisch is a Senior Esports Journalist at GGRecon. He's been creating content in esports for over 10 years, starting with Warcraft 3.
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