Michael "Chefinal" Robinson, commonly known as Chef is the owner and founder of the UK based multi gaming organization, The Last Resort. TLR started with a highly successful Counter-Strike: Source team, whom placed fourth at two consecutive I-series. The CSS team was soon overshadowed by the pickup of the number one ET team in Europe.

Since then the organization has gone from strength to strength, with the most recent LAN, CDC 4, seeing TLR players walk away with 1st in the ET and 2nd in the CoD4, I sit down with the mastermind behind the lot, join me as I Grill Chef.

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Counter-Strike: Source

debaser - jai - farley - quiver - techno

Counter-Strike 1.6

101 - Suffz - Aleski - Sp|ke - Kurt1s

Team Fortress 2

AcidRemix - Beta - Boomting - kurk - purkz - Runesky - shifty - WLv

Call of Duty 4

D1ablo - LoOkzor - SoCLoN - Mark - Stat

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So let's start at the beginning, what was the original motivation behind creating The Last Resort organization?

The orginal motivation was to have one of the best esports organisations in the UK and eventually Europe. I wanted to start small building up as we were going, creating a reputation, community and following and also be a organisation people can look up to, while at the same time maintaining professional standards.

Your team's latest event, CDC4, saw a second place in CoD4 and a win in ET, is this your proudest moment yet with TLR?

CDC was a very proud moment and those teams did TLR very proud and alot of hard work for myself felt like it paid off, but I guess thats just one steping stone for us this year.

Over the past twelve months your team has failed to find the consistent success in CSS it once had, what do you put this down to?

I wouldn't say its failed, but it's not been easy or as successful as other teams like CoD 4 or CSS. I did have high hopes and something I could have built on from i32 with the team finishing 4th there, but as people know or might not know the situation with that perticular team , they did depart after i32. For me in css you need to have a team that is consistant and can operate together and build on that.

Did the team's defection to H2K after i32 leave a bitter taste in your mouth with regards to supporting CSS as you once did?

I was very very disappointed in that situation and what happened and took it quite personal as if i wasn't doing enough for that team. Yes it did leave a bitter taste, but I don't think it has changed my views on supporting a CSS team under TLR's name.

Lots of players have the eventual goal of going for CGS, does this affect your team selection for CSS, and do you support your players in going for this?

I don't support CGS at all for myself personally. I feel its a great opertunity for players, but I won't support a team to go to CGS. If the player do go they will on there on backs and maybe as a mix team as quiver is too young. They are aware of my views and hope they understand.

I don't support CGS at all for myself personally. I feel its a great opportunity for players, but I won't support a team to go to CGS... They are aware of my views and hope they understand.

-- Michael "Chef" Robinson

Where do you see the future of CSS as a competetive game right now?

I see a very good future for CSS in the competitive game, it's very very popular both online and offline with plenty of lans and online competitons, with leagues such as ED supporting it with cash prizes also. I feel the game will grow from stregth to strength.

Out of all the iterations of teams playing CSS under the TLR game, which do you think had the most potential if they had stayed together?

Well 2 teams under TLR had potential, the i32 lineup, which i think could have been at top Europe team if thy practiced hard and stayed together, then even further back to the i28 and i29 roster of hostage, dre, rem , culo and raL.

Moving continents, TLR picked up an American CSS team awhile back, somewhat of a gamble, the team went on to perform outstandingly in CEVO, did they surprise even you?

Yes they did surprise me, they matched upto the best in USA and did TLR proud. The idea of picking up the team was more of publicity and exposure of TLR in USA and I think that paid off as well as the team doing well themselves.

So moving onto Call of Duty 4, did the result at CDC surprise you?

I knew the team had potential. They kinda had a advantage over some of them teams at lan being that they already been to 2 COD4 lans already being i32 and the lan in Paris. I was a little surprised but i had faith in the team to do well.

With the team doing so well in a game that seems to be on it's way up in esports, with big names such as SK and fnatic picking up the game, how do you try and avoid the team being poached by a bigger team?

It's sometimes very hard, but what we can offer I don't think will give the team reason to leave as after i32 we added some good sponsors. I try to support the teams as always as much as i can with respect of how good they are and how well they do.

Do you see cod4 as the current future of eSports?

I see it as one of the games of course. It has great potential and I think it will be a huge game of this year.

Moving onto Counter-Strike 1.6, your team recently won IG5, one of the few lans left in the UK for 1.6, do you think the game is past it's sell by date for UK teams?

I don't think the game is as big as it used to be but i still think it has a future, especially in the European scene as to the bigger lans. I am not sure how long the game will last but i will support it until , we see a change of where i don't think its worth supporting no more.

Do you think the 1.6 team can properly compete within the top european scene?

I do think they can and I think they will turn a few heads as TLR has done already this year. They will have there chance to do that at the Kode 5 finals in may.

So moving onto the TLR organisation, recently you've announced a string of new sponsorships, what does this mean for TLR?

It means the abilty to support more teams and also teams to foreign lans as well as LANs in the UK. Giving the name and teams stability . Without sponsors alot of teams can't operate and we are greatful for there support.

12 months ago did you think the team would be this big?

Thats a hard question. I don't really know or think about how big we are, I generally just do what I think is right for the teams and players and I hope it pays off to grow and get to the inital goal of being the/ or one of the biggest organisations in the UK.

Which organizations do you try and emulate in terms of ideas and eventual success?

I don't try to emulate any organizations, I try to do personally what I think is right. I don't try to compete directly with other organisations within the UK cause i feel if I do that I will lose track of what I am trying to accomplish. I do admire organisations and manager in the uk Like Dignitas and Michael O'Dell and Teams within Europe like SK and Fnatic.

I don't try to compete directly with other organizations within the UK cause I feel if i do that I will lose track of what I am trying to accomplish.


-- Michael "Chef" Robinson

Even though you're not fond of CGS in regards to player aspiriations, do you intend to go for the position of General Manager?

I feel at some point I might be interested in being a manager in the CGS, but no where in the near future. I feel I still have alot to accomplish and prove within TLR and I intend to do that.

Do you think you could turn TLR into a professional team, enough to live on full time for yourself?

That is something I hope for and something I would work towards. I see that we could be a professional team/company but I think it will take alot of work and time.

As we draw to a close, a random question, do you think your career as a chef has taught you anything that can be applied to gaming?

Two very different areas and very different lifes in a way for me. I would say gaming has taken over my carrer as a chef sometimes, but I would never leave cheffing as thats something I am very passionate about. As to applying cheffing to gaming, the only thing I am requested to do is cook for for the playersat lan, but I will only agree to that with the help of fellow chef farley lol

Thanks for your time, the usual shoutouts may follow.

Well firstly to TLR players and staff. Then of course the sponsors Tagan and aplus. Colin and his team at Dustworld. Spirecoolers and icy box, as well a bouncer4you and starbytes and wzzrd.

Links: The Last Resort