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OGRE 2 Was the World's Greatest Spartan
One of the best Halo players of all time has retired. We pay homage to his legacy.
Orge 2 is the most storied player in Halo history
© MLG
How do you define greatness?
Is it in tournament prize money amassed? Top 3 finishes? The amount of rivals a player acquires along the way? Or is it the legacy that he or she leaves behind? For many, the definition of greatness is a conglomerate of the aforementioned. Oftentimes, the path to greatness originates in relatively humble beginnings and for a young boy by the name of Tom Ryan, his story was no exception. From Pickerington, Ohio, to Ogre City, Tom “OGRE 2” Ryan is known as the greatest of all time. And even after the games he dominated for so many years fade into the background, OGRE 2 will remain as an iconic symbol of FPS dominance for years to come.
First time's the charm
The year is 2003. Two years prior a company by the name of Bungie released a game that, likely unbeknownst to them, would define the arena shooter genre and pave the eSports landscape for the rest of time. Halo: Combat Evolved became the flagship game for the original Xbox console and like many players of that era, OGRE 2 found himself investing countless hours into the game. Originally a fan-driven effort, "Halo50k" was announced as one of the first major Halo events at that time, and fueled by his success at smaller events, OGRE 2 took his first crack at the national level of competition.
The event featured tournament brackets for 4v4s, 2v2s and free-for-all play. OGRE 2’s free-for-all performance was strong, but it was his team play that set him apart from the rest. OGRE 2 entered in the 2v2 competition alongside his twin brother Dan "OGRE 1" Ryan and they dominated the field, taking home $350. This marked the first of many 2v2 tournament appearances by the OGRE twins.
The two twins would end their careers undefeated in 2v2 tournament play.
OGRE 2, with twin brother OGRE 1
© [unknown]
OGRE 2’s 4v4 premier on the national level was nothing to scoff at either. Alongside OGRE 1, Dominator and StrangePurple, OGRE 2 donned the "Shoot to Kill" banner all the way to a third-place finish after being swept by The Dream Team, who were as good as their name implied. The third-place finish left him hungry for more and might be the best thing to have ever happened to him; OGRE 2 would not place out of the Top 2 again until 2008. This tournament was the birth of something that no one could have predicted.
OGRE 2 would single-handedly revolutionize Halo eSports, and console eSports, as we know it.
The OGREs and Walshy have won a lot of tournaments
© MLG Las Vegas
To list his accomplishments alone would truly be a disservice to OGRE 2’s career. Yes, he is the winningest console eSports player of all time with 51 tournament wins, has amassed an impressive prize pool over the years and dominated multiple eSport titles across his tenure. But OGRE 2’s impact on the eSports scene goes much deeper than that. To get a good gauge of what OGRE 2 created during his career, we need look no further than those around him.
Teaming with OGRE 2 was every Halo player's dream after seeing how dominant the OGREs were in Halo CE. They were by far the best 2v2 and 4v4 players in the game.
Walshy, Strongside, Neighbor, iGotUrPistola, Victory X. All of these players were famous professional Halo players in their own right, and at some point in their career each one of them has been impacted by OGRE 2’s presence and dominance of the scene. "The first time I heard about OGRE 2 was when a buddy found out that there were Halo tournaments that were being streamed online. We started watching and saw the names 'OGRE 1' and 'OGRE 2' and immediately noticed how dominant they were. We wanted to compete too!" shared Mike "Strongside" Cavanaugh.
OGRE 2 was not merely a competitor; he brought people into the scene. "Back then it was really the beginning of Halo eSports and he helped grow and pave the way. He was a part of the forefront guys, those are the guys that made countless people want to be a competitive gamer. Who knows how many played simply beause he did?" Strongside was no exception to that — early on, he wanted to be like OGRE 2 as well. "Funny side story: To this day my buddy brings this up. He told me back in the day that OGRE 2 played on 10 sensitivity. So of course, I played on that because that is what he played on. I liked to pretend that I was as good as OGRE 2."
If you *can* beat them, join them
As was the case with countless others who stumbled upon the MLG scene at the time, Strongside looked up to OGRE 2 and wanted to emulate him — or beat him. "I realized that they had zero incentive to switch up their roster unless they were losing, so I got three of the best free-for-all players in the game to team with me and try to take down OGRES' team StK. After beating StK two events in a row, they agreed to join me and one of my teammates KillerN to form a squad that never lost a Halo CE tournament," shared Walshy.
OGRE 2 and his teammates won many tournaments
© MLG Dallas
The aftermath of these two players joining forces early in their careers had an unquantifiable impact on the Halo eSports landscape until they retired. Together, these two juggernauts attended 36 events as teammates and took home first place a staggering 28 times. Yet, it was not the combination of the OGRE twins, or the addition of Walshy that made OGRE 2 the greatest of all time. Many, including Walshy, consider his work ethic to be OGRE 2’s defining feature and his accolades attest to that.
"OGRE 2 was never content with where he was at and that was one of the biggest reasons that he was so successful for so long," Walshy believes. "His goal was to be known as the best Halo player of all time and he put in the work to make sure that came true." Strongside saw something similar in OGRE 2. "Through H1, H2, H3, Halo: Reach, H4, H2A and even H5, the amount of dedication, drive and will to keep going, to be the best, to be at the top of your game for so long, I don’t think that will be touched for a long time. I don’t know that what he did will ever be replicated."
Untouchable
OGRE 2’s chokehold on the Halo scene reached far beyond the confines of the continental United States. International events, particularly for the console eSports scene at the time, were few and far between and OGRE 2 became an international household name with a 2v2 tournament win at the World Cyber Games in Singapore. In the midst of this, OGRE 2 took part in a historic tournament streak of 22 first-place finishes in 23 events.
After winning that many events, OGRE 2 had a swagger to him ... and rightfully so. "Basically we just proved that on our bad days our team placed a close second and on our average days we could win tournaments. On our great days, we would not drop a single game. And we had a great day." His losses, although rare, made him even better because he took them personally. They would create an internal itch that was only satisfied by a return to the top. "You knew how bad he wanted to win, and that made you want to win even more … he was so focused on winning, nothing else really mattered. That defines him: a competitor at heart," quipped Strongside.
That competitive drive led him outside the realms of the Halo series as well. At different points in his career he ventured into the worlds of both Shadowrun and Call of Duty, and was met with considerable success. Overall, His career lasted 13 years, spanned over nine titles, amassed 51 tournament wins across 4v4, 2v2 and FFA settings, and has come to an end. After failing to qualify for the HCS Pro League in Halo 5, he announced his retirement.
OGRE 2 will forever be remembered as the greatest to ever play the game. Other big names will come and go, as will streaks and records, but the reality of the matter is that they all will likely pale in comparison to the legacy that OGRE 2 leaves behind.
I am happy I got the privilege to team with the two greatest Halo players to ever pick up the controller.
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