Mindfreak phoebe on state of female CS: 'We're really missing that circuit feeling'

Mindfreak entered the DFRAG studio on Friday for the HyperX Intel Nationals with pundits and fans alike dismissing them from the outset. With the likes of THUNDERdOWNUNDER, Rooster, and Abyssal to contend, you'd be forgiven if they made an exit that afternoon.

But the team that had become used to calling themselves "low cortisol gaming" quickly established that Mindfreak's faith was not misplaced.

Rebounding from their loss against TdU, MF flipped the script, sending Abyssal and Rooster packing in impressive fashion. In doing so, the squad has risen rapidly in OCE and already has cracked the region's top-five VRS leaderboard.

At the forefront of the comeback run, Phoebe "phoebe" Winters — who brings considerable experience to the young squad thanks to time spent in North America playing at the top of the female CS scene — was over the moon with Mindfreak's resilience and tact while under pressure.

Phoebe caught up with DFRAG to talk the squad's transition into the storied Aussie org, how they've developed over the off-season, the experience from time spent in the 'States, and the current state of the female scene as it bounces back from ESL's shutdown of the Impact circuit.

The team's debut LAN, and a debut win over near-ranked rivals Abyssal to knock them out. Talk me through how that series played out, was it a case of being able to play your game and be comfortable against them?

"We played really well. We spoke about [the map one loss] outside and after that we started to get more comfortable playing our own game.

"We were really able to dictate the pace of everything on Inferno and Nuke; I think they struggled to, like, find a way to win rounds, especially on T-side Nuke. Our CT sides were really solid, very happy with those.

"As for the TdU game, if people expect you to lose anyway, it's easy to, like, try and make a play because if it doesn't work, then we were meant to lose."

The move to Mindfreak in the off-season. You've been together as a team playing as low cortisol, but then one of Australia's most storied esports organisations comes along and jumps back into competitive CS with you. How did that move come about, and does it impact you in regards to additional pressure or expectation?

"It's, like, super awesome. Very early from when we started playing as low cortisol gaming and playing ECL Cup together for fun, it was great, but then we decided 'oh let's give it a crack, be a more serious team,' and then pretty soon after that, Jye [zune] mentioned he has contacts with [Mindfreak owner] MJ from his days on Mindfreak.

"He basically asked [Mindfreak owner Michael Carmody] if he would still want to support a CS team, since he used to play with the old Mindfreak roster, that kind of thing. But yeah, it's awesome to be on Mindfreak, there's a lot of aura. In terms of higher expectations...to an extent, yeah, obviously there's a bit of that."

"Our floor is pretty low sometimes, and we're working on it, but we all know we have a ton of potential."
Phoebe "phoebe" Winter, Mindfreak

"I know previous Mindfreak teams have done a lot, but our vision right now is that we're still developing a bit. For example, zune is IGLing for the first time, we're still growing as a team, so there is like a little bit of pressure to play for Mindfreak.

"MF paid for our accommodation and flights for LAN, we're super lucky to be able to get that kind of funding in OCE."

It's been epic to see you fly the Aussie flag and break new ground over in NA, representing the likes of Shimmer/TSM in huge events like ESL Impact. How did the move to America happen, and how do you come to play alongside the likes of empathy and co. on one of NA's best female CS rosters?

"It's, like, pretty goofy. I started playing FACEIT in early 2023, and around six months or something later, I discovered ESL Impact and all the teams involved, but mainly Shimmer. I ended up messaging empathy on Twitter and I was like, 'you're like so sick of the game, blah blah blah,' and we became great friends.

"At one point, one of their players left mid-season, and empathy was very insistent that I come play with them. I was a super noob at the time but it was a pretty awesome experience and it allowed me to develop as a player a shit ton."

It's interesting because you're bringing an incredibly high level of experience back to the OCE region, playing on LAN against some of the best female CS players in the world from ESL Impact Finals — you even just went back over to play with Shimmer again for a one-off event in Brazil. Are you looking to impart that experience onto the rest of the squad?

"I'd say I'm just calm, I guess. It's not all that different from what I've experienced already, and I wouldn't say I've done a lot specifically to help my team feel more comfortable..."

"In that last best-of-three [against Abyssal] I was pretty vocal about things I felt like we needed to do and stuff like that. It worked pretty well, but in terms of mental approach to the game, I haven't done anything crazy."

I wanted to get your thoughts on the state of female Counter-Strike. It's obviously in a tough state after the closure of ESL Impact, and there's been conversations about female players linking up with mixed-gender squads being a bit of an inevitability without more investment...

"Yeah, I think it's pretty incentivized to join a mixed team now and try and go as far as you can. I will say that, with my time on Shimmer, going back to play with them a few weeks ago, it is very different to just play on a team with all female players.

"Shoutout to FERJEE for hosting that LAN, it was awesome, but yeah, the state of Impact being dead really means female players are more incentivized to think about mix rosters.

"In OCE, for example, for me it's now out of necessity, there aren't many players left playing. I don't know, it's really just sad; there are a few non-ESL female tournaments in Europe and Brazil and NA, like the guys running Brace For Impact and some cash cups, and what they do is great, no disrespect to them, but we're really missing that circuit feeling."

What's the target for you individually and Mindfreak as a whole this season?

"Our short-term goal is to establish ourselves as that mid-level ECL team like your Abyssal and Arcade, that's where we want to be, then from there taking on the top three regularly.

"Getting ahead of Abyssal here is huge, but now we've got to stay here. Also, having fun along the way is key."

Mindfreak ultimately fell to FlyQuest in the Saturday playoff opener, but their run continues today at 1:30pm as they look to replicate their lower-bracket group stage run against Ground Zero.

For more HyperX Intel Nationals content, plus more about OCE CS, stay tuned to DFRAG!