F0rest returns to Ninjas in Pyjamas as an Ambassador following Retirement
Legendary Counter-Strike player Patrik "f0rest" Lindberg has returned to Ninjas in Pyjamas as an Ambassador.
This move follows the Swedish legend's announcement of his retirement from the competitive circuit earlier today on his stream. The announcement marks the end of a 23-year career, during which he dominated two different versions of Counter-Strike and accumulated numerous accolades.
A Talented Rookie
Now 36, f0rest began his career in 2003 as a promising 15-year-old rising through the Swedish Counter-Strike 1.6 ranks. His big break came when he joined Fnatic in 2006, following strong performances with Begrip in 2005.
On Fnatic's legendary Counter-Strike 1.6 roster, the young f0rest shared the stage with CS legends dsn and cArn. The team dominated 2006, winning a plethora of tournaments. His on-stage showing secured him a place on the Swedish national team alongside SpawN at the 2006 European Nations Championship, where they defeated Norway 21-19 in the finals.
f0rest continued his dominance in 2007, but Fnatic’s performance declined in 2008, calling for a personnel change.
f0rest at IEM New York 2011 (credits: Fragbite)A Duo Emerges
To bring in fresh talent, Fnatic introduced Christopher "GeT_RiGhT" Alesund, creating a legendary duo that would transcend versions of Counter-Strike.
A long time duo founded in Fnatic CS 2009 (credits: Gfinity YouTube)With the two young stars at the helm, Fnatic was unstoppable, constantly winning tournaments and helping to establish Sweden as a dominant Counter-Strike region.
Later, they both joined SK Gaming and finished their Counter-Strike 1.6 careers among the best players to ever play the game.
Dawn of a New Era
In 2012, Valve announced Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. F0rest and GeT_RiGhT were among the first pros to switch to the new game, joining HeatoN’s Ninjas in Pyjamas CS:GO project alongside Friberg, Fifflaren, and Xizt.
The early transition paid off as Ninjas in Pyjamas went on an undefeated run; from September 2012 to April 2013, Ninjas in Pyjamas didn’t drop a single map, setting the record for longest LAN win streak with 87 consecutive map wins.
Although they suffered a minor setback by losing to Virtus.Pro, they quickly bounced back. Despite the setback, they dominated the following tournaments. At the first Counter-Strike Major, Ninjas in Pyjamas were the favorites to win it all.
Unfortunately, they lost to fellow country-men in Fnatic. They placed second at yet another major, losing to Virtus Pro in the finals at the first major of 2014
Redemption came soon after at ESL One Cologne 2014, where, despite an early loss to Epsilon in the group stage, Ninjas in Pyjamas rallied to win their first and only CS major.
The End of an Era
The Major victory marked the end of Ninjas in Pyjamas's peak in CS. As years passed, the team struggled to keep up with up-and-coming talents, winning their last S-tier tournament in 2017 at IEM Oakland.
In 2019, Ninjas in Pyjamas parted ways with GeT_RiGhT, ending f0rest's 10-year partnership with his iconic teammate. In 2020, f0rest joined Dignitas, briefly reuniting with GeT_RiGhT, but the aging legends struggled to compete at the highest level.
Benched in 2022, f0rest began streaming alongside other Counter-Strike legends but held off on announcing his retirement—until today.
Earlier today on his stream, f0rest announced his transition to content creation, joining Ninjas in Pyjamas as an ambassador. This truly marks the end of a long, illustrious career for a player who helped put Counter-Strike on the map. A legend by all means, f0rest remains one of the greatest Counter-Strike players of all time.
Featured Image Credits: Intel Extreme Masters // Ninjas in Pyjamas on X
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