The Norwegian player’s defeat of Gan “Yo” Yangfan means he walks away with $1,800 after participating in six rounds of the 1 vs. 1, single-elimination tournament hosted and sponsored by History Hit.

Over 15,000 people concurrently watched the final match of the History Hit Open on 17 October, while total views across the official History Hit Twitch channel and other channels numbered tens of thousands.

The History Hit Open Grand Final, Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition

Image Credit: Xbox Game Studios

“I feel good”

TheViper told the HistoryHitTV Twitch channel that, “I feel good. I feel like I played well so I’m happy with how things played out.”

TheViper defeated Mr_Yo 4-1 in a best of seven set in the Grand Final of the History Hit Open, after beating Villese in the Semifinals, ACCM in the Quarterfinals, and SayMyName, Vivi and Imperio in earlier stages of the competition which began on 27 September.

Despite stalling TheViper’s winning streak in the Grand Final series by winning the third match on the Cenotes map, Mr_Yo was unable to prevent TheViper’s victory in the next two matches.

The History Hit Open Grand Final, Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition

Image Credit: Xbox Game Studios

“I’m still where I’m supposed to be”

TheViper won the deciding match on the History Hit version of Cross, storming all angles of Mr_Yo’s economy with a roaming force of knights to which Yo lacked a counter. A disadvantaged map generation for Mr_Yo and an accidental dock deletion also slighted his chances.

TheViper has won more tournaments than any other Age of Empires II player. His win in the History Hit Open follows a successful recent run in many of the Age of Empires II scene’s largest tournaments. Despite a wrist injury, he said “I feel like I’m still where I’m supposed to be.”

He thanked History Hit for hosting the tournament in Age of Empires, noting that “it makes sense. They are [both] about history, so those two can combine well.”

In second place, Yo’s winnings totalled $1,200 in the tournament, while Ville “Villese” Jämsä secured the third place in the History Hit Open after defeating Dogao 2-0 in a best of three.

After a tense match on Cenotes between Villese and Dogao, the Finnish player was able to capture the third place prize of $700, while Brazilian Guilherme “dogao” Pippi secured $500 in fourth place.

The History Hit Open is a $5,000 Age of Empires II tournament played between 64 players, hosted and sponsored by History Hit. It is History Hit’s first ever Age of Empires tournament. The tournament was administered by FlyLikeDjango and cast by NovaAoE. Follow History Hit’s Twitch and YouTube channels, and continue to read History Hit Gaming.

The Quarterfinals took place on 15 October, broadcast by NovaAoE on the HistoryHitTV Twitch channel. Across four sets, each a best of three, eight players competed for the grand prize in the $5,000 competition.

The Grand Final approaches

Mr_Yo was the first to make it through to the penultimate round, ousting JorDan following a tense standoff on Northern Isles. TheViper followed with a deciding game on the same map against ACCM. In the third set, Villese beat Project Belgium and Dogao became the final semifinalist when he defeated DauT.

The $5,000 prize pool is distributed amongst the finalists. Each quarterfinalist will be awarded $200. By progressing into the penultimate round, the four semifinalists have increased their winnings by a minimum of $300. The fourth-place winnings are $500, while the third-place winnings are $700, second-place winnings are $1,200 and the grand prize is $1,800.

Crossbow pressure

The day began with a rescheduled round of 16 match between saymyname and TheViper. Saymyname won the first game by applying constant pressure with his crossbowmen units, boxing in TheViper’s stressed economy. “I let him have the perfect mines game,” said Ørjan “TheViper” Larsen. “He played a way better early game.” Despite this, TheViper rescued a chance for a place in the grand final by defeating saymyname in rounds 2 and 3.

In the first game of the Quarterfinals, Mr_Yo played a successful rush, breaking through a risky quick-wall attempt by JorDan and winning the first round. A second round win by JorDan leads to a deciding game on Northern Isles.

A deadlock in the centre of the map breaks and allows Yo to capture the centre of the map, where he builds a castle to secure control. A progressively improving base of production and wider area of control sees Yo’s score steadily eclipse JorDan’s around 44 minutes in. Yo becomes the first player to enter the Semifinals.

Maritime supremacy

The Viper plays his second game of the day in his Quarterfinals match against ACCM, where he wins both matches. In the first, a failed tower rush by ACCM is followed by a trading game between ACCM’s Chinese camels and TheViper’s Cuman steppe lancers, which, produced from 11 stables, ultimately become too numerous for ACCM who resigns.

Their second game takes place on Northern Isles. ACCM’s recessed dock makes him vulnerable after his land attack on TheViper’s town centre is rebuffed. TheViper, playing Portuguese, stretches into the sea, which allows him to push ACCM’s economy from the water and win the set.

Mangonel misfire

Project Belgium and Villese compete over all three games in the third set of the Quarterfinals. A deciding game on Cross has Project Belgium on the backfoot already when he realises he’s missed an opportunity to upgrade to the Castle Age, leading him to resign. In the second game, a mangonel memorably crushes two of Project Belgium’s villagers at a crucial moment.

In the final set of the day, Dogao defeats DauT in a short decider on Cenotes after quickly establishing a strong economy and outnumbering him DauT militarily three to one. Dogao progresses as the final contender in the History Hit Open Semifinals.

The entirety of the finals will be broadcast on the History Hit Twitch channel. Players are competing in a fast-paced, exciting contest for their share of a prize pool completely sponsored by History Hit. The tournament schedule is listed below.

The History Hit Open began on 27 September with a total of 64 players, 60 of whom were placed by their preliminary rankings and 4 of whom were the result of a wild card draw. You can learn more about the History Hit Open on our official announcement page.

Historian Dan Snow described the History Hit Open tournament as “a modern incarnation literally in the spirit of its medieval ancestors.” The Quarterfinals will be played as a best of 3, while the Semifinals will be a best of 5, and the Grand Final will be a best of 7. A 3rd-place match will be a best of 3.

Finals schedule

Starting times for the first set of each day will be as listed, but following sets may begin earlier depending on the ending time of the preceding set.

Quarterfinals: 15 October

• Q1 – Mr_Yo vs JorDan – 14 GMT (15 BST)
• Q2 – ACCM vs. Viper or SayMyName- 16 GMT (17 BST)
• Q3 – Villese vs. PROject_Belgium – 18 GMT (19 BST)
• Q4 – DauT vs. Dogao – 20 GMT (21 BST)

Semifinals: 16 October

• S1 – 15 GMT (14 BST)
• S2 – 18 GMT (19 BST)

Grand Final and 3rd Place: 17 October

• 3rd Place – 14 GMT (15 BST)
• GRAND FINAL – 16 GMT (17 BST)

The History Hit Open is hosted and sponsored by History Hit. The Open has been administered by professional Age of Empires player, caster and coach FlyLikeDjango, and the finals will be broadcast by caster NovaAoE. Watch the tournament at HistoryHitTV.

Chiefly responsible for administering the tournament is professional Age of Empires player FlyLikeDjango. He explained to History Hit his background with Age of Empires and competitive gaming, his role on the History Hit Open, and what he enjoys about casting games to an audience.

Hey FlyLikeDjango, tell us about yourself!

Hey, I am Django or Joshua. I am 24 years old and have played video games my whole life. Previously I played League of Legends on a high level. In 2020, I discovered Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition and started playing a lot. Today I am a top 1% player in the game.

I started coaching other players and joined the esport organisation GamerLegion as coach in 2021. Since I started streaming, I have been casting all major events. I’ve also started organizing and administering events and tournaments as well.

I am studying sport management in the 3rd semester and like to spend my free time in the gym or with friends.

You’ve been important to organizing the History Hit Open. Can you explain a bit about what you do?

I am the main administrator and organizer of the tournament. My job has been to plan the whole tournament: timeframe, settings, maps, drafts of civilizations and maps, general rules and many more things that come into preparing a big tournament like this.

After that was done I made the announcement posts and controlled and checked registrations. Once sign ups were closed I had to seed players in the bracket corresponding to their Elo [a rating system originating in chess, named after Arpad Elo] and create text channels for players to communicate and schedule their games.

During the tournament, I have to make sure everyone schedules at the right time and drafts and maps are correct. I have to make sure people are on time and the rules of the tournament are being followed while games are going on. I’ve also been involved in selecting broadcasters for the tournament and have casted a lot of games as well.

What’s it about Age of Empires that resonates with you?

I played it as a little kid on a non-competitive level and loved it. Once I discovered that there was a competitive scene I immediately got hooked. I started playing a lot and fell in love with the game.

It’s such a complex game and so many skills are needed to perform on a high level. Also the Age community is pretty amazing and I have been enjoying my time.

What do you find appealing about broadcasting to an audience?

I love to mix analyzing the game and just talking about what is happening. I try to bring joy to the game. I try to explain to viewers what is happening and also why it’s happening. Casting is a really complex job.

My goal is always to get the viewer hooked and interested in the game so they want to stay and watch another series or maybe go and play the game themselves.

FlyLikeDjango shows his own gameplay in tournaments and practice on his Twitch channel. He also casts games and coaches in English and German.

Beginning with the Round of 64 from 27 September and culminating with the Grand Final on 17 October, the tournament will be streamed live on the official HistoryHitTV Twitch channel as well as by supporting casters and competing players. The official bracket can be viewed here, while the full schedule for the tournament and the tournament handbook are presented below.

Matches which will be streamed live can be seen on the calendar on the right-hand side of the announcement at AoEZone.

Original announcement:

We’re announcing the dates of our first Age of Empires II tournament and opening registration to competitive players.

The History Hit Open will include a $5,000 prize pool and is sponsored entirely by History Hit. There are 64 tournament places with 4 wild card slots. Please register using the form. The tournament will be 27 of September to 17 October. The full schedule is beneath the registration form along with the tournament handbook.

Update 27 September: Registration has now closed. The official History Hit Open bracket can be viewed here. Congratulations to the wild card players: jouds, SlyFox, TM webber- and Ivanenko. 

Please share a screenshot of your server pings on the History Hit Open Discord-Server.

Tournament schedule

We are hoping to make more announcements around tournament streaming partners in the next couple of weeks.

Registration opening

• 8 September 10:00 UTC – Official announcement
• 8 September 10:00 UTC – Registration open

Registration ending and seeding

• 24 September 18:00 UTC – Registration closed
• 25 September 18:00 UTC – Official bracket announcement

Match play

• 27 September – 3 October – Round of 64
• 4 October – 10 October – Round of 32
• 11 October – 14 October – Round of 16
• 15 October – Quarterfinals

Finals weekend

• 16 October – Semifinals
• 17 October – 3^rd Place match and GRAND Finale

Tournament handbook

The tournament handbook will be ready at 12:00pm UTC on 8 September 2021.

Dan Snow
Ever since that memorable week when I switched off my phone, stockpiled supplies and spent every waking hour playing Civilization II I have been obsessed with historical gaming. I saw instantly that these games entertain but they also educate. So many people confide to me that they were introduced to a love of history by Age of Empires, or Total War. Like historical novels, games fire the imagination, captivate and set people on the path to a fascination with what has gone before.

“We have a lot of passionate historical strategy gamers on Team History Hit so it was the natural thing to launch our new gaming section. We’ll be letting our history mad audience know which are the best history games out there and how to play them. Most excitingly of all we will be hosting e-sports tournaments. What could be more historic? Tournaments date from the 12th Century, this is a modern incarnation literally in the spirit of its medieval ancestors.

I’ve spent much of my spare time (there’s been a fair bit) over these last 6 months playing Age of Empires II and it feels like I’m getting somewhere. Having reached the dizzying heights of winning more games than losing on Arabia and Arena on unranked, perhaps its time to earn my spurs on ranked multiplayer and competition? Erm, no. Despite my incessant Spirit of the Law viewing I’m sadly not yet good enough – and I’ll leave that to you guys.

If you haven’t already watched the above video, I implore you to (and you probably won’t be ready for competitive esports yet).

The History Hit Open has been announced for this coming Autumn. That could be late September, or it could be October or November – the exact date is still currently to be confirmed. For the moment we’re looking for top players from around the world to register their interest.

We’re offering a total prize pool for this first Age of Empires tournament of $5,000 and it will be a knockout tournament.

To register your interest, all you need do is email in to esports@historyhit.com with ‘History Hit Open’ in the subject line and your credentials. Do you rank highly on multiplayer? Have you entered (or indeed won) another Age of Empires II contest before? Do you have a dedicated Age of Empires online following? These sorts of things will help us shape the competition details in the coming weeks. There will also be another tournament in the Autumn after the Age of Empires IV release.

Excited? I am. Maybe I’ll even be able to beat you by then by playing a long attritional battle as the Teutons. But I doubt it. Apply within.

This is a preliminary announcement that we will host two Age of Empires tournaments in the Autumn. We are committed to delivering on these tournaments and the prize pools, and will work with the existing Age of Empires II community to do so. A full announcement of tournament details and full registration will come in August.