OpTic start Halo World Championship 2025 run flawlessly, but is it enough?

OpTic Gaming’s day one at the Halo World Championship 2025 couldn’t have gone much better. Their Pool Play run has gone without a hitch, a 3:0 start that signifies their place in the Halo hierarchy right now.

And yet, with that day behind them, I’m still left to wonder: have they shown enough to suggest they can usurp top dogs Shopify Rebellion throughout the Halo World Championship? I’m not sure.

3:0 Pool Play is impressive, but TSM win should still raise some alarms for OpTic

The latter two games against Majin and Complexity went all according to plan for OpTic Gaming, two 3:0 victories that indicated they’re here to stand on business. Impressive stuff, no doubt. Yet, it’s their opener against TSM that really raised some alarms.

That first match went the distance, TSM dragging OpTic all the way to the fifth match before the Green Wall was finally able to secure the win. A win is a win, but at this early stage, how you claim your victories over vastly inferior opponents matters. If this were a weak scene, OpTic might get away with it, but when competing for trophies against the might of a near-perfect Shopify Rebellion roster at the peak of their powers, this kind of showing might prove problematic further down the line.

That’s not to discredit OpTic’s day one at the Halo World Championship 2025, of course. They’ve done what was expected of them, and pointing out that they only beat TSM 3:2 is nitpicky. Still, that’s the standard at the top of Halo Infinite right now.

OpTic’s individuals are all showing up at the Halo World Championship

It’s only day one, but individually, OpTic are seemingly all showing up. This is a team still reeling from their loss at the HCS Charlotte Major 2025, where I was particularly critical of FormaL and his disappearing act when the stakes were at their highest. But across these three matches, there was no sign of that.

The Green Wall will be happy to see every player finding their own individual impact. There’s no one player needing to carry the load in terms of Slays, although Lqgend looks extra sharp, despite his impending move to Call of Duty.

Of course, the level of opposition here is the major caveat for OpTic. Stomping Complexity and Majin is one thing, but can the individuals continue to find the same impact when up against the likes of Shopify Rebellion and FaZe Clan? That is a major question that we’ll get the answer to in the coming days.

Still, OpTic Gaming can be pretty happy with their day’s work to kick off the Halo World Championship 2025. They’ve avoided any potential banana peels, and secured their spot in the Championship Bracket in the process. Much has been made of this OpTic superteam throughout 2025, but if there’s any chance to show the world their greatness, it’s right now. And with the Halo World Championship marking the end of competitive Halo Infinite, it might just be their last chance to write their legacy together.