Johan “toxjq” Quick, one of the most consistent and mechanically skilled players in Quake history, spoke with Av3k in a long-form interview recently published on the Endpoint Quake YouTube channel.
In Part 1, toxjq shares details about the early years of his career and the circumstances that shaped his unique playstyle.
Here’s what the first episode covers:
Nickname origin
Toxjq explains how he came up with the name “Toxic” when he was around 11 or 12 years old, simply looking for something that sounded good in English for international matches.
Unusual setup and inverted mouse
He describes starting out on keyboard only — no mouse — and how that led to his now-iconic inverted mouse style and unconventional keybinds, designed so he could play in the dark without looking at the keyboard.
LANs before internet
Before home internet was common, he and his friends would carry PCs to each other’s houses or to office spaces to play on LANs every weekend, including all-night sessions in basements.
Forming Ice Climbers
Toxjq recalls how the Ice Climbers clan was created and how the group transitioned from Quake 1 to Quake 3, often playing only against bots until online play became stable.
Why Sweden had so many top players
He talks about how good internet access and LAN infrastructure in Sweden made it easier to practice regularly, helping Swedish players stay ahead during the early 2000s.
Early tournaments and rivalry with Cooller
Toxjq describes his first major offline tournaments, including his match against Cooller at ESWC 2005, and how that close loss pushed him to improve.
