LPL
China’s LPL started a bit earlier compared to the rest of the major leagues, but its array of teams exhibited compelling matches. Invictus Gaming, the 2018 World Champions, started their bid of being back-to-back winners as they faced Topsports Gaming and Oh My God (actual team name) in their opening fixtures. Unsurprisingly, they won both matches in straight sets. However, they had to work hard to take those games. All four of IG’s games were exhausting and the K/D/A for each one looked nearly similar. Notwithstanding, they came out on top to stay undefeated in the competition. Such is fitting for a team that never won a domestic title up until last year’s Worlds. Fortunately, the presence of the returning core makes complicated matters pretty easy for IG to overcome.
For Royal Never Give Up, the defending Split winner and MSI Champion, they lost their opening series to Suning Gaming in a clean sweep. This comes after their star AD Carry Uzi announced he would be away from competition for a month amid personal reasons. His absence was clearly felt as Wink, the incumbent substitute for RNG, couldn’t match SN’s SmLz in the bottom lane as he was bested in every facet of the game, from KDA to CS (Creep Score). Uzi’s hiatus will end before the team’s 3rd game, which is when they’ll go up against Vici Gaming. Fans will need to be a bit patient for his return. And when he does come back, RNG will certainly turn back into the monster China is well accustomed to seeing.
A lot of League of Legends needs to be played from now until MSI in the summer. Some teams’ fortunes will turn for the better in the future while others will not be as such. It’s a long way to go for all involved until October, which is when the next Worlds will take place. May the force be with all of them.
