Team Secret ended their winning drought after 288 days when they downed top-seeded Rex Reagum Qeon on Sunday, April 20, at Sangam Coliseum in Seoul. Still, TS finished last with a 1-4 win-loss record in the tournament’s Group Omega.

In the other group, Alpha, Global Esports failed to nail the fourth and final playoff berth last Friday, April 18, losing to Paper Rex (PRX) in a winner-take-all duel.

Read: VCT Pacific: Filipinos lose Week 3 games; playoff chances slim

Adrian “invy” Reyes took control for the Manila-based Team Secret, generating a Kill-Death-Assist (KDA) statline of 64/43/16 and clutching pivotal rounds in the third map, Lotus.

“I think this match showed our true potential as a team,” Reyes said in the post-match interview, explaining an improvement in his squad’s performance and in their confidence as the tournament’s underdogs.

‘Nothing to lose’

“[…] we know that there’s no more high stakes, [we] have nothing to lose any more so we showed our true potential, so yeah it [the win] really means a lot to us,” he said.

Head coach Ji “meow” Dong-jun echoed the same sentiments, shifting his stalwarts’ focus to relieve pressure instead of making drastic changes coming into this bout.

“What worked today isn’t the change of comps. We didn’t do any of those actually. Instead, we actually made a talk on how ‘let’s try to play more free’ like, no pressure guys,” Ji said.

After falling flat in their comeback attempt in Haven, 13-15, Team Secret wasted no time to retaliate in Ascent, utilizing a pistol round win to open with a 4-0 start.

The Filipinos kept their foot on the gas as they continued to surge with a flawless win at the 10th round to bring their advantage to its biggest at 9-1. They proved to be too much for their Indonesian opponents, swarming them at the entrance of B Main at the 18th round to even the series at 1-1.

A nip-and-tuck battle ensued in the opening rounds of Lotus, before a 1v2 clutch from Reyes sparked a five-round run to put Team Secret in a comfortable 8-4 lead by halftime. RRQ, however, refused to bend as they created a 5-1 charge of its own to put the map into a deadlock with nine rounds apiece.

In the 19th round, Reyes again delivered, taking down four members of the RRQ squad and defusing the spike with less than a second left to lift Team Secret toward double digits.

The Adobo Gang never looked back, taking the two succeeding rounds and defusing RRQ’s last-ditch attempt as they closed the split with a victory. Aside from invy, Brheyanne “Wild0reoo” Reyes backstopped the team’s offensive as he went ballistic, pouring 21 of his 56 kills in Lotus as Raze.

Duelist Maksim “Jemkin” Batorov anchored the opposition with a 56/54/7 KDA and an Average Combat Score (ACS) of 222.

Missing the playoffs

In Group Alpha, Global Esports narrowly missed the last trip to the playoffs after bowing to Asia Pacific juggernauts Paper Rex (PRX).

A 26-19 advantage in First Blood kills failed to materialize toward round wins for the Filipino-dominated crew as PRX’s aggression got the better of them in Split and Lotus, respectively.

Led by initiator Savva “Kr1stal” Fedorov hot start, Global Esports’ attacks were able to penetrate the PRX defense in the opening map as they brought the APAC giants to a 5-7 scoreline before switching sides.

Chaos started to unfold in the second half, with PRX flooding the plant sites round after round, rendering the Filipino-dominated team winless for the rest of the first map.

Global Esports found itself in a similar scenario before halftime in Lotus, 5-7, before taking the pistol fight of the second half as well as the round after to equalize the map at the 14th.

What seemed to be a fortified defense cracked again, with Paper Rex finding holes to scrap a 4-0 run and positioning itself at series point, 8-12. A quadruple kill from Kyung-won “Udotan” Go allowed Global Esports to save a match point, but waned out as they got picked off at the 22th round.

Derrick “Deryeon” Yee stuffed the stat sheets with a 30/34/11 KDA, while Go and Fedorov combined for 59 frags in the span of two maps.

For PRX, flex player Khalish “d4v41” Rusyaidee remained cool and composed, showing up with a 43/24/14 statline using Viper and Vyse, respectively.

Team Secret finished in sixth and last place in Group Omega with a 1-4 record, behind Zeta Division (2-3). Nongshim Redforce (2-3) , T1 (3-2), Talon Esports (3-2) and Rex Regum Queon (3-2) advanced to the playoffs.

In Group Alpha, Global Esports occupied fifth place (1-4) ahead over winless Detonation FocusMe. Paper Rex (2-3), Gen.G (3-2), DRX (4-1) and BOOM Esports (5-0) completed the postseason cast.

The playoffs will start on April 26, and the Top 3 teams will book their tickets to Masters Toronto.

The post VCT Pacific: End of the road for Filipino squads appeared first on CoverStory.

The Manila-based Team Secret is still in search of a breakthrough in Group Omega after falling to Masters Bangkok champions T1 in a backbreaking three-map series.

Despite the Filipinos’ regained confidence to secure the second map Icebox to force the final map Lotus, ghosts of the past continued to haunt them. Their errors overwhelmed their hopes for a victory in the closing moments of the final map.

“Coming into Lotus we had really good momentum but we sort of just crumbled [under] pressure. I think the team was just panicking a lot of the times [in our round losses],” Adrian “invy” Reyes said during the postgame press conference. 

In Group Alpha, Global Esports bore the brunt of another 2-0 sweep, this time in the hands of DRX, the VCT Pacific Kickoff 2025 champion. 

A 3-13 stomping at Ascent shook Global Esports’ individual and team performances as they dropped their map pick Split, 9-13, afterwards.

“Losing our first map to such a big degree was a little bit too much for us to overcome,” Kyung-won “UdoTan” Go said.  

Team Secret remained at the bottom of Group Omega with a 0-3 record behind Nongshim Redforce and Zeta Division (1-2) and TALON Esports and Rex Regum Qeon (2-1). T1, the top seed, earned the first ticket to the playoffs with a 3-0 standing. 

In Group Alpha, Global Esports is at fourth (1-2) behind DRX and BOOM Esports (3-0) and Gen.G (2-1), and ahead of Paper Rex and Detonation FocusMe (0-3). The two leaders are joining the playoffs.

(To understand how the game is played, see “VCT Pacific: Filipinos look for rebound after Week 2 misfires” in CoverStory.) 

Counterpunch 

After conceding the opening map Haven, 6-13, Team Secret delivered a powerful counterpunch in Icebox as their defensive masterclass limited T1 to a measly three rounds at the end of the first half.

Yu “BuZz” Byung-chul became the spark for the Korean collective as they rallied with a 6-1 run, torching the Pinoy squad’s lead to a single round, 10-9.  

Refusing to back down, Team Secret duelist Jeremy “Jremy” Cabrera went berserk with a triple kill at the 20^th round with James “2GE” Goopio scooping four frags at 21^st to push them toward map point, 12-9. 

The squad put down the ultimatum as they wiped out the T1 crew in B site to even the series with one map apiece.

Team Secret came out guns blazing at the opening of the deciding map Lotus. Brheyanne “Wild0reoo” Reyes dished out a quad kill at the fifth round to take an early 4-1 advantage en route to a 7-5 attacking half.  

But the chinks in their armor started to show right after the side switch as the Koreans exploited their defensive lapses to string six consecutive rounds and bury them in a 6-12 hole. 

Curtains dropped on round 21 as T1’s Young-sub “Sylvan” Ko unleashed his ultimate, Viper’s Pit, to plant the spike at C site and pick off a lone Cabrera to close out the match. 

Adrian Reyes led Team Squad in the stat sheets again, tallying a kill-death-assist (KDA) ratio of 49/46/28 and an average combat score (ACS) of 217 across the three maps. Cabrera popped off in Icebox, delivering 25 of his 43 kills as Iso. 

On the flipside, T1’s in-game leader Yu did the heavy lifting as the series MVP with a KDA 67/39/9, flexing with a different agent for each map.

Team Secret’s head coach Dong-jun “meow” Ji cited improvements in their performance compared to last week’s defeat from ZETA Division. “We are better than last week, that’s for sure. A lot of confidence is up right now, so it’s pretty good,” he said.   

Ji cited the change in their agent picks as the turning point for their victory at Icebox. “It did make a difference when they were playing a comfort agent,” he explained after reverting Jessie Cristy “JessieVash” Cuyco and Reyes in using their signature agents Sova and KAY/O, respectively.

Moving forward, the tactician looks to put more priority in comfort as he builds up the team’s confidence for the remaining matches. 

Uphill climb 

A Team Ace from DRX was the start of an uphill climb for Global Esports as they were blitzed round after round in Ascent, resulting in a 3-9 deficit. 

The Koreans flexed their championship prowess after halftime as they shut down Global Esports’ advances to move up 1-0 in the series. 

Controller Federico “Papi” Evangelista regrouped the team to open Split with a bang, mounting a solid 5-0 defensive start. DRX slowly crawled its way back to the game with a late run, with an elimination win evening things up at 6-6. 

A scrappy pistol and buy round put Global Esports on the driver’s seat for the last time at 8-6, before the defense snuffed out their attacks once more with a triple kill from DRX’s Park “Estrella” Geon slamming the door on any chance of a Global Esports comeback.  

Filipino sentinel Kelly “kellyS” Sedillo anchored the team with a 23/33/10 performance to go along with a 184 ACS. Go topped the fragging list with 25 kills using Cypher. 

DRX’s Min-hyuk “Flashback” Cho was hailed as the series’ MVP with a 41/23/7 KDA, notching 25 eliminations as Neon in Split.  

Global Esports’ head coach Donnie “Elevated” Chell aired his frustrations at the team’s slow start leading to their recent defeats. “Going down 0-1 to a team like DRX is never gonna go well for us,” he said. 

He explained the calibrations following the unprecedented departure of their former head coach, Preston “Juv3nile” Dornon, who was slapped with a yearlong ban due to breaches in the Riot Games Global Code of Conduct. “It’s kind of different being in the head coaching slot where everything is on you,” he said.  

Chell complimented their sixth man Derrick “Deryeon” Yee, who had joined him in the coaching booth: “Having Derrick in the booth was a breath of fresh air because he was very good with the players and he’s obviously a player [as well], and it was helpful to have him and his energy and ideas.”  

With Global Esports stuck at fourth in Group Alpha just above the winless crews of Paper Rex and Detonation FocusMe, Chell emphasized how their next fixture will dictate the team’s pace heading into their last matches. 

“Momentum-wise, I think that game is probably the most important one of the seasons,” he said. “Obviously, we have two teams in our group that are 0-3 so somebody needs to win, somebody needs to make the playoffs.”  

Two playoff spots are still up for grabs in Group Alpha.

Team Secret will open the fourth week of play against Korea’s Nongshim Redforce (1-2) on April 12, while Global Esports will try to return to the win column versus Gen.G on April 13.

The post VCT Pacific: Filipinos lose Week 3 games; playoff chances slim appeared first on CoverStory.

Global Esports will take on Korean powerhouse DRX, while Team Secret will face the monumental task of bringing down Master Bangkok champions T1 on April 7. 

Valorant is a 5v5 tactical shooter video game developed by Riot Games, in which two five-member squads try to outwit and outgun each other using weapons and skills on a round-per-round basis.  

A round win is collected whenever a squad “kills off” everyone in the “enemy” team (called an elimination win) or if a faction reaches their goal: Attackers must be able to plant and detonate the Spike (an explosive device) in one of the sites on the map, while Defenders try to prevent this by holding down plant sites, letting the time run out or defusing the Spike. 

Both teams will get a chance to be Attacker and Defender as they switch sides every 12 rounds. A deuce in the 24th round will send the match into overtime; a team must win two consecutive rounds to claim victory.

Each player of a team pilots an Agent armed with unique abilities that they can buy or charge by eliminating players, as well as guns ranging from pistols to rifles to help out in their main objective of reaching 13 round wins.  

The agent’s ability may fit any of four designated roles: Duelist, who is equipped with offensive-oriented tools to aggressively take space; Initiator, who can gather information or set up other teammates for execution; Controller, who provides coverage using smokes; and Sentinel, who leans toward defensive kits that hold off enemies and flanks.

12 teams competing

Filipino-dominated Global Esports and Team Secret are among the 12 teams competing in VCT Pacific, the game’s highest competitive stage in Asia with a prize pool of $50,000 that started on April 2 and ends on May 2. The teams come from Southeast Asia—South Korea, Japan, “South Asia” and “Oceania.”

Aside from the Pacific, the regional tournaments are EMEA (Spain, France, “DACH,” Turkiye and “MENA”) and Americas (“Latin America” and Brazil), each of which involves 12 teams.

The ten-month season (January to October) is divided into three legs—Kickoff, Split 1 and Split 2. During Split 1, a single-round robin group phase, teams are grouped under Omega and Alpha and battle each other in a best-of-three series format. 

The top four teams will advance to the Playoffs, with a double-elimination bracket, on May 6–18. The top three that will secure their spots to Masters Toronto, the prestigious international tournament, on June 7–22 and go up against the other finishers EMEA and Americas. At stake is a prize pool of $1 million, the Masters trophy and championship points.

The teams with the most championship points at the end of the three splits will book their tickets to the culminating event of the season, Champions 2025 Paris, with a prize pool of $2.25 million. The winning team gets $1 million. 

As of now, Global Esports and Team Secret have lost their second game in the tournament. Global Esports (with a one win-one loss card) is in Group Alpha along with BOOM Esports (2-0), DRX (2-0), Gen. G (1-1), Paper Rex (0-2), and Detonation FocusMe (0-2).  

In Group Omega, Team Secret remains winless (0-2), suffering a 2-0 series sweep from Japan’s ZETA Division (1-1) last March 29. Others in the group are T1 (2-0), Nongshim Redforce (1-1), Rex Regum Qeon (1-1), and TALON (1-1). 

‘A little bit scared’

It had a great start, but Team Secret could not close the opening map Lotus, 11-13, before falling short in its comeback attempt in Icebox, 10-13. Its lineup includes initiators Adrian “invy” Reyes and Brheyanne “Wild0reoo” Reyes, in-game leader (IGL) Jessie Cristy “JessieVash” Cuyco, duelist Jeremy “Jremy” Cabrera, and controller James “2GE” Goopio.

“This is not the result that we expected. I think we were a little bit scared. We were not playing our game, we were just reacting to their [ZETA’s] game,” Brheyanne Reyes said after the match.  

Team Secret saw its 11-6 lead fizzle out on Lotus as ZETA mustered a second wind to a 6-0 run and Shota “SugarZ3ro” Watanabe stuck a spike defuse amid a Team Secrets crossfire for a 1-0 series lead.

The Filipinos tried to mount a comeback in Icebox from a 6-12 deficit as a clutch from Cuyco sparked a 4-0 streak to trim the gap to two. Unfortunately, their hopes were dashed in the 23rd round as a scrappy firefight at A site resulted in their team being wiped out as the spike went down. 

Adrian Reyes led the crew with a 45/30/29 series Kill-Death-Assist (KDA) ratio, dropping 27 of his total frags in Lotus alone, while ZETA Division’s Hikaru “CLZ” Mizutani was hailed as the series’ MVP with a 42/27/9 KDA and an Average Combat Score (ACS) of 244 as Sova. 

Rude awakening

In Group Alpha, Global Esports had a rude awakening from its dream start with a 2-0 defeat from Indonesia’s BOOM Esports last March 31. 

The collective comprising Filipinos Kelly “kellyS” Sedillo, Federico “PapiChulo” Evangelista, and Mark “patrickWHO” Musni, Korean duelist Go “UdoTan” Kyung-won and Russian flex player Savva “Kr1stal” Fedorov was clobbered in its map pick Lotus, 1-13, before losing an 11-13 heartbreaker in Haven.

Global Esports’ dominant form in its win against Detonation FocusMe was nowhere to be found in the opening map with BOOM Esports pulling out all the stops at its defending half to limit team captain Kelly “kellyS” Sedillo and company to a lone round win.

The team finally got a foothold in Haven after taking its first pistol win of the series and the round after to put its opposition within striking distance, 6-8. At 9-12, Sedillo singlehandedly wiped out the BOOM squad to get at C site and ace, energizing his squad toward saving three match points. 

Looking to send the map into overtime, Global Esports found its efforts futile as it was gunned down in the retake attempt at C to close out the series, 11-13. Go anchored the crew with 27 kills using Iso, followed by Sedillo who contributed 19 frags with the sentinel pick Cypher.   

Despite the loss, assistant coach Donnie “Elevated” Chell said in a postgame interview: “…We came back on Haven and I’m proud of the boys for fighting on that map.”  

He added: “Couple more rounds go our way there and I think we take the series in three [games], but it didn’t happen today, and we’ll be back stronger [in our next game].”

On the flipside, Hildegard “Shiro” Arnaldo was hailed the series MVP with 21/15/12 KDA and a 260 ACS leading the way for the Indonesia-based squad as Sova.   

Both Team Secret and Global Esports will try to regain ground in the playoffs. They will close out the third week of play with Global Esports facing the undefeated DRX squad while Team Secret gears up against Masters Bangkok titlists T1 on April 7.

The post VCT Pacific: Filipino squads look for rebound after Week 2 misfires appeared first on CoverStory.

The ongoing competition will determine which two teams will represent the country in June at the ML:BB Mid-Season Cup (MSC), where the champion will receive the largest cash prize in ML:BB e-sports history.

Earlier this year, game developer Moonton announced that MSC’s prize pool would amount to an astonishing $3 million (P168 million). The eventual champions will take home the lion’s share of $1 million (P56 million).

For David “Flaptzy” Canon, AP Bren’s finals most valuable player in the M5 World Championships, Season 13 is about one thing, and one thing only: “Our goal right from the start is to qualify for the MSC,” the EXP laner said. “This is really important for all of us, especially because we all have needs.”

Putting things in perspective, the prestigious M5 Championships in 2023 had a prize pool of $900,000. The Manila-hosted tournament previously held the distinction of having the largest prize pool in competitive ML:BB history. Flaptzy’s squad won the tournament and received $300,000.

The total payout for MSC 2023 was $300,000, of which tournament winner ONIC Esports took home $140,000.

Monetary motivation

There’s a popular saying in sports that goes: “It’s easier to climb the mountaintop than to remain there.” Conventional wisdom dictates that repeated success leads to comfort, and comfort leads to complacency.

If that logic is to be believed, then AP Bren is toast. After all, the top Filipino team won almost every tournament it joined over the past several months—from the MPL PH Season 12 in October 2023 to the Games of the Future in Russia just last month.

But as far as AP Bren head coach Francis “Ducky” Glindro is concerned, this won’t be an issue for the defending champs.

“Actually, I was really happy when they announced that the prize pool is huge,” Coach Ducky admitted. “That’s because I know it will be favorable for my team.”

He added: “They are heavily motivated by the money. You have to remember, these kids come from working-class families. They definitely have that mindset that if we perform, we’ll get a good chunk of change. And it’s gonna be life-changing for them.”

His sentiments were echoed by Blacklist International’s coach Kristoffer “BON CHAN” Ricaplaza.

“We all know that everyone’s goal is to play in the MSC, especially with how big the prize pool is,” said BON CHAN, who steered Blacklist to three MPL PH titles. “However, we have to take things one at a time. For now, we just have to earn points so that we won’t have to play catchup in the playoffs.”

Erasing the stigma

Gone are the days when video games were blamed for a teenager’s perceived lack of success.

If anything, Filipino world champions like Blacklist International, Echo Philippines, and AP Bren proved that gaming obsession, when paired with discipline, can become a viable and lucrative career path.

This is exactly what Philippine Esports Organization (PESO) executive director Marlon Marcelo wants Filipino parents to understand.

“As an NSA (national sports association), one of the things that we wanted to do is promote esports responsibly,” Marcelo told reporters in a previous edition of the Philippine Sportswriters Association Forum.

“There’s a connotation that if you’re a gamer, you’re an addict or you’re not successful. We wanted to get rid of that,” he asserted. “We’ve seen a lot of esports athletes actually fulfill their dreams. Some esports athletes can buy houses because the prize pools are really lucrative in esports.”

In an ever-changing zeitgeist, what’s frowned upon yesterday can be celebrated tomorrow. A decade ago, who would’ve thought that the lament “Kaka-cellphone mo ‘yan” is why young Filipinos become multimillionaires?

The post Why top esports athletes are now millionaires appeared first on CoverStory.

This year, ML:BB developer Moonton highlights the Philippines’ winning legacy through a new battle cry: “Para sa Tagumpay” (For Victory).

The Philippines has won four out of five M-Series titles, the latest being AP.Bren’s thrilling victory against Indonesia’s top squad Onic Esports last December.

“With the Philippines taking over another global title last M5, we are challenged to recognize what winning is truly all about and uncover the various versions of victor for each member of the ML:BB community,” said MPL Philippines marketing lead Harold Leonardo.

The opening day will feature a rematch of last season’s grand finals to keep the tradition going. Defending MPL PH and world champion AP.Bren will square off against Blacklist International right after Minana Esports and TNC Pro Team kickstart what promises to be an exhilarating new season.

Major changes

MPL PH Season 13 will see familiar faces take on new and exciting changes.

One departure from the previous seasons is the league’s new point system. Teams that win two games to one in a best-of-three series will now receive three full points. Previously, only teams that win with a clean 2-0 sweep earn such rewards.

MPL PH also overhauled its tournament structure by introducing the gauntlet format. Under the new setup, the three top-seeded teams from the regular season point rankings will directly advance to the upper-bracket semifinals come playoff time.

Meanwhile, the fifth- and sixth-ranked teams will fight it out in an elimination match. The winning squad will subsequently take on the fourth-ranked team for the final slot of the upper-bracket semis.

“We want to put value on the effort and hard work of the team from the regular season, which they will carry into the playoffs,” Leonardo explained.

That way, teams are incentivized to go all-out during the seven-week-long stretch of the regular season, he said.

MSC qualification

Filipino pro teams will fight for more than just local supremacy in Season 13.

The top two finishers of the tournament will earn the privilege of representing the Philippines in the ML:BB Mid-Season Cup in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in June.

Why is that worth playing for? There are three million reasons.

MSC 2024 offers the largest cash prize in professional esports history. A whopping $3 million (P166,300,000) will be awarded to the top-performing teams, with the champions taking home the lion’s share of the pot.

If the Philippines can continue its winning ways, one of the eight contending Pinoy esports clubs will enjoy a massive payout in Riyadh.

But first things first: They’ll have to earn a ticket to the big dance by dominating the local circuit.

The post MPL Philippines returns with familiar faces, new changes appeared first on CoverStory.

So can Filipinos and their teams join The International 12 (TI 12), the “Olympics of Dota 2 e-sports,” in Seattle, Washington, on Oct. 12-29?

With a prize pool of at least $19 million (P1.04 billion), The International features teams from China, North and South America, East and West Europe, and Southeast Asia.

Related: The Pinoy road to the ‘Olympics of Dota e-sports’

Here’s a look at certain Filipino players’ chances to realize their dream of making it at the world’s most recognizable tournament of Dota 2 e-sports.

Abed Yusop, 22, from Dasmarinas City, Cavite, is already in The International 12 (TI 12) as his North American squad Shopify Rebellion (formerly Evil Geniuses) qualified in all events after topping its region. The “midlane” prodigy is the team’s best player “in terms of raw skill,” his teammates Crit and Arteezy said in a group interview on Oct. 15, 2021. 

Yusop provided the tempo and aggression for his team’s victory. He dazzled on the big stage with his signature hero Storm Spirit, a character that uses lightning and zips through the battlefield, and boasts a 62% win rate in 979 official matches across all tournaments.

Abed and SR placed fourth in the Lima Major and third in DreamLeague S19. However, their last three events saw them barely reaching the Top 10.

The team of veterans placed 9th-12th in both TI 10 and TI 11, and is expectedly seeking redemption in The International 12 (TI 12).

Other hopefuls

Another midlaner, Erin “Yopaj” Ferrer, and his Southeast Asian team BOOM Esports were relegated to Division 2 of the SEA DPC early this year. Their performance has declined after their TI 11 debut, landing them in a still-decent 9th-12th finish. 

They are slowly clawing back for a chance to be at The International 12 (TI 12) in the Regional Qualifiers after returning to Division 1. The team earlier failed to qualify for the five tournaments and so had to endure a long, gruelling run for a slot in The International. 

Yopaj aims to return to The International using his flashy Ember Spirit and Snapfire and to improve his 60% win rate in 1,530 matches.

Rolen “skem” Ong, 22, a dynamic Position 5 support who also plays “hard carry,” is in Division 2, and it will be a long shot to see him play against the big guns. His Geekfam team joined the Lima Major but was eliminated after the group stage.

He’s notorious for buying Divine Rapiers, an offensive item that provides massive damage but will drop if the user dies and can be picked up by the enemy when games are idling in a standoff, or if the user’s team needs a comeback. 

He led BOOM Esports in TI 11, and his leadership in Geekfam will be put to the test. He has an outstanding 61% win rate in 1,395 games.

Timothy “Tims” Randrup, a veteran Position 4 support in his favored SEA team Blacklist Rivalry, has shown brilliance in his games but has also displayed inconsistency, nearly getting relegated to Division 2. 

He has opted out of BOOM Esports to reconnect with his former teammates in the now-disbanded TNC Predator.

Tims’ signature Mirana or Priestess of the Moon (who shoots stunning arrows and provides team invisibility) is expected to pave the way for Blacklist. The team failed to gain a playoff run in the Bali Major, crashing out in the group stage. 

The Kapampangan holds a career 59% win rate in 1,197 games. 

Marc Polo Luis “Raven” Fausto, a Position 1 hard carry of Blacklist Rivalry, is expected to lead his team to The International 12 (TI 12) SEA slot once he gets farmed with items. His Terrorblade, which conjures illusions for himself and against enemies in an area, will strike fear among enemy teams if left unchallenged. 

In the last The International, Raven’s team finished 13th-16th following a do-or-die elimination game with Western European team Gaimin Gladiators.

Moving out of SEA giants and The International mainstays Fnatic, Raven is back with Tims and former TNC Predator teammates. He has a 55% win rate in 1,002 games.

Still struggling

Armel “Armel” Tabios, considered one of the best midlaners, has transferred from Fnatic to Western European giant Team Secret, but has since seen the team struggle in its matches. His odds of joining Abed are much more favorable as the Regional Qualifiers in Western Europe have two slots.

Team Secret was eliminated in DreamLeague S20 despite a great performance from Armel. Often called Chief Armel, he has won 56% of his 976 matches.

Djardel “DJ” Mampusti, 29, a Position 4 support, remains a dominant force despite the entry of younger prodigies. He has a 57% win rate in 1,160 games. 

DJ moved from Fnatic to SEA team Bleed Esports, which has other veterans in its roster. Bleed Esports qualified for the Bali Major but bowed out after the group stage.

He is known for tapping the Nyx Assassin who targets unsuspecting opponents, and the Rubick maestro who steals enemy spells.

Jaunuel Arcilla, a Position 5 of SEA team SMG, co-led Fnatic in TI 11. He had a brief stint with Malaysian team Geek Slate before joining Team SMG and has not competed in the five tournaments this DPC season. 

He has a 58% win rate in 1,219 matches.

Last chance

The final The International 12 (TI 12) SEA regional qualifying event is a do-or-die battle among the rising, consistent, and most explosive Southeast Asian teams on Aug. 27-31. It will be the last chance for Yopaj, skem, Tims, Raven, Armel, DJ, Jaunuel and other The International aspirants to make it to Seattle.

Can our Filipino players make their magic work and join Abed on Dota’s biggest stage?

Push forward, Pinoys!

Godfrey Tarras, a fourth-year journalism student at the University of the Philippines’ College of Mass Communication, is an intern of CoverStory.ph.

The post Filipinos hope to win big at The International 12 in Seattle appeared first on CoverStory.

Even before young children or even food delivery riders on a break started playing the hit video game Mobile Legends Bang Bang, internet cafes were already packed with Defense of the Ancients (Dota) enthusiasts showcasing their best over cash bets (pusta) or bragging rights.

Visiting players (dayo) continue to travel to internet cafes in various cities and provinces to challenge the local dominant Dota team for an agreed money pot.

Now we are hearing “Welcome to The International” from Valve Corp. president Gabe Newell as he casually speaks at every iteration of the “Olympics of Dota 2 E-sports,” the biggest dream of Dota players, including Filipinos. 

The International features teams from China, North and South America, Eastern and Western Europe, and Southeast Asia. It is the culmination of nearly-a-year-long competitive play in the Dota Pro Circuit (DPC) organized by Dota 2 creator Valve Corp. 

$19-M prize pool

All paths point to the Aegis, the trophy of champions passed on to The International winners, which comes with at least a $19-million (P1.04-billion) prize pool for the top teams to share among themselves. In The International 11 (TI 11) last year, the grand winner Tundra bagged $8.5 million (P466 million) out of the $19 million for that edition. 

The prize pool balloons, depending on the number of buyers of Dota 2 battle pass in-game, which includes cosmetics, team voice lines across the regions, and an exclusive interactive guide for subscribers.

Dota 2, a sequel to Defense of the Ancients, which was created for Blizzard Entertainment’s “Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos,” is a multiplayer online battle arena video game produced by Valve. It pits two teams of five members each who are out to destroy the enemy’s throne at the heart of their base. 

The teams select from a pool of 124 “heroes” with unique spells and abilities to form a synergistic squad ideal to triumph over the other team who may draft heroes to counter them. 

Players are designated a Position 1 or “hard carry” that farms enemy and jungle creeps to get items necessary in bringing victory; a Position 2 or “midlaner” that gains faster experience and gold and brings tempo and dominance early in the game; a Position 3 or “offlane” that matches up with the opposing hard carry (they are heroes with larger health pools and tanks the enemy ambush, or gank, and also initiate fights); a Position 4 or “soft support” that roams around the map to help the team gain advantage by ganking unsuspecting foes; and a Position 5 or “hard support” that babysits the hard carry with “consumables” for health and for “mana” (that is spent when using spells) until they can become stronger than anybody else in the match.

Learning Dota 2 is one thing, but to be the best in the game and play professionally, players have to be mechanically gifted and show mastery in many heroes. They also need to have faster reflexes and thinking skills to outplay opposing players. 

Outstanding players are often scouted by e-sports teams in their younger years while playing in pubs, also known as “in online ranked games.” They dream of playing in the big leagues and eventually cap their careers with an Aegis.

Road to glory

The road to glory in the 2023 DPC season featured the Lima Major in Peru, Berlin Major in Germany, Bali Major in Indonesia, and the DreamLeague (Season 19 and 20) in Europe. 

Two groups of nine teams will start in the best-of-2 round-robin group stage and will weed out the weakest heading toward the playoffs. The top four teams of both groups will advance to the upper bracket, while the fifth and sixth teams of both groups will play in the lower bracket.

The playoffs have a best-of-3 double elimination format until only two teams remain. The grand finals of each event showcase a grueling best-of-5 match that may last for five hours or more.

Twenty teams from across the six regions—China, North America, South America, East Europe, West Europe and Southeast Asia—will compete for this year’s edition of the online game recognizable around the globe or The International 12 (TI 12) in Seattle, Washington, on Oct. 12-29.

Each region has two Divisions, 1 and 2. Teams battle in a round-robin format of best-of-2 matches. The top two to four teams (depending on the region) in Division 1 will qualify for a Valve-sanctioned event that provides a massive point haul. This goes on at least thrice in one season before heading to The International Regional Qualifiers.

In Division 2, the top two teams will replace the two relegated teams in Division 1 before they even have a shot at qualifying for a major event and eventually The International.

Direct invitation 

The “easiest” way to join TI 12 in Seattle is through a direct invite. Only 12 teams with the most points are directly invited; the remaining eight slots are up for grabs in the Regional Qualifiers two months before the final tournament.

A lot has happened since TI 11 (Oct. 15-20, 2022). There have been new updates on the map, such as a 40% increase in size, addition and removal of items, and hero/character tweaks and rework. These affected team strategies, play and chemistry.

Rosters have also shuffled as teams tried to bolster their lineups suitable for a shot at the Aegis.

Eight Filipinos out of 100 players saw action in TI 11 in three teams and two regions. The Philippines was fourth in country representation after Peru (13), Russia (13) and China (12), showing the competitiveness and quality of the Filipino players.

Related: Filipinos hope to win big at The International 12 in Seattle

Godfrey Tarras, a fourth-year journalism student at the University of the Philippines’ College of Mass Communication, is an intern at CoverStory.ph.

The post The Pinoy road to the ‘Olympics of Dota e-sports’ appeared first on CoverStory.

That said, my most recent favorite has to be Disney’s Emoji Blitz, which I got into in the 11th grade. I spent endless nights trying to collect all the character emojis available at the time, as well as the collections of objects, locations and effects that represented many iconic Disney moments. And it has only gotten bigger.

But looking back at the evolution of my vanquisher of boredom in mobile form over the years, I’ve noted a drastic change in its gameplay mechanics, available characters and “freebies” (actually, they were anything but), some for better, some for worse. I’ve also realized that this miniscule, cutesy game has so many insights into modern pop culture, economics and politics. 

And it speaks volumes not only of the history and rise of mobile games in the 2010s but also the seedy operations, dark history, and current devolution of the very company that owns its trademark.

Booting up

Let’s start with the three characters you’re offered at the beginning of the game: Sulley, Ariel and Simba. You get to choose which one you’ll play with for the rest of the tutorial.

Ariel and Simba are from films (“The Little Mermaid” and “The Lion King,” in case you’ve been living under a rock) that formed a critical period in Disney’s movie history—the Disney Renaissance in 1989-1999. This period brought one box-office hit after another, in the form of animated Broadway spectaculars that didn’t take themselves seriously (at least according to Alan Merken who, along with the late Howard Ashman, came up with the idea). The creative strategy brought massive amounts of money for the company after a decade of creative stagnation, and helped revive the animated film industry as a whole in Hollywood.

Sulley is from a film (“Monsters Inc.”) made by Pixar, a CGI-specialized film animation studio that Disney would acquire in a highly publicized deal in 2006. Pixar is known primarily for its development of many rendering technologies (both for software and hardware) that would be crucial for the streamlining and efficiency of creating animated films and special effects worldwide. In addition, many of its films (most of which are represented in the character roster of the game) have become Oscar darlings, bagging Pixar a majority of awards in the Best Animated Feature and Best Animated Short categories, while beating the Disney Animation Studios itself almost every time.

So this is a great strategy: starting off with its most-known properties that people anywhere in the world, regardless of social standing or political ideology, could recognize. 

But the argument of it being completely neutral just like Disney itself quickly gets off the rails the longer you play it. And it continues with a task given to you: Buy a silver character box.

The payment system

When you get past the tutorial, you’ll be awarded with gems and coins. Those are the game’s currencies, and you can use them to buy character emoji blind boxes, special power ups, and sparkly crates in a special round full of clouds and smiling celestial bodies that pop up every time you collect 200 points from items in-game (1 regular item=1 point, 1 premium item=10 points).

And one of the first things you need to buy is a silver box, which, at a cost of 15000 coins, will give you more emojis to add to your keyboard.

But there’s a catch (I bet you know where this is going; all mobile games are hit with it): To play with many of the features and events in Emoji Blitz, especially in getting new emojis, you need to do microtransactions. 

They are arguably the most annoying part of any modern game, more so than software glitches or uncooperative toxic teammates from another country. You can’t have fun with a game entirely, unless you’re willing to spend more money than your local bank’s vault can hold. 

Whether it’s to have an extra life, to use crucial power ups to grab items that you are so close to getting, or to get characters that won’t appear again until a few months later, they play a crucial role in the profit-making strategies of major gaming companies everywhere. It’s been an industry malpractice since the last decade, but Disney takes it to a whole other level.

The gems in Emoji Blitz especially are the worst, since the game has released more limited-edition character emojis than before, squeezing the pockets dry of anyone left wanting to play it for something close to free. Characters from “Star Wars,” “Kingdom Hearts” and the live-action “Jungle Cruise” (which isn’t as charming as the original Disneyland ride that inspired it, in my opinion) are hit especially hard with this. And don’t get me started on the story, rainbow and villain emoji categories, which are almost 230 out of the 554 available at this writing.

According to the ratings and comments I’ve seen from ex-players of the game on Google Play, it’s been super expensive to keep up with the updates and get every character for their emoji keyboards. These are people who have been with it since the beginning, saying that entire events need certain emojis with a certain power level to play, without which you’re restricted from playing the event at all. 

There’s a repeated lament concerning the apparent corporate greed and callousness of Disney spilling over into everything it does, including its online games: Despite the billions of dollars in the vaults of the Big Mouse from its decades as animation pioneer, it remains unsatisfied. 

Which brings me to its intellectual properties, many of which aren’t even ones it has built from the ground up.

Iger’s Property Gallery

You may argue that to measure Disney’s growth and influence, you need to see the many franchises it has acquired over the years. And in Emoji Blitz, it’s no different. You just need to check out its character roster. 

(I’ve named this chapter after current Disney CEO Bob Iger, who succeeded Michael Eisner from 2005 to 2020. Iger masterminded many of the takeovers, stepped down when his contract ran out, and then took over the company again in 2021 after Bob Chapek’s disastrous run.)

The world of “Star Wars” is heavily laid out here, from the classic original trilogy to the divisive sequel series, and critically-acclaimed shows like “The Clone Wars” and “The Mandalorian.” This could only happen after LucasFilm, the company that owns the copyright, was bought by Disney in 2012. 

The Muppets were part of a deal that was supposed to be completed between Disney and Jim Henson himself before his tragic death in 1990. Kermit, Miss Piggy, Gonzo, Fonzie and everyone else in “The Muppet Show” were only some of the assets to be considered part of Disney after a decade of legal issues and infighting between it and the Jim Henson Company, which was finally settled in 2001.

Then there’s the controversial appearance of “Anastasia,” “Ice Age,” “Ron Gone Wrong” and “Titanic” characters, which occurred after the finalization of the takeover of the historic 20th Century Fox Studios and its affiliates (including Fox Animation Studios and Blue Sky Studios, as well as its majority stake in National Geographic) in 2019 for a whopping $71.3 billion. To this day, the anticompetitive undertones of the historic merger get US lawmakers and academics concerned about Disney’s growing media monopoly, still untouched by the money and political influence it wields.

Its iconic theme parks are represented here, too, which, before the pandemic, were some of the most visited leisure destinations in the world, with such attractions as the Haunted Mansion, the Matterhorn Bobsleds, Journey into Imagination, Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride and The Main Street Electrical Parade.

But it’s not only Disney’s money-making practices or the gobbling up of independent companies. There’s also the controversy—too much of it.

Gimme, gimme, gimme

Another feature of Emoji Blitz is the many events referencing new properties and introducing obscure ones—a way to get new emojis, and to get a peek at the vast portfolio of works from Disney’s 100 years of existence (for example, the ones dedicated to “Hocus Pocus,” “Bolt,” and “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” all cult classics).

It has also shown off the big strategy that Bob Chapek used when the company was trying to be profitable during the global pandemic shutdowns in 2020-2022 which suspended its theme park and movie operations, via Disney+. This has turned out to be a mixed bag, depending on the property, studio and business model needed to make it profitable.

“The Mandalorian,” “Onward,” “Soul,” “Luca” and “Turning Red” have all had their theatrical release on the service, which, while great for the first show (with Grogu aka Baby Yoda becoming a cultural phenomenon, and the series earning Emmy nominations and wins), decimated the box-office earnings of the latter four films (despite “Soul” winning an Oscar for Best Animated Feature). 

After all, the success of TV shows is based on how many are eyeballing it at one time during its premiere, which doesn’t require leaving your home, only a one-time payment for a streaming service. A movie needs both ticket sales and confection sales to make money for both the cinema and the movie company. Not a good strategy if the latter provides you a lot of your annual revenue on a good year, which won’t work if almost every country on Earth is being shut down by a Chinese-made virus.

And then there are the company’s many failures in the 2010s and into the 2020s being represented here, regardless of virus-related follies.

The recent “Lightyear,” for example, was criticized for its lackluster plot, its detachment from the main “Toy Story” series, and the controversy surrounding its inclusion of unexplored, arguably unnecessary, LGBT characters.

The sequels for both “Frozen” and “Wreck It Ralph” haven’t been as critically well-received as the originals, and have been called soulless and cheap money grabs. “Willow,” a sequel of the 1988 sleeper hit movie of the same title, is being cited as the ultimate symbol of the corporate hypocrisy and creative laziness afflicting modern Disney leadership.

And then there’s what has not been seen yet in the game, of which there are many.

Looking lost, like Vincent Vega

Have you ever scrolled through a game that’s IP-driven, expecting to see your favorite characters there, only to find out that the franchise isn’t even being considered for inclusion? That would drive any normal fanboy or fangirl to madness (pardon my Marvel-related pun).

One of these related issues is the lack of representation from its animated original series in the game, the very shows that helped make the Disney Channel the most watched network in the history of cable TV at its peak.

Sure, The Disney Afternoon (a programming block in the ‘80s and ‘90s that made classics like Gargoyles, DuckTales and Darkwing Duck) and The Proud Family are present in this game, but the same can’t be said for many other beloved, award-winning animated programs: Kim Possible, Recess, American Dragon Jake Long, Amphibia, Star vs the Forces of Evil, Big City Greens, The Ghost and Molly McGee, or even Phineas and Ferb, Owl House and Gravity Falls. (The latter two shows were nominated for Peabody Awards, with The Owl House winning one in 2021.)

This mirrors the apathy of Disney’s corporate leaders towards its TV division, with Alex Hirsch and Dana Terrace, two of the network’s most lauded creators, bashing them for certain issues, including excess censorship on trivial matters or lines by its managerial department, the constant flip-flopping of the company’s statements towards LGBT topics and policies (which actually made Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis remove Walt Disney World’s special tax-exempt operating licenses in the state), and the lack of merchandising for their respective shows despite their huge followings.

Of course, this isn’t isolated to Disney leaders. Many CEOs of Hollywood’s media giants still consider cartoons to be for kids, despite countless adults and even grandparents saying they’re watching the shows long after puberty has passed them. These comments further show the cultural and economic bubbles many of the top 1% entertainment heads live in: They don’t realize that their consumers are buying and seeing the very shows and movies that fuel their isolating lifestyles, literally and figuratively.

There’s also the lack of Marvel characters, which I completely understand. The rights governing who can use it and what for can be confusing even to the average industry professional. Add to that the thousands of characters that the comic book giant has created under its label in 80+ years, and the situation gets more complicated. 

For the movies specifically, it always has been complicated, ever since the first major successful film release of a Marvel property (“Blade” in 1998). But when “Iron Man” was widely screened a decade later, it changed cinema history forever, and kick-started an influx of movies like it. 

After Disney bought Marvel in 2009 for $4 billion, it has been locked in a rights war with Comcast (along with a few other Hollywood bigwigs). With adapting established comic book icons into film and TV properties shown to easily bring in billions of dollars, thus ensuring profitable bottom lines, the allure is just too strong. Besides, any change in the legal rights could impact all current and future theme park rides and attractions (like at Universal Orlando and numerous Disneylands worldwide).

In a nutshell, putting characters from a comic book behemoth into a game like Emoji Blitz will open the floodgates for brand fans demanding that more heroes be represented, without considering the possibility that such a move will be seen as peacocking by Disney. In addition, a legal minefield might erupt if a well-paid corporate lawyer from Comcast finds a clause that shows the move violates a deal.

Lessons

With all that doom and gloom in an otherwise saccharine swiping icon game, what can be learned? Quite a lot.

Disney, now a monolith in entertainment, has humble beginnings. What started as a small animation studio in Burbank, California, has defied all doubters and become one of the world’s most successful corporations. 

But greed has blinded people in the upper echelon of Disney leadership, dimming the creative spirit and depleting the enjoyability of anything they create. As I’ve said, it’s not isolated to Disney; it extends to other executives with degrees in finance and economics taking over entertainment studios and streaming platforms, and forgetting what made their companies famous: high-quality storytelling coupled with gorgeous animation.

One of the momentous parts of the childhood of five generations of humans is falling apart before our eyes. 

Yet there are two small spots of hope. One can be told through the tale of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit in the Mickey and Friends section.

Oswald was made in 1927 during a partnership between Disney and Universal Studios. It seems weird to focus on an insignificant cartoon character, but way back then, Oswald was one of Disney’s first breakout animated stars, in the league of Betty Boop and Felix the Cat.

In 1928, the trademark for using Oswald was taken by Charles Mintz, one of Walt Disney’s partners at Universal Studios, as were much of his staff. But the loss of Oswald inspired Disney to create his most iconic character and the very mascot of the entire Disney enterprise: Mickey Mouse.

Just like modern-day Disney, corporate greed almost snuffed out the light of the company before it could become a household name. Now that it is, it needs to remember what it once was. 

Why am I even saying all this? Because despite its flaws, even a megacorporation can change its ways. 

For the second spot of hope, let’s focus on another sad moment of the company: the period between the ‘60s and ‘80s, aka Disney’s Dark Age. It was the period after the deaths of Walt and Roy Disney in 1966 and 1971, respectively, when the company began reusing character outlines from previous films without the guidance of their founder—a bit of a scuffle from their previous standards of realistic, hand-drawn animation.

With that, Disney was almost bought out by many of its competitors, who smelled blood and wanted to absorb the prestige of the Disney name. It was also the time when the company’s animation division was almost shut down, no thanks to the box-office bomb of “The Black Cauldron” in 1985.

Disney eventually changed its strategy, with the shining-star moment being the release in 1988 of “Who Framed Roger Rabbit?” It planted the seeds of the Disney Renaissance.

I’m not saying all this to damage Disney’s image in any way. If anything, I love the company and what it stands for. I love the joy and energy of the names and properties it has made over the past century. They brought me companionship and laughter when I needed them most, even if from just a small mobile game that’s all smiling thunderclouds and rainbows. And I know I’m not alone.

Disney—the founder, the legacy and the idea, not just the brand—matters much for many people on the planet who have used its films and TV shows to uplift and enlighten themselves and their families, and to engage with the world around them. If that fades, then those who will witness its downfall will mourn the next generations’ loss of a chance to experience magic and wonder in their lives. 

Isaac Camarillo, 23, is a customer and community media executive in a Singapore-based company. He holds a degree in creative writing from Ateneo de Manila University. His interests are psychology, world history and culture, and collecting Japanese stationery.

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Andres and I play different genres of video games but we both have fun playing Roblox, proving that it’s good whether you are 8, 14, or even 20 and older.

Roblox is an online platform where users from all over the world can create and play games with friends and family members. Most of its content is “user-generated,” meaning almost everything is made by the community.

The game can be downloaded for free on a computer, smartphone, or tablet. You can also get it on a console, but you have to purchase it from an online store. Users can buy robux (RBX), which is the currency Roblox uses (1 RBX = P1.32), to acquire clothing, accessories and game passes online. 

Since it was released in 2006, Roblox has seen a huge growth in player base. It now has over 230 million registered users. 

Why is Roblox so popular nowadays? Users can only be limited by their imagination: They can create whatever they want, like their own “avatar” which they can customize to wear the clothes and accessories they purchase. 

Roblox also has many games in its menu and a variety of user-generated content. Some examples of popular games are Adopt Me (72,000 concurrent players) and Blox Fruits (370,000), which appeal to users below 10 years old. Adopt Me has such elements as collecting pets, adopting players, and role playing. Blox Fruits targets users who watch One Piece, one of the most popular anime characters in the world.  

Game creation

The Roblox platform has two apps available for installation—the normal Roblox (white square) for playing games and the Roblox Studio (blue square) for creating games. Although creating games requires hours of studying, it is made easy in Roblox Studio with its coding and stuff. More and more users are now into making games. 

It is very possible to start a business with Roblox despite its limited options. There are thousands of Roblox YouTubers producing different content. Some focus on tutorials on games, entertaining the audience with their gameplay, or making informative videos. 

Game developers are increasing in number and can earn a lot of money or start a business for games that appeal to players. The undemanding Roblox Studio enables them to create games easier, but it requires much effort to earn cash. 

Security system

Is Roblox a safe platform? Yes and no. Roblox has evolved its security system but it’s not perfect. Encountering inappropriate things in Roblox is very rare, but it can still happen. With the ability of users to talk to each other (a chatroom is allowed only for 12-year-olds and above), unwelcome and older users pretending to belong to the age group can still get in and pose danger to child players. 

Parents are advised to regularly monitor their playing children to avoid unpleasant situations. Roblox is trying to remove these unwanted users to make the platform a safe environment where everyone from all ages can play and have fun.

Even if he is into Roblox, Andres still prefers to play with his friends in real life. His parents say the game has helped him build his confidence, communicate with real people, and develop good qualities. It also has the same impact on me.

Geean Ehrl Thomas M. Pagaduan is a Grade 8 student and lives with his parents in Marikina City. —Ed.

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