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League of Legends

LCS Forced Back Online As Positive Covid Tests Cause Havoc

It’s tempting, in the middle of 2021, to try and forget that the world is in the midst of a pandemic. Especially as people try and return to normal, with safety precautions and vaccinations helping to bring things back to pre-pandemic status.

However, LCS fans were reminded acutely reminded of how un-normal things really are as the League was once again forced online due to Covid-19. For the first time since the start of the Summer season, the LCS was returned to it’s online format, just like the bad-old-days of Summer 2020. With the new-look LCS of 2021, it was hoped issues like this were a thing of the past, but still the problems remain.

It all began as Immortals players were forced into playing remotely after a spate of positive tests. Immortals stated that all their players and staff were vaccinated. But even with their precautions, the team were unable to prevent the outbreak.

However, despite the swift response, just a day later the situation got worse. LCS Commissioner Chris Greely revealed that the league would be forced to move to an online format once due to the positive test. He stressed that the reasoning behind this would be due to an abundance of caution, rather than any positive tests inside the LCS Arena. No one at the on-site LCS staff has tested positive thus far. 

Making the Best of Online LCS Play

Despite the bad news, players looked to make the best of a bad situation. Immortals’ Mitchell “Destinyy” Shaw unwound by posting memes on Twitter, showing ‘Peepo’ playing things safe in a haz-mat suit. At the time of writing, Immortals were 2-0 on the weekend. It goes to show that playing from home wasn’t all that of a bad thing for them.

On the other hand, playing online was not all fun and sunshine for other teams. Evil Geniuses Coach Peter Dunn attested to some direct issues arising from their online play. Attributing their loss to Immortals to a missed Ryze ban, he bemoaned the issues with communication that can arise online.

The LCS continues this evening, with Immortals and Evil Geniuses in action. Follow DartFrog on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitch for the latest League of Legends and LCS news.

Categories
League of Legends

The LCS Championship Will Feature In-Person Attendance

A taste of normality is set to his the LCS this fall, as the LCS Championship will officially allow in-person attendance for fans. The details of the LCS’s end-of-split championship event were revealed in a post by Riot Games released on the evening of July 9.

Riot Game’s announcement about the LCS Championship

On top of the crucial announcement that the event would allow in-person attendance, Riot also revealed the date and location of finals: The Prudential Center, Newark, New Jersey. Formerly known as the Summer Finals, the LCS Championship will take place from Aug 28- 29. Riot endgoing so far as to put tickets on sale online

The LCS Championship is the last chance for LCS teams to gain the chance represent North America at the 2021 World Championship. The winner will also take home the new LCS Championship Trophy. The region only has three slots and there are plenty of organizations aiming to attend the tournament.

Finally the Fans are Back

Riot endorsed fans attending in person, going so far as to put tickets on sale online. However, it also encouraged fans to make plans to be vaccinated against Covid-19, but did not specify whether testing or other restrictions would be in place. It stated that all attendees must follow local health and safety protocols, which may include mask wearing. 

But Riot also faced criticism for the seeming in-auspicious location for the finals. Newark is normally seen as a b-town for events, with it’s New York City adjacent positioning. However, other suggest that Newark will be a fantastic venue for the event.

Journalist Jacob Wolf endorses the Prudential Centre in Newark as an Esports Venue

What’s more, others speculated online what this could mean for the VCT Champions event set for later in the year. The VCT has struggled in it’s opening year to find venues amid Covid restrictions. It’s first LAN event in Iceland was a closed-door tournament, with no press or fans.

Journalist Scott Robinson considers whether the LCS Championship news could have implications on the VCT Champions event.

Riot’s willingness to hold open-door events again is a good sign for LoL and VALORANT fans.

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