Month: September 2021

Categories
League of Legends

League of Legends Netflix Series Gets Trailer and Release Date

Riot Games finally revealed more details about the upcoming Arcane League of Legends Netflix Series on Saturday (Image via Riot Games)
Riot Games finally revealed more details about the upcoming Arcane League of Legends Netflix Series on Saturday (Image via Riot Games)

After months of speculation and just teasers to go off, we now have concrete information about Arcane, Riot Games’ League of Legends-inspired Netflix Series. The developer released a full trailer on Saturday, September 25, as well as release dates and more details.

The trailer seems to show the story will focus on LoL characters Jinx and Vi and their lives in Piltover. What’s more, the trailer appeared to show Caitlyn, Jayce, Heimerdinger, and Viktor, giving us a full array of the Hex-tech wielding cities champions.

We’ve known about the series since May, when Netflix first leaked details. Netflix has recently taken a big drive into video games, and specifically Moba-related, IPs. The streaming platform debuted Dota 2: Dragon’s Blood earlier this year to critical acclaim. Now Dota 2’s rival game League of Legends is set to hit the platform.

Along with a trailer, we also found out more about the cast. Vi will be played by Hailee Stenfield, with sister Jinx played by Ella Purnell. Have will be played by Kevin Alejandro, and Caitlyn by Katie Leung. 

Riot also revealed the staggered release schedule of the series. The show will release in three episodes’ Acts,’ with the first debuting just after the end of Worlds 2021 on November 6. The remaining parts will release on November 13 and November 20, giving us a month of Arcane action.

The hype around the series is tremendous, as for years, fans have been clamoring for something deeper than League of Legends’ champion profiles to sink their teeth into. Comics and interactive events have satisfied up until now, but a whole Netflix series is sure to please dedicated LoL lore fans.

Categories
Rocket League

How Will The RLCS League Expansion Affect the 2021-2022 Season?

RLCS is Back Graphic

Psyonix revealed some big changes coming to the The Rocket League Championship Series (RLCS) 2021-2022 season in a new announcement trailer. Along with a revamped format, the league has expanded to add three new regions. RLCS will now include the Asia-Pacific North, Asia-Pacific South, Middle East and North Africa regions.

This encompasses an assortment of countries like India, Saudi Arabia, Algeria, and many more. Psyonix told press that the new regions have been scouted and possess a “competitive pool of players.” What this means for the upcoming season is that there will be a lot more moving parts and lot of new faces rising the ranks. To make the integration as smooth as possible, there will also be a new format meant to “increase the uniformity” of the league and competitions. RLCS X was admittedly their biggest format change ever, but of course a league expansion requires much needed format amendments.

The Fall, Winter and Spring Splits will return this season, with each Split consisting of three Regional Events capped with a Major. All Regional Events will begin with an Open-Qualifier, but some teams can auto-qualify for Regional Events based on their performance in previous ones. Each Split features a unique format; the Fall Split employs a Swiss format that feeds into an eight-team, single-elimination bracket, the Winter Split will have teams battle through a Group Stage with four groups which then culminates into an elimination bracket, and finally the Spring Split will employ a simple double elimination format. Points from Regional Events and Majors are used to qualify to the Rocket League World Championship; points earned in the Majors will be weighted more. Other than that, things will mostly play out the same way as last season.

The expansion of the league means expansion of competition, with seven regions vying for a spot in the Rocket League World Championship. Eight of the spots will be taken by auto-qualifications awarded to the Regions that perform the best at Majors. There’s a great chance the RLCS Main Event will look a lot different this year. RLCS returns on October 15th broadcasting on the Rocket League Twitch Channel. Signs-ups open soon!

Categories
League of Legends

LCS Star Bjergsen Out of Retirement and Returning to Europe? 

Bjergsen's rumoured return to professional play could signal a new era in NA or Europe (image via Riot Games)
Bjergsen's rumoured return to professional play could signal a new era in NA or Europe (image via Riot Games)

Reports have emerged that Team SoloMid star Søren “Bjergsen” Bjerg is set to make a return to the competitive scene after just under a year of retirement. The alleged return was revealed by Upcomer’s Tyler “FionnOnFire” Erzberger on Sunday evening (September 12).

In late 2020, Bjergsen announced his retirement from the game and his move into a coaching role for TSM. After competing with TSM since 2013, the star became a part-owner in 2019 and retired a year later. 

Winning six LCS titles in his seven years with TSM, World’s success always eluded Bjergsen, who may be returning to play to chase international success. Instead, as a coach this year, Bjergsen guided the TSM roster to 4th place, just out of a Worlds spot.

According to the report, a return to TSM might not be Bjergsen’s first option. Instead, it hinted that the midlaner was looking for opportunities across North America and Europe. In Europe, Bjergsen briefly played for Copenhagen Wolves and Ninjas in Pyjamas between 2012 and 2013. However, his greatest success came after his acquisition by TSM in 2013.

Many would see a return to his native Europe as a return of a prodigal son. The LEC and its predecessor, the EU LCS, never got the chance to see Bjergsen compete in his prime. European fans, regardless of team affiliation, must be excited by the prospect of a return. 

The only issue that now stands in the way of such a move is the part-ownership mentioned above. A player could feasibly play for the team he was a part-owner of but competing against that team would represent a conflict of interest. Not that TSM has shied away from those in the past…

At the time of writing, no official comment had been released by Bjergsen or TSM.

Categories
Rocket League

ThO Departs Guild Esports For The Flying Dutchmen

Guild Esports' thank you graphic to ThO

Thomas “ThO” Binkhorst was one of Guild Esports’ inaugural Rocket League players, having been with the organization since its genesis. He’s been benched for the last couple months, making todays news far from surprising. Guild Esports announced on Twitter that ThO would be departing the team to continue his professional career.

ThO will still be competing in the Rocket League Championship Series (RCLS) as a member of The Flying Dutchmen. The team is complete with all Dutch players, including Jos “ViolentPanda” van Meurs, and Ole “oaly.” ViolentPanda seems to be leading the charge as a renowned Rocket League legend with a track record of getting the most out of the players around him. The trio have played together before at various events and are expected to have a good amount of success next season; possibly taking a Worlds spot from one of the established top six. ViolentPanda announced on Twitter that the team is currently looking for an organization to represent, as well as a sub.

As for Guild Esports, Dan “bluey” Bluett played as a stand-in for the team while ThO sat out his final two months with the organization. It hasn’t been confirmed that he will be ThO’s official replacement, so Guild Esports is technically still on the hunt for a new third. Fans only got to see a small sample of what bluey can do with the team, but the reception so far seems to be that this would be a lateral move at best. During his peak, bluey was a Season 8 RCLS EU MVP, however, he has seen a decline over the past couple seasons. He’s also been criticized as a “toxic” teammate, but time, maturity, and the natural chemistry advantage of an all English roster could be just what he needed to turn things around if he joins the team permanently.

Categories
Rocket League

Signing Chaussette45 Could Turn Semper Esports Into a Championship Roster

SMPR Semper Esports Logo
SMPR Semper Esports Logo

Semper Esports (SMPR) announced the official signing of Chaussette45 in what many call the worst kept secret in Rocket League esports. The France native made his debut for SMPR at Gamers Without Borders 2021 (GWB), helping bring home the trophy and a $200,000 donation for UNICEF. Speculation swarmed when his former teammate, Aztral, seemed to leak the news in a Twitch stream a month ago. The official announcement came as no surprise and was met with a highly favorable response from SMPR fans. Can Chaussette45 really be the piece that pushes SMPR over the hump and leads them to an RCLS Championship?

The team is coming off of a third place finish in the regular season and third-fourth finish in the championship series. Chaussette45 is also coming off a pretty successful season of his own, helping team Oxygen clinch the top 6 and a spot in the RCLS X championships. In his SMPR debut at GWB, Chaussette45 put forth an impressive performance with his new squad. He was definitely their glue on the defensive end throughout the tournament and even put forth a crucial five saves in their game five win against Team Singularity. He was somewhat inconsistent on the offensive end, however that can be chocked up to team chemistry, as well him electing to fill in the gaps needed rather chase goals.

This type of player just might be what SMPR needs right now. Kassio and Archie are a strong two who can provide goals, masterful shot percentages, and have experience playing together. Chausette45 compliments the duo very well, and proved to be an adaptable third on the field. The offense he was able to bring to the table, though inconsistent, came at all the right times when SMPR needed it the most; like when he helped notch a 1 goal win against Payback in game 2. As time goes by, SMPR will only get better together and is already a dangerous team when RCLS Season 11 rolls around.