Last fall, 24 teams from around the world competed for a near $5 million prize pool at the League of Legends World Championship. The finals were held in front of a sold-out, 20,000-person crowd at the AccorHotels Arena in Paris, France. An estimated 100 million more watched online. For reference, 98.2 million people tuned in for Super Bowl L
Riot Games has launched a beta for its new online collectible card game (CCG), Legends of Runeterra . Players are flocking to try it for themselves, Lux guide Wild rift and some are wondering how best to play the game since it offers some large innovative designs over similar ga
Carry Heroes – When leveled properly, these types of heroes can devastate in the late game, and they "carry" a team to victory. The trade-off is that they are weak in the early game and are wasted if not leveled properly throughout a ma
Most of your gold will go towards scooping up heroes you plan on upgrading down the road. If you can swing it, having upgraded heroes in the early rounds is a great way to win and give yourself an early e
Leonardo has his own set of impressive armor that mirrors Garen’s skin in League of Legends. This cosplayer’s attention to detail in his armor making is simply mesmerizing and his Sunsteel Broadsword is something to be desired. Leonardo’s other cosplays include Jayce and "Mister Fortu
Some good starting heroes are Axe, Tiny, and Tusk. Axe belongs to the Brawny faction which means HP bonuses and the Warrior faction which grants increased armor. Tusk is a Warrior as well and also belongs to Savage which grants increased attack damage. Tiny is also a Warrior and belongs to Primordials which have a chance of disarming opponents. Find a good starter tank that feeds into later synergies and you’re good to
Though OG didn’t find consistent Dota 2 success throughout 2019, one player among their ranks powered them to victory at the biggest tournament of the year. Then-19-year-old Anathan "ana" Pham returned to OG in March after an extended hiatus. With ana back on the roster, OG began their climb back to peak form. They qualified for the MDL Disneyland Paris Major, and placed 5-6th at the main event. They then competed in ESL One Birmingham and the EPICENTER Major, placing 7-8th at both tournaments. The International 2019 arrived, and OG immediately exerted their dominance over their group stage opponents. To much surprise, ana played Io, traditionally a support hero, in the carry position. With that out-of-the-box pick, OG were able to top the group stage and secure a play-offs upper bracket berth. OG then took down Evil Geniuses, PSG.LGD, and Team Liquid to become the first team to ever win The International tw
_ Counter-Strike _ ’s Mathieu "ZywOo" Herbaut made a splash in 2019, lighting up scoreboards with a consistent form that rivals the game’s best historic talents. The 19-year-old star debuted with Vitality in late 2018, and immediately turned heads as the newest French star. Following in the footsteps of legendary AWPer Kenny "kennyS" Schrub, ZywOo took over every server he played on . In 2019 alone, ZywOo lifted trophies at cs_summit 4, the ECS Season 7 Finals, and EPICENTER 2019, earning the MVP accolade at each event. Vitality also reached the Grand Finals of ESL One Cologne and DreamHack Masters Malmö, and, despite losses, the teenager was named MVP of both tournaments. ZywOo boasts staggering statistics, having maintained a 1.31 rating for big LAN events in 2019. His consistent performances this year place him among _ Counter-Strike _ ’s very best, and this is only the beginning of his car
It’s more than a semantic concern, however. Unlike traditional sports, it’s nearly impossible to tune in to games that you don’t play personally. For instance, I’ve never been into Overwatch , and although I understand how the gameplay works, Overwatch League is completely unenjoyable to watch. You can’t appreciate the level of difficulty that certain moves take to execute unless you’ve attempted them yourself. This rule is almost universally applied across all of esports. Unlike traditional sports, where pure athleticism can be appreciated void of any tactical or technical knowledge, esports requires a higher degree of familiarity. At best, this means that viewership rarely crosses between games. At worst, this means esports isn't viewer-friendly and may never have what it takes to reach wider audien
Ashe is the leader of the Avarosan tribe. Known as the Iceborn warmother, Ashe uses the magic of her people to wield Avarosa's True Ice Bow. This bow allows her to apply frost to her enemies in order to slow them d
As 2019 comes to a close, esports fans are left to reflect on the best competitive moments of the past year. Jaw-dropping plays, unbelievable tournament runs, and shocking levels of consistency from the world’s best players. Five of the biggest esports titles saw their biggest talents rise to the top, taking their rightful places as some of the best players in the wo