News

News OWL Players Attend Olympic Discussions with Blizzard By William Davis News Overwatch is free to play this July By Fariha Bhatti Dota 2 AI bots are trying to beat Dota 2 pros By gabhernandez

News

Houston Outlaws add official cosplayer to team Fariha Bhatti Houston Outlaws have announced a new member of the Outlaws organization. But rather than inviting a new professional Overwatch player, the team has introduced an official cosplayer. Twitter user JTBass3, known by her handle ‘Lucy in Disguise’, was given the opportunity after appearing at fan-organised watch parties in cosplay as D.Va in the Houston Outlaws skin. Before formally joining Houston, Lucy made a name for herself within the team’s fan …

Dota 2

Registration opens for Aegis and Baby Roshan gabhernandez Registration for the most coveted item in The International Battle Pass is now open for eligible players. The Collector’s Aegis of Champions and Baby Roshan are rewarded to Battle Pass owners to celebrate the milestone of reaching the 1000 and 2000 Battle Pass levels, respectively. Since 2015, the 1/5th scale replica of the Aegis of Champions is given to Battle Pass owners who reach level 1000. The replica is made …

Dota 2

Let’s Do It Head to Dota Summit 9 gabhernandez Polish team Let’s Do It have secured the BTS Summer Cup title and earned a direct invite to the upcoming DOTA Summit 9. After taking down Alliance in the loser’s finals, Let’s Do It faced tournament favorites Wind and Rain. The first game of the series was lopsided. Utilizing an early Helm of the Dominator on Natan “Exotic Deer” Michalewicz’s Broodmother, Let’s Do It quickly pushed through and destroyed Wind …

League of Legends

Korea and Taiwan Meet Again at Rift Rivals William Davis The League Master Series finished the group stage with a poor 2-6 record. On the other side of the rift, the League Champions Korea teams finished at an even 4-4. These results were an early indication of how one-sided the semifinals would be. KING-ZONE DragonX AD carry Kim “PraY” Jong-in and support Kang “GorillA” Beom-hyeon showed their dominance from the beginning. A strong pushing bottom lane gave Han “Peanut” Wang-ho the freedom to invade LMS team Machi’s …

News Exclusive rewards available to fans during OWL finals By Fariha Bhatti News London Spitfire head to OWL grand final By gabhernandez Counter-Strike Na`Vi win Big at ESL One Cologne By gabhernandez

League of Legends

Rascal Returns from LCK Suspension William Davis Kim “Rascal” Kwang-hee is back with the KINGZONE DragonX roster after a controversial suspension during the Spring Split.   Ahead of the second half of the Summer Split, LCK teams submitted their updated rosters. The Korean Esports Association announced these submissions through social media, and Rascal’s name stood out.   Rascal was suspended in March, when reports surfaced about LCK players making insensitive comments online about the suicide of former …

Dota 2

OG Qualifies for The International Steven Rondina OG needed to send a message in the European qualifiers for The International, and the team managed to do exactly that. Despite limping into the event with a recently rebuilt roster and numerous questions about what condition the squad was in, OG successfully earned a spot in Vancouver. Not only that, but it may have just re-established itself as a serious contender for the Aegis of Champions. After posting a …

League of Legends

Doublelift sparks debate over League of Legends’ popularity gabhernandez The League of Legends community has grown increasingly upset with Riot’s perceived handling of balance patches this year. On July 12, Peter “Doublelift” Peng published a video on YouTube called “The Downsides of a Constantly Evolving Game.” In the video, Doublelift discussed the inherent issues in Riot’s active balance philosophy in Season 8, provoking widespread discussion of the topic among fans and pro players alike.   The video discussed how …

Dota 2

Fnatic, TNC Predator Secure Slots at The International gabhernandez TNC Predator and Fnatic have earned a pair of coveted slots at the most anticipated Dota 2 tournament of the year. As expected, TNC Predator and Fnatic dominated SEA region’s best teams in the SEA Qualifier for The International 2018. The field of teams featured a number of up-and-coming squads, including TNC Tigers, Entity Gaming, and Battle Arena Elites. The result of the group stage affirmed the SEA region’s hierarchy. …

London Spitfire reverse sweeps Los Angeles Gladiators, advance to semifinals gabhernandez News In a surprising show of vengeance, the London Spitfire won six straight maps and reverse swept the Los Angeles Gladiators to make their way to the first Overwatch League semifinals. In the first match of the quarterfinals, the Gladiators swept the Spitfire 3-0 to take a 1-0 lead in the series. Going into day two, London was able to take the first match in an easy 3-0 victory, leaving them …

TI8 NA Regional Qualifiers Steven Rondina Dota 2 The North American qualifiers for The International 2018 wrapped up on Monday and ended with the region’s strongest teams earning berths in Vancouver. Vici Gaming J Storm, Evil Geniuses, and OpTic Gaming earned invitations to the biggest Dota 2 tournament of the year. They’ll join 15 other teams in competing for the biggest prize in esports. While these qualifiers were expected to be an almost academic affair, the most stacked …

Summer Season Brings New Dota Plus Update gabhernandez Dota 2 Dota Plus is being updated with the goal bringing more exciting features to players who subscribe to Valve’s monthly service. Earlier this year, Valve introduced the next evolution of the Majors Battle Pass, a new subscription service called Dota Plus. The premium monthly subscription unlocks exclusive perks for Dota 2 players. Non-expiring rewards are provided to celebrate the player’s achieved milestones, and a variety of additional stats are made available …

JJonak wins OWL MVP award Fariha Bhatti News The Overwatch League’s inaugural MVP award has been given to Seong-Hyun “Jjonak” Bang of the New York Excelsior. Jjonak was given the award in recognition of his fantastic skill from the support position, where he is most known for his exemplary play on Zenyatta. Though first considered a healing hero, Zenyatta is also an attacking presence worthy of fear under Jjonak’s control. Using the hero to his full potential, Jjonak …

Uzi to Take Break from Competition William Davis League of Legends Reigning Mid Season Invitational champion Jian “Uzi” Zi-Hao is taking a break from gaming, Royal Never Give Up announced through social media.   The 21-year-old AD carry is taking some time off after 6 years as a professional player to recover from an injury. Uzi has been struggling with excruciating pain in his shoulder and back since 2015. The injury was significant enough that Uzi considered retirement, saying “I have …

The Next Counter-Strike Major Comes to Katowice gabhernandez Counter-Strike Intel and Valve have announced that the Intel Extreme Masters World Championship will return to Katowice in 2019. Players and fans can look forward to three weeks of tournaments beginning on February 14 and running through March 3. The winner of the IEM World Championship will gain the winner’s share of the $1,000,000 prize pool, as well as an additional point towards the Intel Grand Slam. From February 14-20, the …

Breaking down the teams at TI8 gabhernandez Dota 2 The International 2018 features the world’s top Dota 2 teams aiming for the biggest cash prize in all of esports. This most prestigious tournament brings together skilled players for a massive spectacle. We’ll now look at the top teams entering the event and the dark horses most capable of pulling off an upset. THE FAVORITES Virtus Pro Virtus Pro looks to be the strongest squad in the tournament with their …

Valiant best NYXL in OWL playoffs gabhernandez News The Los Angeles Valiant beat the New York Excelsior last night in the Stage 4 Playoff of the inaugural Overwatch League season. This is the Valiant’s first playoff win, breaking NYXL’s streak of two straight stage titles. Prior to Stage 4, the Excelsior was the team to beat. Their stacked roster showed few cracks, as evidenced by their two consecutive titles. It wasn’t until halfway through Stage 4 that the …

Fissure benched before OWL playoffs gabhernandez News Shortly before the Los Angeles Gladiators’ first playoff game against the London Spitfire, the Gladiators announced that they would not be starting Chan-hyung “Fissure” Baek. https://twitter.com/LAGladiators/status/1017211806673014785 There has been some controversy regarding the reason behind Fissure’s benching. The official statement, while vague, doesn’t directly imply any issues within the team’s ranks. Journalist Rod “Slasher” Breslau reported that Fissure was unhappy with the team’s performance in scrimmages, so the Gladiators chose …

Overwatch League comes to Disney TV Fariha Bhatti News Blizzard Entertainment has announced a broadcast deal for Overwatch League with Disney, bringing league broadcasts to Disney, ESPN, and ABC networks. The deal has already started and is a multi-year contract, with league matches set to be broadcast on ESPN, Disney XD, and ABC. The Season 1 quarterfinal matches will be the first matches to air live, broadcasting on Disney XD and ESPN3. The upcoming semifinals and finals will also …

NYXL defeat Boston Uprising for Sate 3 title Fariha Bhatti News The New York Excelsior have emerged as the winners of the Stage 3 title match over fellow finalists Boston Uprising. The Uprising had just come off of a huge 3-0 victory against the Los Angeles Gladiators, but the resulting momentum wasn’t enough to power the team past the Excelsior in the $100,000 title match. The Uprising’s offense stalled early in the match as New York was relentless in their push …

RNG crowned MSI Champions gabhernandez League of Legends Royal Never Give Up marksman Jian “Uzi” Zi-Hao may be the best ADC in competitive League of Legends, and at the Mid Season Invitational Uzi proved his mettle by capturing his biggest trophy to date.   Many expected Uzi and his RNG teammates to lose to KING-ZONE DragonX, a team composed of former SKT members and other formidable Korean stars, but RNG and Uzi were not swayed by the challenge …

WIN.gg gathers news and guides from around the world covering every point of the modern gaming industry in all of its many forms.