Eric Van Allen

The Weekend In Esports: Another Season, Another Reason To Love Blanka

It’s the start of a new season for the Street Fighter V pro tour. Players have been (mostly) taking a breather since MenaRD took the Capcom Cup title. But the leaping green monster has returned, heralding the start of a new season of competitive Street Fighter. Some big names are heading to Atlanta to carve…

I’m Digging A Mystery Game That Turns Conversations Into Boss Battles

In my last diary entry, I discussed my love for good mysteries. This week the first episode of an intriguing game called The Council came to Steam, full of tense conversations and supernatural phenomena. It even lets you be best buds with George Washington. But what I like best is its conversational minigames. In The…

Valve is rolling out a subscription service for Dota 2, called Dota Plus. An extension of the battle passes, Plus users can earn cosmetics and non-gameplay goodies, as well as gain access to a coaching system called Plus Assistant, for $3.99 a month.

Dallas Fuel Release Félix “xQc” Lengyel

Overwatch League team Dallas Fuel announced today that the organization and tank player Félix “xQc” Lengyel have mutually agreed to part ways. Lengyel’s contract was set to last through the entirety of the league’s inaugural season. “There are few players out there who have achieved as much success in as short a time as Félix…

Rocket League Player Sinks Goal Over Sick Double Bump

In today’s European play-in qualifiers for the Rocket League Rival Series, team Triple Trouble showcased some beautiful coordination in setting up a clean shot on the goal by bumping out the defenders. As Ronaky sailed through the air towards the ball, his teammates seized the opportunity to bump the opponent Zebra Nose’s cars with their…

Florida Mayhem Scores First Win Of The Overwatch League’s Second Stage

The Florida Mayhem have heart, but the yellow-and-red has also been struggling to break out from the bottom of the standings. Last night, with its back against the wall, the team started to turn things around with a solid reverse sweep of the Dallas Fuel. Despite early signs of life for the Mayhem, the Fuel…

Virtus Pro Look Unstoppable In Dota Bucharest Major Finals

Just making the grand finals ensured Virtus.Pro would punch a ticket to this year’s Dota 2 International. But in the grand finals of today’s Bucharest Major, VP reminded everyone why they’re at the top of the Dota pro circuit, in a 3-0 sweep of Vici Gaming J Thunder. Analysis for a win like this is…

The NHL Is Hosting An International Tournament For NHL 18

It looks like hockey will joining the growing trend of tsports getting into esports. The National Hockey League will host the 2018 NHL Gaming World Championship, where fans of the virtual ice can compete for a share of a $100,000 prize pool and a chance to be a part of the 2018 NHL awards. The…

The Weekend In Esports: Straight From The DPC

The race for the 2018 Dota 2 International is heating up. Thanks to today’s win over Team Liquid at the Bucharest Major, Virtus.Pro is the first team to punch a ticket to The International. At 6297, the team’s Pro Circuit point total is high enough that it could essentially do nothing until the big dance…

A Clash Between Two Fighting Game Legends Ends In Tears And Resolve

At last night’s Kemonomichi 2, two of Street Fighter’s best-known players played an exhibition set. It was a clash of the giants that ended in emotion, laughter, and tears. It was one of the best fighting game sets I’ve seen in some time. Daigo Umehara and Hajime “Tokido” Taniguchi are eminent within the fighting game…

The NBA 2K League’s Combine Probably Wasn’t Rigged, But Didn’t Do Itself Any Favors Either

In a more open approach than most franchised esports leagues, the draft process for the NBA 2K League was open to any and all challengers who met a small set of requirements. Win 50 games in January’s online qualifiers, and you move on to phase 2: the combine. That combine then whittled 72,000 applicants down…

Battlegrounds Team Gets DQ’d, Loses $12,000 For Using See-Through Wall Glitch

OpTic Gaming has been stripped of its second-place finish in a PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds tournament after officials ruled that one of its players, Ian “Bahawaka” Crowe, abused a glitch allowing him to see through walls. During game eight at the PUBG Invitational at IEM Katowice, Crowe moved next to a wall in a very specific way…

Fighting Game Pros Gaming At Their Weddings Appears To Be A Thing

Ryo “Dogura” Nozaki is a well-known player from Japan, who placed 7th in the Capcom Pro Tour global rankings in 2017 and took first place at Canada Cup 2017. He was also getting married last weekend, and during the wedding party, the happy couple set up a PlayStation and the groom took on a few…

Dota Pro Goes Galaxy Brain On Opposing Team

Group stages for the Bucharest Major have begun and in OG’s first match, support player Jesse “Jerax” Vainikka pulled some serious mind games. One of Jerax’s best-known heroes is his Earth Spirit, a warrior of stone that has a lot of mobility and some tricky abilities. During a lull in the action in OG’s match…

Overwatch Pro Lands The Dream Charge

Muma may have lost, but he won the hearts of many a Reinhardt in last night’s game against the New York Excelsior with one incredible charge. In last night’s match against the NYXL, Austin “Muma” Wilmot was leading the charge as the ironclad Reinhardt. Seeing enough of the New York players clumped up, Muma dropped…

Overwatch League Bites Down Hard On Some Lemons For A Good Cause

Host Malik Forté came on during a halftime break in today’s Overwatch League to take a chunk out of a lemon in front of a live audience. Don’t worry, it’s for a good cause. Lemons For Leukemia is a campaign started by two friends, Dillon Hill and Chris Betancourt, the latter of which was diagnosed…

Pro League of Legends Match Has A Whole Lot Of Baron Stealing

The Baron is League of Legends’ biggest monster (besides Teemo). It holds dominion over one alcove of the map, rewarding a boon to any team that can best it. And in today’s match between Roccat and Splyce, the two teams repeatedly stole that advantage from one another. Baron buff is key to making mid and…

The Weekend In Esports: Tekken Team Tournament 

We really need to talk about Gon. This weekend, cable television tackles Tekken with the Eleague Tekken Team Takedown. While the games won’t actually hit the telly until March 16, matches start today on Twitch. And frankly, all this Tekken talk has me thinking: where is Gon? We have King, Heihachi, Hwoarang, the classics. Akuma…

Just A Totally Normal Start To An Overwatch League Match

There was totally nothing abnormal or strange about the start of map 4 between the Los Angeles Gladiators and Seoul Dynasty last night. Jump scares happen when you least expect ‘em.

The Philadelphia Fusion Are Real Frisky Now

Coming into last night’s matchup, the Houston Outlaws and Philadelphia Fusion were both undefeated in the Overwatch League’s second stage, and the Outlaws were particularly hot, going from an 0-2 start to a 9-3 record. But Philadelphia can’t be beaten in seemingly anything right now. When the Fusion took the stage, star newcomer Eqo wasn’t…