Esports

Uzi Gets His Trophy In Midseason League of Legends Finals

Jian “Uzi” Zi-hao is easily one of the best players in China’s League of Legends championship series, the LPL. But on the international stage, he’s frequently come up just short of the title. With a commanding win in today’s 2018 Midseason Invitationals, Uzi seems to have started his campaign to topple the regional hierarchy of…

The Correct Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Won This Weekend’s Splatfest

This weekend, Splatoon 2 players ended a multi-week popularity contest over the best Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle. And unsurprisingly, they chose the objectively best turtle in the end, Donatello. Donnie, the brains of the team who can also kick righteous ass, won 2-1 over his brother-in-shell, Raphael. While he lost the popular vote, he won…

Brigitte’s First Week In The Overwatch League Was Fine After All

The start of stage 4 in the Overwatch League meant the debut of the newest hero in the game, Brigitte. The anti-dive support was a big question mark, as pros would be playing her on a patch where she was still incredibly dominant. But it turns out, at least in week 1, things were kind…

Concept For Las Vegas Sphere Sure Does Look Like A Blitzball Arena

The Madison Square Garden Company will break ground this summer in Las Vegas, according to officials (via AP), to build a massive sphere with projection and lights that sure does look like a damn blitzball arena from Final Fantasy X. The 170,000-square-foot LED screen that wraps around the interior bowl of the sphere can project…

Turret Will Not Be Denied Its Shot In Pro League of Legends Match

In today’s semifinals between the Flash Wolves and Kingzone, Su “Hanabi” Chia-Hsiang was pushing up to the bottom lane turret when he decided to take his leave for a scrap in the middle area of the map. The turret, scorned but undeterred, shot a parting blast at Hanabi that would eventually be his undoing. Some…

Go1 Summons The Dragon In Dragon Ball FighterZ Match

The titular Dragon Balls don’t see a lot of actual use in competitive Dragon Ball FighterZ, as the conditions to gather them all and summon the wish-granting dragon aren’t always conducive to a player’s game plan. So when the opportunity to bring out Shenron in a match presents itself, you can bet a player like…

The Weekend In Esports: Midseason Finale

The 2018 Midseason Invitational comes to a close this weekend, marking about the halfway point in the competitive League of Legends season. While Korea’s Kingzone takes on China’s Royal Never Give Up, the rest of the weekend will be packed with a variety of events as well. There are a ton of fighting game events,…

A Frighteningly Accurate Analysis Of Mario Kart‘s Politics

Wario is a libertarian. Bowser is a fascist. We know this about them, in our hearts, but no one has ever sat down and categorized the political leanings of the Mushroom Kingdom’s best-known residents. Art House Politics has put together a video demarcating the political leanings of each of the characters in Mario Kart 8,…

Smash Players Plead With Each Other To Please, For The Love Of God, Stop Smelling So Bad

At Jason “RustyTrombone” Husisian’s first Super Smash Bros. tournament at a hotel in Easton, Pennsylvania, he was focused on out-maneuvering his opponent when a nearby attendee’s smell filled his nostrils. “I get a whiff and I legit start coughing,” Husisian recalled. “It smelled like he worked in a crematorium.” His voice getting louder, Husisian continued:…

Vegeta Nerfed

Dragon Ball FighterZ has been a smash hit, with players from all corners of fighting games converging on the title to duke it out with iconic characters like Goku, Piccolo, Frieza, and more. But as Dragon Ball FighterZ strategy developed, it quickly became clear that Super Saiyan Vegeta had the best assist in the game.…

Justin Wong Won A Major Tournament With Street Fighter V’s Newest (And Allegedly Worst) Character

Justin Wong is a legendary fighting game player, and he’s nearly unbeatable when given the chance to use an ultra-defensive character or system mechanic. This part of Wong’s skillset was on full display last weekend during the Canada Cup Master Series tournament in Calgary, where he won the stacked event using Falke, the latest character…

Luka Dončić’s Overwatch Mains Are Cause For Serious Concern

Luka Dončić is not only a presumptive top-two pick in June’s NBA Draft, he’s also the proud owner of a Gamer’s Heart. According to a profile written last month by ESPN’s Mina Kimes, Dončić is a fan of the Call Of Duty series. He also “spends two to three hours a day playing video games…

Esports Gambling Officials Are Ready For It To Be Legal

This week, the Supreme Court overturned the ban on sports betting, giving states the ability to legalize it if they want to. Esports betting was already legal in Nevada; in 2016, the Downtown Grand Casino offered the first legal esports wagers on League of Legends. Operators and regulators in esports betting have been cleaning up…

New Girl Characters That I Remember, Ranked

The New Girl series finale airs tonight, although the show should have ended at least a year ago. Here are some characters from that very good show, ranked from best to worst. Schmidt Aly Winston Outside Dave Nick Joan Day Bob Day Coach Principal Foster Fawn Moscato Robby Gavin Sadie Jess Furguson Abby Day Walt…

Why Overwatch League’s Regular Season Will End On A Wacky, Short-Lived Patch

Last week, the Overwatch League found itself encircled by controversy after pros and analysts hinted that stage 4 would run on an old version of the game that didn’t include Hanzo’s flashy new overhaul or a much-needed nerf to Brigitte. Today, the league finally confirmed that and explained its decision. For the past week, Overwatch…

Why Is Nobody On The Payload

Former Overwatch Pro Continues To Be A Self-Own Machine

Former Overwatch League problem child Félix “xQc” Lengyel was streaming last night when he ended up in the same match as a frighteningly skilled Widowmaker player going by the handle “Kannagang.” When players on the other team suggested that he might be cheating, xQc investigated by looking at his player profile. “Yeah, he’s a hacker,”…

What Stops Women From Going Pro In Esports

Cecilia D’Anastasio: So Nintendo invited a bunch of Super Smash Bros. pros to showcase Smash 5 at E3 this year! And among some of my favorites—Armada, Zero and Hungrybox—are exactly no women. I didn’t notice an outcry. Frankly, it was about as surprising as walking outside and noticing the sky, which was very much not…

Overwatch Pocket Healing Explained In Two Minutes

Overwatch League matches move fast, and one key aspect of clutch plays often stays off-screen and unacknowledged: the support players who heal up the pros pulling off those killstreaks. Most of those successful takedowns happen while the damage-dealing player is in the pocket—that is to say, getting healed continuously by a support player. When that…

Two Guys Reenact Street Fighter II Match With Their Mouths

The sounds of Street Fighter II are as iconic as anything else in the game, as shown by this incredible reenactment of the game by the two members of No Motion posted on Twitter. Watching two video-game sound impersonators re-enact a bout between E. Honda and Ryu took me right back to those days spent…