It’s been barely a month since the closed beta of Valorant became playable, and yet there have already been numerous tournaments. Thanks to the three-day ESPN Valorant Invitational, we got to see even more high-class games. At the tournament, the Apex team surprisingly prevailed over the high-ranking competition.

In an exciting tournament, all the teams involved impressed, but in the end it was Team Canyon with their pros from Apex Legends who were in the final against Team Counter Strike. More specifically, it was Aceu, Mendo, Dizzy, Kellar and Syncdez on Team Canyon’s side against Brax, Ska, AZK, n0thing, Hiko and Skadoodle on Team Mirage’s side.Yes, the ESPN Valorant Invitational was quite exciting.

Although Brax and AZK’s team has won several tournaments now, this time it was Team Canyon who won the best-of-3 final with an impressive 2-1 victory.

The MVPs of the tournament
While there was no official MVP trophy, the best players were still analyzed in detail by an ESPN panel after the tournament:

Despite losing in the finals of the ESPN Valorant Invitational, Spencer “Hiko” Martin from Team Mirage was one of the most noticeable players. The CS:GO pro dominated with Breach, proving once again that Breach is an agent that is indispensable in the pro game.

Opposing him was Justin “Kellar” Kellar. Not only was he part of the winning team, but he was also involved in some key scenes in the final series. Several times he showed off his impressive clicking skills in “one on one” scenarios, deciding the finals with a lot of clutch play. It was his calm and cool demeanor that ultimately made the difference for Team Canyon.

The future of Valorant Esports: Team Mirage vs Team Dev
Even though they didn’t make it to the finals, the development team – Team Dev – was involved in probably the best match of the tournament: In the match against Team Mirage, viewers were able to get an idea of how Valorant will perform as an Esports title. While both teams approached the game safely and quite defensively, the dev team had the advantage of knowing the game inside out, while the CS:G pros from Team Mirage were superior at aiming.

In the end, accuracy won out, but Nicholas “Nickwu” Wu Smith and Salvatore “Volcano” Garozzo of the development team still proved what’s possible in Valorant once you get used to the game’s specific idiosyncrasies.

Nickwu’s remarkable performance in the ESPN Valorant Invitational showcased Sova in particular. He had complete control over parts of the map, both on offense and defense, and his approach was an almost textbook application of the hero and the game itself – save for one stray arrow that backfired. Both teams showed that strategy and clicking skill are important factors in a rousing game.

While Valorant is still in the early stages of its development, the ESPN Valorant Invitational and its success as a spectator event was promising for the future of Game 2 in terms of Esports as well.

What is actually… “Apex Legends?

Within 24 hours, “Apex Legends” became the most-watched game on Twitch – after one week, over 25 million people were already playing it. What is the battle royale shooter about?

What is “Apex Legends” about?

Scenario: In a distant future, bandits, adventurers, and outlaws settle their disputes in a sporting contest to the death. The setting is a fertile, industrially developed valley on the edge of the galaxy.

• Genre: Battle Royale shooter
• Game modes: survival battle between a maximum of 20 teams of three.

At its core, “Apex Legends” is a classic battle-royale shooter: up to 60 players land simultaneously in teams of three on the game map called “Kings Canyon” – a densely built-up, fertile valley with many accessible houses, bunkers and towers. Once on the ground, unarmed players must search their surroundings for equipment and ammunition. The goal of the game is to stay alive until the end.

To prevent players from hiding all over the map and waiting to automatically be the last one left, the game area shrinks every few minutes. The longer a round lasts, the smaller the area where survivors can move and hide.

Apex Legends refreshes this now classic game formula with some ideas that are unique to the genre: For example, before starting a round, players select one of eight heroes, each of which has two special abilities and facilitates certain play styles.

Bangalore, for example, is the classic soldier who can conceal her position with smoke grenades and call in an artillery strike in an emergency. The heroine Lifeline, on the other hand, can summon a drone to heal teammates – or directly order the delivery of high-value weapons and equipment via aerial drone. This way, all players can find the right hero for their preferred course of action.

How can I play Apex Legends?

Platform: “Apex Legends” is available for PC, Xbox One and Playstation 4.

Price: The battle royale shooter is a “Free to Play” title and can basically be played for free on all platforms.

In-game purchases: “Apex Legends” allows the purchase of cosmetic items and new heroes either by means of in-game currency, which can be earned for free in every round, or with real money. The real-money currency “Apex Coins” can be purchased in five different amounts: The smallest possible amount is 1000 Apex Points for around 9.99 euros, while the largest pack with 10,000 Apex Points content costs 99.99 euros.

The developer emphasizes that it is not possible to buy game advantages with the help of real money: You can only use it to customize the appearance of the heroes, it says, or purchase new heroes.

Age rating: “Apex Legends” does not have a youth rating (USK 18).

Which technical terms should you know?

Respawn Beacon: If a player is shot down, the team members who are still alive have the opportunity to bring the fallen comrade back into the game: Each eliminated player leaves behind a so-called Respawn Banner, which can be collected by the players of the own team and handed in at one of 28 Respawn Beacons, certain locations on the map. If this succeeds, the fallen player returns to the game.

Jumpmaster: At the beginning of the game, one of the maximum three players of a team always takes on the role of the jumpmaster. He decides when and where his team enters the game area.

Ping: Using the middle mouse button, players can alert their teammates to interesting locations in the game world or enemies. These pings are a valuable tool for communicating quickly and efficiently within the team.

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