My base level analysis of the top 3 teams in Japan, stating roles for each player (with some extra info).
(shout out to Noyn)
#1: Zeta Division: They were able to regain their crown at the top of the Japan region. Formerly called Absolute Jupiter, these are Japan’s First Strike Champions and the toughest looking team in Berlin (Look at their team page pictures). In the most recent Challengers stage, they have shuffled their comp around to what has worked best for them. One pattern you’ll find in the Japan region is that teams and players will not really have standard roles, as a lot of players flex A LOT of roles. For example, takej, who is probably the strongest fragger on the team, will play Reyna mostly, but as seen in the Grand Final match, he can play other agents as well. Laz is one of if not the most consistent player in the Japan region. He was Japan’s representative for the VALORANT First Class, and is the main flex of the team. Reita is the main duelist (kinda) for the team. I think he also is the IGL (correct me if I’m wrong). He’s pretty solid, I don’t have much more to say. Crow is the main support of the team, and although he is not the most standout player, he plays his role well. Makiba and Barce both play smokes, but the former plays Viper/Astra and the latter plays Brim/Omen. I’d say Makiba is a slightly stronger fragger. Together, these players make the strongest team in Japan. Even though they are the best, the top 3 in this region are VERY close, and all of them may beat each other on any day.
#2: Crazy Raccoon: The most well known and beloved team from the Japanese region. As you should know, they were the Japanese representatives for Masters: Reykjavik. I still find it odd how they went for a 7-man roster (although I know the principle). They wanted to change more of their roster, but according to Riot’s rules, you have to keep the core of your roster (3 players) to keep VCT points. The pattern of players’ roles does kind of work with Crazy Raccoon as well, but they have tried to keep a more fixed comp style as of late. Starting with Medusa, the Sova player for his team. Medusa is a very good player and is not only a good sova player, but a good fragger. He is being subbed out a lot recently however.Moving on to Munchkin, in Iceland he was the team’s main entry fragger, who became known as a star during his game against Version1, where he had many highlights. Currently, he has played Skye, and has moved off of the main entry frag role. The person who has stepped into that role is Fisker. Along with Minty, he came from FAV Gaming, who disbanded. They were not a horrible team, but a mid tier 1 team. Moving onto Minty, he has played the sentinel role for most of his time playing VALORANT (with some Jett). He comes with Fisker as stated above. He is sticking with the sentinel role on Crazy Raccoon, meaning neth will be bumped off of the role. Neth is one of the most interesting players in VALORANT history. He has played every single role in the game. Currently, he is playing the controller (smokes) role. Nothing to say about the last 2 players -- Ade plays smokes as well and Bazzi plays initiators. As I stated earlier, they are close competitors with Zeta, and the team who was #3 in Japan.
#3: Northeption: Seoldam’s team. That’s what Northeption is known as. Seoldam is more popularly known as “Korean Jett.” You have definitely seen his highlights one way or another, but with this star on their team, the rest of the team gets overshadowed. They have the most fans from outside the Japan region, due to Seoldam’s international popularity. Northeption actually knocked Zeta Division, the eventual champs of Japan, to the lower bracket. Starting with Seoldam, undoubtedly the team’s best player. Many compare him to mwzera or TenZ when he was with Cloud9. Northeption is a better team than the others’ (relatively), but very similar. Seoldam’s buddy, Astell, is one of my favorite players from the Japanese region. He is Seoldam’s duo, and is the main sentinel player for the team. One of the main problems for Northeption is communication, due to Seoldam’s lack of fluent Japanese. Next, Meiy, who is the team’s secondary duelist/flex. He is very talented, I used to love watching him play Raze, but recently he has been playing Phoenix more. With him comes SugarZ3ro, the controller player for the team. He is a very solid player, not much to say. Finally, ten, the team’s newest addition. He is the main Sova player for the team. He will also play Raze on her strongest maps (Bind and Split). Although I do not like their Bind play, with no Sova, they are still a strong team. I believe if they keep improving comms/strats, they definitely have the potential to dethrone Zeta/Crazy Raccoon as the kings of Japan.
Discord