It goes by map diff and then round diff I think h2h means almost nothing

Also they wouldn't want to matchfix, having the #1 seed is huge and they just dropped from 1 to 3

i mean yeah obv still gotta glaze the goat

https://www.vlr.gg/player/8480/aspas

POV: SEN gets one smoke kill when bang sees the bullet tracers from the vandal

BANG WTFFFF

Yeah I think its just been a tough transition tbh. Figuring out how to play with a new team while also figuring out his specific role within SEN when they already have a great duelist and other good initiators. Today looked great, admittedly against a weaker team, so I hope he can get some confidence moving forwards cause SEN has crazy high potential this year if they can figure out how to consistently play at their ceiling

To be fair. For lotus FNS was not the problem, Mada and Ethan were. You can't get an insane s0m performance and a rlly solid FNS one and still lose that's insane

Highkey ethan is part of the problem rn

EDG probably could tbh

its just a ragebait

Nah he's been turning up lately

Hard to tell tbh since we haven't seen the teams play these maps in a while. Based on form on pearl, SEN obviously look better, but I feel like it always happens where one team looks great map one and then can really struggle on the later maps and lose gunfights that they were winning before.

I think on defense 100t had a lot of good reads, but struggled in the gunfights and microplay. Attack side they did kind of look lost. Only map one tho so we'll see what they bring on their map pick

I feel like the players/org are likable in a lot of ways, its just SEN is the biggest org so the fanbase will always have those type of people who suck because they only like them for being the biggest team

I mean I think he was very good with EG but pretty much that whole team has fallen apart post 2023

Eh he just didn't get a long in a competitive/professional setting with the team. He can be a cool guy outside the server at the same time

We expect FNS to whiff all the time but Ethan has been worse than him on several maps and just hasn't been shooting at all. Is he actually washed?

Interesting take I feel like VIT are the ones who are scarier long term as they develop more chemistry and better maco play. If anything, I feel like right now is the best chance for TL to be better because their macro is ahead of VIT even if their firepower isnt

I'm kinda hyped, but less so than last year at Madrid. At least for me, the times for all the matches are pretty much unwatchable, so it's hard to get excited about matches I can't watch live

EDG 2-1 TL (EDG are better but I feel like TL steals a map)
SEN 2-1 DRX (DRX either wins 2-0 or loses)

I agree that VIT might be overrated and I was not impressed by their match against TL, and I personally have DRX as #4 for Bangkok, but I think that saying they look to be on par with G2 is a bit of a stretch to me. Not that its impossible for DRX to be better, but from what we know so far, G2 look to be the better team, at least from my perspective.

Region by region, it really depends on what you are looking for. I think that Americas has the best two teams, with G2 and SEN(who I have right above DRX but basically 50/50), and then a group of teams that haven't shown consistency, but have really high ceilings that can qualify them for internationals (100T, NRG, LOUD, LEV, KRU, MIBR). But then the region does also have multiple teams that are not good (C9 and EG), and some that suck (Furia and 2G).

I think Pacific has a similar breakdown with DRX and T1 at the top, then GENG, Talon, NR and RRQ are all teams that fall into the "high ceiling contenders to make internationals". The rest of the teams either look mid (DRM, PRX :(, GE, TS) or bad (ZETA, BOOM). So I would say its very close but would lean Americas as of now.

This being said, no international matches have happened yet and everything I think is likely incorrect.

It's legit the same exact format as Madrid lol

Idk Less won champs and was insane on LOUD the next year as well I don't think Suygetsu had a measurably better run. And idk what ur on but Less has been much better in recent years

I think its just across the board form. VIT has way more firepower than KC. VIT hasn't looked like they've had a strong macro game, which is the difference between sayf and saadhak at igl, but their much higher individual skill makes up for it, at least this early in the season.

Zaddy is just him ig. Wish he could've played this well at champs :)

Experience-wise yeah they're very similar, but in terms of value and current form, Less is steps ahead

A few years ago maybe but less has been another level of consistent the past couple of years, and I would take Less above Sugeytsu 10/10 times

I mean ur comparing derke and less to suygestsu and marteen

NOOOOO but im the most important and I need it to be perfect for meeeeeeee

Pacific hosted events are the death of me over here in PST, having the first games start at midnight or 1 AM is just not doable

Exactly, I'm just not convinced that their firepower is enough to overcome the macro deficit against the best teams

Yeah thats why I moved VIT down to 7 lol which could definitely be an overreaction, but I think that G2 should still be a tourney favorite. My reasoning is that VIT look like they are missing a lot in terms of structure and team play these maps that they are losing to Liquid, whereas G2 just looked like they got anti-d and beat by another really good team on the maps that they lost

So we agree that G2 is #1 ITW right now, but SEN, the team that took them to 5 maps while being at a severe disadvantage, shouldn't be top 3? Even if you have them lower I don't think it's a crazy take to have them that high, especially if we agree about how good G2 is.

Maybe, but it's hard for me to move them down until they lose. I do think that the top 3 teams are incredibly close to each other

Possibly, due to the firepower that they have, but I have a lot of concerns about the rest of their gameplay and overall team strucutre

1 win is definitely huge, cause you can then afford to lose a game. If you go into G2 round 1 and lose, you then have to win both of your next two games, at least one of which will be against a very strong team.

I mean 100T missed champs by 1 point last year

Fair. I've seen a ton of people disrespecting EDG, but they're definitely top 3 from a speculative standpoint. Anything could happen, but they should be viewed pretty highly going into Bangkok

Fair point lol it's hard to know until the regions actually play each other. I have the Americas teams so high because of the combination of the firepower that they have, as well as the structure and strong team play.

The firepower is more objective to judge because its not region-biased, but the team play can be, and I could definitely be overrating the American teams calling and structure and underrating that of say Pacific, but from the perspective of not seeing them compete against each other, I think that Americas looks the most structurally sound.

Just my opinion though, and would not be surprised to see either pacific team make it top 4.

Idk if I consider groups stage that highly seeing as they immediately bombed out of playoffs. If we are talking groups then BilliBilli is at the same level for dunking on FNS's arthritis-ridden joints.

I love FNS this is a joke but fr he needs to stop violently shaking his mouse every time he gets in a duel he's looking like me out there

Happy to provide

I saw that no one else is doing this, and my opinion is the most valid and obviously everyone has been waiting for me to speak out so here are my rankings:

1.) G2 - They do look like the best team in the world but were shown to be beatable when SEN took two maps off of them while G2 had every possible advantage in the series. I do think that SEN wins that series on even footing, but I can't rate G2 any lower based on the dominance they've shown so far. Technically, I have them as the favorites, but I do not think there is much separation between the top 3, let alone the top 6.

2.) EDG - I don't watch much CN Valorant, but this EDG team has shown time and again how dangerous they are, and the roster changes they made last year elevated them so much. If they can keep up a good form they can beat any team on this list, and should be one of the favorites to win their second trophy.

3.) SEN - Really impressed me against G2. I do have some map pool concerns, but I think that this team showed the kind of team they could be when they played G2 so closely. I also believe that this team has the highest current ceiling of any team in this tournament. That is, if every team here plays to their absolute best possible current form, I believe that SEN will win. The question is if they can play to their top level consistently.

4.) DRX - Probably the best team play that I have seen from non-Americas teams, I don't really know how to feel about Pacific as a region, and I could be underrating both teams here, but I just trust the teams above them more at the moment. I do think that DRX can do a lot of damage, I just don't see them at the same danger level as the top 3 teams.

5.) T1 - Same thing with DRX, I could definitely be underrating them, but I just don't feel as confident in their abilities as I do with teams from other regions. T1 has a lot of potential to be a very good team, I just don't see it happening quite yet.

6.) VIT - This one might be an overreaction to the TL game, but I'm not confident in their ability to beat well-structured teams. Even with the impressive comeback, they have had some massive gaps exposed by Liquid in the first two maps imo.

7.) TL - I don't believe it either but here we are. The teamplay has looked above a lot of the other teams in the rest of EMEA, and the players are also stepping up individually. The issue here is that I don't trust that either of those elements are good enough to compete with the top teams from the other regions, but they keep proving me wrong and anything could happen.

8.) Trace - Having Trace at 8 feels criminal, but besides EDG, CN has failed as a whole to compete with the best teams from the other regions, and I don't know if Trace has what it takes to become that second team from CN to do damage internationally.

I do think that any team on this list can get at least one win at Bangkok, and I wouldn't be shocked at any of the top 6 making it to the playoff stage. Kickoff is always so interesting, as we have no clue which teams are legit and which are not, and I think no matter what this will be an interesting tournament.

EDIT after the VIT TL game: This tournament is really wide open and I don' t think that are many massive gaps between the teams in this list. I moved VIT up from 7 to 6 and TL down from 5 to 7, but all of these teams are very close. Guess we shall see in Bangkok

I don't like this argument. Better seeding is big because getting a win in the first round of the swiss stage is huge. Also, the extra championship point, and getting the kickoff trophy are both good reasons for teams to try

I love SEN and don't hate the high ranking, but EDG should be higher for sure

Yeah its so difficult to know what is real. I think that TH can still be good but are not up to form right now. I currently have liquid in my third tier of teams for all of VCT, around the level of teams like Trace and GENG

In terms of who was in a better position I agree. I do think SEN showed the kind of team that they can be while at a severe disadvantage, but I also think that wasn't the best that G2 could have been. It was far from their floor, and probably close to their highest level, but there were moments where G2 wasn't as good as they could've been.

Fr lol who even knows. I just like exciting valorant where you don't know who is going to win for a given game.

Seems like VIT is getting exposed as a KRU-type team: Incredible firepower and individual skill, but a lack of discipline and strong calling. I do think they have a much higher ceiling than KRU and hopefully, I'm wrong about them, but it just seems like they are so behind the curve in teamplay.

Yeah, I do think Americas is looking like the strongest region so far, but its hard to tell before any international play. It does seem like SEN and G2 are way ahead in terms of having both firepower and good teamplay, so it'll be interesting to see how much the rest of the regions can improve and show out going into Bangkok.