The official account for VCT esports has just published the “players to watch” list for VCT Champions Paris, and I honestly tell you, reactions are all over the place. The list does have some of the usual suspects, but there are a few that had people typing all-caps responses. Well, it’s that time of year again when everyone suddenly becomes an analyst.
The tweet seemed pretty straightforward: “The names that will shape VCT Champions Paris” with a trophy emoji attached to it and a link to see the full talent selection. But the comments are where the action is. These gamers are basically screaming at the top of their lungs, questioning the omissions or just spamming memes and GIFs. Typical Twitter chaos.
One of the earliest answers to catch my eye was hailskuy’s saying simply, ‘nats, that it. this guy is scary bro. omg.’ And if you have been watching competitive Valorant, you would understand how nats is just built different when it comes to clutching rounds. Then, you have Fernando López, raising the name of @SergioFFerra as their player to watch with a fire emoji because, of course.
But wait, where was I? The real list. So, the actual selection has names picked by various talents such as Yinsu Collins, kaquka, pansy, hypoc, Tombizz, and MitchMan, some of whom had immediate community applause. For instance, ochocheikh replied, ‘tombizzz knows ball,’ which is just the highest compliment in gaming Twitter lingo.
Interesting observations here. Nikuniam had a whole take on Keiko, saying that he plays consistently well but feels like he has no stage presence and aura-a very specific esports observation only a real fan would make- Then Sokran dropped the bomb that Ara has Covid, which, if true, will be a serious blow to team performance depending on recovery time.
Immediately, laundered by a superficial interpretation, these people are clamouring for missing players to reckon with. Clamy_97 asked, ‘wheres demon1,’ which is indeed a valid question, considering how dominant that player has been. Also, xMaxFlame pointed out, “kaajak is so obvious that’s why no one mentioned him,” which may either be very clever or just wishful thinking-I really can’t say.
The best part is how much the community trusts some analysts and casters. Different replies have statements such as ‘@YinsuCollins @pansy based af’ followed by series of heart emojis evidence the common opinion on how these experts speak, and players listen. This is already something the crazy does not just rambling about; they are the ones studying the game for a living.
Also, can we just say that around half of the replies in the comment section are one GIF or meme after another? In response, Jorge_Tx3 came out with a KOI PortuK0 🦜 display name and sent a GIF; words could have never done so much justice.”
The hype for VCT Champions Paris is reaching a peak now. With the best teams in the world contesting for glory, these player spotlights do give some indicators on who might finally step up big when the time hits. Some players shine on the bigger stage, while others just crumble-that’s what makes for some interesting ‘players to watch’ lists.
Crazy to think about, though, that this is all just the pre-game for the real deal. When actual matches start, the real take will come from who actually proved the list right and who thereby didn’t. It’s wonderful really: nothing in esports is really guaranteed until the last game.
So hats off and mark your calendar for VCT Champions Paris. If you haven’t already, definitely check out the full players to watch list and brace yourself for one hell of a Valorant show. Community reactions are casting some pretty darn good hype for the wildest tournament but stellar performances from the usual suspects and some underdog contenders.
