VALORANT: A Historic LAN event in the field of Esports

April 30^th, 2022 – A Day that will go down in the history books when it comes to the VALORANT fandom in South Asia. The day marked the onset of the region’s first-ever LAN event held in Mumbai.

The event saw four of the best teams in the region go head-to-head against one another. The LAN environment with a live audience brought a different element to the atmosphere on and off the server. The teams participating at the event were:

• Global Esports
• Enigma Gaming
• Team Snakes
• Velocity Gaming

Also Check: Five best Esports games of 2022 

Let’s break down some of the high-octane moments that went down each day during this historic event.

DAY – 1

The first kicked off began strongly with Enigma Gaming taking on Global Esports. The day also featured a classic India-Pakistan rivalry in the form of Team Snakes and Velocity Gaming. Barring a few tech hiccups at the start the day went on ahead smooth sailing.

The day saw Enigma Gaming and Team Snakes pick up victories in an emphatic fashion. The thing worth highlighting would be about Team Snakes. The roster previously Known as Team Exploit were playing their last event under the current squad. The big win on the first day set them up for a strong finish at the event.

DAY – 2

The second day saw one of India’s biggest Esports rivalries come to life on LAN for the first time. The day kicked off with Velocity Gaming taking on Global Esports. However, things didn’t go as planned for Velocity Gaming as they continued their poor run of form at the event. Barring the second map on Ascent which went to Overtime, the series was a whitewash with Global Esports picking up a comfortable victory.

The second match of the day once again saw Enigma Gaming continue their strong run of form at the event with a solid victory over Team Snakes. The series also saw Akram “rawfiul” Virani put up a ridiculous ACS of 410, the highest at the event for a single series.

The Legacy has begun and the first ever trophy of AMD Skyesports Souvenir, Mumbai proudly belongs to Team Global Esports! They defeat their arch rivals Enigma Gaming 3-0 to become the champions of the 1st ever Valorant LAN in India. Congratulations 🎉🏆#LegacyBegins #LANisBACK pic.twitter.com/MSOVEs7I4V

— Skyesports (@skyesportsindia) May 3, 2022

DAY – 3

The third and the final day of the group stage brought intensity as the teams pushed to make it to the grand finals. The day started with Velocity Gaming taking on Enigma Gaming. The disappointment continues for Velocity Gaming as they were swept aside by an endeavoring Enigma Gaming side.

However, Velocity Gaming did clawback by taking a map but ultimately fell short. While Enigma Gaming booked their spot in the finals, Velocity Gaming went home without winning a single game.

The final game of the group stage saw Global Esports take on Team Snakes with a spot in the Grand-finals up for grabs. It was a hard-fought battle that went the distance, Global Esport narrowly edged out Team Snakes. The loss also marked the end of the long-standing Pakistani roster as they bowed out of the competition.

DAY – 4

It was the fourth day and the Grand finals beckoned. Enigma Gaming against Global Esports. Enigma Gaming who had reached the stage of the tournament in a flawless fashion were definitely the firm favorites. However, Global Esports had other ideas.

The finals kicked off on the map Bind and Global Esports took the victory with ease. It was much of the same story on the second map and before you knew Global Esports was up by two maps.

The third map of the series took us to the map of Split where a back-and-forth game ensued. The game did not disappoint as it went to double overtime. However, it was the experience of Global Esports that shone brightly in the end as they closed out the game and series in a flawless manner. Global Esports took the series 3-0 and with it secured a historic title of South Asia’s first-ever LAN Champions.

The aftermath

When the dust had finally settled after the trophy was finally lifted and the awards were given the question beamed, what does this mean for the region?

The LAN not only marked the region’s first-ever one-of-a-kind event but also paved the way to showcase what true Esports looks like to a casual viewer. It also showcased India as a potential region to host such events on a bigger scale. Its region’s already blossoming business of Tournament Organizers (TOs) will have something to fight for from here on.

What does it mean for the competitors? It provided them with the much-needed valuable experience of a LAN event. A kind of experience that some of the even bigger regions have failed to provide for their competitors.

This experience will prove to be pivotal to all the teams in the region even the ones who could not take the stage. It will only drive the competition in the region higher and help the player base strive for something bigger, a stage to showcase their skills.