It’s still everybody’s game in this season’s race to playoffs, as the second round robin of the regular season for MPL PH Season 16 concludes with Aurora Gaming, ONIC Philippines, Team Liquid PH, and Twisted Minds PH holding on to their spots at the upper half of the standings.
Before the second round started, fans were already filled with hype and anticipation as the MPL Philippines announced the opening of ticket sales for this season’s playoffs, which will take place at the historic Cuneta Astrodome in Pasay City on October 22 to 26.
“This iconic venue has been home to unforgettable moments in Philippine sports, and now, it will also stand as the stage where Filipino esports continues to make history,” Lee Viloria, PH Esports Head of BD and Partnerships at MOONTON Games, said.
Before week 5 started, major changes to the game arrived, prompting the teams to adapt to the new map features and hero adjustments. Most of the teams were able to adjust quickly even with the patch being live for less than a week.
For Hans “Wurahhhh” Solano, who was announced before Week 5 started as the new head coach for Smart Omega, “Since pinaka-affected talaga kasi yung roam, tingin ko nasa 80-85% kami.”
Robert ‘FindingHito’ Candoy also debuted onstage in Week 5 as the assistant coach for TNC Pro Team, besides Patrick ‘E2MAX’ Caidic.
“Siguro masasabi ko mga 70-80% kasi ‘yung mga hero naman pwede mong gamitin kung saan siya nababagay na mapa e. Ang aayusin na lang namin is mga hero pool pa na pwede namin magamit lalo sa roaming.
After sitting out their last two games due to illness, Michael ‘MPtheKing’ Endino returned on stage with a loss against Team Falcons last Saturday (September 20). After the match, he assured fans that he is doing good now, especially with the recent patch changes.
“Nakapag-adjust naman agad ako. Sadyang kinulang lang talagang kami. May mga decision talaga kami na hindi na dapat ginawa,” Endino said.
With his team in the middle of the standings, he humbly believes that they are yet to prove themselves as a legitimate threat to the other teams this season.
“Siguro, ‘pag puro malinis na ‘yung mga laro namin, kasi ‘yung ibang mga panalo namin more on comeback lang ‘din. Pero kapag na-dominate talaga namin, ‘di lang ‘yung game but ‘yung series, doon ko lang masasabi na threat kami.”
For Team Falcons, who’ve been unexpectedly struggling during the first round robin, David Charles ‘Flaptzy’ Canon shared about the team’s decision to play Edferdz ‘Ferdz’ Fernandez as the starting exp laner for the first round of the regular season.
“Naging decision po siya ng team, tapos ‘yung ginawa ko noong hindi ako naglalaro, parang ako ‘yung nag-aanalyze ng game nila, ng mga kalaban namin.”
Beneath his masculine appearance and playful nature, Flaptzy admitted that having been benched actually affected him at some point.
“Sub-consciously po, siguro meron. Pero, at the same time, ako na maglalaro ng second half. Wala akong choice kung hindi galingan ‘din.”
“So nag-grind po ako. Malaki pa din naman tiwala ko sa sarili ko and teammates ko. So far, ganun pa din ‘yung confidence ko, mataas pa din,” he added.
