That’s a wrap folks, epicLAN 20 is over and all the tournaments have finished. While the teams and fans make their journeys back to where they call home, David Hollingsworth takes a look at the winners from what was another top event in Kettering…
Before we jump into the winner roundup, it’s worth pointing out that 88,000 unique viewers watched the action this weekend.
For a smaller-scale LAN event compared to the likes of Multiplay, that is a staggering achievement.
epicLAN esports manager Tom Gumbleton tweeted:
Across 6 streams this weekend, we reached 88k unique viewers. Should have a better review post LAN, but that is incredible work @epicLAN
— Tom Gumbleton (@PeriGumpster) February 19, 2017
The six streams were for CSGO, Dota 2, Overwatch, Starcraft II, Hearthstone and the generic epicLAN stream.
Twitch helped push the CSGO and Dota streams all weekend, and promoted the event stream (including the opening ceremony) on the Thursday evening.
epicLAN – living proof that there is quality, demand and a strong community to be found in the UK esports scene.
Now – onto the winners.
Counter Strike: Team CeX v exceL Endpoint
UK mix team exceL Endpoint, the dream amalgamation of exceL and Team Endpoint were to no one’s surprise top seed and tournament favourites going into the event. There was only the slight worry of whether being a mix a team would mean any communication problems at LAN (spoilers – it wasn’t).
It was not the greatest start for exceL Endpoint however, losing out in the upper bracket semi-final to eventually grand finalist CeX.
CeX then went on to beat second seed Radix 2-0 to move on to the grand final. xLpoint beat DOG Gaming 2-0 in their lower bracket semi, moving on to beat fellow lower bracket semi-final winners Project X, before beating upper bracket final losers Redix 2-1 to move onto the grand final with CeX.
CeX started the series with the 1-0 lead due to their victory in the upper bracket final, but exceL Endpoint decided that they fancied winning the final – and did so in some style. The dream team comp took the series 3-1, while CeX had barely any time to catch their breath. It was a convincing if not an unsurprising end to a fantastic CSGO tournament.
Overwatch: MnM v Team Penguin Overlords
MnM had a perfect tournament going in as first seeds and clean-sweeping all their opponents along the way.
Team Penguin lost out in the first round of the competition to the team they would eventually sweep in the lower bracket final, giving them their shot at MnM.
But it was a convincing 3-0 series win for MnM Gaming as they sealed the grand final victory and continued the organisation’s legacy as one of the top talents in UK esports.
With Mysterious still to compete in the Hearthstone final (below), it looked like another good week for MnM.
Dota 2: Super Cool Dudes v PerilousRUIN
Dota 2 was an interesting watch – I don’t think it will come as much surprise to readers of ENUK that our MOBA of choice has tended to be League of Legends. So watching a Dota 2 event came as an interesting experience to someone who was last toying with the Dota series back in Warcraft 3 (yes, I am that old). (Note from the editor: David does in no way reflect the collective esports wisdom of team ENUK ?)
The grand final between top seed PerilousRUIN and second seed Super Cool Dudes (a statement we cannot confirm). Once the teams battled through the bracket stages, with Perilous knocking SCD into the lower bracket before meeting up in Sunday’s grand final, it was a tense five-round thriller with PerilousRUIN finally taking it 3-2 and clinching the title.
Hearthstone: Mysterious v Blackout
With an impressive turnout of seeded and non-seeded players heading to epicLAN, it would be the top two seeds who battled it out for greatness on the grand final stage.
In what became an epic prequel to Sunday’s final, the Saturday upper bracket final between Blackout and Mysterious ended up telling the tale of the eventual final just 24 hours before it happened.
It was never really in any doubt who the grand final would be between, with both players making short work of anyone else who stood in their. It showed us that sometimes, seeding really does work, especially if you don’t meet in the early rounds.
During the final, Mysterious took a very convincing 3-1 series victory over first seed Blackout, making it about the only real upset over the course of the Hearthstone event.
MnM will be delighted with the win after only acquiring Mysterious last month.
StarCraft II: teebul v Mix
StarCraft II was another pleasant surprise at a UK event – and it didn’t fail to offer fans an enjoyable set of games.
The upper bracket winner and tournament third seed had a tough journey to the grand final, having faced both second and first seed players. He also faced off against surprise finalist and tenth seed teebul as he tried to follow in Leicester City FC’s underdog tale from 2016.
It was a close series in the end, with Mix taking it 4-2 and sealing grand final glory. With a great turnout of players it was refreshing to see StarCraft II still going in the UK.
Other tournaments
The true fun of LANs is of course what all us regular Joes and Josephines get up to. And epicLAN had a number of tournaments set up for anyone to enter; we have listed the winners below:
- Rocket League: Digital Warfare Gaming
- Super Smash Bros Wii U 1v1: DaveCena
- Overwatch 1v1 Fun Tournament : iuKeEe
- Golf With Your Friends Fun Tournament: Justcallmelewis
- CS:GO Inters: wAVE’s Money Crew
Safe travels to all who attended epicLAN 20, we hope to be at epicLAN 21 in person so we look forward to seeing you all.
