Vikikitty has been casting the Apex Legends Global Series (ALGS) since 2021, providing valuable insight into the teams, structure and atmosphere of ALGS LANs, including the story of how Victoria ‘VikkiKitty’ Perez the player became the revered caster she is today.
After rising to fame as the first woman to commentate a major Smash Bros event, to casting the Overwatch League and more, she has captured the hearts – and respect – of the Apex Legends community for her enthusiasm, talent and impeccable attention to detail.
Hannah Marie sat down with VikkiKitty during London’s ALGS Split 2 Playoffs (won by Dark Zero) to discuss the Apex Legends community, their personal journey of falling in love with the community, and the underrated ALGS teams deserving the spotlight.
Thank you so much, VikkiKitty, for joining me on this lovely bright red sofa (with my little Nessie).
They’re Apex colours! I like it!
You are one of the most well-recognised and experienced casters in Apex, and you have obviously had lots of experience with LAN events – how have both Split 2 and Split 1 been for you? I hope you’ve had a lovely time!
I have! Split 1 was my first time in London, so I really enjoyed a new environment. Being back felt nicely familiar, because we were still at the same hotel, still in the same area… I felt like I didn’t have to relearn the pathway to get here (I do get lost very frequently), so that’s a good thing! I was able to feel more at home the second time around.
LAN is always so exciting. When do you ever get to have these teams meet up together? That’s why I love the format because it’s kind of like a ‘World Cup’ format. You get different regions always competing against each other, but only the best get to compete against the whole world, so you literally have a lobby of the best teams in the whole world together. You can’t get that anywhere else!
It is hard to get it anywhere else! I spoke to Alliance UK player Yuki recently, and he was saying that until this LAN, he had never met Effect in person! This LAN is the first time they get to sit and actually play together, and I think that’s so special!
It’s kind of like when you meet an internet friend, but it’s more than that. To them, they’re like family, they’re a team. [Alliance] had to have a sub last time!
It is kind of how I felt when during Champs last year, my friend that I only met through Apex made his way to Champs, and I got to meet him in person for the first time! It makes me go “Oh my god, isn’t it amazing!”
I’ve not had many moments where I’ve got to meet a friend from a game in-person – I think it’s only happened twice. That was the second time.
Aside from the players being able to meet up together, it’s also the idea of people who love the game meeting up with each other to watch the game in person. Imagine queuing up with a squad that you have never met in person before and you get to be together during Champs or LAN. It’s next level!
You’ve spent a lot of time in the Apex scene in the midst of all of it – there’s a lot of passion there. How did that passion build for you?
I’ve always loved esports in general, and I have also watched ALGS… I remember the first broadcast! It was Fallout and Gurhl, and it was during the winter circuit – it was during the pandemic. I had it in the background while I was playing Apex!
It was the first year I had got involved with playing the game because I needed something new! It was the pandemic, and I just wasn’t loving the direction of the other competitive games I was playing at the time. There weren’t a lot of updates, and I really needed something to help with being stuck at home.
One of my girls said, ‘Jump on this game, we can’t hang out [IRL] but we can hang out in the game’, and I went, ‘You know what, alright, I’ll do that. I’m down to try it out’.
And I had so much fun! It’s usually very hard for me to get involved in new games as quick as I did with Apex.
Then, I gave myself – I do this to myself a lot, it could definitely be a mental barrier:
“I held myself back from casting Apex games (as an IGL of my team) until I was able to call out where we were going in the map, without even having to open the map. I wanted to make sure that I knew everything.”
VikkiKitty
[I wanted to know] everything beforehand, because I didn’t know the players – I knew a few names here and there, obviously TSM because of what happened in Poland – but I didn’t know the scene yet. I wasn’t a part of it, other than what I could see on the screen and what the stream was showing us.
The thing I wanted to have as a strength is I wanted to know the game in and out in every way, and then bring my experience, and tell a story for what these players may be experiencing themselves when put in a similar situation.
Once I got to that point and I felt comfortable enough, and I wanted to take the leap and have the opportunity, I took it as quickly as I could.
That really brings a certain value to your commentary. You are always very quick in noticing what’s happening, who it’s happening to, where’s it going, and I think that really gives a boost to a lot of these broadcasts – especially when the broadcast is online.
What if you’re doing other things in the background? I also try to take an approach where not only will there be people who don’t play the game very often will understand, but I’ve always thought with casting in general (including with my other games) – what if they’re watching a podcast? What if they don’t have the visuals to follow through?
That’s why I really like to pinpoint positioning a lot. If you have at least played the game and you know what areas exist in the maps being played, you can get a mental map or image of what we are foretelling. So I try to keep that in mind – the fact that not everyone will be watching the screen actively.
Even myself, I’ll have a Twitch stream in my pocket to listen to while I’m walking somewhere! It’s definitely very valuable! This LAN we have had so many fantastic teams. I’d say, even more so than Split 1. We have had Furia back at a LAN, and we have had some newbies like MDY White – their fans are amazing!
Didn’t they drive 20 days to get to ALGS London? I was like, ‘Is that a misspelling? 20 days, or 20 hours?’
But 20 hours wouldn’t make sense either, so that’s impressive!
Driving 20 hours in the UK… I think you’re driving in a circle at that point!
I’m still trying to figure out the landscape here! But also, that is some dedication. That’s basically a month of being in a car.
I would go crazy – and that’s coming from somebody that lives four hours away from Disney World! It highlights how dedicated the fans are in Apex esports.
“What I like about Apex is that it’s very mature. Even these young players are very mature. Seeing the support from these families that come to the arena, waving their flags around… I love the direction that esports has taken.”
VikkiKitty
I think with Apex, there’s just a different quality to a lot of the fans. The friendliness, the community – I don’t know if that’s something you’ve also felt, but everyone is so lovely!
I love it! I come from Smash Bros and it’s a very young community. There are a lot of teenagers and even children that [attend events] with their parents – children that are very good at the game, beating grown adults!
It makes me realise my reaction times are not the same anymore! Hearing about Xynew and Effect, for example, they’re like 18! I’m like, what?! It’s crazy.
What I like about Apex is that it’s very mature. Even these young players are very mature. Seeing the support from these families that come to the arena, waving their flags around… I love the direction that esports has taken.
That wasn’t very common when I started out casting at 19 – I’m 27 now. It’s been a few years! I know it’s not been a ton yet, but even just six years ago, explaining what esports was to my professors when I was going to college was… interesting! They didn’t understand it!
I was lucky to have enough people that understood (borderline) and were in my corner, helping me out in achieving what I was aiming for in esports. Now, it’s a lot more acceptable. For example, scholarship opportunities, collegiate… it’s going to get bigger!
We don’t have quite as many esports scholarships in the UK as there are in the US. Are there any things universities in the UK can do to push that forward?
I would say clubs! Clubs in high schools, or even middle schools [secondary school age]. Like a computer club! Allow there to be a space where young kids can just enjoy themselves. Maybe they can bring their own consoles, or a Switch that they want to bring, if there’s any setups available, to start playing.
Once a school starts competing, there’s possible money that can go towards the school and towards any scholarships to help players in the future, depending on how much they can get. I would honestly treat it like normal sports!
I don’t really know how it works over here in terms of picking up students specialised in certain sports, which then grants them opportunities to play those sports in college, because that’s the process in America, where if you’re good at football in high school and having a chance for a scout to go to the game and pick you up for a university, it’s a high probability if you’re good. It gives more of a talent pool.
Something like that could be translated into esports – it’s not a physical sport, but you are playing these games at a highly competitive level. Taking players through bootcamp – think about what that would translate to! An insane beast that could start playing in tournaments like this.
There’s an immeasurable amount of skill that these players have, and whenever I see someone undervalue it… no! You can’t! These guys study their game, they need respect for it! I think there are a lot of teams here from the APAC-N and S regions – on the topic of respect…
They’re doing really well now! I love it! I’m like, finally. They needed to show up, and they unfortunately weren’t showing up at the Split 1 LAN, but now they’re here!
They’re showing up, they made sure they were going to change it up a bit, and there’s a huge audience for competitive Apex in Asia! Bigger than any esports I’ve personally seen at least. It’s awesome!
Seeing so much support for those APAC teams is encouraging. They deserve a lot of recognition – they’ve grinded the game just like any other player in every other region has. It’s fantastic to see them get that appreciation, especially from the crowd. Think of a player from MDY White! It’s been their first LAN!
Is it like a power-up? Some players love feeling the lights on them and hearing the crowd – they see it as a boost.
Then, there are some players that get scared about it. It’s a lot for new players to take in, but you have to start somewhere.
‘Luminosity have been monopolising Smash and Furia have the best Captain Falcon player. To see the crossover [between Smash & Apex] for me, as a commentator for two games that I pay attention to frequently, is super cool. Sometimes I get tied into a narrative whenever I talk about either team – if there’s a bleed in from one esport to the other.’
VikkiKitty
I know that was a factor with Vexed during the Split 1 Playoffs – they are a very capable team, they routinely do well in the EMEA region, but Split 1 was their first ever LAN. I feel like they’re ready to come back.
They’re already showing it right now! I’m also really happy that we could see all the teams together. And Aurora and Fire Beavers coming for their redemption arc.
Are there any other teams you feel deserve that extra spotlight?
A lot of the teams I really like are teams that have a lot of skill and recognition already.
You know what? Pulverex. I love Pulverex – each and every individual on that team. Ftyan is hilarious, with a very funny personality.
Dreamfire Roieee too! Playing with your two teammates in person for the first time, and he’s such a good, likeable personality. He has a positive attitude!
Pulverex went through something similar last year during Champs, playing it out as a duo and still doing very well, by the way! There was a game at thermal station, and they ended up being top two or top three in that circle, and playing the whole tournament as a duo! They still made it – I don’t know if it was finals, but at least very far through day 3! It’s exciting!
The situation sucked, but seeing them go from that to now, it’s like YES, finally! We get the building blocks together, the Jenga tower is not falling.
Even players like Jmw and Noiises, for example, they ended up playing with their manager or something?
Yeah! I think it was because there was a health issue or something, somebody was sick.
It was crazy! Jmw is so experienced, he’s literally won a LAN before, and it wasn’t even with his team, it was as a sub! I feel like now he’s on Jlingz, it could be quite a big moment for him as well!
So many storylines!
You could make a whole book…
Yeah! And that’s the best part about it. To have that within the esports division is huge, because that allows you to bridge the audiences that can’t follow every region. Alright, timezone problems, but now we can see them all go up against one another.
So anyway, I think the teams that deserve more recognition are Pulverex, and if I were to throw in another organisation that gets recognition but are often overshadowed by bigger teams like Xset, Furia, TSM, or NRG, would be Luminosity. I really enjoy that team too.
They have also been monopolising the Smash scene – they are out here and have picked up the biggest player in the world over there… and I still cast that game too!
Also, Furia have the best Captain Falcon player for Smash as well. So, to see the crossover for me, as a commentator for two games that I pay attention to frequently, is super cool. For me, it’s like YEAH! You guys are winning everything! Let’s go! I love that!
Sometimes I get tied into a narrative whenever I talk about either team – if there’s a bleed in from one esport to the other, as long as it’s okay and I get the write-off for it, I just mention: ‘Yeah, MkLeo from Luminosity won this tournament last week and now look at LG Chivas [formerly known as Luminosity Gaming] here! Winning all these games on day one of ALGS! You guys just don’t stop winning!’
It’s all a big community at the end of the day!
And it’s also a way to highlight the organisation itself! Highlighting players is always great, it’s what you’re naturally going to do, but highlighting the org itself is also something nice.
The great thing about Luminosity as well is that they invest a lot in the women’s comp scene.
Yes, they do!
They have two amazing teams! They are some of the best female players that I have ever seen, like Giggle Autumn, BabyDucks… these players are absolutely insane… MsDopey… The fact that they went in and committed to supporting the scene, I respect and I love that! Obviously, we have TSM Sabz at LAN as well!
TSM are trying to do something similar with Apex, and in general, more orgs picking up these all-women teams is always super exciting! It’s a bridge up for the girls who find success on other random squads outside of all-women tournaments to being able to go through a Challengers Circuit.
Sabz, she is so successful as a pro player, she has seen these lobbies before. I was talking to her about it, and she was saying: ‘Man, being here just really makes me want to play in this event more and more.’
I can imagine – being here even gives me an itch. I can only imagine being a player of her calibre and then watching teams like Vexed pop off.
“More orgs picking up these all-women teams is always super exciting! It’s a bridge up for the girls who find success on other random squads outside of all-women tournaments to being able to go through a Challengers Circuit.”
VikkiKitty
It must feel amazing! I know that we’ve been sitting here for a while – I would love to talk about this for hours.
I could talk about this scene for a long time.
Oh my goodness, I think all of us could, we all love it. But I’m so glad you’ve been back in London & enjoying it!
Related article: UK Apex Legends streamer Holiwhirl announces retirement from streaming
Hannah is a writer specialising in the esports, gaming, and technology sectors. Working for companies such as Lionscreed Esports, Esports Insider, and SideQuest Hub she has developed a love for wider esports and Apex Legends, although it may never surpass her drive to passionately beat her friends in every game of Mariokart. You may have seen her at various esports and gaming events, including ESI London, EGX, Discover: Esports and many League of Legends watch parties.
