Game of the Week: TSM vs. T8

TSM's game against T8 showcased what a full-strength TSM would look like: nigh unstoppable. Coming into this game, T8 weren't exactly push-overs, being the only team that TSM has yet to win against. T8 started their attack on TSM from the pick & ban phase, banning three assassin champions against Bjergsen, and Morgana against Lustboy. That didn't disturb TSM, however, as the Lissandra pick went to Bjerg and a comfort pick, Sivir, to Turtle. T8 picked up their own comfort champs. Gragas for Calitrollz and Orianna for Slooshi8.

Despite T8's early pick up on Dyrus through a 3-man gank, TSM responded quickly through their own 3-man gank bot side picking up Gragas. Furthermore, TSM had long set up their path to victory by forcing Slooshi's Flash at level 2 from Lustboy's roam, and from that point on Bjergsen had complete control of the mid lane, and eventually the top lane too. In what could be described as a near perfect game of vision control from TSM, T8 never had a chance to advance past TSM's first tier towers. TSM controlled all the buffs, the Dragons, and the Baron, with a fed Bjergsen repeatedly picking off Cali's Gragas 1v1 whenever he wanders a step too far from his top lane tower. If you want to see a game where Bjergsen not only dominates the team fights but also assassinates people, this is the game. Aside from that, there aren't too much that need to be said -- you have to watch the game to appreciate TSM in their full form.

After TSM's tough win against WFX, this victory redeems some hope for the team heading towards IEM. For T8, they still have a tough schedule ahead of them if they want to keep their playoffs spot. But, from this game we can see that middle of the pack teams in NA LCS are a tier below the top team in NA, unlike other leagues where teams are mostly even.

Game of the Week: SK Gaming vs. Fnatic

The EL Classico, the battle for the #1 EU spot. Whatever you want to call it, SK vs. Fnatic deserves this week's spotlight. With SK planting seeds of doubt in the viewers after two disappointing weeks, they came back strong and fought off the challengers, Fnatic, in a 38 minute brawl.

Pick & ban phase went according to both teams' plans. SK got their traditional lane dominance composition with their star ADC, Forg1ven, on his go-to champion Graves, and Nrated complimenting the aggressive bot lane with his Lulu pick. Fnatic got their fan favourite top laner, Huni, his seemingly unstoppable Rumble, and their other Korean player, Reignover, his deadly Rengar pick. It was clear while SK is looking to dominate the early-mid game with strong laners, Fnatic's strategy is to win through picking off SK's stragglers with the Rengar+Alistar. Indeed, the team who could play their style better would win the game.

Fnatic drew first blood at the 4-minute mark with a 3-man tower dive onto SK's top lane, Fredy122. SK not only arrived late with their reinforcements, but unfavourably traded two more kills for one of Fnatic's through over-aggression. Yet, SK kept the gold even by fast pushing Fnatic's bot tower, as they always do on Forg1ven. Fnatic, however, did not stop their onslaught, continuing to pick off Fredy122 and whoever was unfortunate enough to be with him through repeated Rengar ambushes. But, Fnatic's high-risk, unrelenting aggression had severe repercussions, such as repeated mispositioning and picking bad fights. SK exploited Fnatic's weaknesses by controlling most of the Dragons, and most importantly, feeding Fox's Leblanc with so many kills that he was able to single-handedly decimate Fnatic's carries. With no one on Fnatic able to stop Fox, SK pushed into Fnatic's base and took the game.

Despite SK going 2-0 this week, their weakness in vision control and a lack of strategic diversity still pose doubts heading into IEM. Against better teams such as GE Tigers and CJ Entus, SK may not stand a chance if they do not perfect their current style before the tournament starts, since they don't plan to change their core strategy any time soon or making any breakthroughs in their warding. For Fnatic, their long-standing weakness of over-aggression and mispositioning continued to plague their road to the top of EU LCS. With EU LCS looking stronger every week with the rise of new powerhouses such as H2k, it would only be a matter of time before more and more teams are able to take advantage of Fnatic.

Game of the Week: Jin Air vs GE Tigers, Game 1

The GE Tigers were attempting their tenth straight series victory this season. Jin Air looked to solidify their position in the top four and show that they are a threatening team. With so much on the line, it was only natural that the match between these two teams was so hotly anticipated.

To counter kurO's Viktor, which he had picked for his last four games, Jin Air went with the brilliant strategy of banning out Lee's preferred junglers in Lee Sin, Jarvan, and Rek'Sai, forcing him onto Rengar, coupled with picking Pantheon/Annie with GBM on Leblanc. This strategy worked brilliantly in the beginning, with Jin Air killing the immobile kurO twice within five minutes. With an extremely fed GBM on Leblanc, Lee being ineffective on Rengar, and kurO being unable to do anything in the mid lane, things were looking grim for GE after only ten minutes. GE would incur a large deficit as Jin Air looked to snowball out of control.

Then, the unthinkable happened. A bit of a slip up from Jin Air, and Pilot in particular, led to Jin Air making an array of mistakes, but it didn't appear to be large enough to give GE the advantage back. However, GE would take what little they could from Jin Air, and would eventually claw their way back into relevance, with Smeb's Rumble playing admirably and not dying along with kurO managing to claw his way back into the game, finishing 8/2/4 despite being down so early. If anything, this game is ominously foreboding for any team going to IEM Katowice next week, and if Jin Air couldn't snowball a lead in their favor, who can?

Game of the Week: EDG vs. Snake, Game 1

With competition across leagues heading toward the proverbial pointy end, matches and sets are heating up. Every win, loss and draw holding weight over the podium position, Edward Gaming and Snake, respectively first and third, would surely be an exciting addition to the week's games. EDG have looked remarkably impressive, with consistent wins and dominating performance nearly week in and week out, with only the odd occasion displaying otherwise. Having said that, no one would expect Snake to be a pushover, especially considering their head-to-head history. Week 2 saw their opening match, where Snake swept in a convincing 2-0, which remains EDG's only loss to date. With BAKA and Flandre displaying textbook play and racking up impressive KDAs in both games, it was simply too much for EDG to handle.

Now, with a chance to rewrite the past, EDG made a roster change that saw Clearlove out and Blackloli (also known as Fireloli) in. Sparking question and a little confusion in the eyes of some, the change seemed near desperate in order for the team to gain the upper-hand against Snake this time around.

Picks and bans for Game 1 seemed to fall into the favour of Snake, snatching themselves the feared 'Gnarvin' combo as well as a pocket Kassadin for the mid lane. However, EDG clearly had some plans of their own. With deft on Corki and meiko on Veigar, it was clear the bottom lane was ready for action. By the time the 5th pick came around, PawN obviously needed an answer to Kassadin, but had few options open. Of course, in true Korean fashion, he opted for the Riven, who despite not seeing recent play from the competitive scene, has always been regarded as a counter pick to the Void Walker.

With EDG putting themselves in the 2v1 lane swap, Snake were granted an early Dragon and seemed to put their foot in front within the first five minutes. Following the opening Dragon play, a 3-man collapse on PawN's Riven and a chase through his own jungle resulted in Snake drawing themselves first blood to reaffirm their position. From there, it doesn't take too long for deft to find a path back into the game, killing Flandre twice in a row and denting the outer tower of Snake's top lane.

Just shy of the 10 minute mark, a fight erupts in the top lane, with kills going left and right, but overall ending in a 3-2 for Snake. Edward Gaming would stand their ground, sitting on equal gold even after losing the fight. Despite having poor wave control, Snake collect themselves the second Dragon and look to be in an even better position than previously. However, the power started to shift with the third Dragon spawning, with EDG's mid game power spike shining through. Some messy fighting ensued, but many critical kills fell onto deft, who used his advantage to its fullest. An overaggressive play on Snake's behalf was heavily capitalised on, with EDG taking a 3-0 fight and assuming complete map control and within moments found themselves with a 6k gold lead.

Edward Gaming, even after a poor early game performance, understood how massive their lead was and how fearsome deft's Corki is. With impeccable reaction, a simply flawless dive in the bot lane from EDG grants them an easy 2-0, a turret and a look at Baron. With Beast and Ella checking the Baron as it falls, deft flies in a little overzealous, but too far ahead to be punished. EDG collect themselves a few more kills and another turret. Ready to head into Game 2, EDG gather towards the bot lane once again, and like before, execute a magnificent dive to grab themselves some crucial opening kills and the ability to close the game.

Game of the Week: AHQ e-sports club vs Taipei Assassins

As the glorious evolution started by Kuro continues to spread throughout the world and it was now Taiwan's turn as Chawy picked Viktor against TPA's long time rivals in AHQ. Chawy's Viktor would get absolutely massive picking up kills left and right yet great teamfighting and picks especially from AHQ's bottom lane would keep the match competitive as AHQ fought tooth and nail to overcome the massive Viktor in the most exciting and close match of the LMS this week.

Game of the Week: DetonatioN FocusMe versus 7th Heaven

Last week was do-or-die for Ozone Rampage and Rascal Jester if they wanted a shot at playoffs, but ultimately, the top three held strong. None of them dropped a game to a bottom three team for yet another week in a row, and with those results the three advancing teams were determined. So what's left to play for? 7th heaven and Salvage Javelin have their spots set in stone: no matter this week's results, the former will place 3rd and the latter will come in last. However, DetonatioN's two teams – FocusMe and RabbitFive – will play one last game to determine who takes first place and the direct seed into the Grand Finals. FocusMe's play has been looking stronger and stronger ever since moving into the gaming house, but RabbitFive struggled against both Rampage and Salvage Javelin last week. They may be tied, but all the momentum is with FocusMe right now.

Meanwhile, Ozone Rampage and Rascal Jester are fighting to avoid relegation. If RPG defeats 7th heaven, they stay in the league. If they lose AND Rascal Jester defeats SJ, the two teams will be tied. Since they have an equal number of penalty points, the teams' combined KDAs will be compared to determine who gets to stay in the league as per the rules. Neither team will be particularly excited about the prospect of falling out of the league, but for the recently sponsored Rascal Jester a loss here will especially sting. You can expect both teams to prepare harder than they ever have, to keep their chance at revenge next season alive.

Our recommended game this week is DetonatioN FocusMe versus 7th heaven. Top lane Hecarim has been galloping all across the world, and his stay in Japan was a particularly entertaining one with ThintoN playing a particularly aggressive, in-your-face pony. However, the big story was how much different this game was compared to the last time the two teams faced off. Last time, FocusMe picked a less-than-serious all-AD comp and were destroyed by 7th heaven. This time, they were all business. Some of their best mechanical outplays, map movements, and objective control of the season were put on display here. Also, Yutapon makes a great case for why Exhaust might be better than Heal on ADC.