Esports is no different from traditional sports, and young talents, often referred to as prodigies in these fields, are also highly regarded and celebrated by the community. Let’s take a look at some of the most renowned prodigies in the Vietnamese gaming scene, known by almost every gamer!
SofM (LoL)
In the realm of League of Legends (LoL), the one most deserving of this title is none other than SofM. Born in 1998, this young man first “shook the virtual world” at a very young age with his achievement of defeating QTV in the top lane when QTV was the number one toplaner in Vietnam at the time. SofM’s Rengar, jumping twice, drove the crowd wild when he was just 13 years old.
With proven talent, SofM gradually became the number one star of Vietnamese LoL while playing for Full Louis. His feat of climbing to the Top 10 Challenger on the Korean server with a ping of over 100 further spread SofM’s name worldwide.
He was also the first Vietnamese player to go abroad to compete in the LPL (China) for Snake Esports in 2016. In the harsh environment of the LPL, SofM still shone brightly, but perhaps the Vietnamese LoL prodigy was just a bit unlucky to realize his dream of reaching the World Championship. Although the trophy cabinet remains modest compared to many other LoL players, SofM is unique in that merely mentioning his name makes everyone nod in appreciation of his talent.
The name SofM is an abbreviation for “Style of Me,” so his playstyle is also very unique. SofM is always innovative in gameplay, creating new item builds from ranked matches to tournaments, with examples like the Redemption Olaf, the versatile Ekko, or the Ignite Graves…
Not only excelling in LoL, many also call SofM the “king of games” as he seems to excel in any game he plays. SofM has impressive ranks in many games, such as Dota 2 with a 6k MMR, Hearthstone (Legend rank in season 1), and CS:GO (MGE). Surely, this guy was born to play games!
Lê Hà Tuấn Anh (PES)
Lê Hà Tuấn Anh is the most talked-about name in the Vietnamese PES community in recent days. At just 12 years old, he confidently asserts his skills with numerous impressive achievements. His biggest feat was defeating the number one PES player in Korea – Jin Uk, during the Vietnam Korea Super Cup friendly tournament.
Young and talented, Tuấn Anh stated that he has been playing PES since he was 5 years old, and now he is a hope to elevate the name of Vietnamese PES even higher.
Recently, Tuấn Anh continued to defeat 6 out of 7 strong opponents from Korea, causing a stir in the community. Truly a prodigy, talent knows no age!
Chim Sẻ Đi Nắng (AOE)
Nguyễn Đức Bình, better known by his nickname Chim Sẻ Đi Nắng, is an Age of Empires (AOE) player in Vietnam.
Getting into gaming early, during his 7th and 8th grade years (2011), Chim Sẻ Đi Nắng made waves in the Vietnamese AOE community by continuously defeating many top players in this discipline. Legendary players like Tiểu Bạch Long, Dinosaur, and Long thiếu gia, who were titans of AOE back then, all fell to this 13 or 14-year-old kid.
The name Chim Sẻ Đi Nắng became a phenomenon, and fans even gave him the nickname “the comeback prodigy” for his ability to win from losing positions. Recognized for his talent, Chim Sẻ continues to improve himself to become the number one AOE player in Vietnam with countless personal and team titles that would take a lot of ink to list.
Lai Bâng (Arena of Valor)
This young prodigy, born in 2001, immediately became the center of attention in the domestic Arena of Valor community when he entered the professional arena. Before that, Lai Bâng was a streamer and a top player in ranked matches, continuously climbing to the top 1 Challenger in multiple servers. When talking about Lai Bâng, one thinks of a player with extremely high individual skills, sharp thinking, and an incredible ability to carry his team that few can match.
The path to becoming a professional player was not smooth for him. Due to a youthful mistake, Lai Bâng was penalized with a 6-month ban from Garena. After serving his sentence, Lai Bâng joined Saigon Phantom (SGP) and was seen as a blockbuster transfer for the tournament. In his first appearance in the Arena of Glory, Bâng helped SGP reach the finals against Team Flash. However, against a Team Flash that was too strong and the reigning world champion, he couldn’t showcase much.
But that was enough for Lai Bâng’s talent to be recognized by the public. Currently, Saigon Phantom is competing in APL 2020, and Lai Bâng is the one carrying high hopes for the team to achieve good results on the international stage.