It can be said that no year has the VCS tournament received as much attention as it does now. The highest-level League of Legends tournament in Vietnam is not only being followed due to scandals but also because of the return of a series of former players, legends not only of VCS but potentially on a global scale. Notably, at this moment, VCS viewers are more interested in the regional tournament than the upcoming match between Dplus KIA and Gen.G. A prime example is the upcoming matches between Levi and SofM, or Levi and Optimus.
At the same time, these returns inadvertently make the playoffs of VCS Spring 2024 extremely unpredictable. Especially, the Vikings Esports team could become the top candidate for the championship. However, this does not only come from the fact that SofM appears as a player for the team but also from various subjective and objective factors.
First of all, of course, SofM’s participation is incredibly important. With experience and skills honed in the high-level League of Legends environment like the LPL, SofM will be the most dangerous name for VKE. There have been many times when he could completely “read” a player’s intentions just by watching their movements or even simply placing wards. Moreover, during the ban-pick phase, SofM’s presence will help VKE have more versatile options. Of course, SofM is a necessary condition for VKE to compete for the title in the current context.
A more important factor comes from the power balance between VKE and other teams. With the addition of SofM, the VKE team now has an incredibly strong “atomic trio”: SofM – Kati – Shogun. In fact, they only need a Top Laner who can hold their own against Kiaya, even if it’s a slight disadvantage, as long as they can keep it under control. The rest, SofM – Kati – Shogun completely outclass the majority of other VCS teams in the playoffs.
The GAM team still has Kiaya and Levi, but Levi has never faced SofM in a professional match and he sometimes faces issues himself. Moreover, he will have to quickly adapt to Emo, the current Mid Laner replacing Blazes. However, comparing Emo to Kati is indeed like comparing “heaven and earth,” as the former GAM star shows clear superiority in both skills and experience.
Meanwhile, teams like Team Whales and Team Secret are also in a similar situation. TW will struggle to find another Mid Laner besides Gloryy who can match Kati. On the other hand, TS relies heavily on Hasmed and Eddie along with Hiro02’s creative item builds. But now, they will have to rely on Aress and hope that the duo of Hasmed and Hiro02 maintains their performance. The problem is that Hiro02 will find it hard to control the jungle area when the opponent he faces could be SofM. Not to mention, Taki’s first transition to the AD Carry role will definitely face challenges when facing his old friend Shogun.
VKE is indeed somewhat stronger, and the gaps left by Kratos, Gury, and Kairi can be easily filled, especially Gury’s position. As long as the whole team can perform at their best under SofM’s leadership, the possibility of VKE causing an upset in the playoffs is entirely feasible.