Aerowolf is a team that has been around the competitive scene for almost as long as it has existed. Back in Year 1, the team was known as Team Envy, and was the first Asia-Pacific (APAC) team to make the international audience take notice of this then-unexplored region. Qualifying for the inaugural Six Invitational in 2017, they exited in the Quarter Finals, but not before giving eRa Eternity (now Rogue) a scare after defeating them 6-5 on the first map.
After the introduction of the Pro League to APAC in Season 6, they changed their name to Tyde, and made it to the first APAC LAN event without difficulty, at which point they were picked up by Team CryptiK -- the first international organisation to make an entrance into APAC.
However, as happened for every LAN event since, they were only second-best, and fell to eiNs in the Quarter Finals. This was followed by a failure to make it to the 2018 Invitational engineered by Mindfreak (now Fnatic), then a repeat denial by the Australian side in Season 7, and was capped off with Element Mystic (mantisFPS) beating them to the Six Major Paris.
Nevertheless, the team has always maintained a level of strength feared by every team across APAC. This season, while beaten to first-place by Xavier Esports in Southeast Asia (SEA), things are no different.
We had a chat with team captain, Glen “Lunarmetal” Suryasaputra about his team’s performance this season, and their expectations from the Tokyo event.
(The interview responses have been lightly edited for grammar.)
You have had an incredibly long journey in competitive Rainbow Six, yet some might have forgotten you guys. Care to give them a reminder of your history as a roster, and with organisations?
Singapore has been in the news recently with Crazy Rich Asians. What would you say are the biggest differences in the “high-SES” (SES = Socio-Economic Status) lifestyle depicted in the movie, and your own lives in Singapore?
Coming from Singapore, where esports are watched but hardly participated in, how has you and your Singaporean teammates’ journey been so far, especially in terms of support from fans, and family and friends?
Quantic at the 2017 Six Invitational
We first spoke to you when you made a roster change, swapping out Quantic (now retired) for Array. How has he gelled with the team, and how has your team dynamic, both in and out of the game, changed since then?
Mentalist has been your unofficial substitute player for a long time, and he is soon approaching 18 years of age. What would you say his future in competitive Rainbow Six looks like, given his obvious skill?
With the Aerowolf organisation, you have got a team house and a team manager. How have these additions helped in a region where most teams do not have such things?
In Year 1, your team was one of the best in all of APAC. Soon after, you were arguably the 2nd-best in APAC and best in SEA. With this season’s SEA games over, you are 2nd-seed for the first time ever. How would you say the APAC region has evolved, and your team with it?
Your team defeated Xavier Esports 2-0 in the SEA Paris Major Qualifiers Stage 2, then fell to them 0-2 in the Pro League, and 1-2 in the Season 8 APAC LAN seeding. What would you say changed?
Is there anything you would like to share with your fans, and to the international audience that will read this?
The Aerowolf roster is:
Glen “Lunarmetal” Suryasaputra (Captain)
Adrian “Ysaera” Wui
Warren “Reveck” Lim
Jeremy “HysteRiX” Tan
Allessandro Billy “Array” Adi Dwiputra
Catch all the APAC LAN action from Tokyo, Japan, on the 13th and 14th of October from 9:45 AM GMT+9 onwards at twitch.tv/Rainbow6.