Image via Ubisoft/@kirill_vision
The first week of the 2022 APAC League has come and gone, and there are some key takeaways. The league has begun at least a week ahead of the rest of the world: as usual, APAC is on the cutting edge of new Siege content.
IG super-team impresses in first two games
Invictus Gaming have assembled an impressive collection of talent over the offseason following a complete rebuild. They failed to make SI 2022, but have a long history of qualifying for international events, even if they fall short in group stages.
Their start to the league has been impressive. They have a pair of regulation wins over Wildcard and FURY, two solid wins that they should be able to build upon deeper into the league. Two games doesn't tell much, but two games in, iG look solid.
Elevate have an early slump
Again, it's a bit too early to tell: but Elevate surely hasn't done too great thus far. Two early losses to Dire Wolves and newly-promoted Renatus have many scratching their heads as to why they benched star player Sumate "Nay..Pew" Srimabut after a solid SI 2022 run.
Again, it's early in the season, there are lots of changes that can be made. However, many expected Elevate to continue their regional dominance after an excellent international performance. Time will tell if this slump is temporary or more long-term as the new-look Elevate gels.
New Fnatic split first pair of games
Fnatic have moved to an all-Japanese roster, plus Etienne "Mag" Rousseau, who will be communicating in Japanese when he joins the team after Stage 1. This is a huge pivot for Fnatic, who has up until now been majority-Australian.
They looked okay through their first pair of matches, against SANDBOX and FAV, splitting the difference with a 1-1 record. Not the best, not the worst, and they're bound to change once Mag makes it into the roster. A 1-1 split isn't the worst, it isn't the best, and they're bound to improve as the year drags on.