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NA's International Performance and Image

ModCaliCoastReplay·5/21/2018, 7:43:16 PM·1 votes·778 views

I can't hop on a replay of NA's MSI or Worlds performances nearly as an American fan without being laughed at. Feels bad, man. It's actually, genuinely hurting America's image abroad that our teams are as bad as they are at the e-Sport our continent invented.

I'm not sure how we fix this, either. We earn our losses. I want to say we're better than this, but maybe we're really not?

Here's a nice example. TL (already at 0-3 for the Invitational) looking really pretty good and staying competitive until they just don't, especially at 33:20 where they just eat it trying a turret dive top that they really shouldn't have.

Even I have to admit that topside play looked like a nice take - it's a pro team, and a good objective, and they had what looked like a good position.

But it wasn't, and in the overall analysis it kinda reminded me of me having to tell my teammates in Normals what I always tell them - stop trying to be a hero, play by the book, push behind your wave.

After that I don't even stay to watch the end, because if Fanatic are a competent team - and they are, they are Europe's top team - the game's just over from there if you know what you are doing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=va5puN88imI

Fans internationally are saying our region should get demoted to the knockout stage - and it's hard to argue. TL didn't even look ready to be a final stage participant in this. I would have preferred Cloud 9 due to their strong performance at Worlds last year - but hey, they tossed the Spring Split fair and square, so who even knows if they'd have been better.

What can we do to help our teams get better?

I am Silver scum and no doubt any of these teams could dumpster me personally...but there's gotta be a way as a fandom to help our teams try to be competitive and to learn how to be.

Team/fan Q&A days? Some kind of sponsored playarounds with Master/Challenger leagues? All of NA helping and training each other somehow?

4 Comments

Redskinsrock26895/21/2018, 7:57:12 PM1 votes

Pretty confident NA is actually one of the very best. WAY better than EU. Have players play.

III BAKURYU III 5/24/2018, 7:40:33 PM1 votes

NA will never be as good as people hope cause the players themselves don't have the same respect for the game. NA is good for memes, popularity and crushed dreams of ever doing anything that could be defined as "earned". NA takes talent from every region and yet, can't seem to actually capitalize on such talents.
We(NA) just don't care about winning, especially when you can still make a quick $ or two just coming in 16th or X place you still get $. Also, streaming is more popular than LCS is anyways.

It's sad but NA won't ever result in nothing more than flashy garbage. OH, NA "Could" actually win SOMETHING like Worlds but when it does will it even matter? LCK has already won Wolrds + numerous tournaments, EU won the first ever Worlds, LMS won Worlds, LPL have been the 2nd best region since the start of league and again, if NA does indeed ever win Worlds example it would be "memed" more so than being praised cause it's like "What took you so long" when every other region has already won Wolrds(LCK/EU/LMS) or won an event that could be Worlds 1/2(EDG/RNG).