While they might have been competing with an empty seat in the middle of their playing booth, a trip to the COVID isolation playing area certainly didn’t slow down Nocturnal and XSET at the Apex Legends Global Series Split One Playoffs on the first day of competition.
Despite testing positive for COVID-19 and being forced to play away from the main stage and his teammates, Nocturnal led the way for his team, recording 17 kills over their six games and helping XSET take back-to-back game victories in the first two games of the day that gave the team an insurmountable lead.
While the first several days of the competition were played using a standard format, XSET would have been just as happy if they were playing the match point finals: they broke 50 points in those first two games, registering 30 kills all up in their two lobby wins.
The manner in which XSET won their games was totally convincing, and perhaps a bit too simple. The team consistently popped up in the best endgame spots and were clinical in executing from those positions when they got there.
It may not be that easy moving forward in the tournament as more and more teams get desperate for points, but for the time being, XSET have already placed themselves in an incredible position to qualify for the Winners Bracket after just one lobby played. And, if they can replicate their efficiency in winning positions from day one, they shape to be threats to win the entire tournament when the Finals roll around on Sunday.
EMEA struggles, with one notable and new exception: JLINGZ Esports
Many of the classic favorites from EMEA were down and out on day one. Favorites like Aurora and Fire Beavers were unable to compete due to visa issues, and more heavyweight names like Alliance, Pioneers, and Acend struggled. Most surprising might have been Vexed Esports, the hyper-aggressive squad that often dominated EMEA lobbies in Pro League, ending day one with only seven points to their name in 38th.
One EMEA team surprised everyone, however. The newly-minted JLINGZ rose to the occasion and then some, showcasing individual brilliance and solid team play to nearly find an incredible comeback on XSET, finishing one point behind them in second.
It was Zaine who turned in the play of the game, turning a hopeless-looking rat scenario by himself into an opportunity to handily win a one-vs-three scenario. Instead of going out early, Zaine grabbed six kills by himself as a solo player and scooped fourth in game four, propelling JLINGZ up the leaderboard. The team followed up the inspiring solo performance with a textbook victory in game five and another huge second-place finish in game six, finishing the day with 71 points and gaining the respect of many viewers.
EXO Clan prove they’re no fluke
One of the best stories to come out of 2022’s ALGS Championship was EXO Clan, the Thai Apex team that took the competition by storm through the first several days of the event. While the team was one of the best during the Group Stage and in Winners Bracket, they only managed a 13th-place finish in Finals.
Today, EXO Clan was back at LAN, and they didn’t waste any time reminding fans exactly how good they can be.
The mouse-and-keyboard-wielding trio of Killoposz, Dexter, and Z1CKKY are fourth after the first day of competition, and they did it in a lobby full of teams known for their mechanical ability in fights like Fnatic, Crazy Raccoon, NRG, Luminosity, and more.
It was yet another impressive showing from APAC South as a whole, as the region also managed to place sixth (Moist Esports), eighth (Iron Blood Gaming), 20th (ONIC Esports), and 22nd (DreamFire) overall on the day, with DarkZero’s NA-based champion Aussie trio also in a Winners Bracket qualification spot in 16th.
Play of the Day: Vaxlon bowls over Alliance
The real play of the day was Zaine’s solo heroics. But he’s getting a lot of mentions already, so we’re giving the honorable mention to Vaxlon’s ultra-satisfying Peacekeeper shots against Alliance. Three shots, three knocks, easy peasy.
Players of the day
XSET Nocturnal
It might be easy to lead a team when you have the fragging power of Fun and Sikezz behind you, but that didn’t stop Nocturnal from managing to lead his team with 17 kills in addition to IGL duties. A sterling performance today from the COVID isolation room for one of NA’s best.
JLINGZ Zaine
Zaine equaled Nocturnal in the kills department, and he was wholly responsible for kick-starting JLINGZ day with his incredible solo performance in game four. The team could’ve easily been staring down a two-point game; instead, they got 12 points and were soon on their way to the top of the lobby standings. None of that happens without Zaine’s calculated solo aggression or his ability to win seemingly impossible fights.
Crazy Raccoon Ras
Longtime Apex fans will know Ras, and the Korean mechanical whiz didn’t disappoint, leading all players on day one with 19 kills.
The 19 points that Ras secured with those kills translated to more than a third of Crazy Raccoon’s total points on the day, and helped the APAC North favorites climb to fifth overall after the first day of Apex competition.
