The ~$250,000 APAC Premier is about to enter the playoffs phase. Eight teams have made it through the groups and been assigned their seeds for the single-elimination war: four from China, two from Korea, one from Europe, and one from North America. The two Japanese teams have already been eliminated along with two Chinese teams, including the first seed from qualifiers. It has been a tumultuous tournament, with upsets all along the road, and the playoff bracket seedings reflect that with some scarily high-skill matches right from the Quarter Finals.

Aside from the money, there is a lot on the line in terms of pride. NRG are the only unbeaten team not from Korea, as the best of the Chinese teams and Rogue were trodden over in the march to first seed. Rogue in particular are desperate to prove themselves against the Korean teams, who have shown in APAC and in OGN that they have the potential to dominate in a manner all too familiar. Teams only have one chance to make a clean run to the trophy - in the single elimination bracket, one mistake against an unfamiliar opponent will cost teams their run in Shanghai.

Group stage recap

Group A

Group A was perceived as the easiest coming into the tournament, and played out that way. NRG were joined by some middling Chinese teams and a mediocre Japanese side that they never even had to face; NRG cruised to victory without dropping a map, beating runners up VICI Gaming 2-0 then 1-0 for first seed. The Japanese side of Unsold Stuff Gaming were able to take Dorado both times against the Chinese teams, but bowed out in consecutive 2-1 losses.

Group C

In flagrant disregard of the alphabet, Group C followed. The battle of the Asian teams saw Korean top team Afreeca Freecs Blue come out on top, dispensing with Japanese DeToNator (who were then knocked out) and Chinese NGA twice after meeting them again in the group final. In their first meeting with NGA they lost Dorado but were able to recover on Ilios to take the series, whereas in the group final AF. Blue had merely to win King’s Row to take the match. In the fight between the Chinese teams, All Strike Gaming were unable to carry their hot streak from qualifiers through to the tournament, losing to the more established NGA on LAN.

Group B

The regular group games were ended with Group B, where the storyline of Rogue taking on Lunatic-Hai stole all attention. The day began with a surprise Chinese upset, as iG.Fire took down first seed from qualifiers Skadi’s Gift 2-0; unfortunately for SKG their fate was sealed as soon as we saw the skill level of Rogue and Lunatic-Hai. The Korean side took the first map on King’s Row to give them an early lead, hammering Rogue with an aggressive and unfamiliar playstyle. Despite losing on Dorado to tie the series at 1-1, Lunatic-Hai held in crazy fashion to give themselves the 2-1 victory on Route 66. Rogue swept aside the Chinese teams in their route back to challenge Lunatic-Hai, but again lost on Route 66 to set the seeds in stone.

Wildcard Group

For the teams who came third in their group there was one last chance at redemption. Snake, iG.Fire, and All Strike Gaming faced off in an all-Chinese round robin for two last spots in the playoffs. Snake bit first, with a 2-1 win over Invictus Gaming Fire, leaving them with the unenviable task of winning against ASG or being knocked out. They couldn’t produce a win over King’s Row or Numbani, and were eliminated in 9th place. A final match between Snake and All Strike Gaming gave ASG the higher seed with a 2-1 scoreline heading into the meat of the tournament.

Playoffs Preview

The seeding of the tournament has created some intense games right from the Quarter Finals. Most notable among the first round matches is a ridiculous match pitching the powerhouses of Rogue and AF. Blue against each other. Whichever team goes home in this match will be sorely missed, and has already proven their skill to be higher than NGA and ASG for example. NRG has the easiest of the first round matches, against 8th seed Snake eSports, but will then be tested to a new degree against Lunatic-Hai and potentially the other Grand Finalist. The two Korean teams have to be the favourites coming into the playoffs, as neither of them face each other before the Grand Final and both are favourites coming into their matches - albeit based on a small sample of games in APAC.

I have not seen any sign from the Chinese teams so far that would indicate they are able to produce results in this bracket. Despite there being four Chinese teams present, their only hope beyond a truly miraculous upset is in NGA Club, who will face either Rogue or Afreeca Freecs Blue in the Semi Final should they get there and are real underdogs.

The potential Semi Final game between Lunatic-Hai and NRG on the other side of the bracket should be an incredibly interesting clash of styles. NRG play more of an aggressive style but with less cohesion than other Western teams, which has the possibility of being torn apart by Lunatic-Hai or blunting their own hyper-offensive attack. If NRG make it to the Grand Final they will have earned their spot through that match alone.

The eventual winner of the tournament however could well be the winner of that single Quarter Finals game between Rogue and Afreeca Freecs Blue. The momentum they will gain, as well as their easier Semi Final, may rocket them into an overall victory. As for who that winner will be - it’s anyone’s guess.

APAC Premier playoff bracket APAC Premier playoff bracket. Image credit: Liquipedia

The playoff games will be gruelling, best-of-five games with maps replayed in event of a draw. The Grand Final is even longer, a best-of-seven slugfest. Stamina will be vital to securing the win, a talent that few teams have had the need to master yet.

Schedule

All times are in Shanghai local time (CEST+6) and may be subject to change. Keep up with our overgg match ticker for accurate information.

October 13th

  • 17:00 - Quarter final - NRG vs. Snake eSports
  • 19:00 - Quarter final - Lunatic-Hai vs. VICI Gaming

October 14th

  • 17:00 - Quarter final - Afreeca Freecs Blue vs. Rogue
  • 19:00 - Quarter final - All Strike Gaming vs. NGA Club

October 15th

  • 17:00 - Semi final 1
  • 19:00 - Semi final 2

October 16th

  • 19:00 - Grand Final

As always, catch the action with Jason Kaplan and Mitch “Uber” Leslie as they give the English cast on bananaculture.