It is official: The probably best LoL players in Europe are swapping their positions in the 2020 season. Luka “Perkz” Perković, previously the Botlaner of G2 Esports, is moving to Midlane. Rasmus “Caps” Winter is going down to the Botlane as AD-Carry. The goal is to bring controlled chaos to the League of Legends.
Who are these 2 players? Actually, both Perkz and Caps are “trained” Midlaners:
- Perkz (21) was the Midlaner of G2 Esports for 4 years
- Caps (20) was the Midlaner of Fnatic for 2 years.
The two were each other’s biggest rival. They decided the championship in Europe among themselves. Between 2016 and 2018, it was really only about which of the two would become champion with his team.
However, to compete internationally for the World Championship, Perkz decided in 2019 to team up with Caps. Perkz switched from Midlane to Botlane, allowing G2 Esports to recruit Caps for the Midlane.
As a team, they had their best year so far and were only a series away from winning the Worlds 2019 and thereby the “Grand Slam”.
This is changing now: The two have officially announced that they will swap roles. On January 24, when LEC 2020 starts, Perkz will play in the Midlane and Caps in the Botlane. (via espon)
This role swap was hinted at earlier, but it was unclear whether they were serious, because G2 Esports is known for trolling a bit and because there actually wasn’t a reason to swap.
Everyone goes anywhere and it is chaos
Why are they doing this? The head of the team, Carlos “Ocelote” Rodríguez Santiago says: Last year they completely changed LoL because suddenly every player could go anywhere. This year they want to take it even further.
Ocelote says he does not claim credit for the idea, it all comes from the players:
„I think if the team stays together and motivated, we will see that the game becomes looser and looser and that there are no more roles. Everyone goes anywhere and it is chaos. Controlled chaos.”
The founder and owner of G2 Esports, Ocelote
However, Ocelote also says: Should the role swap go wrong, both would be ready to return to their positions.
Signs of the changed LoL
This is behind it: G2 Esports is regarded as a “creative team” where players roam a lot, meaning they do not stay in lane, but interpret their roles freely. This was their strength in 2019 – it is difficult for opponents to adapt to this style.
For years, Koreans dominated LoL with rigid, “structured” gameplay, where they wore down, encircled, and suffocated the opponent.
The style of G2 Esports and “new teams” is more chaotic, relying more on individual skill: Teams seek early ganks, attempt to isolate opponents, ambush, and secure early advantages.
To achieve this, it is important to leave the lane repeatedly, to strike unexpectedly with teleports and roams, while also not falling behind on their own lane. Especially Midlane and Jungle are crucial for this tactic.
G2 Esports had much success with the tactic. However, they lost the Worlds to FunPlus Phoenix, a team that plays “even more chaotically” and more freely than themselves, with the constant roamer Doinb and his brilliant jungle partner in LoL, Tian. Apparently, G2 Esports wants to achieve even more success in 2020 with even more creativity and freedom.
