League of Legends is one of the most popular and fast-rising MOBAs to hit eSports. Founded by Riot Games 5 years ago, it has attracted millions of players all around the globe. Some people play it just for fun and some actually make a very decent living off it it, sometimes reaching six digit salaries.
But it isn’t all rainbows and puppies when it comes to being a great player. It takes a lot of hard work, determination and discipline. Teams such as Team SoloMid from North America have a strict schedule. Everything is planned out day by day from the moment they wake up to when they go to bed. They have certain times during the day in which they are expected to stream when it is down-season, and when it is competition time, they aren’t allowed to use social media sites. Their focus must solely be on team practices and improving everywhere.
With roster changes such as mid-laner and shot-caller for Cloud9, Hai, and the retirement of Krepo from Elements, it makes you think of just how hard it is to hear constant criticism for mistakes you’ve made in games. You may have played really well, but it takes one mistake for viewers to remember what you did right. You can try your best to ignore it and focus on what needs to be done, but I’m pretty sure it affects the players. It might make them try too hard and be over confident, which can result in losses. Then you start spiraling downwards and dragging your team with you.
This is something that happened to Cloud9 at last year’s Summer Split. They were doing extremely well and then lost to Team SoloMid in the finals. They went onto worlds in October, but their confidence seemed to have been shaken since then. Lately, they have been struggling somewhat during their matches. And then the news of Hai resigning to become the Chief Gaming Officer for C9 hit. Everyone was shocked. He was a huge part of the team, but had a wrist injury on top of everything else. The issues they were having with team morale being at an all-time low was an important factor in why the team has been playing poorly. But they kept going and tried their hardest, which is what any team should do. All respects go to them. We love you tons, Hai.
League of Legends player Hai Lam, from C9
All in all, to make a great League of Legends player, you just have to be determined and never stop doing what you’re doing. You can change your play style until you find what fits with your entire team or yourself for solo-queues. Don’t let others make you want to stop playing. There’s a mute button for that.