“In The City of Fallen Angels, where the ocean meets the sand,” eight teams will square off and play some of the most competitive Halo on LAN.
Five bonus points if you know where part of that sentence is from.
Anyways, with two opposite ends of the Halo spectrum competing in Burbank, one team will walk home with $75,000, while two others will be left to fend for themselves outside of the Pro League if they lose out.
Let’s see what these two tournaments have in store:
Relegation:
Enigma6 was truly an enigma this season, but I’ll bite the bullet and say they will win out this weekend.
Why? Because a team like E6 has been tossed into relegation and reverse swept by another relegation team in Vegas is out for blood. And despite all of that, the loyalty and support within this squad has allowed this team to just focus on each match this Saturday as it comes, not thinking back negatively to the rough season it had. This is an organization that has had its fair share of distractions this season, however at the end of the day, will have players that earn what they deserve.
And also, have you seen a fired-up Carlos “Cratos” Ayala? If this team is out to relegate people, then the entire ESL Studio may be a wasteland by the time this team has completed their run.
I am extremely cold on Team Allegiance, for the reasons of several blown game fives and inconsistency throughout the year. ALG could come in on Saturday, play the best Halo of its life, and walk out of Burbank without a scratch; or they could get beaten down in a long opening series before being relegated. I don’t know what Allegiance team to expect on that day, and for that reason, I’m assuming the worse and saying that they will drop out of the Pro League.
As for the second team I would argue for, I am not blowing smoke when I say that the crew at Money Matches, love them or hate them, are some of the best business minds in Halo today. With that said, putting your brand on a Halo team when you already provide so much support to the community seems to be a vote of confidence that the team they have will be a Pro League side. And because of that, TMMT is being given some of the best coaching and support out of the four relegation teams.
For example, sweatpants from Victoria’s Secret provide the utmost comfort for when feats of physical endurance must be achieved. TMMT will be the most comfortable team out of any squad, finals or relegation, with this ingenious choice of attire, and therefore have a significant edge on the competition who will be in inferior gametime clothing.
buying players sweatpants pic.twitter.com/Rw9q5xTPH7
— MoneyMatches (@theMoneyMatches) December 10, 2016
But then again, looking back to the Las Vegas LAN, 3sUp was the better team out of the two vying for a spot in the Pro League.
This side did take down both Enigma6, as well as TMMT, while they were represented under another name, and have consistently placed well in the Open Circuit. The Esports Minor League further proves their skill, and as much as the Money Matches, 3sUp is not going to walk out of Burbank with two straight failed attempts at making the Pro League.
Money Matches, prove me wrong.
Predicted Placements:
- First: Enigma6
- Second: 3sUp
- Third: TMMT
- Fourth: Team Allegiance
Finals:
Three straight grand finals sweeps, over one million dollars won in 2016, and a combined 24-4 record in two straight Pro League seasons. The four man team now under OpTic Gaming will add yet another season finals victory to that resume.
While Team EnVyUs has thrived in the Pro League and in Vegas, the community has rightfully put an asterisk next to those accomplishments. I don’t mean to say that nV is a lesser team than they are; they clearly are the “god-squad” they set out to be, and have made this Pro League into a two team race, with Liquid as the dark horse. However, it has become clear with the Orange County LAN event that OG has not been dethroned yet from their spot as the best team in Halo.
OG does have the tougher test in facing Team Liquid as their first opponent, and if TL provides a fanastic upset, then I would say that OpTic would immediately drop out of any grand final situation. I don’t predict that in the slightest though, and hold both Liquid and Str8 Rippin as the definite longshots in the finals tournament.
Hate me for taking all chalk, but I feel that the rankings this season, as well as LAN play, make it easy enough to safely predicted a complete first through fourth finish.
However, I could be completely wrong, and Str8 could absolutely teach me a lesson in why the most iconic brand in Halo was revitalized with that team.
Predicted Placements:
- First: OpTic Gaming
- Second: Team EnVyUs
- Third: Team Liquid
- Fourth: Str8 Rippin
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James Mattone is a journalist for GAMURS and can be contacted on Twitter –@TheJamesMattone.
