
With the Overwatch League being so competitive, sometimes players don’t get to highlight their best selves while in that environment. It could be argued that if a player cannot perform under those conditions then it won’t work. But looking back on Season 1, with the sheer mass of games, schedules, and new setup at BALA it could also be argued that didn’t set up the players for healthy success. There is also the unfortunate case where there is a superstar on the team that overshadows a player. On another team, the player might have been a superstar but the time and place made it so it wasn’t a success. Here is a look at the top three Seoul Dynasty tigers that should’ve gotten another chance.
2018-04-18 / Photo: Robert Paul for Blizzard Entertainment
Miro was the original Winston of Overwatch. He came out swinging on the APEX team of Lunatic-Hai. This is where he caught the eye of the fans and was brought onto the first Overwatch World Cup Team, where he got international recognition. From that, he has been one of the most studied players in the early days to break down his play style. That meant when he stepped onto the BALA Overwatch League stage in Season 1 he was already at a disadvantage. His mechanics and muscle memory were already downloaded by the other players and teams, therefore to switch it up would be going against his instincts.
That isn’t to say Miro isn’t good, he was just easily read. After Season 1 Miro announced he was retiring and became a content creator for Gen.G. By the time he came around to want to compete again he wasn’t as big of a name as he used to be. Miro not only had the veteran status and experience to help lead a team. He was highly respected by not only Korean players but also North American and European. Miro should’ve gotten a redemption arc as a player to redeem his name and end on a high note. As a coach, he has that same opportunity but in a slightly different sense of being able to highlight his skills are transferable to newer players.
Courtesy of the Seoul Dynasty
Illicit is a player that could’ve really shone on a different team. He was overshadowed by the future MVP Byungsun ‘Fleta’ Kim and then again with Junyoung ‘Profit’ Park never giving him a chance to thrive as he should have. Not only was Illicit a highly flexible DPS player but also matched well with Dongeon ‘FITS’ Kim. Illicit is a player that could’ve been the hard carry like Profit and Fleta. Unfortunately after leaving the Seoul Dynasty he has not made his way back into the Overwatch League. He went back to Team Blossom, but is currently teamless, though he has been streaming more on Twitch.
With such a large hero pool and great mechanics, it is hard to believe that Illicit wouldn’t do great on an Overwatch League team again if he was given the chance. With no expansion teams in sight, and more players coming of age to play the DPS position is highly competitive, which makes getting into the Overwatch League after being out for a few seasons an uphill battle.
Courtesy of Robert Paul
Credit: Robert Paul for Blizzard Entertainment
Gido suffered from a combination of both what Miro and Illicit did when it came to the Overwatch League. No, Gido was not as well known or studied as Miro was, but he was an APEX MVP winner on a highly popular team. No doubt when looking into some of his better-known teammates such as Miro and Jehong ‘Ryujehong’ Ryu he was undoubtedly noticed as well.
On top of that, his role suddenly changed. Before he was a flex, but mostly on DPS heroes such as Tracer. When he appeared in the Overwatch League he was in the flex support role. That was in the shadow of the flex support Ryujehong. Not only to play would Gido need to show something to make the coaches think that he was a better choice than Ryujehong, but also make sure he wasn’t too easily read.
Gido did get another chance after the inaugural season with the Washington Justice. But there he also was up against a fan favorite of Nikola ‘Sleepy’ Andrews to play Zen and Ana. Gido if unleashed to his full potential could be a star player. No doubt the 2/2/2 lock hurt him as his marketability as a multi-role flex player was lowered.
There are many players that fall into this category, unfortunately. As fast as esports is, names fall in and out of fashion as fast as game patches. There are so many players that have potential and just weren’t able, because of the circumstances, to show the community exactly what they had to offer. As mentioned above Fleta did not reach his final boss form until on the Shanghai Dragons as well as Euiseok ‘Fearless’ Lee really coming into his own on the Dallas Fuel in 2021 after being a part of the 0-40 roster. Not all players are able to come back like the two mentioned above to redeem their names, but these three Seoul Dynasty tigers definitely had more to offer the community than what was shown.
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