Story & photo by Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas
TWENTY pesos in a scruffed jeans pocket was at the back of Michael Luy’s mind as he tapped away on a black keyboard and swung a mouse: losing the computer game would mean walking 80 kilometers home from Manila.
I can’t do that, he told himself.
“If we lose that match, we wouldn’t have enough fare to go back to Laguna.”
And he didn’t had to: he won a thousand pesos and the confidence of a 15-year-old to go for the big time.
Which Michael tried to do, and how, on November 28.
The dark room of a computer shop was replaced with the dizzyingly lit Cuneta Astrodome in Pasay City. The scrungy children gawking at him through a glass window were replaced with thousands of screaming young fans.
But while the stakes were higher—P50,000 for the champion of another eSports tournament—the setup’s the same: a monitor, a keyboard and a mouse.
He unzips the red jacket promoting his team: Estremist Espada (sword) and glances at Homer, his friend and cofounder.
Michael tried to brush off from his mind the events two weeks before the tournament involving the group’s manager.
“I told him to remove me if I’m dragging the whole team down,” the one-third of Extremist Espada’s foundation said.
His manager did and kicked him out of the group.
Frenzy
ESPADA is composed of millennials with the youngest as 19 and oldest being 24.
“I, Homer [21 years old] and Johnrich [19 years old] are the foundation of Espada. So if ever we lose two members, then it’s easier to find a replacement,” Michael explained after the game.
Two days before the tournament’s first day, these cofounders told him they can’t compete without him: Espada will be disqualified from the tournament.
“I didn’t refuse because I really wanted to play in the finals,” Michael said. “I mean, who doesn’t want to play in this venue?”
For straight consecutive nine hours, the Espada members practiced with Michael in a boot camp in Laguna. They stayed glued to monitors and on their seat, standing only to discharge body waste or sleep, which Michael described as insufficient.
“We practiced for only two games. We didn’t have a decent sleep for the past two days.”
Homer, Espada’s captain, crafted the plan they will be executing in the deciding match. He opted for an early game dominance.
Game
MICHAEL stooped slightly to unzip a black sports bag near his right chair. A black keyboard was unslid from a black velvety pouch followed by a black mouse. He connects both to the computer, one of 10 sitting on a long table.
“This is the first time we’re competing on a stage,” Michael, whose team has faced top Filipino teams, said. “I’m excited because before we only competed inside computer shops but now, here we are at Cuneta Astrodome.”
He said they didn’t expect to be in this big tournament.
Espada competed against the Incussus Gaming team on “Defense of the Ancients (Dota) 2,” a multiplayer online-battle arena game where two teams of five aim to destroy the opposition’s base and central structure.
Incussus members sat opposite Espada but the gameplay was beamed on large television sets inside the Cuneta Astrodome, where professional basketball games are held.
After winning the first two games in the first day of the tournament, Espada was defeated by Incussus. They dropped to the losers’ bracket and had to climb their way to the finals. And they did.
Espada secured a guaranteed P25,000 take-home money for a second-place finish, the biggest that they would get in their career. “Our biggest earning was P14,000 bet out from a best-of-three game against a Filipino team. We usually win bet matches and get at least P8,000 per match,” Michael said.
“Are you ready for the ‘Dota 2’ finals?!” the host wearing a blue polo and jeans roared in his microphone. The crowd exploded in response. It was a best-of-three finals.
Espada needed to win two games if they want to bring home their first championship title and the P50,000-prize.
Errors
THE first game went a bit shaky for Espada. They committed a lot of errors early in the game. Then they decided to play the game defensively, eventually finding their right footing. They managed to make a comeback and took the first win.
The second game had the same beginning but a different result. Michael was relatively quiet almost throughout the game until his team wiped out the opposition.
“Ano Arnel ‘Dota’ pa?! ‘Dota’ pa!”’Michael shouted, trash-talking his enemies. The crowd went wild. “They are doing it!!” the commentators said.
The following minutes became more intense. A hush fell on the crowd as fans stayed glued watching the big screens.
Johnrich typed in their team chat: “This is the deciding moment.” The players clashed. Espada got wiped out.
“Pig! Pig!” a player from Incussus yelled at Michael. Incussus defeated Espada in Game Two.
Michael sat back, brushed his brown hair and stared at his teammates as if asking: “What happened?”
Like their previous games, errors plagued Espada’s game.
“We had a miscommunication and it got the worst of us,” Homer said. “If we just executed our plan well, we could have won the title. But we didn’t.”
Last ride
MICHAEL disconnected the keyboard and mouse from the computer and placed them back in his bag as Incussus members hugged and jumped in victory.
“I’m happy with second place, if I’ll take the point of view that we didn’t really want to push with this tournament given my issue,” he later said. “But I admit I’m disappointed. I mean, come on, who doesn’t want to be a champion right? Especially with what happened in Game Three.”
Espada has already found a replacement for Michael, who he describes as an “almost perfect” player for the team.
“We’re [still] in good terms. There’s no blaming around.”
Michael said he would pursue his college education after leaving Espada. “I’ll just go back to competitive gaming after a year or so.”
As for the P25,000 prize money? The manager has the say on it, Homer said. But rest assured, we all have enough fare going back to Laguna, Michael said.
And as the BusinessMirror turned around, Michael requests for a photo-shoot of him and Homer.
“Best friend ko ito e,” he said, pointing to Homer. “Kumbaga, one last ride ko na.”
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Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas is a journalism student who knows a lot about electronic sports. Like his story online via the BusinessMirror Millennials Universe (BMMU) Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Millennial-Universe/435594193285671. Follow BMMU on Twitter via @millennial_U or Instagram (type Millennial Universe). E-mail comments or story to millennialuniverse@yahoo.com and the editor at dennis.estopace@gmail.com.