Ahead of the Worlds 2020 opening day, Leo “Babip” Romer told Snowball Esports there was “something special” building for Legacy Esports. Mid laner James “Tally” Shute has echoed that same sentiment after the OCE champs’ win over INTZ on Day 1.
Legacy clinched a 1–0 record on the opening day of Worlds after beating Group A rivals INTZ in a tight 17–17 win. The Oceanic champs, who many tipped would finish fifth in their Play-In group, have already shocked the League of Legends fanbase.
The opening game lasted almost 41 minutes before Legacy — led by a split-pushing Kim “Topoon” Ji-hoon, and jungler Leo “Babip” Romer on his signature Nidalee — squeezed the CBLOL representatives out of the close-fought match.
It was chaotic, it was scrappy, and there were moments where both teams looked like they were in the driver’s seat for a key Worlds win. The match gave Oceania fans a heart-attack, but Tally says expect more of the same in Shanghai.
“In those kinds of games we feel comfortable… that chaotic play style is what we like, we enjoy playing like that,” the role-swapped mid laner said after the Day 1 win.
“It never felt like the game was getting out of control, and that we might lose, because we always had multiple ways to win that game. So, it was all okay.
“[Our chaotic style] is a good boon to have, because you don’t know what every team can do in Play-Ins. There’s vague ideas based on what you watched [before the event], but everyone comes in with different plans, like Tristana mid, or crazy picks.
“Anything can happen, you just have to be ready to adapt when things get chaotic.”
The wild, energetic game plan Legacy leaned into in their opening game against INTZ isn’t the only key they have in their locker room either though. The two-time Oceanic champions have got something special brewing. Something OCE has always needed.
“We’ve definitely seen really talented Oceanic rosters play on the international stage, but I’m confident in my teammates,” Tally said.
“This lineup may not be the most talented players to ever represent OCE, but we mesh really well. We think about the game in the same manner, so we’re able to see our in-game ideas to even better levels together. I’m pretty confident… the better team will win on the day.”
After @LegacyOCE defeat @INTZ, @Tallywhacka echoes the same message @BabipOCE told @snowballesports: this team “may not be the most talented team #OCE has ever sent,” but something great is clicking.
— Isaac McIntyre (@isaacmcintyre) September 25, 2020
And, now, they’ve shown it. This team has something special.#Worlds2020 pic.twitter.com/Bv6vl5cTzp
And so, controlled chaos is the name of the game for Legacy. They face Team Liquid in Day 2, on Saturday evening, and will be looking to break up the North American representative’s slow and methodical game plan to — hopefully — claim a 2–0 start at Worlds.
There will be more chaos from Legacy, Tally promised; you can be sure of that: “Absolutely… this is what we enjoy doing. I hope everyone enjoys watching it.”
