I've been negative, which may be surprising if you subscribe to the narrative that all Chinese analysts do is mindlessly hype the LPL.

This is likely the byproduct of my assumption that 2016 LPL will reach new lows on the international scale of competition. The streaming platform fad and infrastructural overhaul will cause things to get worse before they can improve.

So I took a break from my dreary doom and gloom to reminisce. I've brought in a blog post from an old favorite to think of the reasons I started to watch Chinese League of Legends in the first place.

Weekly hurdle: then and now

In 2012, I wasn’t the avid follower of Chinese League of Legends that I am today. I adored watching Fnatic because the additions of Christopher “nRated” Seitz and Martin “Rekkles” Larsson prior to DreamHack made them stick out in a stew of IGN Pro League 5 contenders. I thought they had a perfect chance of winning and I didn’t see WE coming up in my side mirror.

Christopher “PapaSmithy” Smith had speculated that WE would win IPL 5 without dropping a game, which wasn’t quite accurate. They lost two of their eight games against Fnatic, but ultimately overpowered them.

WE’s different style of League of Legends made it seem as if they had complete possession of the map and could dictate the pace at which they played the game, slowing things down or knocking out inhibitors in under 20 minutes as it suited them. Until that moment, I only thought of the WE roster with Feng “Fzzf” Zhuojun and Ming “Clearlove” Kai as the team that played Blitzcrank and got lambasted by pauses at the World Championship that year.

WE triumph over IPL 5

Later, I’d learn from Clement Chu’s feature on slow-push that WE’s understanding of minion manipulation allowed them to control the map. I followed Gao “WeiXiao” Xuecheng, a player I still consider the greatest AD carry to ever touch the game, and his band of brothers to China where they’d slowly fall and fracture before they could return to the international stage.

By the time of WE’s decline, however, I had grown engrossed in the unique qualities of the League of Legends Pro League as a whole: the things that made it different, but not better, than every other long-standing league in the game. They didn’t copy Korea or Europe; when they advanced, they did so in their own direction, often dark and isolated from the rest of the world’s meta.

After the first week of the World Championship, it was WeiXiao himself who was puzzled over how teams like LGD Gaming, Invictus Gaming, and EDward Gaming appeared at Worlds this year. He said in a long blog to the community:

“The thing that confuses me in the end is that, even if they lose all 5 games, I still don't understand. So many LPL players play Vayne, but where did they all go? Other people's Sivir is other people's Sivir!”

Lee “KaKAO” Byungkwon said that perhaps Invictus Gaming had tried to play too methodically and too much like a Korean team before they were eliminated from this year's Worlds Group Stage. After being eliminated, they decided to play more like a Chinese team.

I agree with both players in admitting that none of the Chinese teams at the World Championship really played like themselves or like LPL teams as a whole. That isn’t an excuse, as I don’t know how much playing more like a Chinese team would have helped them, and they may have been eliminated early regardless.

It’s a symptom of the trend this year that saw the LPL drifting further away from the unique identity they always had. In the past, teams like OMG crafted concept-driven compositions: freight train, Braum-Thresh synergy, the split-Hecarim composition. Something that always distinguished Chinese teams was a tendency to play around a concept, and not around an optimal ideal.

The old LPL identity comes from both a fearlessness to play new champions before other regions, like top lane Shyvana in 2013 or Kog’Maw mid and Zilean mid in 2014, and a general disregard for preparation. Teams will often play something that sounds like a good idea or lean towards experimentation because they felt scrim results were unreliable and didn’t focus much of their attention on them.

It’s strange to admit that China had strong results at international competitions relative to western regions simply because it seemed that North American and European teams were not used to playing against a particular style of play. One could go so far as to call Chinese aggression cheese if not for the fact that that’s how they approached their games on a regular basis.

Difference drew me to the LPL more than anything else in 2012. WE played a different game, and OMG turned that further on its head in 2013. While SK Telecom T1 developed the pick composition in Korea, OMG had a similar idea, but added a disregard for turrets and overpowered opponents with a willingness to pull the trigger.

Loveling was often regarded as the brilliant tactician of OMG's innovations.

Superior Chinese team fighting developed from an all-in approach. If someone said go, they went, they focused more on how to stagger crowd control than how to place wards. In some cases, it paid off.

While OMG lead the region, they did so amid a more predominate bottom lane-centric playstyle. Shan “Chaox” Huang theorized Chinese League of Legends teams had adopted the concept of raising an AD carry from Defense of the Ancients. Whatever the origin, China had strong AD carries, and teams often played around them. Other than WeiXiao, Jian “Uzi” Zihao, Zhu “NaMei” Jiawen, and Yu “TnT” Rui (then known as Avenger, Quiet, or F1sh), could carry their teams and make their mark against the Korean menace.

The LPL had an identity. People knew the league because of its AD carries, whose fast-paced games with high kill counts dazzled them. They knew them for concept-driven champion picks.

This year, the LPL kept all the question marks and inconsistencies stemming from lack of preparation, but drifted away from a sense of uniqueness. It seemed as if they played better by focusing more on a Korean playstyle, but as it turned out, they had just become more uniform, more predictable, and less distinct.

I agree with WeiXiao’s perplexed thoughts, but find it equally puzzling that he didn’t see the same trend throughout the year. The Korean system can’t be adapted perfectly to China because Chinese players have different values and culture from Koreans. Yet Chinese teams played increasingly like Korean teams throughout the year — just not as well.

Sun “XiaoXiao” Yalong claimed that he saw EDward Gaming and SK Telecom T1 as evenly matched at the Mid-Season Invitational because EDward Gaming had greater individual skill, and SKT had better strategies. EDG played quickly and used the calling card of the Chinese team to overwhelm SKT in their victories in the final. The two teams ultimately had an even 3-3 record for the tournament, and after their loss in Group Stage, EDward Gaming concluded they wouldn’t try to play safe or conservative.

Yet as soon as EDG returned to the LPL, they began rotating out their mid lane and top lane, borrowing from SK Telecom T1 instead of developing the lessons of playing on their differences that they’d learned from the experience.

That isn’t to say that all the changes in attempting to develop a more Korean macro game was negative. It’s just that we’ve seen Chinese eSports attempt to mimic things that work without necessarily understanding why in the past. Chinese teams imported Koreans to win Worlds because Koreans were winning Worlds, but they didn’t understand how they got there.

In Dota 2, Chinese teams are building youth teams because CDEC performed well at The International, but instead of following the CDEC spirit of adopting a pre-made group of five who showed promise, they’ve drafted collections of high ranked players without regard for what types of position they play. The results haven’t been as strong.

Encouraging teams to understand why something works rather than copying it at face value should be lesson, but only time and new rosters will tell if it’s sunk in. Copying also shouldn’t be done at the expense of existing strengths that have given Chinese teams advantages in the past.

It’s also naive to believe that the Chinese League of Legends scene hasn’t changed in ways beyond an attempt to adopt Korean strategy. By focusing on the AD carry picks, WeiXiao speaks to the era in which he ruled Chinese League of Legends and many other teams followed the formula WE presented by building around promising bottom laners.

Yet most of the best AD carries in the LPL this year were Korean, and few of the new talents developed in the same vein as WeiXiao and his fellows. Where did the great Vayne players go, indeed?

This year, China’s most popular player isn’t WeiXiao, but his old teammate, Clearlove. It’s no coincidence that many of the rising Chinese talents we’ve seen enter the LPL lately, such as Wang “WuShuang” Haili, Chen “Wolrd6” Yutian, Liu “ZZR” Yuan, Huang “crisis” Zhen, and Wei “xiaoxi” Lisheng, have been junglers.

Vici Gaming, in recruiting World6 after top laner Wang “Carry” Zujing allegedly fell ill, claimed they found it far easier to locate a promising jungler from solo queue. Snake’s ZZR, before playing against EDward Gaming in the Regional Qualifier, confessed he considered Clearlove to be something of an idol.

Where have all the Vayne players gone? They’ve become Evelynn mains.

While Clearlove himself has said that he regards WeiXiao as a player he looks up to, the new generation is watching EDG's jungler stream. The era of AD carries may slowly give way to the rise of Chinese junglers and teams that play around them while Clearlove enjoys his popularity.

Korean junglers like KaKAO have said that playing the jungle role is more difficult for Koreans in China than other positions because of necessity for communication. A collection of more prominent junglers from Ionian solo queue are climbing into the ranks of professional play. It’s not far-fetched to consider a shift in priority in team building.

Focusing on the positives, China needs to remember what they’ve always been good at and take advantage of the initial improvements in work ethics brought over by Korean players. Vision control has advanced. Teams like LGD Gaming have lead a brand of strategy all their own. They’re still unafraid.

And we have a burgeoning new crop of Chinese junglers to watch this year.

The Chinese way may not be perfect, but it’s always been its own. Korean League of Legends is the best in the world, but so far it hasn’t been the best in China. Instead of copying without a cause, Chinese teams should resort back to developing the different kind of League of Legends they always used to play. I’ll be looking forward to the change you can only find in the LPL.

Roster Rumblings

Confirmations

You've already read that Lee "Easyhoon" Jihoon has joined Vici Gaming for 860,000 USD a year. It is unclear whether or not this number is just a base salary. It seems unlikely that it includes signing bonus and streaming contract pay, as big name players can break one million US dollars in total. With a three-way bidding war, Easyhoon should stand to crack that number as well.

It's unclear where Cho "Mata" Sehyeong will land with the two foreign player limit in China. It is already reported that he has terminated his contract with Vici Gaming. As a result, his top offer may be with Incredible Miracle, given their ability to pay well with a Longzhu sponsorship.

With a larger talent pool of Chinese supports and junglers than mid laners necessarily, it should be easier to replace Mata and import a mid laner. I hesitate to make any assessments of Vici Gaming's new team given how atrocious their management decisions have been in the past.

The largest piece of news has less to do with rosters and more to do with LPL as a whole. Wang “Principal Wang” Sicong has purchased the production and administrative rights of the League of Legends Pro League. According to the official Riot Games statement, Principal Wang’s company, Banana Plan, will work in conjunction with Riot, Tencent, and LACE to run LPL.

This means massive production values, as Banana Plan is backed by the son of the richest man in China who spared no expense on the Demacia Cup finals production. It potentially means more Riot control of the league, as Riot had very little presence in LPL before. It means rashes of questions about Conflicts of Interest, regarding which Principal Wang is expected to make a statement soon.

One of the most immediate questions I have is how much Invictus Gaming will be featured in promotional videos and sponsorship ads? Song “RooKie” Euijin may become the new face of the league, Clearlove or no Clearlove.

Chinese fans, however, seem more concerned with the five hour delay before the start of Demacia Cup semifinals. The delay was associated with peripheral incompatibility. In response to the news of the original OGN producers heading to LPL, NGA netizens wondered whether they are able to repair computers.

Likely

With no news of Uzi yet, fans are wondering if he’ll stay on OMG afterall. I personally think it’s all about patience. Last year, OMG announced their acquisition just before the transfer period deadline.

While Korean news explodes as soon as contract periods end, the Chinese offseason is more plodding and secretive. A few hints suggest some Korean players are more interested in China than others. For example, Cho “Watch” Jaegeol and Oh “Ohq” Gyumin are known to be more open to Chinese offers, while Yu “Ggoong” Byeongjun and Kim “Pure” Jinsun hold out for North America.

Jin Air players also are expected to hold more interest in North American offers, while SK Telecom T1 players flirt with the Chinese side. It’s all down to which offers land in which hands, however, and a preference for one region over another doesn’t always determine the largest salary or the team name at the top of the contract.

On the Chinese side, a weibo conversation between players in the Chinese gaming industry suggested Peng “Aluka” Zhenming may consider retiring. The general response from fans was “It’s about time.”

Rumor Roundup

Aluka’s potential retirement would open up a lot of opportunities for WE, especially considering WuShuang’s addition means the team has an import slot available. Fans have gravitated toward the idea of Jan “MaRin” Gyeonghwan, who would definitely be a nice addition with his ability to shotcall. This year, that was something WE lacked.

A report came out Tuesday that WE will announce their MaRin acquisition on Wednesday. Immediately, WE's CEO Zhang "smallorc" Wei attacked the claim.

"Why don't I know this news while others do? This is a gossip report."

smallorc continued to discuss this by saying that WE do not have the money to buy MaRin. It would not be the first time an organization denied a news report in eSports, and he did not flat out say "WE are not contracting MaRin." It seems we'll know tomorrow.

If not for the report, I would think WE would install TheShy, their current Korean streamer, in the top lane position. TheShy has previously expressed interest only in remaining as a streamer, but his position in the top 10 of the Ionian solo queue ladder makes him appealing on a team that has historically recruited from the ladder.

Someone claiming to be a Vici Gaming insider on Baidu detailed a long, semi-plausible rumor that Yu "XiaoWeiXiao" Xian would join Vici Gaming after his ban expires in February. This rumor already trended toward implausibility given the likelihood that XiaoWeiXiao has declared himself a North American resident, and with the announcement of Easyhoon's acquisition, it's been completely dashed.

The rumor did, however, include the alternative story of Easyhoon joining Vici Gaming, which has since been proven. Under this clause the self-proclaimed insider said that Mata would transition into a coaching position. Chinese netizens have since gravitated toward that aspect of the rumor. With the termination of Mata's contract with Vici Gaming and LGD Gaming's close relationship with the team, the hope is that he will coach LGD.

Mata has previously claimed he would prefer to either retire or play, however, and I don't grant much credence to the suggestion.

Upcoming Events: International eSports Federation

Also known as the 7th esports World Championship, IeSF celebrates lesser known international esports talent. This includes players from countries like China and Korea, but also teams from countries you wouldn’t normally associate with League of Legends, such as Iran, South Africa, and Tunisia.

Participating teams hail from Australia, China, Chinese Taipei (Taiwan), Indonesia, Iran, Israel, South Korea, Mongolia, Philippines, Romania, Russia, Serbia, South Africa, Switzerland, Thailand, and Tunisia. Three games will be played, including League of Legends, Hearthstone, and Starcraft II.

Winners will be dictated by points earned. Last year, South Korea came in first with 347 points, with China trailing in second at 216. The Chinese did not, however, participate in the League of Legends event last year, losing points.

League of Legends players by regional solo queue ID

China Korea Taiwan 熊猫TV丶奶茶锋 By 불비 Ssomeday Evenven 츤츤 재엽 哪裡來滴飄飄兒呀 熊猫TV丶摩天轮 alone lonely 雲林張衛健 熊猫TV丶DJDJ unf4irunfa1r DnZero DestronWzt 항상 자상무색 拉比拉比別生氣

All rosters available on the IeSF website.

Chinese participants of the League of Legends event are designated by their solo queue IDs, and the most known player is Zhu “WZT” Jie, who used to play for Gamtee before being replaced by Lei “hu1” Huiguo. South Koreans at the event are equally obscure.

Though the tournament will likely be more of a novelty than anything, it will take place in Seoul, South Korea, meaning that those tired of Chinese streaming platforms can breathe a sigh of relief. IeSF can be watched on Twitch or YouTube. The opening ceremony should begin at 9:00 p.m. EST on December 1st with League of Legends games starting at 10:00 p.m. Please see the English language IeSF website for more information.

Kelsey Moser is a staff writer for theScore eSports. You can follow her on Twitter.