Rampage 2017 delivers on eSports action, cosplay, and rock n’'roll

On July 30 at the World Trade Center in Pasay City, Rampage 2017 brought exciting eSports action, gorgeous cosplay, and rocking tunes to thousands of Filipino League of Legends fans, as well as ended the Bacchus Pro Gaming Series 2017 Summer Split with a reverberating bang.

 

Organized by Garena Philippines (League of Legends’ local publisher), Rampage 2017 was inundated by over 14,000 League of Legends enthusiasts. Its biggest draw, of course, was the Grand Finals of the Pro Gaming Series 2017.


Battle of the giants

Prior to the Grand Finals, the Pro Gaming Series 2017 saw the fall of fan favorites, including last year’s champion, Acclaim EmpireX, and first runner-up, Imperium Pro Team – both of whom lost to the extremely skilled Mineski League of Legends team. This meant Mineski was set for a confrontation with the undefeated Team Manila Eagles (TME) on July 30.

The eagerly awaited July 30 Grand Finals started off well for Mineski, who made short work of TME in the first game of the best-of-five series. TME’s advances repeatedly proved disastrous, its champions unable to withstand Mineski’s sheer skill and power. Mineski’s final assault on its rival’s base resulted in all 5 of TME dead and the Nexus in ruins. The final score was 30-8 in Mineski’s favor.

Things initially looked good for TME, who had a 1-point lead over Mineski. Around the 11th minute, however, Mineski managed a triple kill. TME never recovered. Some 35 minutes into game 2, TME attempted to interrupt Mineski’s battle with Baron Nashor. This resulted in TME losing 4 of its champions. TME’s base virtually defenseless, Mineski marched in to claim another victory. The final score was 27-13 in Mineski’s favor.

 

After over half an hour of Mineski dominance, TME exterminated one Mineski champion after another in the span of 3 minutes, bringing the score to 10-10. TME also succeeded in defeating Baron Nashor. Near the 38th minute, TME took down a Dragon. Mineski’s efforts to deny TME this victory proved costly, with the team getting wiped out after a fearsome clash that also left three of TME’s champions dead. Though all slain champions eventually recovered, the damage had been done; TME defeated Mineski with a score of 19-13 in its favor.

TME’s champions proved efficient killers early in game 4, picking off the Mineski team one by one and taking control of the lanes. Mineski wasn’t about to give up, however, and fought viciously to keep TME’s lead from growing too large. Mineski soundly defeated TME in a clash near Baron Nashor’s pit, but the win didn’t stop TME from reasserting its dominance. TME whittled down Mineski’s defenses until there was nothing separating TME from its rival’s Nexus. TME took the fourth game, meaning a fifth and final game was on the way.

Mineski’s efforts to swing the tide in its favor was daunting, but TME was unfazed, meeting every challenge head on and coming out on top numerous times. Game 5 soon became an exhibition of TME’s superior tactics, its champions routinely outmaneuvering Mineski, forcing the latter to keep on the defensive. This proved futile, and TME worked its way towards the enemy base, shattering turrets and slaughtering all champions along the way. Eventually, TME’s might was too much for Mineski, who crumbled under the other’s repeated assault. TME won the last game of the best-of-five series and the Bacchus Pro Gaming Series 2017 Summer Split championship.

With its win, TME – which consists of players Jaiby “JLC” Paglingayen, Bryan “Kupz” Infanso, Robert “Trebor” Mansilungan, Marc “Marky” Ilagan, and Jordan “Raux” Pamintuan – went home with the Php 300,000 grand prize.

The team is also now going forward to the Garena Premier League. Here, TME will face other Southeast Asian champions for the right to represent the region at the 2017 League of Legends World Championship happening in China later this year.


Celebrity showdown

Rampage 2017 also invited a number of Philippine celebrities for the Celebrity Showmatch, where the showbiz stars faced each other in a game of League of Legends.

Team Ruby was comprised of Ashley Gosiengfiao, Eric Eruption, Izzy Canillo, CJ Navato, and Sinio Cagasan, while Team Sapphire consisted of Emman Nimedez, Sam Concepcion, Jack Reid, Riot Spiffy, and Sachzna Laparan.

 

While Ruby had a slight lead in terms of the number of kills, Sapphire crushed far more turrets and killed more Dragons. Then, 32 minutes into the game, Sapphire exterminated all the Ruby champions, leaving their base defenseless. After ravaging more turrets, Ruby chose to withdraw from the Sapphire base, allowing its enemy to recover. Some three minutes later, however, Sapphire returned, wiping out all of Ruby’s champions, and obliterating the Nexus.

Sapphire’s win means Php 69,000 will now be going to the charity organization Generation Hope.


Cosplay excellence

Rampage 2017 served as a showcase of cosplay excellence.

In the Cosplay Clash competition, teams of 2 performed skits onstage, allowing them to exhibit both their costumes and their acting skills. The adorable children’s team of Ayna Manuel and Laurence Dimatulac, who cosplayed Morgana and Shaco respectively, won 1st place and the grand prize of Php 40,000. You can see a picture of them below.

 

A great number of other cosplayers were also present at Rampage 2017 to mingle with the fans.

 

A day for rockers and rockstars

Two celebrated Pinoy rock bands almost brought the house down with their loud, energetic, and infectious music.

Both Mayonnaise and Rocksteddy performed some of their most popular songs, such as the former’s “Jopay,” and the latter’s “Deadma” and “Boy Kulot.” Needless to say, the crowd went wild.

 

The following is Garena Philippines’ YouTube video of the entire event:





For more information about Rampage 2017, visit its official website. — Text and photos by Michael Logarta/TJD, GMA News