Meet KarlTzy: From MLBB teen prodigy to M2 World Championship MVP

Philippine professional teams at the Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB) M3 World Championship are currently performing at a high level, even booking an all-Filipino grand finals.

But prior to the country's reputation this year as a powerhouse on the world stage, one man carried the country to its first world title and put the Philippines on the map.

This man (or kid) is teenage prodigy Karl "KarlTzy" Nepomuceno, who took the M2 tournament by storm by scoring the first-ever "savage" in the world series and taking home the world title and the finals MVP.

During the M1 World Championship, two teams from Indonesia faced each other in the grand finals while only one team from the Philippines even qualified for the playoffs and finished in a tie for 5th-6th.

Karl, who was the lone Filipino nominated to the prestigious Mobile Player of the Year in Esports Awards, led the thrashing of two teams from Indonesia, both considered as the top dogs, in the M2.

Even at his age, his list of accomplishments in the MLBB pro scene is already lengthy, with numerous local and international titles, including the Southeast Asian Games gold medal.

But unlike most professional players who decide to stop studying or working as they pursue a career in professional gaming, Nepomuceno still values education.

"Gusto ko pagsabayin (ang paglalaro at pag-aaral). Ayoko mag-stop kasi ayaw ko maiwan," he told GMA News Online. "Halimbawa, kaklase ko ga-graduate na tapos ako hindi, parang masakit sa pakiramdam."

That is one mindset that aspiring kids these days should take note of. Karl is currently in Grade 11 in the STEM curriculum and plans to finish college. He advises the youth to follow suit and prioritize education over everything else.

"Kung tingin nila kaya nila [mag-pro], try nila. Unahin muna nila yung pag-aaral. Kaya naman pagsabayin yan sa una eh. Kung papasok ka pa lang ng pro, kaya pa pagsabayin yung pag-aaral."

Beginnings of "the best MPL jungler"

Karl got hooked into MLBB at the age of 13 thanks to the invite of a neighbor who was already playing it. Back then, it simply was just a normal hobby for him, he says.

“Dati kasi palalabas ako ng bahay. Mahilig kasi ako maglaro sa labas ng bahay. Nakita ko yung kapitbahay ko nag-e-ML tas inaya niya ako maglaro. Nagustuhan ko yung laro hanggang sa maglaro na rin ako nang maglaro."

Like most gamers nowadays, he was also into other mobile and PC games. But turning pro in MLBB? That wasn't even a thing that existed in Karl's imagination at that time.

“Nag-try din ako mag-DOTA, LOL tapos mga PC games. Di rin naman ako seryoso sa ML dati. Nagulat lang din ako. Di ko pa talaga alam yung MPL nung nakapasok kami. Di ko alam yung mga champion ganun. Naglalaro lang talaga."

But his brilliance was just too bright for teams leading to an invite with then semi-pro team Finesse Solid. It was here that his prodigious talent started to take off.

"Nasali ako sa isang team sa ML. Nag-5 man kami lagi. Tinry naming mag-qualifers, nakapasok kami ng MPL tapos tuloy tuloy na. Ako kasi ine-enjoy ko lang maglaro. Di ko alam may pro scene na pala. Di ko nga alam kung ano yung MPL dati nung nasa Finesse ako "

At the young age of 14, he made his MLBB pro debut.

But just being in the pro scene wasn't the goal. After the conclusion of his rookie season, he was ready to shed being awestruck playing against the country's top players.

He wanted to be a winner.

It helped that in 2019, he was selected to be part of the pool of players to represent the country in the Southeast Asian Games. Karl did not let this rare opportunity slip by as he dominated his peers leading to his selection to the main team. He claims to have had a 15-0 record on scrimmages with different team compositions as the country was doing the selections for the teams.

"Ayoko mapahiya sa kanila. Nung pinagpipilian pa lang kami, kada laro talagang ginagalingan ko kaya ako napili."

But he wasn't content with just a national team selection. Right there and then, his winner mentality kicked in and gunned for the championship.

"Motivation ko talaga nun gusto ko mag-champion kasi kampi ko mga magagaling na rin tapos mga idol pa."

Karl's resilience and mental fortitude was key when the Philippines had their backs against the wall against the powerhouse Indonesian team during the finals of the SEA Games. Their rivals were composed of the MLBB M1 world championship team and also just recently ruled the MLBB Southeast Asian Cup. His superb performance with the Lunox and Esmeralda carried the Philippines' fightback from 1-2 down to take the gold medal.

His transfer to Bren Esports then boosted his stock as he joined a team with a history of winning and a core composed of the national team mainstays.

After leading the gold medal finish in the SEA Games, he went on rampage in MPL PH Season 6 leading his team to a 13-1 regular season record and finally getting his first championship in the pro ranks in dominant fashion.

Bren's M2 conquest

One of the tournaments that shot Karl into international stardom was the MLBB M2 World Championship in January 2021 that saw them take the championship via a seven-game thriller against Myanmar’s Burmese Ghouls. But it wasn’t all smooth sailing for them as they had to suffer from a painful upper bracket loss to the Burmese squad before finding their groove in the lower bracket.

“Sabi namin sa sarili namin, wag kami masyado magpakampante. Minaliit namin ang Burmese Ghouls nun kasi palagi silang talo sa mga international tournament kaya mali din namin yun,” he admitted.

With the loss serving as their wake-up, Bren took the lower bracket by storm. They started with a 2-1 escape of Todak to face their MPL Invitational 2020 grand finals tormentor, Alter Ego of Indonesia - a match that Karl and his team really looked forward to.

"Nakakagigil sila. Puro sila TP,” said Karl referring to the teleport button flexing done by Alter Ego's LeoMurphy dating back from their grand finals showdown at the MPLI 2020 up until M2.

Their "gigil" against Alter Ego was on full display in the do-or-go-home Game 3 where they scored a 21-6 annihilation to reach the lower bracket finals where they once against dominated with a 3-1 win against Indonesia's RRQ.

Bren carried their rousing success in the lower bracket into the grand finals and went up 2-0 against the Burmese. But just when things were looking good for the Filipino squad, disaster struck. BG turned the tables and took three straight games to reach match point (3-2).

With the pressure mounting, Karl vividly remembers how they reset to recover from the deficit and bright the fight to the Burmese tormentors.

“Kumain kami ng chocolate kasi medyo pagod na. Nahihilo na. Isa na lang, galingan na natin.”

Their "secret weapon" worked wonders as Bren Esports rediscovered their winning form en route to taking the world championship in a grueling seven-game series.

What's next for Karl?

A few weeks ago, the MLBB pro scene was rocked when Bren announced the release of KarlTzy from their roster.

After two disappointing seasons with Bren that saw them go from world champions to missing the playoffs — much to everyone's surprise — a change of scenery seemed to be needed.

Karl claims that one of the factors that led to the team's demise was him losing his edge after being so dominant in Season 6 and winning the world championship.

"Siguro (factor yung M2 kung bakit nawala yung gigil) kasi parang 'Tinalo ko na yung mga yan. Wala na yan'. Medyo kasi parang iniisip ko ba’t parang palaging panalo," he admitted.

With this huge development, teams have been scrambling to secure the services of the prolific jungler. Karl, though, is looking for one specific team from his next team.

"Yung masaya yung environment," he said, without diving into the details.

But despite that, there are still plenty of doubters and Karl is eager to prove those wrong. The next MPL PH season is shaping up to be a redemption season for him.

Going into Season 9, Karl says he has a lot of motivation to once again rule the tournament.

"Sobrang gigil ako sa lahat ng team ngayon. Gigil akong talunin sila."

That serves as a warning to everyone in the MPL. Season 9 is gonna be an all-out war.

—JMB, GMA News