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VCT 2023's biggest event yet, LOCK//IN 2023, recently came to an end. The event took place in São Paulo, Brazil and was one of the longest tournaments ever conducted in VCT. A total of thirty-two teams were invited to the event, with thirty being franchised teams while the remaining two were the directly invited Chinese teams.
These teams were then divided into two groups, namely Alpha and Omega. All of these teams had to battle it out in a brutal single-elimination format, with a single loss ending that team's journey at the event. The next stage of the tournament was the Playoffs, which eventually concluded with Fnatic winning the Grand Finals against LOUD.
LOCK//IN openly displayed the caliber that teams from across the world had to display after a long and messy tournament. Various players impressed audiences worldwide, with several incredible moments seen at LOCK//IN. Given below is a list of five talented players with the best debuts in VCT LOCK//IN. It should be noted that this list will contain players for whom LOCK//IN is their very first international VCT event.
Note: This article is subjective and solely reflects the writer's opinions.
sOm, tuyz, and three more players who made the crowd go wild at VCT LOCK//IN 2023
1) s0m
Sam "s0m" Oh is an American esports player who plays professionally for the team, NRG Esports. In the past, he has played multiple Agent roles, ranging from a Controller to Duelist to even an Initiator, making him a rather flexible player.
s0m has been a part of the NRG roster for a very long time, but never really found great success with them. When the franchising began, s0m was joined by the very successful OpTic Gaming core and he finally got his chance to flourish.
At LOCK//IN, s0m shut down all of his doubters as he performed incredibly well and proved that he truly belonged on the main stage. In their very first match against KOI, he got an Ace, which turned the tides in this series and secured the first win for NRG Esports.
2) tuyz
Arthur "tuyz" Andrade is a Brazilian esports player who currently plays for LOUD. He has previously taken on multiple roles for his team, but now plays as a Controller for his team.
tuyz was the latest addition to LOUD, alongside cauanzin. Both of these players were signed after the departure of Sacy and pANcada, so they certainly had a lot of expectations to live up to.
In dominant fashion, tuyz met these expectations flawlessly. He was a cracked player and stayed incredibly calm under pressure. He managed an insane clutch in one of the most nail-biting series against NRG Esports, where he won a 1v2 clutch at a 15-15 scoreline on the decider map.
3) JitBoyS
Jittana "JitBoyS" Nokngam is an esports player from Thailand who currently plays for Talon Esports. He mostly fulfills the role of an Initiator for his team, but can take on the role of Controller Harbor when required.
JitBoyS was brought in by Talon Esports during the rostermania period. He was asked to be a part of the XERXIA Esports core that made waves during their international appearances at previous VCT tournaments.
JitBoyS' performance at LOCK//IN was certainly one to witness as he and the other new signing, garnetS, would completely tear down opposing teams. His best moment at LOCK//IN was perhaps his 4k against MIBR on Fracture during a post-plant scenario.
4) Twisten
Karel "Twisten" Asenbrener is an esports player from the Czech Republic who currently plays for Team Vitality. He mostly fulfills the role of a Duelist for the team.
Twisten joined Team Vitality in November 2022 to add more firepower to the team. The roster is led by the World Champion, BONECOLD, and has been able to maintain their status as a dark horse team in EMEA.
At VCT LOCK//IN, Twisten exploded on the server. He impressed the international audience with his incredible Jett gameplay. He was the tip of the spear for Vitality and would consistently get significant value out of the Operator. His 4k against Global Esports was one of the most effortless multikills in the tournament.
5) qw1
Konuralp "qw1" Sahin is a Turkish esports player who currently plays for the team, FUT Esports. Generally, he fulfills the role of a Duelist for his team.
qw1 has been a part of the FUT Esports squad since September 2021. Although the team performed well domestically, VCT LOCK//IN was a true test for them. All in all, FUT Esports had a decent showing at the event. qw1 was an absolute beast at the LAN event, handily winning duels whilst being aggressive. He was also one of the few players that played Neon and made it work in LOCK//IN.
qw1's best clip was in their second match against 100 Thieves, where he landed an incredible Operator shot on Cryo who was playing as Raze.
