Version1 win first NA VCT Game Changers tournament of 2023

The first series in the North American VCT Game Changers 2023 circuit is over and there is a new champion after Cloud9 White won every series the past two years. Version1 beat Shopify Rebellion in the first NA Game Changers final of 2023 to give themselves an early lead toward qualifying for the Game Changers Championship later this year. Here are the most important takeaways from NA Game Changers Series 1.

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Version1 win first NA Game Changers of 2023

With the dominant Cloud9 White roster of the past two years getting released, there was bound to be a new North American champion in 2023. But there’s something quite familiar about Version1, which is of course the fact it’s led by in-game leader Melanie “meL” Capone and Alexis “alexis” Guarrasi.

It’s not all about meL and Alexis though. The star on this team is the 16-year-old Ava "florescent" Eugene (more on her later), and Sarah “sarah” Simpson and Nicole "Noia" Tierce also put up big numbers and pulled off highlight reel plays during the tournament.

There were questions entering the tournament about whether Version1 could be the best Game Changers team this year. Although they won Astral Clash earlier this year, a LAN tournament featuring other Game Changers teams, Shopify Rebellion wasn’t at the event.

Read more: Biggest women’s esports tournaments of 2023

Photo credit: Version1

Once NA VCT Game Changers Series 1 started though, there was no doubt who the best team was. Just like Cloud9 White last year, Version1 breezed through this tournament, not dropping a single map. The only time they looked challenged was during Map 1 (Icebox) of the final against Shopify Rebellion, when Shopify went up 6-3 and led 7-5 at the half. V1 came storming back in the second half when they won six rounds in a row and took the map 13-10.

Read more: VCT Americas will finally give North American VALORANT players a home crowd

Besides the individual skills of the players, Noia, in a postmatch broadcast interview, credited coach Loic "effys" Sauvageau for how quickly the team has come together. She said he pushes the team to its limits and makes sure they always have a plan and are communicating.

Despite how dominant the team looked, V1 are not resting on their laurels. MeL tweeted out that the team can still do much better and that they would focus on coed tournaments until the next Game Changers, which is something V1’s in-game leader always has prioritized.

Florescent is a star

Although the most recognizable names on this Version1 team are meL and Alexis, florescent is quickly making a name for herself. The 16-year-old had an incredible tournament, leading all players during the main event in rating (1.57), ACS (334) and KD (1.93). She put up 67 kills in the final, which was nearly 20 more than the next closest player. Florescent had 17 first kills in the final and seven 3-kill rounds.

Shopify Rebellion finish second again

After Shopify Rebellion beat Cloud9 White in the Game Changers Championship, it felt like a passing of the guard, especially after the C9 White roster was released. They constantly finished second to C9 White last year, but surely now Shopify would finally win a North American Game Changers series? Despite a good tournament, that wasn’t the case during NA Chame Changers Series 1. Shopify didn’t drop any maps against any other team besides Version1. They’ll have more chances to beat V1 later in the year, but for now all the players could do was say GG.

Moist Moguls RED overcome adversity

One other team that stood out during the first NA Game Changers series was Moist Moguls RED. The team formerly known as CLG Red faced adversity heading into the main event after the news CLG had been sold and all its teams and players besides League of Legends were released. The CLG Red brand has been particularly important to the development of a more robust women’s scene in esports, so it was nice to see Ludwig Ahgren’s Moist Moguls brand pick up the team for this tournament.

Read more: Why esports fans will miss CLG

Moist Moguls RED ended up finishing fourth and had an impressive comeback against Evil Geniuses Black during their lower bracket round 2 matchup. They were down 11-5 on Map 3 but forced overtime due to the heroics of Emily "mle" Peters. With EG Black on match point, mle got an ace, getting the final three kills after planting the spike and winning a 1v3. Moist Moguls RED eventually won the map 14-12 and the series 2-1.

The next day, Moist Moguls RED faced off against XSET and had to contend with even more adversity. The internet at the facility they had been playing was turned off, but luckily Team Liquid offered them a place to play. Despite losing to XSET, their run amid the hardships they endured is remarkable.

Lead photo credit: Riot Games