Falcons vs G2 kicks off banger weekend of BLAST Open Porto

This might actually be the top six teams in the world.

You can argue about FUT, or Legacy if you so choose, over G2, and we wouldn’t feel that strongly one way or the other, but Vitality, FURIA, Falcons, MOUZ and Spirit make up the other five and we wouldn’t have it any other way.

That means that all five games that remain of BLAST Open Porto are guaranteed thigh-rubbers.

We begin with the eminently watchable Falcons vs the similarly cinematic G2; both are teams we love to watch when they win, and love to watch lose. Falcons have all the explosive talent in the world and would put up a highlight round in a 1-13 loss, while G2 are about as consistent as Hatem Ben Arfa. That is to say, not at all.

That game is guaranteed to have moments galore, and while the reasonable person inside us thinks Falcons are a shoo-in because they simply have the star power that G2 don’t, there’s a part of us that knows that this game will be uber goofy. This game could just as easily have the highlight of the year as have its own fail compilation.

It could go either way.

We follow that up with a much more serious clash between FURIA and Vitality. Both have wobbled a bit since last season, with FURIA looking a little tired and as though they know their time is coming to an end, and Vitality playing with a stand-in while also seemingly dropping off a little bit individually too. That makes this one interesting though; which team has fallen harder, or can both raise the other back to their ceiling?

It’s hard not to back FURIA just because they have their full roster, but jL is extremely capable and when you have ZywOo, you always have a chance.

Awaiting them in the semis are Spirit and MOUZ respectively. Spirit will face the winner of Falcons or G2 for another wacky one (we wanted to see freak-off, but that word has now been tainted), while MOUZ vs FURIA or Vitality is a great litmus test for all involved. MOUZ have struggled when the pressure is on them as favourites, but there hasn’t been a better shot at a grand final for them in a long time.

Spirit are notoriously up and down but on their day are unplayable, and make for extremely enjoyable watches. donk is simply a joy to watch when he’s on it, and even when he’s not, half the time. If they play Falcons it will be a glorious watch. It’s probably three of the four best players in the world in the server, and all of them are Russian, interestingly.

With both FURIA and Vitality needing to answer question marks before we really have any faith in them, MOUZ have as good a shot as ever at making a grand final. They feel newly rejuvenated and refreshed with their new players in, and seem to be in a better spot than either of their opponents - but there’s always the superstar factor of a KSCERATO or a ZywOo who can just end their dreams in a way xertioN or PR don’t really have the capacity to do.

All in all, this is going to be an absolute blast. No pun intended.