Dota 2
CS2
Americas previal; HEROIC and GamerLegion survive another round at BLAST Slam VI
After three days of group stage action, BLAST Slam VI moved into the Last Chance Playoff phase — and with it came the tournament’s first eliminations.
The bottom four teams from the groups were given one final opportunity to reach the playoffs. Falling here meant the end of the road. Few were surprised to see REKONIX , GamerLegion, and HEROIC occupying those positions. REKONIX entered the event as clear underdogs, GamerLegion’s promising early momentum faded as the group stage progressed, and HEROIC were still adjusting after late roster changes. According to the talent panel, all three had been widely predicted by fellow competitors to finish in the bottom four.
The real surprise, however, was MOUZ, which many participants had ranked among the tournament favorites. Their appearance in the elimination phase highlighted just how far their form has slipped since their breakthrough run at PGL Wallachia Season 6 late last year.
HEROIC’s recent struggles have largely centered on their inability to close games, and the group stage reflected that inconsistency. The South American squad again showed moments of instability, though they looked slightly more composed in this best-of-three. Even so, Game 1 stretched beyond the one-hour mark despite HEROIC holding a massive gold advantage, illustrating that their endgame issues have not fully disappeared. Both teams displayed sloppy execution at times — less surprising for the relatively inexperienced REKONIX, whose lack of cohesion became more apparent as the series progressed.
Game 2 followed a similar pattern. REKONIX entered with a promising draft and solid item timings, but repeated missteps in team fights allowed HEROIC to regain control and push the series to a clean sweep despite another uneven early game.
HEROIC's victory will be rewarded with a trip to the Play-ins to face reigning champions, Tundra on Sunday, February 8th.
MOUZ, meanwhile, continue searching for stability. The team has been forced to adjust heavily to the new patch, and the transition has taken longer than expected. Game 1 reflected that experimentation, featuring a questionable offlane Tiny that played out almost exactly as anticipated — ending in a loss. The defeat made one thing clear: MOUZ either needed a full reset in approach or a significant step-up in execution if they hoped to turn the series around. Meanwhile GamerLegion seemed to have prepared well, played solid and overall seemed take a slower, chilled game.
Game 2 saw GamerLegion’s Fayde lock in Beastmaster for the 101st time in his career, but with elimination looming, MOUZ finally delivered a cohesive draft built around Underlord and executed it cleanly. The result was a heavily one-sided win that evened the series and forced a decisive Game 3.
In the deciding game, GamerLegion allowed Underlord through, giving MOUZ what looked like the stronger draft on paper. But the answers came elsewhere. GamerLegion’s Omniknight and Storm Spirit proved impossible to contain, and once both heroes came online, things shifted decisively. With the game steadily slipping out of MOUZ’s control, GamerLegion closed the series convincingly, eliminating MOUZ from the event.
GamerLegion will continue to fight for a spot in the playoffs as they will face Team Liquid.
The action resumes tomorrow, Saturday, February 7th with the first two of the Play-In series.
Team Yandex take on Team Spirit at 15:00 CET followed by Team Falcons vs Xtreme Gaming at 18:00 CET.
BLAST Slam VI Format
Play-Ins (February 6th to 8th, 2026)
4 Play-Ins series
Winners of Play-Ins advance to the Playoffs
Playoffs (February 13th to 15th, 2026)
Beginning with BLAST Slam VI, the entire LAN playoff stage will be an endurance battle, as every series, from the opening quarterfinals to the grand finals, will be played in a best-of-five(Bo5) format.
Matches will be played on LAN at the BLAST Studios in Malta
2 Semifinals (BO5)
- Grand Final (BO5)