MPL ID S17 Week 1 Day 1 Recap: The Day of Fallen Kings

MPL Indonesia season 17 finally begins with few surprises. We saw Aldo switching sides as an analyst on the English broadcasting table after he was released by Natus Vincere.

More importantly, the match result itself presents a quite shocking picture. Big teams seem to receive the short end of the stick as they fall short of the expectations. This shows that they must be vigilant with subtle changes happening on and off the stage.

Check the recap for the first day of MPL Indonesia season 17 regular season below. The full match stream can be seen here.

Match 1: Bigetron vs Alter EGo

We kick off the regular season with an eventful STM Derby between Bigetron by Vitality and Alter Ego. The Red Robots are looking for a fine challenge from the M7 World Championship runner-up.

The first game ran pretty tight, which lived up to its name. Despite fighting valiantly, Alter Ego seems to be weak on their backline, where Bigetron exactly targeted that position. Both Shogun and Nnael performed excellently to secure the first game for Bigetron.

Marcel finally made his debut in MPL Indonesia through Alekk’s pick. He played the hero well by soaking in all the damage. Despite Bigetron gaining advantage in the early game, Alter Ego knocked back their opponent and punished Shogun’s Sora. A wipeout in the late game brings the match into a stalemate.

Initially, the third game was run in Alter Ego’s favor. But Bigetron regained the upper hand. Alter Ego faced near-death experiences many times, but one ambush setup during late game backfired and led to their eventual demise at Bigetron’s hand.

Match 2: NAVI vs RRQ

Ah yes, the classic RRQ vs NAVI meme from the good old Dota 2 days. With the addition of coach Ynot, Natus Vincere looks stronger as the day goes by. RRQ Hoshi has a lot to prove here.

Right off the bat of game 1, we can clearly see that the magic of Ynot has not faded. The mastermind of ONIC PH’s M6 winning run could utilize his players well. Another excellent Marcel gameplay, this time from Aprho. But UK1r’s Faramis became the one who controlled the game. 14-2, easy game for NAVI.

The second game ran as well as the first. Despite RRQ fighting back more, NAVI doubled down on their aggressiveness. Right before late game, NAVI executed a wipeout and freely took on RRQ’s base.

The action will continue to the second day of the first week, where Ynot and his team will be tested against the young guns of Team Liquid ID. We will also have a season 16 grand final rematch between ONIC and Alter Ego, as well as EVOS-Geek Fam match.