Gaming
Esports
G2 Gozen take the VALORANT Game Changers Championship in thrilling style
G2 Gozen have proven unbeatable once again and have become the first world champions of the VALORANT Champions Tour: Game Changers.
For the first time ever, the VALORANT Champions Tour: Game Changers competition united in person for a global final at the VALORANT Game Changers Championship. The top eight teams from across the world came together to compete in Berlin, Germany, with one team standing above all the rest to be crowned the overall Game Changers world champions.
It wasn't going to be an easy tournament for anyone. Almost every team from North America, Brazil, Latin America, EMEA, East Asia and APAC competing had been on a winning streak in their regions, dominating the home competition to secure their spot at the championship. One team shone just a little brighter than the rest however – the ever-impressive G2 Gozen.
G2 Gozen's win saw them take down both of the top teams from NA, along with the top Brazilian and APAC teams on their way to victory. They dropped just one game on their road to the Grand Final, where they pulled off a win that will go down in history for how purely epic it was. This is the story of how G2 Gozen became the world champions of VALORANT Game Changers.
Gozen for gold
G2 Gozen joined the VALORANT Game Changers Championship off the back of a magnificent season in VCT 2022: Game Changers EMEA, where they won the first two series' of the year. They were on track to win Series 3 as well, but fell to long-standing rivals Guild X in the Grand Final. Guild X may have won their championship place from that Series, but two prior wins meant that G2's circuit points were head and shoulders above anyone else, giving them a shot at the biggest prize in Game Changers history.
From the very first game of the tournament, G2 Gozen were on top form. Their first match was against APAC Elite winners X10 Sapphire, a Thai team who'd secured their spot after a gruelling competition in their region. But they were simply no match for the might of G2 Gozen.
Starting things off on Icebox, X10 managed to prevent G2 Gozen from picking up a strong momentum on the attacker side, ending the first half 8-4 to G2. But, once the sides were stopped, G2 Gozen's defence was simply impenetrable. They won five rounds in a row and closed out the match with no answer from X10. The second match on Breeze was similarly one-sided – G2 ended the first half 9-3 up and despite a spirited defence from X10, ended the game 13-7.
It was a strong start for the G2 Gozen squad, but a stronger opponent was waiting in the wings. Cloud9 White had been the top NA team for two years running, winning every single North American Series in 2021 and 2022. They weren't going to go down without a fight – something they proved in the very first game.
G2 started things off with a first round win on the Defender side, but C9 responded with a four-win streak. The two traded rounds and streaks again and again, ending the first half with a dead even 6-6 record. But once the sides swapped, C9 couldn't be stopped and despite a late round win from G2, C9 ran away with a 13-7 win.
Not to be outdone, G2 came back with full force, starting Game 2 on Breeze with a four-round win streak. C9 responded by picking up five rounds in a row, but once G2 cut that off there was almost no stopping them. The game wrapped up 13-6 in G2's favour, leading to a vital final game.
Game 3 on Pearl could have gone either way, if not for G2 storming straight in and taking down C9 almost immediately. They ended the first half with a 9-3 victory, with C9 only able to pick up the occasional win amidst a torrent of wins from G2. The European team added insult to injury by not allowing the top NA team another win in the second half. The game ended 13-3 and G2 moved on to the Upper Bracket Final.
Gozen vs The World
G2 Gozen's Upper Bracket Finals would prove to be one of the toughest matches in the tournament and the only one they played that went into overtime. Their opponents – Team Liquid Brazil – hadn't lost a single game all year in their own region's VCT Game Changers circuit and had already defeated NA's number two team and East Asia's top squad during the live championship. This would be a true test of G2 Gozen's skills.
Things got off to a tricky start, with Liquid immediately picking up five rounds in a row, but G2 responded with a five-win streak of their own. A quick trade left them 6-6 headed into the second half, where G2 got off to a strong start with four rounds won. But Liquid came back fighting, getting four rounds of their own and eventually taking the game to 12-11 in their favour. G2 secured a crucial win in the final round, before taking two overtime rounds in a row to wrap up the game with a 14-12 win.
Game 2 was no less of a gauntlet, although G2 at least managed to wrap this one up without going to overtime. Constant back-and-forth exchanges between the teams kept them pretty even throughout, but an early four-round win streak by G2 helped give them an advantage and finish the game 13-10, landing them a place in the Grand Final.
For all the marbles
Only one more obstacle stood in G2 Gozen's path to victory – Shopify Rebellion GC. The NA squad had fought their way up from the Lower Bracket Quarter-finals, eliminating all of G2 Gozen's previous opponents along the way. They'd even defeated G2 Gozen's old rivals Guild X in the Upper Bracket Quarter-finals, though not easily – the match ended 2-1, with Game 1 going to overtime and Shopify ultimately coming out on top. Even with G2's two map ban advantage in the Grand Final, it was going to be a tough fight.
Indeed, things didn't start well for G2. Shopify came out swinging and despite G2 taking an initial lead, the NA team fought back hard and took Games 1 and 2 13-9. G2 Gozen were on the verge of losing it all, after having come so far in the tournament. They would need to pull off a reverse sweep to win and that's exactly what they did – and then some.
If you want to watch some true magic, watch G2 Gozen's comeback in Game 3 on Ascent. The team won the first round and kept going, taking 10 rounds in a row before Shopify could respond. At half-time the score was 11-1 to G2, which could've easily been 10-2 if not for an incredible 1v3 clutch by Petra 'Petra' Stoker in round 4 and a stunning performance from both Michaela 'mimi' Lintrup and Maryam 'Mary' Maher in round 10. Shopify needn't have bothered showing up for the second half – they took the first two rounds, but G2 took two of their own to finish up the game.
Game 4 on Icebox was even more of a stomp. While not achieving the same winning streak as Game 3, G2 still managed to wrap up the first half 10-2 and then didn't allow Shopify a chance to win a single game in the second half. If that disrespect wasn't enough, then you need to witness Petra scoring three pistol headshots in a row in round 14 on the Shopify squad. It's unbelievable.
It all came down to one last game on Breeze and Shopify finally seemed to be fighting back with two early round wins, before G2 stopped them in their tracks with an eight-round streak. With a near-impossible task facing them, Shopify simply crumbled under the might of G2 Gozen, who won the final game 13-5 and became VALORANT Game Changers world champions.
It's a remarkable achievement to top off an incredible year for the team. G2 Gozen have dominated in Europe and now they've proven that they can take on the world as well. Now the team will have a well-deserved rest, but look forward to seeing them in action again in 2023.
