Moist Esports entered the 2023 ALGS Split One Playoffs seeded into Group A as a fan-favorite team with a chance to go all the way in the tournament. They exited with a fourteenth-place finish, earning them a spot into the Winner’s Bracket—however, a game-ending bug affected the team in game one, destroying all momentum they had previously built up.
https://clips.twitch.tv/LightProudClamDerp-SZQ4jF3uI1zhFPUO
Ben “Wxltzy” Walton, MST’s Valkyrie, attempted to Skyward Dive with the team to rotate to a safer position inside the ring. However, enemy teams already stationed at Lava Dome shot him out of the sky, downing him and forcing Moist to crash land. As his teammates landed in the lava, a bug occurred, teleporting the entire team to the middle of World’s Edge, far inside the ring, with no hope of returning. Moist Esports’ game ended in twelfth place, securing only one placement point and three kill points in the round.
Valkyrie’s Skyward Dive has had a history of teleporting issues, with many documented and unintended interactions with zip lines, replicators, or even just climbing. “Valkyrie Surfing” and the “Magic Carpet” glitches have been known for several seasons, with effects so detrimental that accidentally activating them can make games completely unplayable.
The ALGS 2023 Split One Playoffs’ third day of competition featured all three rounds of the bracket stage. Of the forty teams participating, the top twenty secure a place in the grand finals, while the bottom twenty are eliminated from the event.
Previously known as Team Burger, a storied team with two international LAN successes in 2022, Moist came to London with high expectations as the second seed of APAC-S, and the Regional Final winners, with a record-setting three-win streak to become champions in five games, a first for the region.
The setback ruined MST’s first game and pace, as they continued to struggle through the Winner’s Bracket, ending game five in fifteenth place. With one game left to play, Wxltzy redeemed himself by clutching a second-place finish with the final kill on fun123’s Han “dr1p” SangJoon, passing FUN in the standings and securing enough points to push the team to the top ten in the lobby, qualifying for grand finals Sunday in ninth place.
https://clips.twitch.tv/OnerousKathishQuail4Head-Fk-QS_mro9UC8m8f
Moist Esports will compete in grand finals Sunday, Feb. 5, at 6am CT. Entering from the Winner’s Bracket in ninth place, MST starts with two points before the first game begins. The grand finals feature a match point format, with no set limit of rounds. Once a team earns fifty points, they must win a game to be crowned the champions of the 2023 Split One Playoffs.
