One of League of Legends’ biggest legends reached a career milestone today, as Peter “Doublelift” Peng tallied his 500th career regular season kill in the League Championship Series.
The marksman’s big performance on Independence Day helped Counter Logic Gaming grab wins against Complexity and Cloud9 to open Super Week, boosting them into sole possession of first place with an 11-5 record. It also made him the first player in the North American LCS to reach that tally, doing it over 100 total games.
Counter Logic Gaming struggled a bit against Complexity, giving up an early lead before pulling it back with a big team fight at Baron. After a 2/0/7 Kill, Death, Assist (KDA) line against Complexity, it seemed sure Peng would need to wait until later in the week to score his career marker. But a huge game against Cloud9 on Twitch allowed him to barely reach it, snatching the final kill at the Cloud9 spawn just before his team obliterated their nexus. Peng finished with a 12/2/7 line in that game, putting together numerous double and triple kill as Twitch.
Taking out Cloud9 was an important achievement for Counter Logic Gaming, as in their last two meetings the defending LCS champions managed to break them thanks to superior late game decision making. This time around, Counter Logic Gaming looked on point, setting up Peng to on his team fight monster Twitch.
The wins set Counter Logic Gaming up as the top team in the league, but it’ll be tough to hold that position with LMQ and Curse Gaming on the schedule.
“It would be Counter Logic if I didn’t think 2-2 was in the back of my mind,” said Peng after the match. “I’m just hoping we don’t make a horrible mistake and randomly lose to LMQ and Curse. Today was pretty tough. Honestly we had a pretty hard time against Complexity and that Cloud9 game was still pretty shaky. I know we have a lot to work on. Any team can beat any team.”
Counter Logic Gaming has never had more than two wins in Super Week, a streak they’ll look to break against LMQ.
As for his milestone, Peng just shrugged it off with a smile after the match, sarcastically remarking, “Oh wow, awesome. I’m the best, I already knew that.” That’s the kind of personality fans have come to expect from the popular player.
Peng has come a long way since embarking on his pro gaming career. At the age of 16, he left his home with his wallet, a computer, and a bike, to escape his unsupportive parents and pursue the path he loved. Since then he’s moved up the ranks through hard work and dedication. He’s changed from an awkward, introverted kid into an outspoken and brash man with just the right amount of snark. He’s built not just a career, but a life as a professional gamer. Peng has earned every bit of his reputation as the best marksman in North America, and as one of the best players in the world, and his LCS milestone is evidence of that.
Even so, Peng’s resume, filled with all-star appearances and other accolades, is still missing something – a major title. This version of the storied Counter Logic Gaming seems more primed to deliver one than any incarnation for years, if they can keep their upwards trajectory and improvement over the course of the season going.
