LOUD remain at the top of the VALORANT world, having been crowned the game’s second-ever world champion in 2022 and just missing out on making history in the LOCK//IN finals earlier this month. Heading into the first-ever VCT Americas season, LOUD is a heavy favorite to qualify for both Masters Tokyo and Champions 2023 with its South American roster not missing a beat despite replacing two of its players.
Aside from boasting one of the most well-respected lineups in the world, however, LOUD has demonstrated time and time again how there are levels to their approach to the game from a strategy standpoint, and the team recently showcased this on Lotus. During LOCK//IN, LOUD actually didn’t play the newest VALORANT map until its very final best-of-five series. Despite this, what transpired once they did play on it was something that all players could learn from.