ALGS Championship Day 1: What you might’ve missed (Day 1 recap)

The ALGS Championship started with a bang, as Apex returned to a live audience in Raleigh. The first day saw the first two blocks of group stage matches. The final set will be played tomorrow at 1pm EST.

Overall, OpTic Gaming sit in pole position having already booked their place in Saturday's winners bracket with their performance today.

OpTic arrived as one of the favourites to lift the title in Raleigh. They secured a very respectable 4th place in Sweden, won the NA Pro League and broke records in the process. Their rise to the top of Apex esports has been meteoric, and they seem to just absorb pressure like it is nothing.

They put together a truly breath-taking run of victories in the first set of games, winning games three, four and five.

OpTic's best performance from their streak was undoubtedly game five. Knoqd, Skittlecakes and Dooplex racked up 15 kills.

One of the secrets to their success has been their ability to hold down multiple locations on the map for dropping. It is testament to OpTic's fighting ability that other teams just dare not challenge them. OpTic have held Big Maude and Lava City on Worlds Edge for some time. On Stormpoint, they had previously just landed in The Mill. However, they now are also claiming the new POI; Downed Beast.

This means that they will have full access to heals, equipment and any weapon they want. As well as a very high chance of a beacon and crafting at either (or both!) locations.

Thursday's ALGS Championship action saw Seer rise to new heights of popularity. The legend has never really been used in competitive Apex beyond as a super niche pick. But, in recent weeks he has become a very popular choice with pro's in ranked, and this has spilled over into ALGS.

In particular, HisWattson of Furia and TSM's ImperialHal have really driven the Seer renaissance.

Seer was a 25.38% pickrate on Thursday, above legends like Ash. Most notably, Wraith has not been seen at all so far in the ALGS Championship - it was not that long ago she was a near unanimous pick.

The new queen of competitive is Valkyrie, who was a 99.52% pick, almost every single team. We've also seen no Bloodhound.

Revenant and Octane were also used in one single game by Element6.

It was also a strong day for Scarz, who sit 6th overall. They are benefitting from a full roster. In Sweden they lost Gibraltar player Mande, and struggled to 40th place.

Now, they look set to qualify for the winners bracket. Clearly motivated by missing out in Sweden, Mande has been on top form. He has had several clutch up moments and is delivering on the big stage.

Scarz have found a really strong balanced playstyle between banking solid placement points and racking up kills, especially on Storm Point. If they can maintain their momentum going forward, they can absolutely rival teams like OpTic for the ALGS Championship.

It was a strong day for the APAC region, who performed above expectations. While a lot of the focus tends to fall upon EMEA and North American teams, APAC is here to play. Reignite, now DarkZero won the ALGS Playoffs. On Day 1, EXO and DreamFire both sit in the top 5. EXO in particular performed way above expectations. They sit in 2nd place, and have all but secured a top 20 place already.

FNATIC, the star team from the region also put in a strong shift, they are 11th. The all Chinese roster seem un-phased by the by the pressure of joining such a huge org right before a major tournament.

For full standings and coverage of the ALGS Championship, check out our ALGS hub.