NRG s0m did not disappoint in his debut at LOCK//IN, despite being the new kid among 2022’s OpTic Gaming core.
NRG's Sam "s0m" Oh, also known colloquially as the "W streamer," had some big shoes to fill as he stepped into Jimmy "Marved" Nguyen's place on NRG as the team's main controller at VCT LOCK//IN. The current NRG roster consists of the old OpTic Gaming core: Pujan "FNS" Mehta, Victor "Victor" Wong, and Austin "crashies" Roberts. They also have ardiis replacing Yay. While all four of these players have proved themselves with at least one Masters' trophy under their belts, s0m was the unknown.
In general, when players head over to an international LAN for the first time, they stumble a little. We saw this with both XSET and The Guard last year as in their first VCT Masters' events, they looked extremely rough around the edges. The general expectation from the community when it came to s0m (with the exception of his huge fan base) was that he would either do okay or struggle. What happened instead was a masterful performance that saw him dominate in the series against KOI.
NRG's opening match against KOI at VCT LOCK//IN
The North American squad got off to a rough start, only winning one round in the first nine. In the post-game scrum, FNS said he told his team to get three more rounds to cap the half at 8-4 and they'd win. They managed to end the half at 9-3 in KOI's favor with s0m picking up a pentakill in the last round. This was just the start of his domination on the map through.
Once NRG switched sides and started attacking, s0m was the wildcard the team needed. On the Viper, he found incredible value in not just his utility but raw fragging power. He was able to consistently net crucial frags and multi-frags, and what looked like a map NRG would go down on turned in their favor. They went from being 8-1 down to winning 13-11. The 295 ACS that s0m managed, along with the demonic 24/13/4 KDA, the highest of anyone on NRG, were crucial factors in their victory.
Map two saw s0m again fitting in well with the team and being able to use his utility to the entire team's benefit while also hitting some nutty shots.
Related articles
"He has a lot of growth left in him," says NRG IGL FNS
During the course of the post-match scrum conference, NRG's in-game leader FNS pointed out s0m's performance and how well he meshed with the team consistently.
“He’s doing great. I mean, he’s listening to everything we’re saying. He’s very confident in himself and he has his own ability (that) he’s aware of that and is able to use it. "
FNS and s0m had played together for months as a duo, often appearing on each others' streams, or in videos s0m releases. Ardiis also has duo'd with s0m extensively, which could be a key factor in why this team's synergy is so excellent. FNS also mentioned that s0m still has a lot of potential.
"For a rookie on LAN in this game, it’s very important to me that he is capable of doing that. It shows me that he has a lot of growth left in him."
NRG s0m and his squad will face off against EMEA squad Giants Gaming in the next round of VCT LOCK//IN. As for s0m, he deserves a standing ovation for not just being a major factor in NRG's victory but also for his fiery debut amidst the skepticism surrounding him.
