Intel Extreme Masters Taipei kicks off next week with a US$50,000 Counter-Strike: Global Offensive tournament which will be an official Valve regional minor championship. Eight teams will be battling it out for their share of the prize pool as well as an invitation to the offline qualifier of the next Valve major.
Several qualifiers have been taking place to determine which teams from various regions will be able to participate in the Taipei event. A large number of teams signed up to fight for a chance to compete on the international stage for money and glory. Five of those teams have secured a slot in the event itself.
The qualifiers so far
Southeast Asian qualifier
The Southeast Asian qualifier was the first to take place and was dominated by one of the region’s best teams, MVP Karnal. The team started off with a very strong showing against HNA and Signature Gaming, securing 16-4 and 16-6 victories respectively. MVP Karnal then moved on to the quarter and semifinals, both of which they won 2-0 to end their great run with another 2-0 win in the qualifier finals against devious.
East Asian qualifier
The East Asian qualifier had a similar story with a team dominating the qualifiers from the beginning. The MongolZ had an easy start with their opponent forfeiting however, the rest of the qualifier was also not a problem as the team breezed through to the final without dropping a single game. Their opponents in the final, MVP Project, also had an impressive run, losing only one game in the semifinals to inchk1ng but in the end, it was The MongolZ who emerged victorious in a 2-0 fashion.
Oceania qualifier
The Oceania qualifier consisted of an open and closed qualifier. The open qualifier determined which one team would join seven others in the closed qualifier. That team was Alpha Sydney who fought their way through. The closed qualifier consisted of eight teams divided into two groups of four. Alpha Sydney, Team Immunity, Legacy eSports and Chiefs eSports Club ended up with the best scores and moved onto the playoffs. The qualifier final was played out between Immunity and Chiefs. We saw all three maps, Cobblestone, Cache and Inferno, being played out, with the first map having to go to a thrilling overtime. Both teams displayed great skill in this fierce battle for the IEM Taipei slot but it will be Chiefs eSports Club travelling to Taiwan.
Chinese qualifier
The Chinese qualifier consisted of eight teams and was played out in double elimination best of three format. In the upper bracket, it was TyLoo who made it to the final only dropping one game on the way to Lansquenet. Joining them in the final were Born of Fire who lost to TyLoo in the semifinals but fought their way through the loser bracket. They did not manage to get a win the second time around and TyLoo will be joining the team lineup at Intel Extreme Masters Taipei.
Indian and Western Asian qualifier
The qualifier started off with three smaller qualifiers: India open qualifier, Middle East open qualifier and Other West Asia open qualifier. The winners of the three joined five teams which were directly invited to the qualifier finals. The teams who made it to the final matchup were the invited Just Passing By and the winners of the Middle East open qualifier, Risky Gaming. All three maps had to be played out with Just Passing By taking the first win. The other two maps were taken by Risky Gaming and they will be joining the CS:GO teams in Taipei.
Only one qualifier left!
We now know seven of the eight teams that will be participating in Intel Extreme Masters Taipei and fighting for a slot in Valve’s next major: the directly invited Renegades and CyberZen, as well as MVP Karnal, The MongolZ, Chiefs eSports Club, TyLoo and Risky Gaming who won their respective qualifiers.
Joining them will be the team who emerges victorious in the Taiwanese qualifier taking place on the 23rd and 24th of January. We are looking forward to see which team will complete the CS:GO lineup!
Remember to visit the Intel Extreme Masters official website for all important information about the event