Joseph EdwardsEsports as spectacle and obsessionWith Valorant coming into its second year, there’s an odd sort of atmosphere around everything. You might think that I’m about to talk…Sep 13, 2023Sep 13, 2023
Joseph EdwardsSBF, LoL, and risk management: a sidenoteA week ago, as Sam Bankman-Fried’s empire started to crumble into dust, the FT’s Alphaville section ran an exposé that shocked the world:Nov 17, 2022Nov 17, 2022
Joseph EdwardsVALORANT: Masters Copenhagen, playstyle check — Icebox, Viper, defenseThe natural impulse when trying to understand different teams going into an international event in esports is to look to the big…Jun 26, 20221Jun 26, 20221
Joseph EdwardsVALORANT: VCT, EU and NA, Operator usage and efficiencyA thought inspired by a combination of too much VALORANT and too much NBA content lately: how efficient are pro team Operator buys in…Jun 20, 2022Jun 20, 2022
Joseph EdwardsVCT: First bloods and rounds won: a pre-Masters overviewThis is how reliant every team in EU, NA, and at Master’s is on first bloods to win rounds. The higher the final number, the less reliant…Apr 1, 2022Apr 1, 2022
Joseph EdwardsVALORANT Champions and off-beat weapons: a reviewEconomy in VALORANT is very deliberately and specifically designed around the two main ‘rifles’ — the Vandal and the Phantom, both priced…Dec 21, 2021Dec 21, 2021
Joseph EdwardsA pocket guide to Valorant economy (updated for 2021)Back just after beta, I wrote an economy guide for Valorant. (I mostly wrote about the first few months of competitive Valorant on here…Aug 30, 2021Aug 30, 2021
Joseph EdwardsValorant EU First Strike — the contenders (Purple Cobras, nolpenki, Prodigy, Heretics)Small note to begin: this is a preview piece on EU First Strike. The operational assumption with regards to seeding for the main event is…Nov 23, 2020Nov 23, 2020
Joseph EdwardsValorant EU First Strike: the Guild gauntletAs you read this, the bracket for the finals of First Strike: Europe is in the process of being set. By Monday, eight teams have…Nov 21, 2020Nov 21, 2020
Joseph EdwardsValorant: Four thoughts on Vitality IgnitionTalking G2, the NiP exodus, meta notes, and tournament formats.Jul 13, 2020Jul 13, 2020