The Play-Ins stage at the League of Legends World Championship for 2023 had concluded, with Power Spike bringing you the teams and players that impressed and disappointed us. BDS squeaks through at the last possible moment against PSG Talon, but does that mean that Taiwan and PCS' showing this tournament didn't live up to expectations? The post-COVID era seems to have lit a spark under the Vietnamese teams from the VCS with GAM's escape into the Swiss stage serving as a welcome surprise. Looking...
Oct 16, 2023•1 hr 13 min•Ep. 30
We make our predictions for the 2023 League of Legends World Championship, identifying the favorites as well as dark horses that might have a shot at an upset. While it's easy to write off the LEC and LCS teams, can any squad from the West make a deep run? The strength of Korean and Chinese teams is undeniable, but some of these teams could crash out of the tournament earlier than expected and we're here to tell you which ones are in peril. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices....
Oct 06, 2023•1 hr 33 min•Ep. 29
Power Spike looks back at the conclusion of regional play for 2023 in this episode, as the guys discuss their favorite moments of the year. Dom, dGon, and Monte finalize their list of the greatest frauds of 2023, a year which saw an uncharacteristic number of super teams fail across regions. They celebrate TSM's departure from the LCS and what the addition of Shopify Rebellion will mean for North America. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices...
Oct 01, 2023•1 hr 15 min•Ep. 28
With the teams attending Worlds almost fully determined, the Power Spike boys discuss their expectations for this year's World Championship and the size of the gulf between the West and China/Korea. Oscarinin will have surgery on his hand, which means that Fnatic will field Wunder as a surprise substitute for the remainder of the LEC Season Finals, but is this fair to the other teams competing? Excel displayed strength in the Summer Split and faltered in their attempt at Worlds qualification, an...
Aug 29, 2023•1 hr 25 min•Ep. 27
Frauds galore in the playoffs of LCK, LCS, and LEC, as Cloud9, KT, and XL all underperform expectations in their various brackets. Who shall become the lord of the frauds this summer? T1 is eaten alive by GenG for the third consecutive time in the LCK finals and Dom's schadenfreude is out of control. LCS Summer 2023 hits a new low for viewership for the league, dropping 40% year over year and 17% from the Spring Split. Is there a way to pull North American League of Legends out of the death spir...
Aug 25, 2023•1 hr 32 min•Ep. 26
After a three week hiatus, LEC returns this week with the start of the season finals and significant expectations that G2 will end the bracket in first place. However, Dom, dgon, and Monte discuss which teams they high key, low key, and no key expect to find success in Europe and qualify for Worlds. Hanwha Life disappointed many by failing to win a game in their last two bo5s, especially resident Viper enthusiast IWillDominate. LCS teams have put up the least predictable and sloppiest playoffs i...
Aug 15, 2023•1 hr 35 min•Ep. 25
LPL finals and regionals have all ended, sending JDG, BLG, LNG, and WBG to the League of Legends World Championship at the end of the year. The guys are here to discuss the Chinese results and analyze the strengths and weaknesses of the qualified teams. EG, and maybe even Cloud9, are starting to look a bit fraudulent, even as NRG pulls off back-to-back upsets to lock in a spot for Worlds themselves. LCK All-Pro voting remains underwhelming, with no players outside of KT or GenG making the top tw...
Aug 09, 2023•1 hr 43 min•Ep. 24
The LEC Summer Playoffs have ended with an inevitable G2 victory, so Dom, dgon, and Monte break down their win against Excel and discuss the strengths and weaknesses of the new LEC format. LPL playoffs continue to roll along, with LNG, JDG, and BLG forming the final three teams remaining in the bracket. They guys discuss all of the banger playoff matches that have occurred in the past week and preview the upcoming series alongside who they think will eventually qualify for Worlds from China. The...
Aug 01, 2023•2 hr 5 min•Ep. 23
With LPL, LEC, and LCS all kicking off their Summer split playoffs, Power Spike is here with predictions for the winners of each region and how competitive they expect each bracket to be. Another year, another crop of disappointing frauds, but who will take the crown of the king of frauds among T1, OMG, FlyQuest, and Vitality? The guys chat about their disappointment with G2 from their match against XL, the one-sided match between KT and GenG, and the thrilling series played by EDG against OMG. ...
Jul 25, 2023•1 hr 59 min•Ep. 22
Groups have started in Europe with some big upsets, including Fnatic falling to SK and XL upending the MAD Lions. These results and more LEC matches form the core of the discussion for this episode, alongside some choice criticism from Dom for FlyQuest's messaging around their starting roster. Dgon helps Monte craft his "Kiin Campaign" for LCK MVP, as some voters may be swayed by Peyz's fraudulent credentials. JDG and G2 seem like locks to win their respective regions as we race toward the concl...
Jul 18, 2023•1 hr 39 min•Ep. 21
Dom, dgon, and Monte give their thoughts on Faker being out with an injury and Bengi's sudden departure as the head coach of T1, leaving the team significantly weakened as they enter the LCK's second half of the regular season. The boys debut a new segment, Devoured sponsored by Trolli Sour Brite Crawlers, where they discuss how FlyQuest continues to be eaten up by the competition as they finish another LCS week 0-3 and will have a tough road to reach the playoffs. Who are the dark horse teams i...
Jul 11, 2023•1 hr 28 min•Ep. 20
LEC groups have been drawn and Power Spike is here to guide you through the next phase of the tournament. Vitality has been a disappointing super team in spite of the org's many attempts to reinvent the roster over the past two years, but can they still make it to the LEC's season finals? We're at least halfway through the regular season in the major regions, so it's time to discuss which players are leading as MVP candidates in LEC, LPL, LCK, and LCS. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit pod...
Jul 04, 2023•1 hr 20 min•Ep. 19
Neither the LCS nor LEC have inspired confidence in fans or analysts that they will be remotely competitive come Worlds this year in Korea, but is it as doomed as it appears? Dom, dgon, and Monte discuss the best and worst roster moves that occurred before the Summer split now that all major regions have seen at least two weeks of play. Flyquest and Vitality both assembled super teams that massively underperformed but which deserves another chance to play and which should be ejected from competi...
Jun 27, 2023•1 hr 47 min•Ep. 18
Power Spike is BACK for the Summer Split and they're kicking off with way-too-early predictions for the winners of each of the major regions in League of Legends: LEC, LCS, LCK, and LPL! The guys discuss the disappointing start of LCS and the league's low viewership and conclude their thoughts on the player walk-out. Three teams in the major regions are currently winless: DRX, FlyQuest, and XL, but which of these is the most on fire? Finally, they rank how fraudulent Heretics and Team Liquid are...
Jun 20, 2023•1 hr 24 min•Ep. 17
MSI ends with LPL dominance, and Dom is absolutely loving it. How did the Chinese teams, especially BLG, defy expectations to easy handle T1 and Gen.G? News has dropped that TSM is seeking to leave LCS, so the Power Spike crew discuss the impact of the team's possible departure and legacy in North America. To add to the trouble, LCS players may stage a walk-out in support of the academy players that have been dropped from their rosters and miss the first games of the LCS season... Learn more abo...
May 26, 2023•1 hr 22 min•Ep. 16
T1 and JDG advance to the winner's bracket at MSI while Golden Guardians and MAD Lions are eliminated first in the bracket. Given their arrival as LEC champions and the top seed from Europe, just how fraudulent was MAD Lions' performance in London? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
May 14, 2023•1 hr 44 min•Ep. 15
Play-Ins have finished for MSI with expected, yet still exciting, results! Golden Guardians reached a new level of performance, and the Power Spike boys are here to explain how they've improved since their LCS run. BLG and G2 rip through their playoff brackets, while Loud and R7 exceed expectations for their regions. Dgon, Dom, and Monte discuss the match-ups they are most anticipating in the playoff bracket and their analysis of the BLG vs GG match! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podca...
May 07, 2023•1 hr 28 min•Ep. 14
MSI groups have been drawn, but how will they play out? LEC finals have concluded with MAD Lions regaining the title with a closely fought series against BDS, and the Power Spike boys break down how they managed to take another crown. Riot can't seem to maintain their own website or announce event schedules in a timely fashion, and it's about time they got it together. Vitality once again fails to reach expectations, but how do you fix such a loaded roster? EG appears to be ditching the majority...
Apr 25, 2023•1 hr 51 min•Ep. 13
Bjergsen's retirement sparks a conversation about his legacy, his future, and whether he gave 100 Thieves enough notice in order to find a new mid-laner for the summer split. MAD Lions might qualify automatically for MSI with a G2 win in the spring playoffs. Is this fair and would we rather keep or kick Vitality or MAD? Finally, the Power Spike crew previews the revamped MSI and picks the teams that make them most excited before finishing with a review of the LPL finals between JDG and BLG. Lear...
Apr 18, 2023•1 hr 35 min•Ep. 12
Dom gives a touching eulogy to his beloved OMG, who finished in a startling fourth place in the LPL after improving for the entire season. Keep or Kick features two rookies who have performed excellently in 2023, Peyz and Leave, but which one performed better? The Power Spike boys also discuss the LCK and LCS playoffs in-depth, including if the cast for the T1 vs GenG finals was biased in favor of T1. Finally, they preview the remainder of the LPL playoffs and give predictions for the finals thi...
Apr 11, 2023•2 hr 20 min•Ep. 11
TOP, Evil Geniuses, and Hanwha Life were all eliminated from their regional playoffs this week, but which team was the biggest FRAUD? The Power Spike crew discusses the recent budget cuts at TSM followed by their analysis of the ongoing LCS playoffs and why they think Cloud9 will win another title. Either KT or GenG will fail to make MSI, but which one is more deserving of competing in London? Finally, our certified banger is the best-of-five between T1 and GenG as the former advanced to the LCK...
Apr 04, 2023•1 hr 53 min•Ep. 10
We start this week's episode with the Certified Banger that was the five game series between T1 and KT, focusing on each team's performance and whether the fifth game loss could be chalked up to Cuzz's Xin Zhao play. Monte gloats over his correct prediction regarding 100 Thieves' playoff performance and responds to fan comments from last week before the whole crew discusses their LCS playoff predictions. LEC becomes the focus as Heretics and Excel fail to make the next stage of the Spring split ...
Mar 28, 2023•1 hr 39 min•Ep. 9
This week's Power Spike takes an in-depth look at LCS playoffs, including the up-and-down performances of teams like FlyQuest and Evil Geniuses and whether or not 100 Thieves are a post-season threat. The crew reacts to Fnatic's surprising comeback performance in week two as well as Vitality's stumbles. They answer the question: which two LEC teams will suffer an early exit in the Spring Split? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices...
Mar 21, 2023•1 hr 33 min•Ep. 8
Power Spike features hosts Christian "IWillDominate" Rivera, Christopher "MonteCristo" Mykles, and Daniel "Dgon" Gonzales in a segment-based talk show discussing global League of Legends. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 14, 2023•1 hr 36 min•Ep. 7
Power rankings hit Power Spike as Dom, Monte, and Dgon curate a list of the top 10 teams worldwide prior to the start of the Spring split playoffs. The hosts also dive into the issues surrounding Danny and his struggles at the hands of the Evil Geniuses executives, with further discussion about many people in the industry being unable to hold Nicole Lapointe Jameson responsible as EG's CEO. 100 Thieves' struggles also go under the microscope as Bjergsen and Doublelift lead a disappointing roster...
Mar 07, 2023•1 hr 28 min•Ep. 6
The LEC Winter Playoffs conclude and the Power Spike team is here to break down the matches and provide their final opinions on all the participating teams. Now that G2 have won the split and qualified for MSI, how would they fare against the current best teams in LPL and LCK? Most people rank T1 as the best team in the world right now, but do they deserve that spot and are they unbeatable? Dom, Dgon, and Monte all pick a roster move from the off-season that they would now undo as well as pickin...
Feb 28, 2023•1 hr 51 min•Ep. 5
The Power Spike crew give their quick reactions to the KOI vs G2 match minutes after it finishes, including discussing the reasons that G2's unorthodox drafts continue to see success in the LEC. They diagnose the issues with Vitality and suggest changes to the team before switching to a conversation about the leading candidates for MVP in LEC, LCS, LPL, and LCK. Moving beyond MVP to some of the most surprising positive performers in global League of Legends, the boys select the players they are ...
Feb 21, 2023•2 hr 7 min•Ep. 4
This week's show opens with a discussion about the most fraudulent teams in League of Legends world-wide, including iG, Vitality, Team Liquid, 100 Thieves, and Liiv Sandbox. The focus shifts to the surprising upset of the LEC Winter group stage as Vitality falls to KOI, which demands scrutiny for the poor play of Neon and Kaiser. Which teams with two losses or fewer are truly among the world's best? The guys break down the teams with promising starts to the 2023 season that they are most excited...
Feb 14, 2023•1 hr 29 min•Ep. 3
Drama strikes the LCS as the broadcast tries to hype up the match between TSM and 100 Thieves, but the segment falls short and Dom, Monte, and dGon are here to discuss why. LEC group stage begins with the new format and the boys talk about which teams are the most exciting while also breaking down Fnatic's disappointing elimination from the Winter Split. JDG continues to look like an international contender and Ruler's insane performance gives their match vs NIP the status of Banger of the Week!...
Feb 07, 2023•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 2
Who are the best teams to watch around the world in LoL esports in Spring 2023? Which rookies stand out from each of the major regions? These questions are debated alongside conversations about Excel and Fnatic's surprisingly poor performance, the banger series between T1 and Dplus, why fans should be excited about the new direction of the LCS, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Jan 31, 2023•57 min•Ep. 1
