CLOSING out the year with a set of games, the Mobile Legends Bang Bang Professional League (MPL) PH concluded its 10th Season with the Playoffs last Oct. 20 to 23, 2022, at the Blue Leaf Cosmopolitan, Quezon City. The four-day event saw teams RSG Philippines, ONIC Philippines, Bren Esports, Omega Esports, ECHO Esports, and Blacklist International battling for MPL-PH Champions. 

RSG PH’s Clean Sweep and Bren’s Thrilling Sudden Death

Day one of the playoffs saw the Upper Bracket Single Elimination best-of-five Quarterfinals, with match one bringing ONIC PH a lot to prove as they were battling MPL’s Season 9 Champions, RSG PH. Both teams focused on farming, gaining experience and gold; that all started to change when the major objectives appeared on the map. From units that helped push towers to effects that amplified the team’s damage, RSG ended the games quickly by winning the first three rounds of their best-of-five, advancing to the Upper Bracket Semifinals.

The second match saw Bren Esports versus Omega Esports. For the first two games, it looked hopeless for Bren as they were in their last life against Omega, beating them so far with a 2-0. In an unexpected turn of events, Bren came into the third game with a different strategy and three completely new picks for their team. They focused on positioning and reading Omega’s movement, ensuring that the team's key members were eliminated first so that Bren could win the teamfights. They continued this for the next three games, blowing everyone away and winning the match entirely in what was supposed to be a sure win for Omega Esports.

Blacklist Intl. and ECHO Esports enter the fray

The Upper Bracket Semifinals have reached a Double Elimination scenario: RSG PH claims victory against ECHO Esports and Blacklist Intl. against Bren Esports as both winning teams received a round bye, which guaranteed them a spot in the said Semifinals. RSG and Bren Esports descended to the Lower Bracket Semifinals match to decide who would go to the finals. With RSG PH’s reputation as the last season’s champion, Bren Esports had to step up their game. In an impressive display of skill, the match drew out until game five, with the score being 2-2. The match ended in favor of RSG PH with their stellar team coordination and communication, proving why they were Season 9’s Champion in the first place.

Grand Final is just a win away

The two matches for the Finals bracket decided who would be battling for the MLP PH Season 10 Champion title. ECHO and Blacklist Intl. have no losses so far in the competition, so they became the day’s first matchup. Blacklist was consistent with strategy and team dynamics throughout their games. If they succeeded with their current team composition, there was no need to change it unless ECHO banned that character. With a drastic difference in scores and statistics, Blacklist Intl. defeated ECHO and secured a spot in the Grand Finals. In the Lower Bracket Finals, RSG PH still had to prove themselves to ECHO since both teams had one loss, which would determine the next opponent of Blacklist Intl. in the finals. In an attempt to secure a chance at defending their title, RSG lost to ECHO in a 3-1 standing. 

And your MPL PH Season 10 Champions are…

This is it. The final stretch. A best-of-seven game before one of the teams can call themselves a three-time MPL PH Champion. It looked to be a close match as both contenders have been MPL-PH Champions twice. The first game was just another day in the office for Blacklist Intl., taking a win in this matchup. The second game saw ECHO capitalizing on counter-picks for Blacklist’s composition. This continued in the third round as they changed their playstyle to play for picks, which would severely lessen Blacklist’s damage output in team fights. Game four was a wake-up call for Blacklist, making a perfect team composition that could answer anything the team needed at any fight. They turned it around with a score of 3-2 in favor of Blacklist Intl. There was little to no room for error in game six—with almost equal statistics, it was the sheer damage output, and damage mitigation of both teams to decide if Blacklist was indeed going to be the victor or ECHO would take them on for game seven. ECHO had tried their best and gave it their all, but it was not enough to handle Blacklist’s power. And with that, Blacklist secured their title for being the MPL-PH Season 10 Champions. 

However, this won’t be the last we see of ECHO and Blacklist. Both teams qualified for the M4 World Championship, the final event for the Competitive Season 2022 of Mobile Legends Bang Bang (MLBB). The exact same matchup happened in the Grand Finals on January 15, 2023. Unlike the playoffs however, ECHO learned from their past battle against Blacklist. In a clean 4-0 sweep in favor of ECHO, they have successfully claimed the title of M4 World Champions.In addition, keep your eyes peeled on how the meta will change with the inclusion of MLBB’s newly released hero, Joy.