While we already knew an Asian team would make its appearance at DreamHack Montreal and therefore make its debut on the world stage of Rocket League, we now know which players to look out for. 1NE has two teams in the Asia Pro League with 1NE Esports and 1NE Glory Stone. Glory Stone consists of entirely Japanese players, while the regular team has a mix of Indonesian and Malaysian players. For DreamHack Montreal, Glory Stone will take the Malaysian Thrishernn “Misty” Raaj, who will play under the 1NE Esports banner alongside Shogo “ReaLize” Ikeyama and Yukito “Kanra” Nishikawa.
Who are the 1NE Esports players?
The Asian scene is unknown to most Rocket League fans in the west. No major tournament has ever featured an Asian team, and they are, of course, not yet featured in the RLCS. But there is one name on the 1NE roster that will stick out to many fans of the esport. ReaLize is a popular content creator and is among the players with the best mechanics in the world. He’s known for his freestyling compilations and highlights and has also made appearances in smaller western tournaments, such as the unofficial Rocket League World Cup in 2017.
ReaLize Best of 2018 Montage!!!https://t.co/iJqIuyOoVD pic.twitter.com/YN9pzokTZF
— ReaLize (@ReaLizeRL) December 25, 2018
As of August 2018 he has teamed up with Kanra. The two had taken tournaments off each other several times before finally joining forces. Misty takes the third spot in favor of Takuma “Shaolon” Kawajiri due to the timing of the event. Additionally, Misty has been with 1NE since the start but will be leaving soon as he is moving to Europe for his studies. This will be his last tournament with the organization. Perhaps, then, we’ll see him in the European RLCS in the near future?
The future of Asian Rocket League
This is an excellent opportunity for Asia to show what they’ve got. We have yet to see them go head to head with western teams in a fair setting, and hopefully they’ll surprise us. Neither Oceania nor South America have been able to topple the giants of Europe and North America, but perhaps Asia can pose a new challenge. And who knows… maybe they’ll convince Psyonix they belong in the RLCS as well. With South America having been added last season, it stands to reason that Asia will be next.
DreamHack Montreal will run Sept. 6 – 8 and feature most of the teams you’d expect. The open signups teams haven’t been announced yet, but expect to see another fully stacked tournament. For more information about DreamHack Montreal, keep an eye on Daily Esports!
