Renowned esports organization, SK Telecom T1, looks to establish yet another dynasty of its own as it joins the up-and-coming PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds professional scene.
Highlighted for their success on the League of Legends stage, SK Telecom T1 (SKT) boasts a breadth of awards under its belt: three-time LCK Champion, two-time Mid-Season Invitational Champions, and three-time World Champion out of four seasons attended.
SKT has truly set the standard for what it means to be a champion in the sense of present-day esports. Even in its downtimes, the team has shown brilliance in their mechanical and team-play ability through the leadership of the famed "Unkillable Demon King," Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok.
On the same hand, SKT has been a running contender for StarCraft esports as early as 2003 up until the organization’s retirement from the scene in late 2016. Bagging titles from the StarCraft World Championship Series, StarLeague, Proleague, IEM, and the like.
PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds battle royale feature has drawn in millions of players due to its distinctive and engaging gameplay. According to Steam, PUBG has passed three million peak concurrent players in December, 2017.
PUBG has then been consequently awarded to be the “Most actively played game on Steam” by the Guinness World Records itself, topping previous titles such as Dota 2 and CS:GO - a testament to the game’s fast-pace growth ever since its release last March.
Additionally, PUBG has received the “Breakthrough Game of the Year” award from the Esports Industry Aawrds, “Best Multiplayer Game” from the Golden Joystick Awards 2017 by GamesRadar and The Games Awards 2017, and even the comical “Mom’s Spaghetti” title from The Steam Awards 2017.
Now, as PUBG joins the ranks of top competitive esports titles, SKT wants a slice of the cake. Given the team’s resources and previous success in its chosen esports fields, SKT T1 is poised to achieve success in the rising phenomenon that is PUBG.
SKT’s decision to enter the foray of PUBG esports was possibly due in part to PUBG’s incredible rise in popularity within South Korea and OGN’s decision to build a 100-player arena for hosting said games.
According to DotEsports, the championship team hopes to complete its roster, ready for play, by August.
Images courtesy of Riot Games and PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds
