The big shot from the Asia Pacific, Paper Rex, has been turning heads in the top Valorant leagues for some time. Their wild, no-holds-barred style of play, dubbed as W-gaming, has made them one of the most thrilling teams to catch on the global stage of Valorant competition.
However, admiration for their style doesn’t always extend to their fellow professionals, especially those who find themselves on the receiving end of PRX’s aggressive tactics. Karmine Corp’s in-game leader, Martin “Magnum” Penkov, recently offered a candid response that shed light on the stress of competing against PRX.
Hailed as the dark horse of the EMEA region, KC emerged as one of fan favorites at Masters Madrid 2024. The French squad started their campaign strongly, dispatching Fun Plus Phoenix with ease. Yet, they stumbled against Sentinel, requiring a decisive victory to progress to the playoffs.
Their fate collided with PRX on Tuesday (3/19), resulting in an intense showdown. PRX claimed the first game on Bind with a score of 13-10, but KC swiftly retaliated on Lotus, triumphing 13-7. As the decider unfolded on Ascent, KC initially held the upper hand, leading 8-11 by the 20th round. However, PRX mounted a remarkable comeback, pushing the game into overtime and ultimately clinching victory with a final score of 14-12.
The shocking upset took a toll on everyone in KC, particularly Magnum, who was the team’s second-best player in the tournament. Without hesitation, he aired his frustrations with the Singaporean opponents in a post-match interview, labelling PRX’s playstyle as ‘stupid’.
“For me personally on Bind, on defense, I would say their playstyle is stupid in my opinion, or the way they play, the way they disrespect you. And I made a lot of stupid mistakes,” said Magnum.
The Valorant community had quite the reaction, with some folks teasing Magnum for not being able to handle his loss gracefully. But eventually, the 22-year-old set the record straight, explaining that his comments were aimed at PRX’s unconventional moves during the match.
With PRX making it to the playoff stage, it looks like we’ll be seeing more of these W-gamers’ shenanigans for a while. Just before facing off against KC, PRX grabbed headlines with a thrilling comeback against another EMEA contender, The Heretics, a couple of days ago. The drama escalated as Ilya “something” Petrov was captured flashing an offensive gesture, adding fuel to the fire.
With fans eagerly anticipating another intense clash, PRX is set to square off against Gen.G in the upcoming round tomorrow.
