A Year in Recap - Indian Free Fire Esports in 2021

2021 has been an amazing year for the Indian Free Fire circuit. Throughout the year, we had several amazing tournaments with equally amazing storylines. The crown of the best team in India was passed back and forth several times among several worthy contenders. The state of the competitive circuit in the country also advanced by leaps and bounds, as Indian teams have finally started to leave their mark in the international circuits too. Let’s take a trip down memory lane and relive some of the significant moments of this year. 

Building a reputation for yourself…

We started 2021 with a fun tournament - The Free Fire Titan Invitational. We hosted the first ever Clash Squad mode in a competitive setting. Needless to say, it was a grand success. Total Gaming Esports won the Clash Squad mode, while 4Unknown took home the Battle Royale trophy. It was all fun and games, but as the year progressed, we moved on to the more serious tournaments. 

…and how it’s different from building a legacy

VasiyoCRJ7 won the FFIC 2020 Fall last year under the banner of Total Gaming Esports. This year, he joined a completely different team and built a line-up from scratch. They did not get enough time to gel up together, nor did they get the opportunity to scrim against other teams all that much before FFIC 2021 Spring started. Riding into the tournaments with odds stacked against them, Vasiyo made history by becoming the only player to win two FFIC tournaments (yet). By winning FFIC 2020 Fall and 2021 Spring, Vasyio had cemented his position as one of the unshakable pillars of Indian Free Fire. 

Crossing borders

After the first leg of the India Championship, it was time to open up our borders to our neighbouring countries as well. The Free Fire Tri-Series was the first South-Asian tournament, where teams from three countries participated. India, Pakistan and Bangladesh sent their best teams forward. Team Sixth Sense(currently known as TSM) proved that they were superior there. This would be their crown jewel of the year. Team Sixth Sense (now TSM) went through some disappointing performances later on through the year, and also had some roster changes. But winning the first South-Asian championship surely has to be a great experience. 

Introducing new formats, reinstating the former kings

The Free Fire Pro League 2021 Summer brought forth a new format, one that eliminates the concept of Play-ins. This forced the teams to be consistent right from the start, and play their cards close to the chest. If they revealed their tricks too soon, they’d be countered hard in the finals. If they didn’t show even a glimpse of it during the League Stage, they’ll never know if their new tricks would work. This tournament probably had the best storyline of them all. There were several teams who could have won this one. Sixth Sense (now TSM), fresh off their momentum from Tri Series, were a worthy contender, Team Chaos was the master of Purgatory, Galaxy Racers were looking smart. But even after all the theorycrafting, nobody could predict the winner. It was Total Gaming Esports that took home the trophy. Total Gaming Esports showed the nation that anything is possible if you have the will and mindset to do it.

With the World Series out of our grasp, we focused inwards

Indian teams couldn’t attend the Free Fire World Series 2021 Singapore, because of the ongoing travel restrictions due to pandemic. Due to issues that were beyond our control, the Indian teams lost their chance at representing their country internationally. They didn’t let that lost opportunity get to their heads. Instead, we focused on creating opportunities inside the country. The Free Fire City Open gave a chance to people from every corner of the country to play on the biggest stage. New talents were unearthed. Some of them even got offers from bigger teams to join their ranks. Even the teams that did not quite win, at least made a reputation for themselves which gets them invited to more scrims and third-party tournaments. This gave them a platform to showcase their skills, and boy did they impress us! Hyderabad Nawabs (Represented by Blind Esports) won the Free Fire City Open.

The Grand Slam - FFIC 2021 Fall

This tournament was loaded with intense storylines and action packed matches! Team Elite finally pulled through after a long run and won their first official pro-tournament. Throughout the year, Team Elite would perform well in almost every tournament league stage but somehow choke during the finals. A thrilling clutch by TE - Killer in the dying embers of the last grand finale map got them the championship. 

Another name that took the tournament by storm was PVS Gaming Esports. This was a team that was considered an underdog before the start of the tournament but carved out a legendary status for themselves. They dominated their group during the league stage and finished second in the finals. PVS Gaming Esports in their debut premier tournament had the trophy within their grasp. They were on the top of the scoreboard for quite a long time during the finals, and the championship would have been theirs if TE - Killer didn’t come through with the clutch play that got him 1 point ahead of PVS Gaming Esports.

Road to Asia Championship

By winning FFIC 2021 Fall, Team Elite qualified directly for the finals of the Free Fire Asia Championship. PVS Gaming Esports, Total Gaming Esports and Desi Gamers Esports fought it out in the Play-Ins. Total Gaming Esports had some funny moments when FozyAjay was able to sneak past a group of enemies like a ninja. 

While FozyAjay led Total Gaming Esports to good placement points via safe rotation paths, PVS Gaming Esports bravely contested popular drop locations in each map and earned their points with the blood of their opponents. 

Desi Gamers Esports unfortunately had nervous jitters, which tends to happen in someone’s first international appearance. Although no Indian teams were able to qualify through the Play-Ins, Team Elite was the sole flag bearer in the Asia Championship Grand Finals. HQ Esports won the Free Fire Asia Championship.

Team Elite keeps the Indian flag flying high

They made the country proud by winning a booyah in the ‘mystery’ last map of the finals. This was the first time an Indian team got a booyah in an international tournament. It was a great breakthrough for the Indian scene. Team Elite had to adapt to the meta on the fly. In his interview with us, TE - Jonty told us about how they had to learn to read the room and change their tactics to better suit the tougher lobby. While recognizing the meta got them one win, in order to do further damage, Indian teams would have to innovate and unleash their creativity more.

Deciphering the META (Most Effective Tactic Available)

The summer was dominated by Chrono’s Time-Turner. This dome shield was appropriately named because a typical duel would be determined by who activated this ability at the right time. As the changing seasons brought in new patches, players were forced to think outside the box, or rather in this case, outside the dome. While Indian players were flirting with the idea of using Wukong’s Camouflage, nobody had mastered it yet quite like the Thai players. Players like GodL - Nivesh (previously know as BLD-Nivesh)  ushered in a new era of grenadiers using Alvaro along with Beaston Pet together. Some tried to fall back to the old reliable DJ Alok, but they were appropriately punished for not exploring new abilities. During the FFAC, Indian teams learnt how valuable Misha’s Afterburner ability can be. Misha was never even considered as a competitively viable character by Indian teams, but they discovered new perspectives when they were exposed to contenders from other countries. 

Looking towards 2022

Indians have scored their first goal at the global stage. It may have taken us some time to do so, but now we can’t wait to score the next one and the one after that. Deciphering the meta of South-East Asian teams and copying it can only get them so far. To reach for the stars, they will have to experiment a lot to find their best playstyle, internally review their strengths and weaknesses and work to harness that knowledge to their advantage. They must carve out their own path. 2021 one has given them a push in the right direction, and we are sure that our teams can follow this path to the top next year. 

Once again we thank you all for playing Free Fire and being a part of this harmonious community. Let’s hope that we can do better together in the future! We wish you a very Happy New Year!!