Everyone interested in eSports is aware of the industry’s massive growth in the last couple of years. Games like Dota2, CSGO, and LoL have more fans than ever, which explains why there are so many events. Even though there are loads of top-tier eSports players, some are better than the rest, which is why they receive a nomination for the Esports Awards.
Speaking of rewards, www.blackqiang.com shows that s1mple won the Esports PC Player of The Year reward for the second year in a row. “Many people were surprised that the Ukrainian star got the trophy again. However, those who followed Na’Vi in 2022 know he was on another level. I wouldn’t be surprised if he wins against because s1mple is in a league of his own”, said Veselin, Nostrabet’s eSports expert.
Oleksandr “s1mple” Kostyliev achieved an average of 1.27 KDA and participated in 12 events in 2022. Even more impressive is that s1mple won 4 MVP rewards at IEM Cologne 2022, PGL Major Antwerp, IEM Rio Major, and BLAST Premier Final 2022.
Most CSGO players around the world consider s1mple to be the best. The 25-year-old AWPer, nicknamed “the Undertaker”, has been a part of numerous teams. However, he became a global superstar after joining Na’Vi in 2016.
Throughout the years, s1mple won more than 21 HLTV MVP medals, a Major, and many other events. He received the title of the best player in the world in 2018 and 2021. Needless to say, the same happened in 2022.
There were several other “hot” nominees for the best player of 2022, so let’s check them out.
Jaime “Cyber” Ramos
When talking about the Esports PC Player of the year award, Cyber was the 2nd name that received a nomination. The 24-year-old Brazilian player is a part of FaZe Clan, a team that is notorious for competing in numerous games. Even though most people know FaZe for its CSGO squad, its Rainbow Six team is also impressive, and Cyber is the team’s Star.
People who follow the Rainbow Six stage up close know that Cyber is among the best players in the world. He won the MVP during the Major in Sweden in 2021 and became the first player to secure 100 kills during the Berlin Major. 2022 has been an exciting year for him and his team because of FaZe secured 2nd place at the Six Berlin Major 2022 and 3rd place at the Six Invitational 2022.
Kim “Zeka” Geon-woo
When talking about eSports, we must mention that League of Legends continues to be one of the most popular games. Naturally, the top players here have loads of fans, but 2022 was not suitable for all of them. Fortunately, Hanwha Life Esports’s mid-laner Zeka had one of the best years of his life and deserved to be nominated for the best Esports PC player of the year.
The 20-year-old superstar from South Korea had a key role when he played for DRX during the 2022 World Championship. After showing what he’s capable of, Hanwha Life Esports decided to acquire the player’s signature and signed him in. Needless to say, everyone is eager to see what will happen with him in 2023.
Illya “Yatoro” Mulyarchuk
Of course, Dota 2 also has its nominees for this reward, and one of them was Yatoro. The Ukrainian world-class carry player deserves to be on the list following his dominant performance with Team Spirit. The latter won The International 10 and secured a Major and another big event in the 2021/2022 DPC.
Since Yatoro is the team’s best player, he had a key role in its success throughout the year. However, the fact that Team Spirit crumbled during TI 11 affected the Dota 2 player and explains why he couldn’t win the PotY award for 2022.
Andrei “Odoamne” Pascu
Romania also had its representative among the nominees because the ex-Rogue player was outstanding. Although the mid-players in League of Legends are usually the team’s superstars, Odoamne showed that even the toplaners could shine. He played a vital role for Rogue in 2022 and helped its team secure a 5th-8th placement in the 2022 World Championship.
The toplaner won numerous rewards over the years, but he wasn’t able to grab the one for the best Esports player. That said, his dominance in 2022 gave him a ticket for Excel Esports, a popular team in League of Legends.
Russel “Twistzz” Van Dulken
Even though s1mple is a living legend in CSGO, several other names stand out, and Twistzz is among them. The rifler from FaZe Clan is often regarded as one of the best in the world. In fact, some sources claim he is the most successful North American CSGO player.
Ever since he became a part of FaZe Clan, the organization has been one of the best in the world. 2022 was a fantastic year for everyone because FaZe won IEM XVI – Katowice, IEM XVII – Cologne, the EPL S15 and the PGL Major Antwerp 2022. Interestingly, FaZe defeated s1mple’s Na’Vi in two of these grand finals.
Andrey “Shao” Kiprsky
VALORANT has become one of the leading eSports titles in the world, so it wasn’t surprising that one of its biggest talents was nominated for the best player in 2022. Shao is a 22-year-old player that was a part of FunPlus Phoenix for almost 2 years. However, following his impressive performance and victory in the VCT 2022: Stage 2 Masters – Copenhagen, he moved to Natus Vincere.
Although Shao is yet to win a big event with his new team, Na’Vi already won the G-Loot VALORANT Clash a few weeks ago. It will be interesting to keep an eye on the CIS superstar in 2023.
Jaccob “yay” Whiteake
Even though yay may not be in the same league as s1mple and Twistzz, he was a deadly Rifler capable of carrying his team when needed. Since the player was active for over 6 years, he was a part of numerous teams. Some people may not agree, but most fans think he was most successful during his time with compLexity.
Jacob “HisWattson” McMillin
Despite the fact that Apex Legends might not be everyone’s cup of tea, the game has a large eSports following. A couple of players stand out, but it seems like HisWattson is in a league of his own.
Since joining FURIA Esports, the American superstar has had a key role in his team. In fact, he was one of the reasons why FURIA became 2nd in the ALGS: 2022 Championship. Unsurprisingly, this had an effect on his nomination for the best Esports player of 2022.
Zhang “Faith_bian” Ruida
Aside from Yatoro, the TI winner Faith_bian also found his name on the list. Some Dota 2 fans were surprised he was there because they’d expected Ame from his team to be the nominee.
Speaking of teams, PSG.LGD was one of the most dominating names in Dota 2 throughout 2022 and won numerous events. However, the team failed to impress at TI 11, which is one of the reasons why Faith_bian announced his retirement. While active, he was one of the world’s top-tier offlaners.
Cho “Maru” Seong-ju
StarCraft II has its share of fans, which is why Maru was among the nominees for the best Esports player. Being the best at one of the most complex computer games is not easy, but the Terran-main from South Korea has proven that he is on another level.
Since Maru is the best, he has won pretty much anything in SC II. This is one of the reasons why everyone looks up to him. His aggressive playstyle makes him one of the most entertaining SC II players to watch.
Jeong “Chovy” Ji-hoon
Lastly, we have another League of Legends mid-superstar from South Korea. Chovy is Gen.G Esport’s star and one of the few people that can compete with the best in the region, such as Faker. He and his team had a reasonably good 2022 after winning the LCK Summer 2022 and finishing second in Spring. That said, the team couldn’t live up to the expectations and got 3rd-4th in the 2022 World Championship.
