It’s On: The Real Players Behind the Legends
If you’ve seen the “It’s On” shorts, then you know they combine traditional hand-drawn animation with League of Legends. But something you might not have noticed is that that each one is based on the true experiences of actual League players. Here’s a look at the real characters behind the scenes of League’s animated adventures.
KayPea: Solo Jinx
In League of Legends, the hunter can quickly become the hunted. “Solo Jinx” captures the moment when Kayn ambushes Jinx, but quickly learns that the ambush is on him. Playing Piltover’s Most Wanted is KayPea, a long-time League streamer who specializes in a variety of mid laners and ADCs.
Gordon Hayward: Never Surrender
“Never Surrender” celebrates Gordon Hayward, an NBA All-Star who suffered a devastating injury on the opening day of last year’s NBA season. A dislocated ankle and fractured tibia put Gordon on the bench for the year. During his recovery, he found a competitive outlet battling against players online in games like League of Legends. And much like his favorite champion Tryndamere, one should never count Gordon out of the fight. “Never Surrender” commemorates Gordon Hayward’s return to the NBA. GL HF!
Doublelift: Unstoppable
“Unstoppable” captures the highs and lows in the storied career of Doublelift, a long time veteran in the professional League of Legends scene. Famously, Doublelift’s career began when he left home as a teenager to pursue his dream of playing professionally. He has always been known as a talented ADC player, but he struggled early in his career to deliver results for his teammates. Doublelift’s “empty trophy case” was once a favorite meme of League players everywhere.
The meme met its end in the 2015 NA LCS summer finals, when Doublelift earned his first championship trophy with Counter Logic Gaming against TSM. Doublelift delivered a commanding performance, earning a rare pentakill with Jinx in Game 2 of the finals. Unstoppable pays homage to the moment when Jinx fires her rocket at Yasuo (played by TSM’s Bjergsen in Game 2).
Doublelift continued to find success with each of his teams, qualifying every year to compete at Worlds. But he made a devastating mistake in 2016 in Berlin. After TSM won a teamfight against Samsung Galaxy, Doublelift’s Lucian rushed SSG’s midlaner Crown, whose Viktor instantly killed Doublelift. This infamous miscalculation cost TSM the game and arguably its chance at making it to quarterfinals.
In the aftermath of the loss, Doublelift took a hiatus from the LCS to focus on streaming. The future of his pro career was uncertain as his hiatus stretched to the end of the split. After immense speculation about whether Doublelift would ever return to pro play, he finally rejoined TSM (and was subsequently traded to Team Liquid) and has won every consecutive split in the NA LCS since his return. The animation’s finale celebrates his game winning play with Jhin in the 2018 Spring Finals.
Now Doublelift heads to Korea with Team Liquid to represent North America at Worlds, where they will have the opportunity to compete against the world’s greatest players.
