Yoru made his first appearance since his rework at an international VALORANT tournament in the hands of Paper Rex’s Jason “f0rsakeN” Susanto. After being mostly ignored despite making the occasional appearance at regional events, he picked Yoru during his team’s playoff match against DRX VALORANT Champions Tour: Stage 1 Masters.
F0rsakeN has previously played Yoru in the Asia-Pacific region, but his attempt while up 1-0 heading into Bind did not payoff. After winning the pistol round, Paper Rex quickly fell behind and the off-meta pick clearly didn’t throw DRX off as they forced map 3. This leaves Yoru with a 0% win rate in VCT.
Regardless, pulling out Yoru on the biggest stage of the year so far shows bravery, and the VALORANT community loves an unconventional pick. When f0rsakeN picked Yoru, here’s how the internet reacted.
YORU TIME LETS SEE IT @jasonsusantoo
— TenZ (@TenZOfficial) April 15, 2022
Sentinels’ Tyson “TenZ” Ngo, who remains one of the game’s most popular duelist players despite missing out on competing in the tournament, expressed excitement at seeing the Japanese duelist get picked. The official VCT Twitter also took a moment to recognize f0rsakeN’s pick, thanking him for injecting a bit more excitement into the series between Paper Rex and DRX.
Thanks @jasonsusantoo 👀 #VALORANTMasters pic.twitter.com/HdbM6H3FEb
— VALORANT Champions Tour (@ValorantEsports) April 15, 2022
Meanwhile, the Do Not Peak Entertainment’s VALORANTING show reminded fans that f0rsakeN was following up on a promise by picking Yoru. It seemed like a bluff at the time, but the man was good for his word.
Holy shit he wasn't lying…@jasonsusantoo picked Yoru#VALORANTMasters pic.twitter.com/rpXv5PFOMy
— VALORANTING (@VALORANTING) April 15, 2022
Esports journalist Tyler “FionnOnFire” Ezberger also got in on the hype less than 24 hours after noting that Yoru had not been picked yet at Stage 1 Masters.
YORU IS LOCKED IN
I REPEAT
YORU IS IN ICELAND #ValorantMasters
— The Esports Writer (@FionnOnFire) April 15, 2022
Finally, caster Brennon “Bren” Hook might have avoided a sad day after seeing the Yoru on Bind he rightly anticipated. However, considering Paper Rex couldn’t close out the series with the pick, perhaps the map was bittersweet after all.
I'm so excited for this PRX vs DRX match up, two of the most innovative teams with tremendous firepower clashing.
Only sad part is Bind will probably get banned so no Forsaken Yoru 😔#VALORANTMasters
— Brennon Hook (@BrenCasts) April 15, 2022
