Enigma Gaming won the VE Winter Masters in March 2022
Overview
Enigma Gaming claimed VE Winter Masters 2022, a Villager Esports event played from March 1 to 6, 2022. The title was worth seven lakh rupees, around nine thousand dollars, and it was Enigma's second trophy in three months after the Red Bull M.E.O. Season 4 India win in December 2021.
The winning core was built around the REXX and Avii duo, with Eggy and Saggy completing the four. REXX and Avii had formed one of the most settled partnerships in the Indian lobby, and the Winter Masters win rewarded a team that played eight to ten practice games a day, a schedule the players described in a TechnoSports interview that March.
Jonathan was named the tournament MVP, an award TalkEsport lists among his 2021-22 honours. The MVP award recognised a finals performance that stood out even in a losing cause, with GodLike unable to match Enigma's consistency across the week.
The result sat inside Enigma's strongest competitive stretch: runners-up at the Ruthless Invitational Showdown and second at the Skyesports Pro League followed in March, and the team carried the form into a third-place finish at the Battlegrounds Mobile India Pro Series Season 1 in June.
VE Winter Masters 2022 qualifiers began with 1000 teams split into 50 groups, with the top four from each group moving on to a 200-team second round.
Schedule
Winter Masters 2022 tournament calendar
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 7 | Feb 8 | Feb 9 | Feb 10 | Feb 11 | Feb 12 | Feb 13 |
| Qualifiers Round 1 | Qualifiers Round 1 | Qualifiers Round 1 | Qualifiers Round 1 | Qualifiers Round 1 | Qualifiers Round 1 | Qualifiers Round 1 |
| Feb 14 | Feb 15 | Feb 16 | Feb 17 | Feb 18 | Feb 19 | Feb 20 |
| Qualifiers Round 2 | Qualifiers Round 2 | Qualifiers Round 1 | Quarter Finals | Quarter Finals | Quarter Finals | Quarter Finals |
| Feb 21 | Feb 22 | Feb 23 | Feb 24 | Feb 25 | Feb 26 | Feb 27 |
| Quarter Finals | Semi Finals | Semi Finals | Semi Finals | Semi Finals | Semi Finals | Semi Finals |
| Feb 28 | Mar 1 | Mar 2 | Mar 3 | Mar 4 | Mar 5 | Mar 6 |
| Grand Finals | Grand Finals | Grand Finals | Grand Finals | Grand Finals | Grand Finals |
Villager Esports published stage windows for Winter Masters 2022; per-match maps and start times were never listed.
Allocations
| Source | Slots |
|---|---|
| Qualifiers Round 1 | 1000 |
| Qualifiers Round 2 | 200 |
| Qualifiers Round 3 | 20 |
| Quarter Finals | 24 |
| Semi Finals | 24 |
| Grand Finals | 16 |
Prize Pool
| Place | Team | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1st |  | Rs 7,00,000 |
| 2nd |      | Rs 3,50,000 |
| 3rd |     | Rs 1,50,000 |
| 4th |        | Rs 75,000 |
| 5th |      | Rs 50,000 |
| MVP | | Rs 1,00,000 |
| Most Finishes By a Squad | | Rs 50,000 |
Format
| Stage | Dates | Teams | Matches | Who advances |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Qualifiers Round 1 | 7-16 Feb 2022 | 1000 in 50 groups | 1 per team | Top 4 per group to Round 2 (200 teams) |
| Qualifiers Round 2 | 14-15 Feb 2022 | 200 in 10 groups | 2 per team | Top 2 per group to Round 3 (20 teams) |
| Qualifiers Round 3 | 16 Feb 2022 | 20 | 5 per team | Top 5 to Quarter Finals |
| Quarter Finals | 17-21 Feb 2022 | 24 (5 qualified + 19 invited) in 3 groups | 30, round robin | Top 10 to Semi Finals |
| Semi Finals | 22-27 Feb 2022 | 24 (10 qualified + 14 invited) in 3 groups | Round robin over 6 days | Top teams to Grand Finals |
| Grand Finals | 1-6 Mar 2022 | 16 | Over 6 days | Champion decided on overall standings |
Points System
| Placement | Points |
|---|---|
| 1st | 15 |
| 2nd | 12 |
| 3rd | 10 |
| 4th | 8 |
| 5th | 6 |
| 6th | 4 |
| 7th | 2 |
| 8th-12th | 1 |
| 13th-16th | 0 |
1 point per finish.
Source: Liquipedia — Villager Esports/Winter Masters/2022
Points Table
Winter Masters 2022 Grand Finals leaderboard
Enigma Gaming topped the Grand Finals on 367 points across six days, ahead of Team Forever on 319 and Skylightz Gaming on 315.
Totals are summed from Liquipedia's day-by-day standings. Celsius's day scores were never published, so no total is printed for it.
| # | Team | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | | 367 |
| 2 | | 319 |
| 3 | | 315 |
| 4 | | 297 |
| 5 | | 295 |
| 6 |    | 289 |
| 7 |  | 275 |
| 8 |      | 275 |
| 9 |   | 273 |
| 10 |   | 268 |
| 11 |    | 266 |
| 12 |     | 240 |
| 13 |    | 235 |
| 14 |   | 217 |
| 15 |  | 212 |
| 16 | CELCelsius | — |
Participants
- Celsius
Results
Enigma Gaming won VE Winter Masters 2022 on 6 March 2022, finishing ahead of Team Forever and Skylightz Gaming.
Broadcasts
Broadcast talent
- Boss JP (commentator)
- SardarjiYT (commentator)
Statistics
Stats: Winter Masters 2022 player numbers were not verified, so none are printed.
FAQ
Who won Winter Masters 2022?
Champion: Winter Masters 2022 was won by Enigma Gaming, taking ₹7,00,000.
When and where was Winter Masters 2022 held?
Dates: Winter Masters 2022 ran 1 Mar 2022 to 6 Mar 2022 at Online, India.
What was the prize pool of Winter Masters 2022?
Prize: Winter Masters 2022 offered ₹7,00,000 in prize money.
Image: Grand Finals top-fraggers graphic from the Villager Esports Winter Masters, carrying the event branding. Via Sportskeeda. Rights stay with the organiser. · source