Valorant
Inactive at MIBR since June, Olavo "heat" Marcelo faces the next VALORANT season without a team. One of the players who spread the most magic on the server with Jett in Vivo Keyd, heat seeks to reinvent himself after a period on MIBR that fell below expectations.
“I put that experience in MIBR as very good for my career; I take all as an apprenticeship.” Reveals the 20-year-old player.
The heat season with MIBR began at LOCK//IN, an event in São Paulo that opened the 2023 VALORANT season and the first event with the franchise system implemented. An early elimination against Talon marked the Brazilian squad's farewell to the event at home.
With bzkA coming from VALORANT Champions champion LOUD, MIBR performed below expectations (Image Credits: MIBR)However, despite their first defeat, MIBR started VCT Americas with a close series against LOUD and victories over KRÜ and NRG. They seemed to be on a good path. However, after these three positive games, the Brazilian team went on to face a streak of six consecutive defeats, managing to win just one map in one of those series.
For heat, the reasons for the decline in MIBR performance are clear. “I believe our team was very good; we were doing well in practices and understanding each other, but out of the blue we started losing synergy and our essence.” He explains. “I think that hindered us. Things started to go wrong, and we didn't understand or resolve it. When we saw [sic], we were already really bad in the tournament.”
Exiting through the back door
heat ended up being removed from the main MIBR squad before VCT Americas ended. It was the team’s sixth player at the time, André "Txozin" Saidel, who played the last two MIBR matches in the league against Evil Geniuses and 100 Thieves, in addition to the LCQ.
The Enemy speaks of a "contrast of ideas inside and outside the game between heat and bzkA (the coach) to justify the player's early departure, despite the organization justifying it for "personal reasons."
Murizzz and heat played together at Vivo Keyd (Image Credits: Tina Jo/Riot Games)The player spoke to BLIX for the first time about the case:
“To be honest, we didn’t have divergences in working method. One of the things I wanted most was for our captain, murizzz, to have more of a voice on the team. I also had this desire to have more of a voice on the team. In the past teams I was, I always had a strong voice in the teams, being second-caller. It's something that I see being worked on in any team in the world. In my opinion, murizzz should pass the tactics and, together with bzkA and the rest of the team, reach a consensus.” He said.
“I think murizzz and bzkA failed to understand each other within the server, and that bothered me a little. Murizzz wasn't being the captain I know him to be, he was more focused on absorbing information than passing on tactics, but that’s only my opinion. Things just didn't fit together, but it happens.”
Duelist only
Criticized by the community for his lack of flexibility in agents and roles within the game, heat says he disagrees with this opinion.
“Since the LOCK//IN I was practicing with other agents. I’m with my mind open regarding the idea of playing with other agents and other roles. I really like playing Sentinel; it's a role I fit into.” Explains heat.
LOUD + heat?
With the signing of Gabriel "qck" Lima imminent, LOUD had several players allegedly testing for the spot left by Erick "aspas" Santos. However, heat claims he was not one of them, although he would have liked the opportunity.
“Nobody messaged me about that, and the trial didn’t happen. I liked to have the opportunity, but it didn’t happen.” He said.
Brazilian teams and what’s next
Asked about the movements of the three Brazilian organizations in the franchise league, FURIA's changes were the ones that caught the heat's attention. “I think the three franchise teams will represent us well several new young players to show their level. The team that caught my attention was FURIA; they signed two very young players. I think they have a lot of potential.“
heat leave compliments to FURIA (Image Credits: Tina Jo/Riot Games)With no rumors about his future, Heat will take advantage of the next few months to rest, “I'm going to use the next few months to relax a little and better understand what I can do in the future.” But the young player still has a dream.“Actually, I’m doing live streams and I’m liking it. I don't think about retiring; being in the world championship and becoming a champion is my dream. If an offer arrives that makes sense for me and my family, I will accept it because I want to play.” Explains heat.
Brazilian franchise teams seem to have closed squads, but could we see heat in a team with communication in English or Spanish?
“I’m open to all teams. I’m studying English and living in the United States and this is helping me to improve my English.” He said. “I think Spanish, the language is very similar to Portuguese, a bit different but similar at the same time. So yes, I’m open to receive offers from foreign teams, and I think it would make sense for me to play on an American or LATAM team.”
In the past, it was a topic of debate whether heat would be one of the best players in Brazil. Now he’s a free agent, but the player promises to return.
