HEROIC and paiN first to lock in Playoffs at PGL Masters Bucharest 2025

Three days into PGL Masters Bucharest 2025, we already have our first two teams locked in for the Playoffs: HEROIC and paiN Gaming. Perhaps not names you might not have expected to see, at least not initially. But they’ve played their cards right, beaten some solid teams along the way, and ensured their names are in the hat to become the latest team to win a first Tier 1 trophy of the year when the PGL Masters Bucharest Playoffs kick off. Here’s how they locked in the next stage.

Things finally click for HEROIC at PGL Masters Bucharest 2025

Winning games has been particularly difficult for HEROIC of late, a result of their roster merry-go-round that has left them regularly fielding a different five players. But with their full lineup together at PGL Masters Bucharest 2025, they’ve finally been able to show a glimmer of the potential many doubted they had.

Over the three days of play so far, they’ve taken down Ninjas in Pyjamas, BetBoom, and Aurora, all without dropping a map. You can certainly poke flaws in all three of those teams, but it’s the Playoffs qualification win over Aurora that stands as the most impressive. The Turkish lineup are comfortably a top 10 team, so to beat them handily in a high-stakes qualification series is a positive sign for HEROIC.

The standout performer for HEROIC in Bucharest has to be xfl0ud, who currently stands as the second-highest rated player at the event with 1.43. This includes a career-best 2.61 vs. NIP on the opening day. The decision to bench him earlier this year was obviously sheer madness from the outset, and the Turkish rifler has returned and shown why he more than deserves his place on the roster. Keep an eye out for xfl0ud as we move into the PGL Masters Bucharest 2025 Playoffs, as he’s in hot form right now.

Inconsistent paiN Gaming find form in Bucharest

I’ve always been quite critical of paiN Gaming. It feels as though the Austin Major Semi-Finalists have always been believers in their own ceiling, which has led to rather inconsistent results over the last few months. At their best, they’re a great team to watch, it’s just that we don’t get to see that all too often.

But at PGL Masters Bucharest 2025, it’s a different story. 3:0 qualification from the Swiss group, meaning they can watch the rest of the action without having to worry about their Playoffs spot. Their first two matches against Gentle Mates and GamerLegion were solid, and paiN eased things over the line against B8.

So, what has been the difference for paiN to find some consistency? While you can point to any of the players’ form, it’s snow and biguzera who are making the biggest difference. For youngster snow, he has too often felt like a liability for paiN to carry. Yet, here, when putting up even a decent 1.09, you can see the difference it makes to the team overall. Those close games suddenly swing in their favor. Meanwhile, IGL biguzera is topping the ratings for paiN with a 1.21. “Fragging IGL” is almost a meme at this point, but you can’t deny that it makes a huge difference when the captain can win a round here or there by themselves.