Gen.G are through to the semifinals after a 3-1 win over Hanwha Life Esports, and the series just confirmed our take on this game: Gen.G had the cleaner mid-game reads and the steadier late-game hands. It was not a breeze for Gen.G though, HLE fought back hard, making them sweat in (almost) every game of the series.

Game 1

HLE went for a bold opening Game 1 pick – Pantheon support on Delight, a move clearly saying: we want to fight early. And they found success: double toplane gank into a pick, first on Kiin, and 2 minutes later on Duro, putting them 2 kills ahead. But Gen.G didn’t panic at all. They eventually evened out, kept the objectives in control, and their macro-game superiority became noticeable as they went into the late-game. HLE’s early bullying faded as soon as the map opened up, and Gen.G just took over. They closed it out after a clean fight near Baron: a great Neeko+Wukong wombo-combo, with Aatrox cleaning up after. Gen.G 1-0 HLE.

Game 2

Game 2 was an epic 59-minute, 50 kills fiesta – HLE managed to stretch the game and test Gen.G hard. There were chaotic ganks, vision and objective fights, multiple base pushes – everything a League fan would want. At some point it looked like HLE can tilt the match in their favor, but Gen.G eventually showed everyone why they’re considered as the top favorite to win the trophy. The ability to stay focused in messy scenarios, and the disciplined teamfights gave them the edge, and they took Game 2, going forward with a strong 2-0 lead.

Game 3

But HLE refused to bend the knee, and they bounced back in Game 3. Their team comp and early game looked much stronger here. They had the better lane matchups, more confident roams, and they kept forcing Gen.G’s hand into uncomfortable fights. For the big part of the game HLE were dominating – punishing every mistake Gen.G did, and snowballed that pressure into more kills and taking objectives. They held long enough to make Gen.G crumble, securing their win.

Game 4

This one felt like a deja vu. Exactly 1 month ago, same thing happened in the LCK 2025 Finals – Gen.G just refused to drag themselves into a decider game. They came in ready to shut the door – and they did it with precision. Their control around objectives started to show, and every time HLE tried to contest a Dragon or Herald, Gen.G were already there first, setting the trap.

By the time the mid-game came, the gap in coordination was becoming more obvious. Chovy’s positioning was perfect, Ruler kept on dishing damage without ever giving an angle for HLE to get to him, Kiin was a wall they couldn’t go through, and Canyon showed why teams fear his Nidalee so much.

Just as Baron spawned, Gen.G started setting up vision around it, and they forced HLE into a desperate engage – wiping them out before securing Baron. From there, a final push to the Nexus through mid sealed the series 3-1.

With this win, Gen.G punched yet another ticket to the LoL Worlds 2025 semifinals, and right now, with their form, I don’t see anyone being able to really slow them down.