Few legends in European eSports are greater than the one known as Marcin “Jankos” Jankowski. With over a decade of dominance in the jungle of League of Legends, the Polish player has been part of two of the biggest stories in the MOBA in Europe.
We are talking about H2K’s semifinals at Worlds 2016 and, of course, his time with G2 Esports and the bitter runner-up finish at the 2019 World Championships. In the last two years, he has been part of the Spanish organization Team Heretics. Now, he has granted an interview to 3DJuegos to discuss his career and the League of Legends World Championship, Worlds 2024.
Unfortunately, Europe has failed to place anyone in the quarterfinals of the tournament, with Fnatic and MAD Lions KOI eliminated in the Swiss stage, and G2 falling to BLG in the round just before the top 8. But Jankos did correctly predict that it would be his former teammate Rasmus ‘Caps’ Winther’s team that would go further in the competition, along with Flyquest, who was already in the quarterfinals.
“MAD Lions KOI play a style that is very easy to read by their opponents, but they also know how to move their pieces well on the map
“I am looking forward to seeing Flyquest and G2,” he told us, before discussing MAD Lions KOI. The team led by Ibai Llanos received praise, but also a premonition about how they got eliminated: “MAD Lions KOI play a style that is very easy to read by their opponents, but at the same time, they know what they’re doing and move their pieces well on the map. However, when they are not performing well individually, they lose.”
His most accurate prediction so far is who he sees as having the best chance to win the Summoner’s Cup, as these are teams still in the competition: “I always support Faker. I love T1 and I’m the biggest Faker fanboy, I hope they do well. I think Hanwha Life had a great final against GenG, but I’m also looking forward to seeing GenG. Now that I’m not competing, I’m watching a lot of LCK, more than LPL, but I think BLG can show a great level.”
“I regret not being able to win with Heretics”
After his words about Worlds 2024, we asked Jankos about his career; starting, of course, with his time with Heretics: “It’s not easy to win, and I regret that we couldn’t do it with Heretics these last two years, but that’s how things are […] But I don’t have any regrets, because I know I gave my all during my time with the team, but the sting of not having competed internationally with this group is there.”
Despite his quality and charisma, Jankos was, due to the circumstances, the least talked about piece of that legendary G2 Esports. Caps and Perkz were the visible faces in terms of pure talent, Mikyx and Wunder showcased occasional brilliance, while Jankos was the glue that held them all together. When asked if he deserved to stay in G2 and not leave in 2022, Jankos believes it could be, but he is also self-critical of his performance at Worlds and his mentality at the end of that year; but he quickly starts talking about Caps, who he already considers the greatest European player in history, and a great teammate.
Regarding that period, and particularly the end of the year in 2019, he believes that he and his teammates benefited from a great adaptation to the meta by their part, as well as a certain slowness from South Korea and China in doing the same. He also values the 2020 they had, despite falling one round earlier in the biggest League of Legends tournament, and considers that since then, the East has been improving at a faster pace than the West.
“I have always sought to end up in the best roster”
A player’s career, beyond their performance, can be summarized in a handful of specific decisions. Going to a certain team, changing their approach to individual training… We asked Jankos about this and whether he would have done anything differently looking back on his over a decade-long career.
“I think not. Throughout my career, I have always sought to end up in the best possible roster. Perhaps in 2014 I acted a bit out of fear, because I had just left everything to play League of Legends professionally and signed the first thing that came my way. I don’t know if it makes sense, but I would have been more careful and would have taken into account my value as a player more,” he explains. His contract with Team Heretics, according to Riot Games’ contract database, ends next November. Finding a new team is something “that has its trick,” according to Jankos, and he considers that it involves several factors like teammates, salary, conditions, and available offers. “It’s the time of our lives where we decide our future for one to three years,” he reflects.
“I think what has kept me going is having fun”
For Jankos, his longevity in a role as dependent on the meta as the jungle is explained by always seeking to have fun with the game. “I think what has kept me going is having fun”. If that happens, I’m motivated, and I think it has been key for me to perform well these years. I still enjoy it and I still put in a lot of hours,” he says.
At 29 years old and after over a decade-long career, a crucial moment in his career is approaching in this search for a team. He may not be an extremely veteran player by today’s standards, but it is reasonable to consider that the majority of his career is behind him and not in front. Although he does not have the answer, he does affirm that he wants to compete and is looking for a team only in LEC, but if he doesn’t find one, he would remain tied to European League of Legends. We will see what the immediate future holds for the good ol’ Jankos.
Images | Team Heretics
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