JJonak

Early Life and Alias

Bang Sung-hyeon was raised in Seoul, South Korea. He recalled having a good relationship with his parents and wanting to pursue a professional gaming career from a young age. He focused on first-person shooter and fighting video games rather than schoolwork. While in high school, Bang discovered Overwatch, the game he would later play professionally, at a PC Bang.

His in-game name is based on the Korean phrase 쪼물락낙지 (jjomullak nakji), which translates to fumbling octopus. He modeled himself on professional Overwatch player Ryu Ryujehong Je-hong, by studying his playstyle, game settings, and choice of computing peripherals, setting a foundation for his own professional approach.

Debut and Dominance in 2018

Bang professionally debuted with New York Excelsior in January 2018 for the inaugural season of the Overwatch League. He quickly became known for his skill with the hero Zenyatta, adopting an unusual and very aggressive playstyle that often saw him dealing as much damage as enemy damage players. This was highly unusual for a hero in the support role.

In Stage 1 of the 2018 season, the team amassed a 9–1 record. Observers described Bang's play as the most valuable on the top-ranked team, noting his Zenyatta skill had surpassed that of his role model Ryujehong. The team continued their success in Stage 2, earning another 9–1 record and the Stage 2 title after defeating the Philadelphia Fusion in the Stage 2 Finals on March 25.

Through this point of the season, Bang, playing as Zenyatta, had the highest player rating among all Overwatch League players for any individual character. He won his second stage title with the team in Stage 3 after they defeated the Boston Uprising in the Stage 3 Finals on May 6. New York ended the regular season with a league-leading 34–6 record.

Playoff Heartbreak and MVP Honor

In the 2018 playoffs, the team had a first-round bye but faced the Philadelphia Fusion in the semifinals on July 18 and 21. New York lost both matchups, first 0–3 and then 2–3, which eliminated them from the playoffs despite their stellar regular season.

Bang received several commendations for his performance in the 2018 regular season. He was selected as a starter in the All-Star game. Most significantly, he was named the most valuable player of the league's first season by an extremely large margin, earning twice as many votes as the next closest player.

For this achievement, Blizzard created a special cosmetic skin for Zenyatta inspired by Bang's background. This skin was made available for players to purchase during the 2019 Overwatch League season, a permanent tribute to his impact on the game.

Continued Success and Roster Changes

Bang and New York had a somewhat successful 2019 regular season, posting perfect 7–0 records in both Stage 1 and Stage 3. The team finished the regular season with a 22–6 record. In the 2019 playoffs, the team defeated the London Spitfire and Atlanta Reign in the first two rounds.

During these playoffs, Bang primarily played as the character Moira. He said this choice was due to his usual characters, Ana and Zenyatta, being ineffective given the current team composition meta of the league. However, a 3–4 loss to the Vancouver Titans dropped New York to the lower bracket, where they were defeated by the San Francisco Shock, 0–4, ending their playoff run. For his regular season performance, Bang was selected as a starter for the 2019 All-Star Game for the second consecutive year.

Following the 2020 season, the NYXL released all of their players except for Bang, who the team re-signed. The team finished the 2021 regular season with a 7–9 record. Following that season, Bang parted ways with the Excelsior, ending his four-year tenure with the team.

Brief Return Home and Health Break

In October 2021, Bang signed with the Seoul Dynasty, joining a team from his home country. However, he left the team in February 2022, which was two months before the beginning of the 2022 season. Citing continuous health issues, Bang announced that he would be taking a break from competitive Overwatch.

World Cup Champion and MVP

Bang competed for Team South Korea in the 2018 Overwatch World Cup. The team placed as the number one seed in their qualifier round, winning every game. They competed against Russia, Finland, Japan, Hong Kong, and Chinese Taipei in the qualifiers.

They played in the finals at BlizzCon in Los Angeles against Australia, the United Kingdom and China, winning all matches and being crowned the Overwatch World Cup champions for a third consecutive year. Bang also won the most valuable player award for this tournament, confirming his status as a world-class player on the international stage.

The Revolutionary Zenyatta Playstyle

While Zenyatta traditionally plays a support role on Overwatch teams, primarily healing and boosting allies and secondarily dealing damage, Bang is known for using the character's high damage output above all else. Zenyatta's two main abilities are orbs of harmony and discord, which can be assigned to other players to heal teammates and increase a damage multiplier on enemies, respectively.

Bang's skill with Zenyatta came from his ability to predict enemy movements, aim with precision, and take risky moves. This let him make long-distance sniper and trick shots better expected of players in damage-focused rather than support roles. For this reason, he often sidelined his team healing duties to prioritize damage.

Support roles traditionally accompany a high-damage role as a bodyguard, but with Bang's high-damage play, the New York Excelsior's other support player often would escort and boost Bang instead. This nontraditional strategy contributed to the New York Excelsior's standout debut standings and the two support players' receiving the highest season rankings. Bang's Zenyatta playstyle was considered inimitable by other teams in the league's first season.