YGG Play Summit $100K Parallel Tournament Crowns Viper Champion

[MANILA, PHILIPPINES] The YGG Play Summit’s US$100,000 YGG Parallel Showdown concluded on November 21, 2025, with German cardslinger Torben “Viper” Wahl crowned champion, taking home US$20,000. Sixteen players from around the world competed over two days for the top prize in the Manila tournament of Parallel, the hit Web3 trading card game (TCG).

Viper secured the match against Devmon’s Jobsad, who dropped two games in a row after winning the first. Viper’s victory adds to an already elite TCG career. From 2016 to 2022, he dominated competitive Hearthstone, amassing over US$270,000 and ranking among the game’s top 20 earners.

The tournament featured top TCG talent, including imcute, YGG Esports’ Sequinox and Zeliaser, and Filipino guild One Turn TILT’s Gaben and Boolzi. Devmon fielded Hearthstone veteran Lamby and brothers BlizzconJan and Jobsad, who finished 3rd and 2nd. BlizzconJan eliminated last year’s champion Zeliaser before Jobsad won their sibling face-off in the loser’s bracket finals.

“It’s completely crazy to win this event,” said Viper. “Last year, I came here as a spectator for the first time [for the Parallel] LAN event. Now I was competing, and it’s just indescribable to be here. I love the Philippines. I love this event.”

The 16 participants qualified through two online tournaments held in October, with the top 8 players of each qualifier invited to Manila. Players brought three decks and competed in a double-elimination best-of-3 format, meaning they had to win with each deck they brought to advance.

Parallel Studios co-founder Kohji Nagata, YGG Play Summit Arena host John Sedano, and casters Mooka and Lamby, seasoned TCG players themselves, joined Viper onstage to present the prize.

“It was our Parallel tournament last year here that really solidified to me that we have to do a big live event,” said Nagata in an onstage interview before the final, alongside YGG co-founder Gabby Dizon, led by Sedano. “I really appreciate everyone here in the Philippines and all the energy they bring to Parallel. I remember the first time I came, and Gabby, Sequinox, and [YGG content creator] Excelsor were the only people who really knew what we were doing. Now, to be here and see all this, people in jerseys, it’s just amazing.” Early this year, Parallel held the US$250,000 Parallel Prime Championship at HyperX Arena in Las Vegas, demonstrating the growing scale of its tournaments.

Developed by Parallel Studios, Parallel is a digital sci-fi TCG where factions called Parallels compete to control the planet. The game takes inspiration from popular TCGs such as Magic: The Gathering and Hearthstone.

Nagata also shared onstage that Parallel is now available on the Apple App Store. The game’s mobile version initially launched for Android in March 2025, starting with a limited regional release in the Philippines.

Other tournaments took place at the YGG Play Summit Arena, one of the four “districts” of the City of Play expo focused on Web3 esports. The day before the YGG Parallel Showdown, Ubisoft’s Might & Magic: Fates held its first-ever tournament, where YGG Esports player Tyler claimed the top prize. The Vibes Asian Championship is also underway, with the finals scheduled for November 22.

“We designed the YGG Play Summit to provide a space for the best and most competitive Web3 games and players in the world to gather,” said YGG co-founder Gabby Dizon. “Last year’s YGG Parallel Showdown was extremely successful. There was so much good energy and good drama, and I think this year’s event was even more intense. A lot of players expressed excitement for more tournaments to happen here in the Philippines.”

Outside the Arena, the City of Play spans the Player District with the biggest Web3 games, the Degen District for crypto-native gamers, and the Skill District for workshops and career-oriented events such as Metaversity Interactive, a forum that brought together stakeholders from industry, government, and academe to address critical gaps in the emerging workforce.

After the YGG Parallel Showdown, the GAM3 Awards held its live event at Samsung Hall, where Off The Grid claimed five awards, including Game of the Year, and Cagy was named Best Content Creator.

On November 22, Metaversity’s Prompt to Prototype vibe coding event, powered by Base, will teach builders how to create a game using AI.