The Night Sn4p Stopped Running

Allec Alvarado, better known as Sn4p, stood under a cold shower after a long, draining day when something in him finally gave way. A sudden swell of emotion rose without warning. Tears slipped down his face as fragments of the past—and glimpses of what might come next—flickered through his mind.

He couldn’t quite name the feeling. But after years of hard work, pain, and sacrifice, it settled into something unmistakable: 

Release.

They had just won the SIBOL Asian Games qualifiers that day—14 games, nonstop, no room to breathe. But it hadn’t quite registered. It only caught up to him later, standing under a cold shower when the weight of what they’d done finally sank in.

“I’m going to be coaching at the Asian Games… My career will start changing from the past two years,” Sn4p thought as he cried. 

But three months ago, Sn4p nearly quit esports. 

He even tried selling his gaming account.

“I wanted to move on with ‘reality,’ it wasn’t a desperation for cash,” said Sn4p. 

When we looked at his account, it had a lot of skins worth over P300k in all. At that point, we knew Sn4p was serious about retiring from esports. 

“I wanted to go back to my normal job, earn money. I was a web developer. Office type of work,” Sn4p told ALL-STAR. 

“In esports, you don’t earn much unless you win,” he reflected. 

Office work. Desk job. Computers. 

We pictured the clean, mechanical, and gray office scene in The Matrix: Endless corridors of monotony and sickening efficiency. Only this time, Sn4p was Neo, aka Mr. Anderson. 

“Would you have been happy doing that?” we asked him. 

Pause. 

“I don’t think so,” said Sn4p. 

We wondered, why leave esports if you’re still in love with it? 

Why Sn4p kept running

Prior to joining Team Liquid, Sn4p had up to 20 offers from international teams. 

He declined all of them. 

“I wanted to stay in the Philippines, close to my family,” said Sn4p. 

But there was one team in MPL PH who initially offered to recruit him, but after M7, they decided they wanted a coach with more experience. 

“So I kinda gave up.”

The past two years hadn’t been easy for Sn4p. He describes it as the most difficult experience he’s ever had. 

“Mahirap. Siguro ginagawa ko lahat. I even cried in front of my players before, and nothing changed.”

(“It’s hard. I feel like I’ve done everything. I even cried in front of my players before, and nothing changed.”)

We could see the sadness and trauma in Sn4p’s eyes as he said this. 

“I felt like I was disregarded or they didn’t care about my emotions or mental health. That was the hardest part.”

He couldn’t outrun the stress, the pressure, the weight on his mind—so he started running, every midnight.

“I was sacrificing a lot of time and tears. I had to run every midnight just to take out my stress.”

The faster he went, the smaller the problems seemed to be. But the next morning, the problems and the stress came back anyway. 

His former team finished second to last place in Season 16, and bottom in Season 15. 

Heartbreak doesn’t even cut it. 

Sn4p was so broken, he decided to leave esports and go back to a job that wouldn’t even make him happy. 

But one week before the MPL PH roster lock, he sent messages to a couple of local teams. 

“Then Ate Mitch replied to me,” said Sn4p, referring to Team Liquid’s head of esports, Mitch Liwanag.

Team Liquid was going through one of the toughest roster shakeups it ever had. Less than a week before the deadline, they were still missing a gold laner and two coaches. 

In the end, Mitch Liwanag was satisfied with Sn4p’s interview and his one-week tryout at Team Liquid. 

“One thing I like about your two coaches, they’re both obsessed with Mobile Legends,” we told Mitch Liwanag. “They’re NERDS!”

“They’re absolutely obsessed,” Liwanag agreed. “It’s already their rest day but they’re still scheming together for the next matchup!”

“You can really see how much he loves the game and how driven he is to win,” Mitch said, describing Sn4p.

“What stands out the most is his intelligence and, more importantly, the accountability he shares with Aeon. Snap actively approaches us to ask where he can still improve; he never settles even after a win and always looks for ways to elevate his performance further.”

Sn4p looks happy now. It’s the happiest he’s looked ever since we’ve known him. 

“I mean, after four seasons, hard work pays off. Thank you Lord!” 

Sn4p and Aeon: The Nanyang Duo

There are three things you have to know about Sn4p. He’s very hardworking, to the point of obsession. He’s a nerd for MLBB. And he’s a prayerful person. 

He got angry when we dialed him at 2 p.m. 

“Bruh, don’t do that, yeah… I’m working my ass off until 7 a.m.” 

Before Liquid, he did online coaching for teams, which required him to be awake at odd hours and asleep at daytime.

It was a temporary job he took to be able to pay the bills. He even sold us a couple of skins. 

Now, he’s got more time to enjoy. He’s very close with Singaporean coach Ong Wei Sheng, aka Coach Aeon, whom he describes as someone who is very much like him. 

“Fated lahat talaga. God’s will indeed. Even bringing Coach Aeon is fate because he’s someone who is similar to me, no conflicts.”

We talked to Coach Aeon, who’s now very close with Sn4p. 

“Snap’s biggest strength is his consistency and professionalism,” Aeon told ALL-STAR. 

“His work ethic is top tier, but what makes him valuable is that he stays grounded and puts team-first in everything he does,” Aeon added. 

Sn4p also also played a key role in helping Aeon settle into the team and the Philippine environment quickly. They would regularly spoil themselves to Singaporean cuisine, especially on rest days. 

“You can call us Nanyang Duo,” Sn4p told ALL-STAR, referring to himself and Aeon. 

Nanyang is their favorite Singaporean restaurant. Their go-to dish? Hainanese chicken rice. 

Both Aeon and Sn4p are former professional players who still play MLBB regularly. They both have a very deep understanding of the game, from drafts, macro mechanics, and micro mechanics. They are both obsessed with MLBB, in which they are also World Collectors—players who belong to the top 0.1 percent who have spent on skins and other collectibles in the game. 

“It would’ve taken me much longer to find my footing if it’s not for him,” said Aeon. 

“Overall he’s someone you can rely on every day, not just when things are going well, but especially when things get tough.”

‘I’m scared. ‘

Coach Sn4p has been through multiple versions of himself as a coach. 

“I’ve been through being a strict coach, a lenient coach, a flexible coach, a management type of coach. I pretty much did everything. Now, finally, I have a specific role in this team and I am happy,” said Sn4p. 

It’s been a while since we’ve heard Sn4ppy say he’s happy.

“This season could be very life-changing, especially for you. Are you scared?” we asked him. 

He takes a deep breath. 

“I’m… scared. Yeah.” 

“It’s such a good run in the regular season, I don’t want to choke.”

Team Liquid Finished Week 5 of MPL PH Season 17 with a 9-0 streak.

Sn4p takes another deep breath. 

“I want to keep grinding every week, to make the team stronger. And I hope we just finish as champions.”

It’s pretty much the same Sn4p in Liquid. Just as hardworking, just as passionate, still sacrificing a lot of his time for the game. 

“Last time, I was sacrificing a lot of time and tears. Actually, now, I’m sacrificing a lot of time but it’s worth it.”

BF Homes is known for its runner-friendly streets. But Sn4p isn’t running anymore—he’s finally arrived, and it’s been a while since he’s needed the midnight escape.

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