Japan Ranked Harder than NA
So I've been playing a ton of ranked in Japan / Seoul the past 2 weeks, and I have to say the difference in NA vs Japan is probably a tier difference. A Diamond 4/5 in NA = Diamond 3 mid in Japan. I was Diamond 5 in NA, but got demoted to Diamond 3, and have been struggling to get back to up 4 here. There a lot of smurfs / masters players you are up against that are just pulling every champ to master, and then the Alex's. But generally speaking, their neutrals / footsies and mechanical skill seems higher. Also it feels like they play much smarter and adapt quicker. However, also they generally do one and done and move on so as to not give you the second game to adapt. They aren't big risk takers and are very conservative. I'm sure if you one and done everytime, it's easier to climb.