The final week of Dota 2 had all of it: there was no scarcity of drama, healthful tales, and really fascinating bulletins.
As we head into Could, let’s have a look again at how the Dota 2 esports scene wrapped up the month. And I’ll be trustworthy, it’s given me loads of hope for what’s to return.
OG’s Coach Calls Nikko Out on Latest Podcast
Weeks in the past, the OG Dota 2 staff made a surprising announcement, benching offlaner Nikko “Nikko” Bilocura and unveiling Alexander “TORONTOTOKYO” Khertek – a really stunning addition to the lineup.
The staff’s coach, 343, lately went on a podcast to spill the beans, and let’s simply say he didn’t maintain something again.
The Malaysian coach was invited onto a podcast on the DotaDoc channel, the place he revealed what actually occurred behind the scenes and why the staff finally determined to let Nikko go. In accordance with him, the previous offlaner was benched resulting from out-of-game elements. Right here’s a abstract of 343’s details:
- The primary difficulty was Nikko’s work ethic
- The staff flew dwelling in January to take a break. All OG gamers, aside from Nikko, had been grinding pubs and staying sharp. In the meantime, he barely performed any Dota in any respect that whole month. When confronted, Nikko allegedly mentioned he was “jet-lagged”
- When the staff gathered for a bootcamp, Nikko could be the primary particular person to go to mattress, calling it a day at 8 PM. The remainder of the staff would keep up longer to follow
- 343 additionally talked about that Nikko would refuse to play heroes like Mars, saying he “wasn’t prepared.” He would additionally follow the improper heroes in pubs. For instance, Nikko was taking part in loads of Largo – a hero that was nearly at all times banned in official matches
- Ultimately, the complete staff misplaced confidence in Nikko. He felt that stress and began changing into extra withdrawn. This spiraled uncontrolled, and the belief simply wasn’t there anymore
As somebody who has adopted Nikko’s journey for fairly some time, I can say that he’s very individually expert and might be probably the most mechanically gifted participant on the staff.
But when 343’s claims are true, this conduct will do a staff extra hurt than good. A part of being an expert Dota participant is having each talent and work ethic; the latter, together with belief, is what retains a staff collectively.
I imply, 343 has each purpose to be livid – I can’t argue with that – however grilling him with no filter on a public podcast is most undoubtedly going to harm the Filipino’s status and profession in the long term.
I hope he can bounce again, as he’s a very proficient participant.
South American Rejects Are Profitable Hearts with Their $60K Choice
I do know what staff I’ll be cheering on for the remainder of the season.
The South American Rejects, an unsponsored squad, lately made a deep run at PGL Wallachia Season 8, ending within the high six. With no kind or organizational backing, these guys needed to dig into their very own wallets to fly to Europe, cowl fundamental requirements, and compete on the occasion.
It’s secure to say this ragtag group of Peruvian gamers exceeded expectations. They took down high groups like Group Yandex and Xtreme Gaming of their Wallachia conquest. Sadly, Group Liquid needed to damage the enjoyable, knocking them out of the match.
However hey, they had been compensated $60,000 for his or her efforts.
As an alternative of basking in that bag, the South American Rejects are investing all of it – not in shares or crypto – however in themselves. They’re utilizing the winnings to remain longer in Europe and bootcamp, the place they’ll scrim in opposition to the most effective groups on the earth and sharpen their gameplay.
That is such a cool story and exhibits simply how a lot they imagine in themselves. At Wallachia, they confirmed nice promise. The Rejects would discover themselves within the lead in video games in opposition to high squads like Group Liquid, however usually struggled to shut out video games.
The potential is clearly there, and with slightly little bit of sprucing, I really feel like these guys are good for one more deep run. They’ve actually earned my respect, and I hope an org picks them up actual quickly.
BetBoom Group Dominates PGL Wallachia Season 8
Talking of PGL Wallachia, BetBoom Group ended up successful the entire occasion, and in very convincing trend. They clearly seemed like the most effective staff on the occasion.
The squad went 3-0 in teams and didn’t drop a single sport within the playoffs, making a flawless run to the grand remaining. They then swept Jap European rivals Aurora within the grand remaining, settling the rating on the good time. BetBoom Group’s massive win means they take dwelling $300,000 and their first match win of the 12 months.
The Wallachia trophy additionally marks the latest addition, Ilya “Kiritych” Ulyanov’s first S Tier victory. The 23-year-old had some very massive footwear to fill after changing Ivan “Pure” Moskalenko following The Worldwide 14. However, he’s been taking part in very steady Dota and doing his job properly.
Nonetheless, credit score should go to Danil “gpk” Skutin and Vitalie “Save-” Melnic. These guys are clearly BetBoom Group’s finest gamers, with the previous voted because the occasion’s MVP.
The Wait Is Over: Tier 1 Match-Fixer Taiga is Banned for Life
In 2024, former OG and Group Liquid help participant Tommy “Taiga” Le was uncovered for match-fixing. That’s proper – regardless of being a Main winner and being employed below a number of the largest orgs within the scene, this fella was betting on his personal matches, even in S Tier tournaments.
He wasn’t essentially throwing video games, however was taking part in round with outcomes like First Bloods – issues he would affect with out blatantly making his staff lose.
Since then, his Dota 2 profession has been just about over. Taiga went from being a extremely revered, healthful participant to some of the disliked figures within the scene. Not totally certain what he’s as much as lately, however I noticed him opening a betting group on Telegram, inviting his followers to hitch – who is aware of what’s taking place in there.
In any case, the Esports Integrity Fee (ESIC) has lastly slammed the ban hammer on Taiga. He was handed a lifetime ban from all ESIC member occasions.
Took you lengthy sufficient, ESIC.
MinD_ContRoL Makes Teaching Debut in a Fully Completely different Area
Following TORONTOTOKYO’s seemingly random signing to OG, we’ve another person treading in his footsteps. TI winner and European participant Ivan “MinD_ContRoL” Ivanov has additionally marked Southeast Asia as his subsequent vacation spot. The previous Group Liquid participant has joined Indonesian squad REKONIX, this time because the staff’s coach.
MinD_ContRoL has made ventures to SEA earlier than, discovering a quick stint in Group SMG for The Worldwide 2023, which didn’t go too properly. Nonetheless, he’s suiting up for a totally completely different function, transitioning from taking part in to teaching for the primary time.
He finds himself in a squad filled with Indonesian gamers. REKONIX is a staff on the rise – they’ve snagged a number of Southeast Asian qualifier slots to make appearances on the largest occasions.
Nonetheless, REKONIX sometimes struggles in opposition to the highest canines and sometimes finally ends up as cannon fodder.
MinD_ContRoL seems to be to make a distinction and revive Indonesian Dota 2, as we’ll see his squad compete at DreamLeague Season 29 for his or her first Tier 1 match. And truthfully, if REKONIX makes it to the playoffs, he clearly is aware of one thing we don’t.
