Daiya · @DaiyaOW
20th Feb 2019 from TwitLonger
Retiring from Competitive Overwatch
Hello everyone, Daiya here and i’m writing this statement to announce I am retiring from competitive Overwatch and no longer LFT. There are many reasons for me to come to this conclusion and i’ll go through them.
First of all, the reduced amount of opportunities by having only 2 Contender seasons each year means its less likely i’d make it there. Blizzard sadly took the wrong approach to the T2 scene and only made it rougher. I’ve been grinding this game fully for over a year with no real pay, only income I had was from streaming and I didn’t have a particularly big stream so it wasn’t a lot. I had to rely a lot on my community which I still love and care about so much to survive and it made me feel bad. I can’t justify to myself remaining on the path to poverty for so long anymore,
I’ve realised now that to become a pro you really do have to sacrifice everything and live and breathe the game 24/7 365 days. I thought I had it in me and I was willing to do this when I started my pursuits, but now I don’t feel like I can do it anymore.
This game was my entire life. I cared so much about winning and losing that i’d get so emotional over this game, at points I was even suicidal because it felt hopeless and this ruined my mentality. I’d get tilted so much, in ranked games and sometimes even scrims and official matches. It made me a bad teammate and for everyone who had to suffer with me during those moments i’m sorry and I regret it so much.
People complain a lot about the state of the game, GOATs etc, Apex being better but thats not really related to my reasons for quitting. This has been pent up for a very long time and after my experiences in my last team Paradigm as well as picking up some old hobbies I had left abandoned in order to pursue professional Overwatch,
I began to realise if I want to change, I have to make drastic changes in my life. The last few days since I played my trials games i’ve barely touched Overwatch and i’ve felt a lot more calm and optimistic about my life. I’ve talked to people close to me and I’ve found the courage to make a very difficult decision. It was my dream to make it to OWL, to make it big but sadly.
Moving forwards, I’m going to be pursuing programming since I did my bachelors in Games Development and getting a full time career and taking the next step in my life. I still plan to stream, but I will put a focus on variety streaming and not just Overwatch. I hope now when I do stream Overwatch I can create good content now that i’m free from caring so much about winning, SR.
I didn’t have what it takes in the end. And that's okay, I don’t regret this journey and its thanks to the people I wish to shoutout.
Sammy - I love you so much. I wouldn’t have ever met you if I didn’t do this. You transformed my life and made me realise there’s more to life than just the game and made me come face to face with my roughest issues and make efforts to change and be a better person. Thank you so much for everything, I look forward to our future together and our time together in NYC was the best thing in my life honestly.
My community - You guys supported me so much despite not being a huge community, despite my issues of often rage quitting streams, being tilted on stream, etc and you guys mean the world to me. Ramma, Kiana, Mollie, Supinie, Jenny, all my mods, all my subs. Thank you for enabling me to pursue my dreams. I can’t wait to bring quality content to my stream in the future. My discord will remain open as a safe place for all people to feel welcome and included, I still wish to build a wholesome community for anyone who wants to participate.
Slur - Its funny how we started off, you weren’t my biggest fan but eventually when we actually talked to each other you became one of my best friends in this community. Whenever I felt like shit, you’d always say some funny stuff and i’d have a blast in Discord and feel so much better. You’re a gifted player and a lovely person and I’m wishing you all the best for Contenders this season.
ChipSa - At first I was just a meme on your stream and I couldn’t really tell if you liked me or not. Eventually I got to talk to you in person and realised you’re swell regardless of what you put on for your stream. Its really funny though and duoing with you was always a fun time, wishing you all the best in your continued streaming career you geordie bastard :)
Fusions - It’s incredible to see how far you’ve gotten. You had the skill and walked the path to pro all the way, and I saw every step of it. Thank you so much for the times you talked to me and giving me confidence to keep pushing. Good luck in OWL, you’ll be incredible.
Honor eSports gang - BanHammer, Kyle, Odd, Tommy, Simmi, Rautgar, Timarien - All of you guys gave my first step into competitive Overwatch and we had such a good team together even if we weren’t “good” in the skill sense we had fun together and BanHammer gave me a taste of what it was like to be a competitive OW player and gave me my first chance when I was literally stuck in masters and couldn’t reach my peak. Maybe one day we can reunite for a weekly that’d be a good meme. I wish you all success in whatever you’re doing and Kyle and BanHammer success with their recent R6 Siege journey!
Lovely Dwarves gang - Ele, Iko, Baconthief, IgniteTheSky, Ingemar, you guys gave me a first real taste of victory in ESL #101 and it was such a great feeling. Even though we got unlucky in OD, I learned so much from playing with you guys and wish you all the best with your OW careers or whatever it is you are doing right now.
Optidox - You always listened to me bitch and rant and helped me by looking at one of my VODs, thank you for giving me real advice when I needed it and good luck coaching Angry Titans into next Contenders, you know your stuff about the game.
/r/COW discord - You guys were always supportive of me, you know who you are. Thanks for making me feel like I was actually a somebody
Kate’s Discord - thanks for letting me rant endlessly, it helped me get stuff off my chest. Kate, I wish you all the best with Washington Justice and all the other regulars in there, thanks for having me around!
UK OW - not everyone in UK OW liked m or thought I was a great player but somehow I always found motivation in that fact to try and prove haters wrong. Guess I didn’t in the end LOL but its chill. Jellis, KSP, Lewis, JKLol, Y4nba, Cameron, JBeans, Chespops, ChoccyMilk, Misu, Illiria, Nostalgia, Aplox, Corey, Kruise and other people I might have forgotten.
Hayes - Thanks for putting me onto the 12 man UK team and giving me that first bit of recognition. It flattered me so much to know an OWL coach saw the skills in me and I wish you all the best with Fusion this season.
Everybody else - I know I would have forgotten some people but know if you talked to me and supported me I appreciate you so much even if I didn’t mention you by name. Hope everything goes perfectly for you!
Finally, I don’t want anyone to be deterred from pursuing Overwatch or their dreams because I didn’t make it. Dreams are important to us, they give us a certain fire and ambition to rise above our limits to become stronger. If you have a dream, go chase it. I don’t regret doing this and I thank everyone so much… i’ll see you all on Twitter/Discord. Take care and have a lovely day and don’t give up on what you’re doing, it will work out. <3