The end of my competitive playing career - but the start of a different one!

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First of all, thank you for taking the time out of your day to read my post. I hope it can give you a new perspective of the game and that you enjoy the read, of course.


/// Solo queue is unhealthy

I really do enjoy playing League of Legends - but the one thing, that kills my joy, is when solo queue teammates are mentally frustrated/angry/toxic/negative – you name it.

Solo queue is a necessity for anyone who is trying to go as far as possible. I was taking the game seriously by showing up to work focused (aka solo queue) and my “co-workers” were rarely cooperating. Whenever I queued up to a ranked game, I’d join the lobby, greet my team and suggest a smart pick-order of our champions. All I was met with was silence and Nunu insta-locks, due to players being angry or tilted.

Solo queue is a bad and extremely unreliable working environment, where players with big egos argue with each other instead of focusing on what’s important: improving and/or winning. Sometimes, it feels like people enjoy flaming; they love feeling better and stepping on the weak – something which I can’t relate to nor understand in the slightest. I can’t picture myself working like this in the future. I don’t belong in this negative environment.

The problem with League is that a lot of people do not enjoy playing it. They have played the game for so long, that they no longer find it fun. It has become an addiction, which causes them to be mentally frustrated. I’m going to stop before I become someone like that myself.


I cannot emphasize how important it is to go outside in the sun or exercise. It makes you feel a lot better in every way. Also, the importance of thinking of your randomly assigned team in solo queue as a unit; you are a team for one single game now – not just 5 individuals, who are bashing each other out of anger. You all want to win, so remember to work together! I’d like you to carry on this positive mindset attitude, while I’m gone.



/// Solo queue has been this way for ages – why have you first decided to quit now?

The reason why I’ve decided to quit now, and not before, is due to the end of my gap year closing in. I’ve accomplished a bunch during my gap year – but I didn’t succeed in my own opinion. Overall, I didn’t improve as much, as I would have liked. I’ve always been unable to reach Challenger on command, e.g. during mid-season/end of season. I’m currently in a good spot in my League career but I’m still very far from the top – and I’m not willing to commit any longer.



/// Not enough time

When you are a hardworking pro league player, there is not a lot of time for anything else. Sure, I’ve created a few videos during my competitive career – but not nearly as many as I would’ve liked. League has been holding me back from developing my other interests and there is simply not enough time to do both any longer. In a creative area, such as video editing/directing, you must be able to show your potential working partners some of your past work and experiences – and that’s something I’m looking to do!



/// Gratitude

I’d like to use this opportunity to thank ALL the players and staff members that I’ve met along the way. I’ve learned so much about different personalities, human interaction, perception of others and hard work/dedication.


A special thank you to all the organizations that I’ve worked with in the past:

Digital Warfare:
It was Jakey, their manager, who introduced me to the competitive scene. He found me on the top solo queue ladder, added me and told me about British esports. Jakey has been a close friend ever since. Also, it’s funny, that I started off my career by being FNC xMatty’s little Nami/Karma/Lulu player and that my mid laners were Jester and Kehvo.

Gratitude, thank you!


Phelan Gaming – ESL Premiership & Forge of Champions:
It was during my time on Phelan that I got more and involved in the UK scene. It was also when I met my first real competitive bot lane partner, Aether, who has grown so much since then and who is still a very close friend. The owner, Wings, always helped me out – even after I left the team - and made it possible for me to plan ahead.

Gratitude, thank you!


Hybrid Esports:
Though my time on Hybrid was brief, it still worked perfectly as a smooth transition into the next split. Here, I met Chemera, Batu and Flirt – all of whom I still keep in touch with today. Similarly to Wings, the owner of Hybrid (Karos) always helped me out as well.

Gratitude, thank you!


Darkspawn Gaming - UKLC:
I love the people behind this organization. I will always be thankful for the opportunity I was given to play in the UKLC, that I was given! I hope you don’t mind that I flipped your team logo 180° on my LFT-post! “nwapskrad”!

Gratitude, thank you!


Demise - UKLC:
It was during the split on Demise, that I started to create content based on my competitive games for real. Unfortunately, I couldn’t keep up with the weekly videos, due to my motivation to improve and win. It did pay off in the end though; our teamwork, flexibility and mental strength helped us exceed past our expectations and get some great results!

Gratitude, thank you!


MTW Gaming – Prime League 1st Division:
Such a professional organization with genuine owners and staff! I absolutely love their infrastructure and engagement. With that being said, our goals didn’t align. The goal of MTW is to promote into Prime League Pro Division; a goal which would take a whole year to fulfil and one which collides with my personal goals. I was ensured that the support who plays summer will also play winter – but I can’t be sure that I’d be the starter after their promotion, due to the high level of the competition. Regardless, I’m still very glad that Mauro, Sivi and FunK3y decided to go with me as their support. Our time together helped me put everything into perspective and they’ve been very supportive of my decision to quit.

Gratitude, thank you!



/// The Future

This is all a huge change for me! It lets me focus on all the things I haven’t had time for in the past. I’ve already started working on my video portfolio and I’m currently in contact with a few streamers, pro players, teams, esports news sites, shoutcasters, IRL businesses and a mindfulness expert. So, my plan for the near future is to make all my ideas come to life and create as many high quality videos as possible. My long-term goal is to create a series similar to ‘TSM LEGENDS’, where I work closely with a team. I’m generally an open-minded person who is ready to fulfil anyone’s video editing needs.

So, I’m still going to stick around in the League/esports community, not as a competitive player, but as a content creator/video editor/director. I will still be attending any LAN events, where I get to meet all the nice and friendly esports athletes out there!



Again, thank you for reading! I hope you will take my game philosophy into account and keep me in mind, the next time you need to create a video or two!


Until next time,
Viggo

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