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eSports must be growing up

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On 10 May 2013, eSports grew up – Greg ‘Idra’ Fields was ‘released’ (fired?) from his StarCraft 2 team, Evil Geniuses… for going above and beyond his usual level of rude.

It all stemmed from a weird, incoherent discussion on the team forum with numerous users asking what was the point of the initial post.  It boiled down to a discussion about why Evil Geniuses (EG) was successful , and it got out of control rather quickly. Idra went beyond his usual rude behavior, and proved that he was an a$$hole (and yes, the dollar signs are actually appropriate). (WARNING, the link contains foul language.  Don’t say I didn’t warn you)

It’s important to know that Idra was always seen as a jerk in the community – wouldn’t write gg after a match, was known to rage quit and was just generally rude to other players.  However, this was part of what made Evil Geniuses a team to watch; whether you loved him or hated him, he was a unique character.  Until he crossed the line.

In his statement, Alexander Garfield (CEO of Evil Geniuses) stated

As most of you are already aware, we let our players be themselves. We believe that our industry’s diverse assortment of vibrant personalities plays a huge part in helping make eSports so much fun – for ourselves, and for the viewers. No great novel is without great characters, and we like to let our players find their own roles within the eSports storyline by showcasing the personalities they were born with. We have strict guidelines that regulate certain kinds of more extreme speech, and we take disciplinary action when those guidelines aren’t followed, but for the most part, we stay out of the way.

This is why it was never really an issue for us that Greg can be rude to his opponents in games, or that he usually speaks his mind very bluntly and directly. But, to us, there’s a very big difference between a player being disrespectful to an opponent in a ladder match, and a player being disrespectful to the entire community of people who, via their own enthusiasm and passion for the entertainment product he creates, actually make his profession possible.

The eSports industry, and companies like Evil Geniuses, would not be possible without the passion and support of our community. We, as a company, cannot and will not be supportive of anyone who does not show due respect and appreciation for the community that makes everything we do possible.

So, there is finally something of a morals clause in eSports, like there has been in athletic competitive teams.  I wonder if they’ll now start testing for doping.  But really, it is generally a good thing for a team to fire someone who insults the fans.  Without fans, EG would be nothing – I’m glad that they realized this.  It’s hard enough to garner eSports fans, harder still when players are alienating people.

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Last Updated: May 13, 2013

12 Comments

  1. Ultimo_Cleric_N7

    May 13, 2013 at 12:26

    Man I am so glad to see this, its about time these little brats were held accountable. Sports and proper conduct go hand in hand. eSports should be no different.

    Reply

    • Admiral Chief Combat Engineer

      May 13, 2013 at 12:36

      Agreed, sports and proper conduct are a must have

      Reply

  2. Sir Rants-a-Lot Llew

    May 13, 2013 at 12:53

    Well done! Very mature.

    Reply

  3. Paul Fouche

    May 13, 2013 at 13:02

    whaaahahaha so much for an esports career .. bam now whats he gonna do ? haha become janitor?

    Reply

    • Dylan Heunis

      May 13, 2013 at 14:48

      LOL Paul! Do you know IdrA at all? Obviously not. I’ve been a fan for more than 3 years (even when he was still playing Brood War) and he’s not a person who will back down easily and go sit on an ash dump.

      Greg has for a long time now shown an interest in being a commentator, and it stems from him being heralded as one of the best analytical casters out there. It’s just that his contract with EG basically prevented him from doing casts very frequently. His main job was to train, and as such they did not allow him to commentate at events. His stream garners the greatest interest out of all the SC2 streamers, sometimes reaching a staggering 20k viewers. The viewer count normally fluctuates around the 12k mark.

      That being said, why can’t he just continue streaming often and make money that way? Of course that is a valid path for him to follow, and he has stated on his stream that he may very well do that. But he won’t be restricted to just streaming ladder games, but may also include special incentives for subscribers (streamers get a ton of those) and he will also aim for commentating at live events. There is no way that the broader community will banish him from commentating, as he is still VERY popular amongst SC2 fans and there is a great interest in him as a personality. He won’t just fade away, I can assure you of that.

      If all of this info strikes you as staggering, maybe because you’re not a true eSports fan or just because you don’t follow professional StarCraft 2, watch this interview that another important figure in western SC2 did with IdrA 2 days after he got fired from Evil Geniuses. In this video you will hear that he’s far from done with SC2, and that his life is not over.

      And as a last note: Yes, IdrA will not be competing as a professional anymore, and that is of his own volition because he understands that retirement from competition has long been what he needed. I’ll continue to support him as a fan because I was not taken aback by his statement of “You’re all just a bunch of **** “. I know that he said that in a state of rage, and certainly did not direct it at his fans.

      Oh and IdrA actually gained a lot of fans for EG, and never was it the converse.

      Reply

      • Paul Fouche

        May 14, 2013 at 15:04

        perhaps but with an attitude like that will anything last long?…. i dunno hey i understand you his fan but he needs to sort of have the right approach .. maybe he was pissed that day ? too much dop the night before vloeking everyone doesnt solve anything… ever.. regardless of what you do

        Reply

        • Dylan Heunis

          May 14, 2013 at 18:33

          Certainly. No one will deny that he is BM to most players, and I won’t deny that either. At least he’s a caster now for the Shoutcraft America tournament that is going on.

          Reply

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