LA Valiant slammed by xQc, Slasher and more over OWL roster controversy

xQc and more from the world of esports have reacted to LA Valiant’s Overwatch League news, as the organization sets out its future in the far-east.

The Overwatch League, much like its younger sister the Call of Duty League, focuses on city-based franchise teams and extensive traveling for LAN events.

Needless to say, the ongoing global health situation has severely affected the ability of teams and tournaments to operate as normal, and LA Valiant have announced major changes to the way they will approach the OWL.

In a January 29, statement, the organization said: “We want to thank all the players and staff moving on today from the LA Valiant due to Covid-related visa issues, as we prepare to compete in China this season. We’ve worked to facilitate the best available next steps for our players and staff.”

Unsurprisingly, there were many angry reactions to the LA Valiant dropping their entire Overwatch roster, as well as the overwhelming majority of their operational staff.

• Read More: Overwatch devs open up on inspiration behind Zarya’s iconic design

Former Overwatch pro turned Twitch streamer xQc was one to weigh in. He called the move a “disaster” and said: “You guys always tried keeping moral high ground from immortals/noah to valiant. Always tryharding for good PR. Then you guys pull s**t like this? Disaster, next time try something else than MS Paint.”

The Canadian streamer wasn’t the only one with an issue, either. Houston Outlaws pro danteh said: “Good job doing this absolute last min making it extremely hard for all of your players to find teams.”

Rod ‘Slasher’ Breslau, noted industry insider, hit out at the Immortals Gaming Club for their move as the Valiant’s owners, just days after they rubbished rumors of relocation on Twitter.

He said: “IGC has now betrayed the hometown OWL LA Valiant fanbase, ran the legendary OpTic brand into the ground, absolutely ruined MiBR as the premier Brazilian esports organization and its CS team several times, and Immortals itself is barely relevant from the days of Noah. Solid work.” 

Industry veteran Malik Forte joined the condemnations, saying: “And here I was thinking the color change would be the worst decision this organization ever made…”

Chris Puckett, former Call of Duty caster and OWL host, suggested that more attention should be given to staff who have lost their jobs, and more scrutiny given to those making the decisions, saying: “How does this happen? How do we stop the decision makers from ruining esports careers in the future?”

Despite the community’s obvious frustrations with Valiant’s move, it looks set to stick. The players immediately released are as follows:

• Brady ‘Agilities’ Girardi
• Adam ‘Adam’ Soong
• Kai ‘Kai’ Collins
• Jae ‘Rain’ Ho Park
• Jungwon ‘Lastro’ Mun
• Sanglok ‘Dreamer’ Song
• Johannes ‘Shax’ Nielsen