DrakaZ
23-07-2010, 10:30 AM
About one month after revealing to the community that he quitted DotA, the legendary American player Ben 'Merlini' Wu also called M-God by his fans wrote a last blog post to thank all the people who supported him throughout his career.
He also recount all the good and bad moments he got during his DotA career and gives a last shout-out to a person he seems to admire for all the work he did for DotA and therefore for the community, I talk about IceFroG.
After his departure, his formers Nirvana.Int team mates Clinton "Fear" Loomis and Jimmy "Demon" Ho left a message to Merlini and now it is time for Merlini to do the same. You will also see the reasons for which he decided to quit DotA.
Merlini's farewell blog:
Final Thoughts on DotA
Most players who quit Dota don't write a blog. Dota, for many professional players, becomes more than a hobby. More, even, than a job-- it becomes a staple part of your life, and sometimes can be hard to give up. But I have greatly enjoyed my time as a Dota player, and I'm ready to continue with my life. I would like to share my final thoughts on Dota, its player base, and the high and low lights of my Dota career.
First and foremost, I would like to thank the following people for making my Dota experience memorable and enjoyable:
Thank you, Jacob "Maelk" Toft-Anderson, for being a good friend, an astounding captain, and an all-around honorable person. I choose the hero Chen to represent you, for Chen is the Holy Knight and representative of chivalry, honor and gallantry.
Thank you, Brian "MaNia" Strandby. You were a reliable teammate, who never underperformed. You always showed up on time for practice or matches, and you always kept your temper. You were also the best initiator I've ever had the pleasure of playing with, and in my opinion, you are one of the best ES/SK players in the world. The hero I choose for you is Tiny, because you're like the rock that stays steady, no matter what we're faced with.
Thank you, Martin "Pusher" Mogenson, for always keeping the mood around our team light, and for being a selfless player. I admired how you always tried your best in our matches and scrims, and maintained a very lively and funny attitude. To me, you're most like Ezalor, Keeper of the Light, because you are as wise, old and white as they come!
Thank you, Clinton "Fear" Loomis, for always finding the patience to deal with the more dramatic and immature members of our team (in EG and Nirvana). EG and Nirvana both would have fallen apart long ago, if not for this resilient little "robot". You're a good friend, both in game and out. Clinton is like Clinkz, because he's one pale, skinny mofo.
Thank you, Steve "Durty" Nam for being the first person I really enjoyed playing with. You were the one who kept my passion for the game alive. For Durty, I pick the hero SpiritBreaker, because in my mind, he's just a really fun hero, just like Steve.
Thank you, Joseph "Protease" Kuo, for always supporting me when it comes to real life matters. Your loyalty is admirable, and you're the best friend I've made during my Dota career. He's like Spectre - he's always there for me when I need him.
Saving the best for last, thank you, Emily "Sayuri" Weiss, for being my loving, caring girlfriend. She's shown me my true passion during a time in my life when I was lacking both direction and motivation. Some associate my budding relationship with her as the cause of my lackluster performance, but to me, it's the opposite. I'm finally at my best.
Lowlights
August 2008, ESWC
I think ESWC San Jose was a definite low-point for me, because I remember putting forth so much effort to make sure that MYM was the best team in the West. In my head, being one of the most dominating and talented teams in the Western hemisphere qualified us to be pretty close to the best in the world.
I was wrong, and we took 3rd.
After winning Dreamhack in 2007, I felt fairly confident that our team was strong, and a force to be reckoned with on an international scale. After losing to Kingsurf at ESWC, I realized how far there was left to go to accomplish my goal of being one of the best in the world.
April-May 2010, Nirvana.int
I've been very lucky to compete on many amazing teams, with great people. I was very unhappy when the "Demon-Puppey" conflict started to affect my team, my friends, and myself. I was even more sorry when our Sponsor, Loveen Chang, was forced into the middle, and into an uncomfortable position. Loveen has always been a supportive and reliable sponsor to me, and I regret that the situation could not have been resolved in a more mature manner.
Dreamhack 2009
I was unable to attend Dreamhack 2009 with Ravens!. When I was on Ravens! I really enjoyed myself. I really liked playing with each and every team member, and I was looking forward to being able to participate in Dreamhack again. When I was unable to go, I realized for the first time, how unfortunate it was that Dota, (for such a long-standing competitive game) had such low prize-pool money, and even lower sponsorship finances. Because I was American, it was out of the question for a sponsor to send me, and it was the first time I fully realized how much Dota was hampered by insufficient funding. One of my largest Dota regrets is not being able to compete in Dreamhack 2009.
2006-Present
Another lowlight in my Dota career has been the fanbase. I never set out to be a famous Dota player; I enjoyed the challenge the game presented, and I enjoyed the game itself, for fun. Along the way, I've encountered so many Dota fans, some of which would fanatically support a team one day, then flame and bash them the next. I always found it hard to accept that people could be so fickle, and at times, just plain rude. It was pretty common, throughout my Dota career, to see a team praised for an exemplary performance, then completely smashed just hours later, if their performance was not as strong.
If I could change one thing about the Dota community, it would be to ask the Dota fans to have more loyalty.
Highlights
Dreamhack 2007
Attending Dreamhack 2007 was one of the most memorable Dota experiences of my career. Not only because we won, but because I appreciated Dota as more than just a game. If it wasn't for Dota, I wouldn't have met so many extraordinary people, including Levent, H4nn1, p0c, Maelk and Mania. Being able to finally meet the people I'd spent hours collaborating and working with was a truly remarkable experience, and one that I will always remember.
Farm4Fame 2010
I really appreciated Farm4Fame. Even though I couldn't be there to play in the finals, I was really impressed by the way our team pulled itself together and set aside their differences in order to win. It's something that you rarely see in the competitive Dota scene.
IceFrog
Being able to collaborate, even in a small way, with IceFrog was one of the best experiences I had in Dota. To Date, I have 132 e-mails from IceFrog, every one of which I am very flattered to have received. IceFrog spends so many countless hours developing a game that was such a big part of my life-- the fact that my opinion meant something to him, anything to him, really, was something that made me very happy. When a new Dota map is on the horizon, IceFrog sends out the pre-emptive changelist to a couple of people. I was very honored to have been one of those people. I always enjoyed giving my feedback and suggestions.
I remember very vividly the first time that IceFrog made a change that I had suggested-- I had lobbied very hard for the ForceStaff cooldown to be altered from 30 seconds to 25, and the manacost reduced from 100 to 25. In the end, after explaining my reasoning, I told him that it would mean a lot to me. He sent me back the changelog, set for the next Dota patch. I truly feel much honored to have been able to keep in contact with someone who has done so much for the gaming community. My last and final thank you goes to IceFrog, for all of the time and effort he has spent to ensure that the game is enjoyable for all of us. If you read this, I wish you luck in your future endeavors. Thank you.
Dota was a chapter in my life that I really enjoyed. From meeting amazing people, to being able to travel across the world, I will never forget the truly incredible experiences it has brought me.
Thank you,
Ben "Merlini" Wu
Source: myMYM (http://www.mymym.com/en/news/18824.html)
---------- Post added at 10:30 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:29 AM ----------
Sad that such a talented player quits DotA =/
What hero would you attribute to him? ^^
He also recount all the good and bad moments he got during his DotA career and gives a last shout-out to a person he seems to admire for all the work he did for DotA and therefore for the community, I talk about IceFroG.
After his departure, his formers Nirvana.Int team mates Clinton "Fear" Loomis and Jimmy "Demon" Ho left a message to Merlini and now it is time for Merlini to do the same. You will also see the reasons for which he decided to quit DotA.
Merlini's farewell blog:
Final Thoughts on DotA
Most players who quit Dota don't write a blog. Dota, for many professional players, becomes more than a hobby. More, even, than a job-- it becomes a staple part of your life, and sometimes can be hard to give up. But I have greatly enjoyed my time as a Dota player, and I'm ready to continue with my life. I would like to share my final thoughts on Dota, its player base, and the high and low lights of my Dota career.
First and foremost, I would like to thank the following people for making my Dota experience memorable and enjoyable:
Thank you, Jacob "Maelk" Toft-Anderson, for being a good friend, an astounding captain, and an all-around honorable person. I choose the hero Chen to represent you, for Chen is the Holy Knight and representative of chivalry, honor and gallantry.
Thank you, Brian "MaNia" Strandby. You were a reliable teammate, who never underperformed. You always showed up on time for practice or matches, and you always kept your temper. You were also the best initiator I've ever had the pleasure of playing with, and in my opinion, you are one of the best ES/SK players in the world. The hero I choose for you is Tiny, because you're like the rock that stays steady, no matter what we're faced with.
Thank you, Martin "Pusher" Mogenson, for always keeping the mood around our team light, and for being a selfless player. I admired how you always tried your best in our matches and scrims, and maintained a very lively and funny attitude. To me, you're most like Ezalor, Keeper of the Light, because you are as wise, old and white as they come!
Thank you, Clinton "Fear" Loomis, for always finding the patience to deal with the more dramatic and immature members of our team (in EG and Nirvana). EG and Nirvana both would have fallen apart long ago, if not for this resilient little "robot". You're a good friend, both in game and out. Clinton is like Clinkz, because he's one pale, skinny mofo.
Thank you, Steve "Durty" Nam for being the first person I really enjoyed playing with. You were the one who kept my passion for the game alive. For Durty, I pick the hero SpiritBreaker, because in my mind, he's just a really fun hero, just like Steve.
Thank you, Joseph "Protease" Kuo, for always supporting me when it comes to real life matters. Your loyalty is admirable, and you're the best friend I've made during my Dota career. He's like Spectre - he's always there for me when I need him.
Saving the best for last, thank you, Emily "Sayuri" Weiss, for being my loving, caring girlfriend. She's shown me my true passion during a time in my life when I was lacking both direction and motivation. Some associate my budding relationship with her as the cause of my lackluster performance, but to me, it's the opposite. I'm finally at my best.
Lowlights
August 2008, ESWC
I think ESWC San Jose was a definite low-point for me, because I remember putting forth so much effort to make sure that MYM was the best team in the West. In my head, being one of the most dominating and talented teams in the Western hemisphere qualified us to be pretty close to the best in the world.
I was wrong, and we took 3rd.
After winning Dreamhack in 2007, I felt fairly confident that our team was strong, and a force to be reckoned with on an international scale. After losing to Kingsurf at ESWC, I realized how far there was left to go to accomplish my goal of being one of the best in the world.
April-May 2010, Nirvana.int
I've been very lucky to compete on many amazing teams, with great people. I was very unhappy when the "Demon-Puppey" conflict started to affect my team, my friends, and myself. I was even more sorry when our Sponsor, Loveen Chang, was forced into the middle, and into an uncomfortable position. Loveen has always been a supportive and reliable sponsor to me, and I regret that the situation could not have been resolved in a more mature manner.
Dreamhack 2009
I was unable to attend Dreamhack 2009 with Ravens!. When I was on Ravens! I really enjoyed myself. I really liked playing with each and every team member, and I was looking forward to being able to participate in Dreamhack again. When I was unable to go, I realized for the first time, how unfortunate it was that Dota, (for such a long-standing competitive game) had such low prize-pool money, and even lower sponsorship finances. Because I was American, it was out of the question for a sponsor to send me, and it was the first time I fully realized how much Dota was hampered by insufficient funding. One of my largest Dota regrets is not being able to compete in Dreamhack 2009.
2006-Present
Another lowlight in my Dota career has been the fanbase. I never set out to be a famous Dota player; I enjoyed the challenge the game presented, and I enjoyed the game itself, for fun. Along the way, I've encountered so many Dota fans, some of which would fanatically support a team one day, then flame and bash them the next. I always found it hard to accept that people could be so fickle, and at times, just plain rude. It was pretty common, throughout my Dota career, to see a team praised for an exemplary performance, then completely smashed just hours later, if their performance was not as strong.
If I could change one thing about the Dota community, it would be to ask the Dota fans to have more loyalty.
Highlights
Dreamhack 2007
Attending Dreamhack 2007 was one of the most memorable Dota experiences of my career. Not only because we won, but because I appreciated Dota as more than just a game. If it wasn't for Dota, I wouldn't have met so many extraordinary people, including Levent, H4nn1, p0c, Maelk and Mania. Being able to finally meet the people I'd spent hours collaborating and working with was a truly remarkable experience, and one that I will always remember.
Farm4Fame 2010
I really appreciated Farm4Fame. Even though I couldn't be there to play in the finals, I was really impressed by the way our team pulled itself together and set aside their differences in order to win. It's something that you rarely see in the competitive Dota scene.
IceFrog
Being able to collaborate, even in a small way, with IceFrog was one of the best experiences I had in Dota. To Date, I have 132 e-mails from IceFrog, every one of which I am very flattered to have received. IceFrog spends so many countless hours developing a game that was such a big part of my life-- the fact that my opinion meant something to him, anything to him, really, was something that made me very happy. When a new Dota map is on the horizon, IceFrog sends out the pre-emptive changelist to a couple of people. I was very honored to have been one of those people. I always enjoyed giving my feedback and suggestions.
I remember very vividly the first time that IceFrog made a change that I had suggested-- I had lobbied very hard for the ForceStaff cooldown to be altered from 30 seconds to 25, and the manacost reduced from 100 to 25. In the end, after explaining my reasoning, I told him that it would mean a lot to me. He sent me back the changelog, set for the next Dota patch. I truly feel much honored to have been able to keep in contact with someone who has done so much for the gaming community. My last and final thank you goes to IceFrog, for all of the time and effort he has spent to ensure that the game is enjoyable for all of us. If you read this, I wish you luck in your future endeavors. Thank you.
Dota was a chapter in my life that I really enjoyed. From meeting amazing people, to being able to travel across the world, I will never forget the truly incredible experiences it has brought me.
Thank you,
Ben "Merlini" Wu
Source: myMYM (http://www.mymym.com/en/news/18824.html)
---------- Post added at 10:30 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:29 AM ----------
Sad that such a talented player quits DotA =/
What hero would you attribute to him? ^^