DoA announces departure from Overwatch League casting 

Professional commentator Erik “DoA” Lonnquist announced he would be parting ways with Blizzard Entertainment from season 3 of the Overwatch League. This news comes shortly after casting partner Christopher “MonteCristo” Mykles did the same. DoA cited creative differences as the key reason for his departure.

Toss a Coin to your Caster

Read: https://t.co/UAJtUqNFgw

— Erik DoA Lonnquist (@ggDoA) January 6, 2020

DoA exits to new opportunities

“After a lot of thought, I’ve decided to move away from a full-time role at the Overwatch League in 2020 and explore other opportunities in gaming,” said Lonnquist in a Twitlonger post. “It’s been a fantastic experience working with my fellow casters, big brain desk people, and the incredible staff at the Blizzard arena over the last two years, but due to some of the League’s decisions over the last year in terms of creative direction, management, and resistance to input from veteran esports personal (sic), I felt it was time for a change.”

DoA goes on to state that he isn’t totally separating from Overwatch and might attend a few events this year. He also thanks former Overwatch League Commissioner Nate Nanzer for giving him the opportunity to help build the league, along with lead designer Jeff Kaplan and principal designer Scott Mercer.

However, the biggest difficulty for DoA is that this transition will mean the end of his casting partnership with MonteCristo. DoA started casting on StarCraft but transitioned to League of Legends Champions Korea (LCK) alongside MonteCristo in 2013. He also helped with OnGameNet’s Hearthstone tournaments with Christopher “PapaSmithy” Smith.

The duo first cast Overwatch after OGN hosted Season 1 of APEX, the first Korean Overwatch tournament. They later transitioned to fully casting the team-based multiplayer first-person shooter in 2017. In total, DoA and MonteCristo have been together for around seven years, but they will now go down different avenues.

Overwatch League success?

DoA mentions going back to titles he previously cast, with even Teamfight Tactics as a possibility. He also goes on to state that he believes in what the Overwatch League is doing for the esports ecosystem, as he was part of the scene even during the league’s infancy.

Many in the community who might not even be fans of Overwatch itself hope that the Overwatch League can continue to succeed. This is because the league has generated millions of investment in the space. If it fails, not only will teams lose out on their $20-50 million franchise spots, but the whole esports scene will take a significant hit.