The Devil’s Advocate: NiP’s duo

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The Devil’s Advocate takes another viewpoint on heated or controversial topics around eSports.

Case Number: 4102-67-1

Defendants: Erlend “NukeDuck” Holm, former mid laner of Ninjas in Pyjamas and Alfonso “Mithy” Rodriguez, former support of Ninjas in Pyjamas.

Less than a week ago, two of Europe’s finest players in their respective roles – Erlend ‘NukeDuck’ Holm and Alfonso ‘Mithy’ Rodriguez were banned from both the EU Challenger Series and the LCS. This means that the duo’s (should they choose to remain active) earliest chance at entering the LCS is in May 2015. This left the NiP organization in a tough spot given the huge gap that the Swedish management will be trying to fill.

While the unfortunate outcome was announced a couple of days ago, the whole ordeal began months ago with many complaints against high level pro players who were deemed toxic by their peers given their disrespectful behavior or foul language in game. Among others, the NiP duo stood out as their reputation of cocky players preceded them.

At this point many are wondering what the hell is there to discuss given the crystal clear cause-effect case we have. I do believe the whole situation was completely mishandled by all parties involved and also included a number of mismatches in “punishment” which ultimately lead to the demand (yes, demand) for certain players or members of pro teams to be banned because of their behavior.

Setting the guidelines

First and foremost, both players took responsibility for their actions and admitted to have abused their rights. In addition, I do not plan on convincing anyone that cursing in solo queue is no big deal in any way. The shortest way back to Bronze is through constant abuse so if that is your forte, be my guest. The main arguments for the mistreatment of this whole case are age, community pressure, no real life equivalent of solo queue and its environment, the mind-baffling conclusions drawn from the screenshot fiasco and finally, the inconsistent punishments of Riot. I want to show you how the horrendous mistreatment from multiple sides of the issue led to the downfall of both Erlend and Alfonso.

All of those mixed together yield a rather poor result – the loss of two of Europe’s finest. For references who actually NukeDuck and Mithy are and their value to the European scene, I would direct you towards Duncan ‘Thorin’ Shields. He detailed the career story of Mithy in an article here on onGamers and in addition, Grilled NukeDuck during his time as Editor-in-Chief of Acer eSports.

Age and Solo Queue

One of the biggest sacrifices a highly competitive pro gamer makes is the social factor. This, however, does not represent the fun side of social contacts. As Fnatic made evident from Twitter, Facebook and AllStar, partying is hardly a concern for Europe’s best. What we are talking about here is the formation of an individual, his opinions on social problems and issues that plague our “modern” society among other things. Here we will (for a bit) cross politics and gaming, something which I sincerely hate. The main demographic of the game is predominantly teens or people in their early twenties, individuals who either have not or are just making their first steps into society as functioning human beings.

The moment both’s notoriety blew up was when their fabled screenshot was released. That catalyst justified all the rumours that the pair is arrogant and cocky and for some reason, despite not being given any context or additional chat history besides the pair’s lines, the reddit legion was calling for bans, punishments and was already completing the psych evaluation of the players. Something which I found also incredibly interesting was that only ONE thread in all of reddit actually argued that there may be something more to the screenshot than we are all seeing. For not agreeing with the vast majority however, the “perfect” system of downvotes sent the aforementioned thread into oblivion.

The main point I want to make is that considering all the facts we have you cannot label someone a racist. In that case, not only the gaming community, but the overwhelming majority of internet users is racist, misogynistic etc. I don’t even want to go into the fact that the language which was displayed in the screenshot has been the norm in both normal games and solo queue for a long, long time. Bottom line, using racial slurs makes both players look immature and illiterate. Their lesson will be learned the hard way, but trust me when I say I have a (very) hard time imagining each of those actually abusing people of any other race in real life. The extreme sensitivity and over-politicizing of simple idiotic behavior inside and outside gaming has not helped either. Finally let me leave you with some food for thought – if those types of insults have become the norm does this mean that the Tribunal is ineffective or flawed? Are games only played by illiterate and narrow-minded baboons?

Moving on, we have the infamous policy of Riot Games to take eSports as close as possible to real sports. While that is all fine, solo queue is somewhat an obscure training ground compared to any traditional sport known to man. As Kobe does not take four random players from the Western Conference pro player pool in order to practice the same way Lionel Messi or Christiano do not take ten more random La Liga players in order to hone their skills prior to the start of or during the Spanish championship. In comparison, professional LoL players are always gambling on what type of teammates they will get in order to keep up their mechanical level in solo queue.

I have seen cases where pros demand a certain role in order to practice and while I do not agree with such behavior, I understand it and in some cases, respect that need. Heck, if I was a pro player and wanted to practice for an upcoming decisive clash, I would be pretty upset if a Challenger player who does not share the same responsibilities does not oblige in my request to switch. Isn’t solo queue a practice ground after all?

We have seen countless times the usual stance on the matter – ND and Mithy’s point of view on their teammates, but recently something which I speculated turned out to be true. In a series of tweets, NukeDuck shared that he and Mithy were victims of abuse. You can see the tweets stating that allied or enemy players threatened to report him, with full-knowledge of the consequence that would have on his career, should he do something that does not please them. While that does not change the previous toxicity showed by the duo, are not the people who threaten to ruin his career the same ones who took a white knight-ish stance on the matter of toxicity in forums and social media? Have the people who judge their behaviour spent a game in high ELO? Do they know how much that behaviour has spread throughout that tier? Can they not connect the dots? Baffling…

The leaked screenshots

The catalyst which brought both Erlend and Alfonso to the “spotlight” was definitely the leaked screenshot depicting them use the n-word and offensive language towards the Jewish community. Upon opening the thread I was pleasantly surprised to see that the majority came to the correct conclusion – obviously they do not understand the impact of such statements for one reason or another. Their lack of understanding is evident. However, over the next couple of days almost every single person failed to critically assess the situation properly.

Somehow, the fact that this was a custom game lobby and a private conversation which was leaked was neglected in favor of witch-hunting and pleas to ban with immediate effect/ sack from NiP/ punish both players. Here, a red alert bell starts to ring. What stops me from getting banned if in a private game lobby, I start insulting a friend or someone I know (given he knows the details to my Custom Game)? All that Riot needs is someone to take a screenshot of those lines and send a ticket. Simple as 1-2-3.

The right to privacy was broken on many levels here and a private conversation was taken out of context to satisfy the need of moral superiority of others. The trend of worshiping certain individuals and forever condemning others has been a part of eSports for a long time, but God forbid you are a disliked figure and get caught in the act… Your fate will be sealed. What was most frightening was that no one even questioned whether context is required or not. How come when I open the thread I come across people who have never used such words in their life? People, who have never felt negatively during a game of League of Legends and people who have never, ever told an inappropriate joke in a private setting, cursed at their teammate(s) or in general made mistakes such as those two. Maybe I am a flawed human being for trying to defend the circumstance of two foolish teenagers?

Last, but not least, how is a mere custom game relevant enough for everyone to draw conclusions on the professionalism level of Erlend and Alfonso? It is 100% correct that they are contracted professionals, but did the accident occur in a competitive setting (EUCS, EU LCS)? This article would not even be in my head had that happened, but this is a fact which for some bizarre reason was neglected. Luis Suarez was banned for 10 games after found guilty of using racial slurs against Patrice Evra in an official match. The case is crystal clear.

As before, let me leave you with some food for thought: what made toxicity record holders Shook and Ocelote change and why isn’t it working with NukeDuck and Mithy? Do you believe they have really changed? What would happen if we were to hypothetically release a controversial screenshot depicting Alex Ich/DoubleLift/Lemonnation using racial slurs against minorities and mocking handicapped people? Would the community reaction be the same? Think really hard on the last one.

Riot's inconsistencies

I carefully followed what Riot’s reaction would be. As a company, they must protect their interests, i.e. distance themselves from any liabilities that their affiliates or employees may represent. After the screenshot leakage, threads requesting Riot action were popping all over reddit, expressing their thorough concern over what horrible human beings represent the European Challenger scene across the globe. There and then, Riot was strong-armed into taking action. My first question is, what makes NukeDuck and Mithy so special that any random “unpleasant” (to say the least) person X does not deserve a permanent ban also?

They are contracted players and as such they work for Riot!

I completely agree and if that had happened in an official game, broadcasted over any streaming platform, then by all means, show the door to both rascals. However, the accident occurred in a private, custom game lobby which, to my knowledge, was not broadcasted. In addition, the conversation was leaked with no provided context and submitted online. So tell me, is the contract still a viable excuse for the action?

The 500$ fine was a jaw-dropping decision by Riot in my book. Given all the above facts, the players were actually fined… It is clearly visible why the punishment did not work. At the time, the fine could safely be deducted from NiP’s top 3 Challenger Series finish, thus having no impact on the players, serving as a slap on the wrist. Can I assume that this was a “crowd pleaser” type of action from Riot? Would I be going too far in such an assumption?

For some strange reason, Riot is trying to sell the teams and players as role models to the community. How can boys, who have no idea what their stance on life is, be a role model for the targeted audience? It just does not work that way. To once again draw comparison to sports, even athletes who are grown men have said on multiple occasions that they are not role models. I think only Charles Barkley can give you a better view on things…

Continuing onwards, another member of the toxic elite was punished. The notorious Spartan Carry, Konstantinos ‘Forg1ven’ Tzortziou, known for his extremely offensive language was fined 1,000$ after numerous reports. To my knowledge Kosta was being a general pain and did not discriminate in offending his teammates or enemies on the Summoner’s Rift. What conclusion can we immediately draw if we compare both cases given the latter fine was twice the first? Does this mean racial slurs are not as bad as general toxicity? Am I taking this out of context? Are YOU taking the whole ordeal out of context?

As tradition follows, I will leave you with some food for though. Is the punishment system ineffective? Should Riot introduce a team-punishment approach which would test the organization’s ability to keep their players in check? Did NiP overlook the potential threat of a permanent ban given the “slap on the wrist” from Riot?

Final verdict

Unfortunately, the deed is done. Erlend and Alfonso are now both out of competitive play (EUCS, EU LCS) and NiP thanks to their own stubbornness and inability to adapt. By continuing their ways, both players sealed their fate and they have no one to blame, but themselves. They blew their chance to join the LCS where they belong and potentially, continue to make history.

On a more positive note, the mid laner has publicly stated his intentions to join the Light Side and leave his toxicity in the past. Alfonso will put a hold on his active career in favour of coaching, helping an unannounced team at this point. Whether they will return to pro play once 2015 comes draws many speculations.

What is more, both took the news well and completely agreed with their punishment. A lesson learned the hard way, unfortunately, for two players who could have (and still can depending on their choices) represented Europe in an amazing fashion. At the end of the day, Erlend and Alfonso understood the impact of their words although it took their salary and eligibility to be among the very best. The bias with which the case was handled still gives me headaches to this day.

The biggest loser here, however, is the community and the European scene. There are numerous threads and “eye-witnesses” detailing the toxicity of fan-favourites such as heartthrob Martin ‘Rekkles’ Larson and TSM frontrunner Soren ‘Bjergsen’ Bjerg. Then why have I not seen an anti-Rekkles or anti-Bjergsen thread yet? What makes them different? Next time you condemn a player (regardless of whether he is a pro or not) for his behavior; take at least a second to think whether it is worth it to actually do it or just hit the magical mute button and continue enjoying your daily dose of League of Legends…

The defense rests.

Images courtesy of LoLesports, Elocoach, BeinSports.tv, eSportsHeaven