LoL professional Doublelift is finally ending his career. In an emotional video he reflects on his career and explains the reasons. MeinMMO tells you the details.
Yiliang Peter Doublelift Peng has announced his retirement from the LoL professional scene after over a decade. Doublelift is one of the few North American players to have been at the top of the LCS for almost their entire career. Now he has announced in an emotional video that this time he is really putting his career as a professional player aside forever.
Who is Doublelift?
What does Doublelift say in the video? In this video on YouTube, Doublelift reflects on his career, which was marked by ups and downs. His first break came in Season 7 due to mental issues, while his second retirement after breaking up with TSM in Season 10 was due to external pressure and the need for time off to regroup. “I knew in my heart that I would come back and try again,” he says. For him, the time off wasn’t really an end, but this time he’s serious about it.
I’m retiring, for real this time.
What reasons does he give? He highlighted two main reasons, including financial sacrifices and the changing climate of the League of Legends Championship Series (LCS) and esports in general. He explains that he earns more from streaming on Twitch than in the professional scene. I made a really big financial sacrifice by switching from streaming to gaming last year [in der Profi-Szene] I changed because I really wanted to play.
You can see the entire video here:
Doublelift pursued the dream of one day winning the League of Legends Worlds
Doublelift expressed concerns about the development of the LCS and esports in general. His dream of becoming world champion and achieving something internationally for America is far away. Because there aren’t many teams that are willing to spend money. As a result, there are only a few competitive rosters. Doublelift also emphasizes that he achieved all of his career goals except winning the world title.
I want to start a family
In addition to the reasons mentioned, Doublelift particularly emphasizes that he wants to move on to the next phase of his life. Doublelift expresses that he would like to get married and start a family. He is currently dating Leena Xu, the then manager of TSM.
He reflects that pursuing his professional career while fulfilling these life goals would be unreasonable since, as a professional gamer, he tends to devote every hour of the day to gaming.
Doublelift wasn’t always so confident
The professional player also talks about his youth in the video. He shares his development from an insecure, socially anxious teenager to a grown man with his own personality and self-confidence. To this he says:
If I was able to go back in time and talk to my 15-year-old self – that I’m going to have this life, I’m going to have fans and I’m going to have a career and I’m going to be successful. It just wouldn’t make sense.
How could this be something my old self could believe? I was literally the biggest loser at my school. Seriously, I was always embarrassed by my looks, embarrassed by my social skills. I was always super panicked when I talked to someone.
Doublelift via YouTube
The now former professional player also expressed his passion for the game and the community. Despite stepping away from competition, Doublelift assured that he will remain dedicated to the League of Legends community by creating content, hosting streams, and participating in events. He emphasized his deep gratitude to his fans who have supported him on his journey and stated that he will always be in their debt.
Despite the slightly sad note, he feels overall very happy when he looks back on his experiences and thinks about how lucky he was to experience all of these things. He emphasizes that the search for happiness and contentment has been a constant struggle in his life, but he has learned to be content with what he has and not constantly strive for the next thing.
He concludes by emphasizing that without fans and the League community, his life as a professional would not have been the same. I will always have you to thank for everything I have, so yes, thank you.
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