Doublelift on the LCS Walkout Scandal!

Long-time LCS player Doublelift addressed the recent walkout.

The player held nothing back, describing the demands of the LCSPA as "unrealistic" and indicating that he would be willing to cave to Riot in order to play in the LCS Summer split.

Peter 'Doublelift' Peng is considered to be one of the most experienced and accomplished players in competitive League of Legends, and he's still boosting the ranks of the LCS today! He has been an integral component of several successful North American teams throughout the course of his career, notably boosting the ranks of teams like TSM, CLG, and Team Liquid.

Despite CLG selling their LCS seat and TSM's impending departure from NA, Doublelift is still going strong on 100 Thieves. Because of his extensive tenure in the industry, his opinions are highly respected.

In light of the recent LCS walkout, Doublelift has spoken out to say that he is ready to put competition ahead of the LCSPA's demands. As Doublelift phrased it, Riot is preparing to "go nuclear" in the LCS Summer split, and the ADC player is ready to take their side in order to continue playing competitively.

Riot has gone from remaining silent on the LCS walkout to threatening to cancel the entire Summer split should the players continue to refuse to perform in recent weeks.

The negotiations to get the LCS Summer split started under terms that everyone is satisfied with have also been mostly in the dark, with no public announcements having been made yet. Even a podcast edition of The Dive intended to address these concerns was scrapped.

Since Riot basically shut down the LCSPA's demands, Doublelift's word on the matter is the first to come out. Negatively impacting future talks is his assessment of the LCSPA statement and the NA environment generally.

LCSPA took heavy flak from Doublelift

Doublelift released a video lasting over 20 minutes, criticizing the LCSPA's list of demands, saying that it was "unrealistic" because the old Tier 2 ecosystem was "just as bad as the new one" and that a completely new system was needed to bring about any significant positive change.

He explained how in the former NACL atmosphere, players could coast on their paychecks without making any effort, while those who had a chance to make it to the LCS were almost hostaged by their organizations via predatory contracts and placed behind "ridiculous" buyouts. Doublelift and Tyler1 shared this view on the matter.

While he regrets the lost employment opportunities, he acknowledges that the system under which teams were mandated to maintain active rosters was unsustainable.

Keeping the best players locked behind contracts hinders regional growth because they are unable to improve their game by competing with the likes of North America's top players.

Doublelift has several disagreements with the LCSPA's requests, but he is prepared to "let go" and move on if necessary to avoid conflict with Riot. What's more, he had some ideas of his own about how to maintain the NACL running.

After using Disguised Toast's DSG lineup as an example of a club that was compelled to field a squad, Doublelift said that the NACL was supposed to be comprised of teams that wanted to be there.

As a player, being in a competitive League of Legends championship can boost both your popularity and chance of getting a long term career in gaming, as well as your experience and skills!

He said that Riot should help these teams out as well, but that Tier 1 League clubs already have to field a team, which represents a huge expense.

There are already 24 teams in China's Tier 2 League (LDL) for League of Legends, so this isn't completely unprecedented in the professional scene. Aside from the need for every LPL (China's Top League) club to have an LDL squad, there are also seven open slots that may be purchased by other teams.

Fans and experts of the League of Legends competitive scene who have read Doublelift's perspectives on the matter believe that he destroyed any negotiating strength the LCSPA had for the near future. We'll have to wait and see what's in store for the LCS and NACL.

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