Auguste “Semmler” Massonnat has announced that he will not return to cast full-time in the Overwatch League.
I will not be returning to cast full-time at @overwatchleague. The hard part is putting a 2 year partnership on hold. Thanks to @hexagrams for having my back in all things. Too many in the crew to thank, you know who you are. Best of luck with the homestands! Time to GET AFTER IT pic.twitter.com/TConzA6r7u
— Semmler (@OnFireSemmler) January 13, 2020
Semmler first casted Overwatch esports in the Overwatch Open in September 2016. At the time, he was a caster in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. He was later announced as a caster before the start of the inaugural OWL season, and has casted in the league since then.
Semmler said in an interview with The Loadout that that there’s no bad blood between him and the league. “If I were to pop in and do a weekend here or there, I’ve not closed any doors,” he says. “The game just changed. If you’ve watched me cast Counter-Strike, you’ll know I like to get excited and hyped, but also that I don’t fake it. But that was getting more and more difficult in Overwatch.”
Semmler also said that CS:GO is back in his frame among other things. “It always feels like I’m coming home when I cast that game,” he says. “I’m really going to try and get more going with CS:GO. I did two years at Overwatch but it’s time to change it up.”
Although he was a caster in OWL, he did do multiple CS:GO tournaments in the offseasons, with the most recent one being the BLAST Pro Series: Global Finals last December.
Semmler is the most recent on-air talent to part ways with the league. Last week, Erik "DoA" Lonnquist departed from the league, and Andrew "ZP" Rush joined the casting lineup.
The league has yet to announce a new casting partner for Robert "hexagrams" Kirkbride, Semmler's previous casting partner.