It was reported by GosuGamers on Thursday 23rd June that Creation eSports support player KnOxXx had left the organisation and was making a tentative move to rivals Rogue. Only fifteen minutes after the story was published an amendment was made stating:
"UPDATE: As of 12:00 GMT, Creation eSports deny the move, stating that KnOxXx representing Rogue in one event is nothing more than that, and that he is still registered as their player. Furthermore, KnOxXx was registered for Rogue, but did not play for the team yesterday, with 2GD in instead. We will keep you updated as the story unfolds."
At first glance it seemed like an honest reporting mistake. As a long suffering competitive TF2 fan I just refused to believe that KnOxXx would ever part ways with numlocked - they are the Ross and Rachael of class based team shooters. A few days passed and I could breathe easy again; the story had gone cold, no further updates from GosuGamers, but as it turns out there was more than a shred of truth to these tales.
Speaking to a reputable unnamed source on Friday I learned that KnOxXx had in fact told his teammates early on Wednesday that he was planning to leave them after their ESL Amazon Gaming Series Cup #2 fixtures had been played that night. Further probing revealed that he had apparently been offered a chance to play with Rogue and upon hearing this the Creation players decided they didn't want to play with him at all on Wednesday.
Now this was just one side of the story at the time, yet to be verified, but these actions on Wednesday would form the crux of the arguments in what may turn in to a legal dispute. The decision of the Creation team to play without KnOxXx triggered a clause in his contract that allowed him to leave if he was benched for three consecutive games – that night Creation eSports played four games in the aforementioned cup using Joshua "ToxikeN" Campos instead of KnOxXx.
Screenshot of Creation eSports' ESL history:
Screenshot of Rogue's ESL history:
We can see that three hours after being kicked from the Creation ESL roster KnOxXx joined the Rogue ESL roster. However, he did not play that night for Rogue; they used longstanding coach/backup player James "2GD" Harding in their Wednesday cup games.
I reached out to the player in the spotlight, Jean-Louis "KnOxXx" Boyer, and he issued the following statement:
"After talking to the team about the need for a change, they shut me out, removed me from the active roster, and played more than 3 consecutive matches without me. This was a breach of my contract with Creation and I used this breach to void my contract with them. I am currently trying out for Rogue and hope to become the permanent 6th."
Looking to clarify the situation I spoke with Creation eSports CEO and founder, Omri "GreatOldOne" Pitaru:
"On Wednesday the 22nd of June, before ESL Amazon Gaming Series Cup #2, KnOxXx sent me a statement declaring that he is leaving the organization, explaining that he was not getting along with the other players. We requested he stay at least through the weekend, to participate in important events that were already scheduled, and such late notice did not leave time to find a proper replacement. KnOxXx refused, and stated that he already received an offer from Rogue, and was leaving. I requested him to wait until I try to negotiate a deal with Rogue, to which he agreed. KnOxXx, still legally under a Creation eSports contract, registered himself on the Rogue roster before ESL Amazon Gaming Series Cup #2 began, and played for them on Thursday the 23rd of June. This was a breach of his contract, and we are investigating avenues of legal action. Fortunately, ToxikeN stepped to sub on Wednesday, and is now in tryouts to become our 6th member."
So it transpires that Creation eSports are contesting the claim that they voided the contract when playing without KnOxXx. Creation feel that KnOxXx breached his own contract when he joined the Rogue ESL roster, despite seeming to acknowledge that it was only for one event previously in GosuGamers article update quoted at the beginning.
The stakes for Creation eSports are significant; a heated decision by the players on Wednesday afternoon may have cost the team a rumoured €6000 buyout fee on top of losing their veteran Lucio shot caller. However, Rogue have stated that they are yet to even make KnOxXx an offer, so any questions of buyouts appear to be premature.
Speaking with the CEO and founder of Rogue, Frank Villarreal, I asked him to lay out his position:
"Even now, 5 days after everything occurred, Rogue has made no offer to KnOxXx. No player from Rogue made an offer to KnOxXx previous to his departure from Creation. Protecting your organization is important, but repeatedly threatening a player after your players breached his contract without your knowledge is bullying, plain and simple. Players need to be able to feel safe to leave an organization when their contracts are breached, and as far as I can tell after spending days gathering the facts and talking to all involved, that is all he was doing."
It would seem that any dispute falls squarely between KnOxXx and Creation eSports, although obviously Rogue are an interested, but as yet uncommitted party. There are still many questions to be answered, the only thing that seems certain is that KnOxXx won't be playing any more games for Creation eSports. I'd like to note also that his long-time friend and team coach, Michael "Mitsy" Debus was also removed from the ESL roster.
Interestingly Creation actually went on to beat Rogue in the Amazon Gaming Series Semi-Finals on Sunday in what must have been the grudge match of the century, but ultimately these contract disputes will have to be settled in the court of law rather than Gibraltar, Dorado or Kings Row.
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