Peter "ppd" Dager leaves the Dota 2 esports industry after more than seven years. With him goes one of the most iconic figures of the professional scene.
Yesterday ppd announced the end of his Dota 2 esports career on Twitter. In a short statement, the 28-year-old explains that he spent most of his twenties playing competitive video games and is now looking for something new. He wants to focus more on his personal development in the future than on competing with other players. Change is important and he would like to open a new chapter in his 30s. He also thanks all fans, teams and the whole Dota 2 community:
Moving on - Retiring from competitive Dota 2Read: https://t.co/7mZ0mpALwk
— Peter Dager (@Peterpandam) April 20, 2020
A legend of the Dota 2 scene
Ppd started his career with Heroes of Newerth before he switched to Dota 2. In the course of the many matches in this MOBA, ppd achieved many things that other professional players still dream of today. He won several trophies, including first place at the Dota 2 Asia Championships 2015 and also The International 2015, after which he took a break as a player and took on an administrative position at Evil Geniuses, which he later even led as CEO. After The International 2017, he returned as a player with OpticGaming. He moved to Europe and set up the roster that was to take eighth place at the TI 2018. Due to the success at Optic, he was recruited by Ninjas in Pyjamas the same year to revitalize the team again.
- READ MORE: Esports player transfers: Weeks 14-15, 2020
Ppd at NiP
Peter "ppd" Dager was team captain of the NiP-Dota 2 roaster since 2018 and tried to get the team back on track. Ninjas in Pyjamas are very grateful for his efforts and say goodbye to ppd on Twitter:
.@Peterpandam retires from @DOTA2https://t.co/kazPObvCUzThank you for everything, Peter! pic.twitter.com/BgGt4QjUzT
— Ninjas in Pyjamas (@NIPGaming) April 20, 2020
Unfortunately, the roster has not been doing so well lately. NiP dropped out of TI 2019 in the group phase and continued to struggle afterward. When they were finally on the road to recovery, the Corona Pandemic came, which hit the team hard again as some players were unable to participate in tournaments due to travel restrictions.
The timing of ppd's resignation is not too surprising, although we would have liked to see more of him. The Corona Pandemic has damaged the Dota 2 scene, but it is slowly recovering and more and more tournaments are being held online. We've seen other pro players retire in the past only to make a return after some time. This might also be the case with Peter and while he's out of the pro scene, we'll most likely see him stream Dota 2.
For more news and updates check out our Dota 2 section.
