Hearthstone professional player and esports icon, Thijs “Thijs” Molendijk, announced via Twitter that he would be retiring from Grandmasters. Thijs stated in his announcement that he contemplated retirement last year, but braved out one last season. In his Twitlonger, Thijs says “Grandmasters started to feel more like an obligation to me than that I was really enjoying it” and that this last year was particularly difficult.
Thijs reflected on this eight-year professional career positively, and hinted that this potentially was not the end of him as a pro. It certainly is not the last time he will be playing Hearthstone, as he states “Definitely not as a person in Hearthstone. I love the game, the community, everything.”
Thijs ended his professional career as one of the most decorated Hearthstone players to touch the game and is unlikely to be surpassed moving into the future of the Hearthstone esports scene.
Thijs is not the only player to retire this season however, as many others joining him in his departure of the competitive scene. Many of players retiring from competitive play come from the APAC region. Jungsoo “Surrender” Kim, Muzahidul “Muzzy” Islam, Ng “Blitzchung” Wai Chung, and Eddie “Eddie” Lui are just some of the former pros leaving the scene.
Many of the pros have cited motivation, or lack thereof, as their reasons for retiring. Hearthstone, like many other esports during the pandemic, suffered greatly from a lack of live events and international competition. Unfortunately, many of the pros who defined the Hearthstone scene will not see its eventual return to LAN. As other TCGs grow and thrive, such as Riot’s Legends of Runeterra, it will be interesting to see where Hearthstone’s future ends up.
Also read:
- Is T-Mobile pulling out out of CDL following the Activision-Blizzard lawsuit?
- Former Blizzard employees detail the infamous ‘Cosby Suite’
- The World of Warcraft team responds to Blizzard Activision controversy & Employees set date for company walkout
What do you think about this? Join the discussion on social media or Discord!
You can also help improve our website by submitting direct feedback!