The head of esports development at Virtus.pro, Nikita Lutov, revealed that most players read comments about themselves. He also admitted that many clubs try to shield their team members from fan opinions.
"I don't read comments about myself on the internet!"
"If I were paid every time I heard this phrase from another esports player, and if it were true, I wouldn't have earned a cent over the years. Usually, those who claim it the loudest are the ones who read a lot of comments and are quite vulnerable to criticism. Such a person often tries to build an image where he is 'above it.' <...>"
"Sometimes this seriously harms real-time performance during a tournament. The team management fights this, and the players themselves take the initiative and take control. In such cases, they even introduce fines for themselves: in VP, players fined themselves for reading comments about themselves. The fine amount was symbolic, and the money went to common needs or charity. Opened ProDota, teammates noticed, smiled sadly, and at the end of the month threw money into the common pot," explained Nikita Lutov.
Lutov believes that esports players should learn to accept criticism, but it takes time for each of them.
"Any professional should learn to handle criticism: choose sources, filter out unnecessary things — all this helps to soberly assess their media presence at the moment. It's important to do this timely, not in the heat of the tournament when you can easily tilt after a loss, demoralize teammates, and start packing your bags."
"We all know from everyday life experience that coming to this is not easy at all. Especially not for young guys recently appearing on the pro scene, who socialized most of their lives in an extremely toxic matchmaking environment of anonymity."
"So, the next time you hear an assurance from an esports player that he doesn't read comments after matches, smile and give him time to work through it," said Nikita Lutov.
Earlier, Virtus.pro was criticized for its poor performance at the Riyadh Masters 2024. The team failed to qualify for the group stage, leading many to believe that changes were imminent.