Just three days into the group stage of The International 2022, the tournament has featured both mysterious abandon bugs and a disease outbreak among players.
Host PGL has announced that multiple Dota 2 players and staff present at The International 2022 have failed mandatory health tests. The results are punishing players, forfeits, and potential delays further into the event. In addition, a mysterious abandon bug has also delayed the match between OG and Team Liquid.
On the morning of October 13, PSG.LGD team manager Pan Fei reportedly failed PGL’s mandatory health checks. A social media post from the sponsor claims he immediately isolated, but LGD neglected to confirm the positive test with PGL. The players were penalized by losing both sides of pick priority in game one against RNG. Valve recently handed out a similar punishment for a racist courier name in the TI11 regional qualifiers.Â
In addition, PSG.LGD is faced with reduced reserve time in its upcoming series against BOOM Esports and Gaimin Gladiators. This could put stress on the draft, which is usually led by coach Zhang “xiao8” Ning.
However, the health problems somehow wound up helping the tournament favorite. After one successful game for LGD, RNG chose to forfeit the second game due to medical issues. Fans speculated that RNG mid laner Lu “Somnus” Yao called for the forfeit, but the organization later confirmed that the entire team including staff had tested positive. RNG has not yet announced a plan of action, but the players will most likely compete from isolation.
In addition to all of Royal Never Give Up getting sick, Farith “Matthew” Puente from Thunder Awaken has also revealed an unexpected trip to the hospital on social media. Matthew did not specify if he had failed mandatory health checks, but he described stomach pain and some sort of infection according to an unofficial translation. If more Dota 2 players continue to get sick at the TI11 group stage, it could lead to even larger delays in the playoffs.
In addition to real and very serious bugs, the TI11 group stage is also experiencing delays due to a strange abandon bug affecting OG’s captain.
Team Liquid and OG’s group A match was disrupted mid-way due to a unique abandon bug. OG captain Mikhail “Misha” Agatov began spontaneously disconnecting from the match server. Based on player accounts, Misha instantly abandoned the match involuntarily. This issue appears to persist with new lobbies, computers, and possibly even alternate accounts.
PGL did not reveal an official reason behind the delay, but Liquid and OG were finally able to start the match two and a half hours after its intended start time. Fans have heavily criticized how PGL handled the situation, though some things are ultimately out of the company’s control. Hopefully, PGL has a plan if this bug returns to delay The International 2022 main event.
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