I was recently asked by Chaperonrouge,
From chaperonrouge (Reply, Quote)
hey...
i just read your comments on cpl/munoz and since i'm a rly curious person im now wondering what happened between you/others and cpl...mind giving me some background info?
So I decided to write back and it turned out to be much longer than expected. Obviously it's just a small piece of some of the things I could say on the subject but I have so many experiences it's impossible to compact it all into one column.
Well it is a really really long story. Remember that I was doing the whole pro gaming thing for about 3-4 years in all and have a lot of experiences that I go back to when making my comments.
I have dealt with Angel on a very personal level, remember, I was once the CPL's boy.. their man, their media monster. I would do nothing but praise them and try to make things easier for them, ( I gave him Intel on a silver platter ) and boy was I good at selling them. All the long while, I was doing everything for free, to make the "dream" happen.
However, as time goes on, and experiences arise, I really began to see how little Angel actually cared for the gamers. It started with his comments directed toward individuals of the gaming public, who had brought up some rather valid and interesting arguments toward his business and its practices. His responses were generally rude, know it all, and condescending. After Babbages CPL, and it was run very poorly, I began to question some of these things myself. For example, for being the CPL's media darling, why wouldn't they help me out with a practice machine at Babbages?? After all this was supposed to be a PRO event right? So why don't the top players (not just me) have oppurtunites to sit and practice on the tourney machines when nobody is using them? So instead I run around doing media stuff for the CPL, and get no oppurtunity to play a game of Q3 for almost a full 4 days before playing a match against Prozac in the round of 64, which I lost. I even asked for them to take my #5 seed away so I could qualify like everybody else and get some practice time in. Request denied.
After the event I did some thinking about the event and my whole gaming career. There were some very obvious concerns. One was that I devoted what.. about 6 months of practice time to Babbages, only to NOT be able to play for almost 4 days? So what did I get out of it? Nothing. I began to think of other players as well. Blue for example got the shaft at Babbages with the bug he encountered. Fatality, c3 and many others were forced to play till 5 in the morning because of the CPL's "delays." Then being forced to wake up on 2 hours of sleep and play again in championship matches for big money. Did Angel care? Of course not. In fact, when I brought up the issue about practice machines to Angel on a public forum, I myself got a rude and condescending comment back, his boy right? He threw the price of the tourney machines in my face like it actually meant something, about $520,000 worth of equipment or so. The thing is, that equipment isn't even paid for by the CPL, it's donated, and not even that, loaned to them for their event. After the event, it's packaged up and still sold on the market. The company loses very little, and the CPL doesn't do a thing.
Afterward I began to question his care for the gamers that sacrifice everything for this. I wish I still had the emails that went back and forth between myself and Angel, they would definetly shed some light on why I hold this malice toward him. He basically gave me the "my way or the highway" speech when I brought up numerous concerns, things they should be working on to improve, and trying to get him to show some compassion and concern for the well being of the gamers. All meant nothing to him of course, and from that moment on I banned myself from CPL events, saying I would never take that dirty money again out of principle. "Even if I was guaranteed to win a million dollars, I will not play for them." is what I would say.
Ever since then I've been on a crusade of sorts to expose the REAL Angel Munoz and to get the gamers, from all games to show a united front when standing against him. What sponsors does he generate without the gamers? Does he even have a league? You can't even host so much as a LAN party without the gamers, let along a full self proclaimed pro event (Which is really nothing more than a glorified LAN). What about the health of the gamers? Vision for staring at monitors for hours on end? Medical for the pains I still to this day get in my wrist, and I'm sure others get as well? Dental? Ha! .. What happens to people who are putting off college to make the dream happen? What happens if they win for a while, everything looks fine and dandy, then they lose and wasted months for nothing? Now they are broke, don't have benefits, and no college education. If Angel actually cared about these things he'd be taking "steps" to help the gamers out. No steps, process, method, whatever is even being started by Angel. He feels that it is not his responsibility. Then who's is it? He's making money off the gamers, and he OWES it to them to try and help.
Of course, he doesn't care. Why? Cause he has food on his table at home, he has his house paid for, his cars, his office, his wife has things she wants. Does he think about what the gamers have? What they "need?" What happens to the losers, not just the winners? Certainly not, he only cares for himself, his image, his company, his profit...........
That is just a small portion of what I mean. Talking in person is obviously much easier for my to convey my ideas. And my poor wrist is killing me.................constant reminder of pro gaming and the CPL
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