Malik Forté on the Overwatch League: “I guess they didn’t think I was worth what I asked for”

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Since the end of 2019, five people have departed from the Overwatch League talent team and announced that they won’t be returning for the 2020 season in February. 

The list of names features some of the biggest personalities in the league, including commentators Christopher “MonteCristo” Mykles, Erik “DoA” Lonnquist, Auguste “Semmler” Massonnat, and host. Chris Puckett. And now, Malik Forté is the lastest person to reveal that he isn’t returning to the Overwatch League broadcast team.

MonteCristo and DoA, two of the most recognizable names in esports casting, decided to leave the Overwatch League due to creative differences between the duo and the league’s leadership. Semmler, on the other hand, after failing to renew his contract, cited the game’s declining meta and his lust for CS:GO. Puckett chose to depart from the league to support his wife on the East Coast.

Forté, though, said he wasn’t satisfied with what the Overwatch League were paying him.

“I can speak for myself and say that, after years of being a part of this community, traveling the world, interacting with fans, making shoulder content, advertisements that ran on national television, and lots of hard work—I was expecting a little more than what was proposed for 2020,” he said in an email with gaming website Kotaku. “I guess they didn’t think I was worth what I asked for, so we never reached a number that made sense for me to continue on.”

With the third season of the Overwatch League beginning on Feb. 8, the departure of the talent team is a worrying trend for the league’s future. Overwatch League commissioner Pete Vlastelica will have to recruit new talent before the league kicks off next month.