NRG departs Apex Legends & blames EA for not supporting esports
Joe Brady/ ALGSNRG have left Apex Legends esports and its former roster is on the market.
NRG Esports have announced its exit from Apex Legends esports, citing EA’s lack of support for esports and organizations as a major reason for leaving.
After five years in Apex Legends, with multiple streamers and professional players cycling through the organization, NRG have decided to exit the esport. The company has released the players on its ALGS squad and dropped many of its Apex Legends content creators months ago.
The organization cited EA and Respawn’s lack of support for the esport and the teams that compete in it as a major reason for its exit.
“With the release of our team, I can also confirm that NRG will not be fielding a roster for ALGS going forward. We feel EA/Respawn have not done enough to support orgs and made the tough call to take a step back,” Jaime Cohenca, the Chief Gaming Officer at NRG Esports, said on social media.
Over the course of the orgs time in the Battle Royale title, NRG have no S-Tier trophies to its name but have placed in the top 15 at multiple events with its highest placement being the 2023 Split 1 Playoff at second place.
NRG joins litany of esports organizations leaving Apex Legends
NRG is just the latest esports organization to exit Apex Legends. Cloud9, G2 Esports and Team Liquid have all exited the esport this year as the industry continues to fight economic headwinds and with EA reportedly not giving organizations opportunities to make revenue through in-game cosmetic sales.
According to a report from Digiday, EA and Respawn stopped plans to introduce revenue sharing with organizations for in-game item sales with 20 different teams. EA allegedly offered teams a $60,000 licensing fee and some organizations reportedly sent a letter to EA to voice their displeasure with the proposal and to offer a counter-proposal, with the company rejecting it.
Afterward, many of those organizations dropped their ALGS squads and left the competitive title.
Longtime NRG player Christopher ‘sweetdreams’ Sexton put a statement on social media announcing the organization’s exit from the esport and giving fans an update on the roster. He said the squad will compete in Year 4 of the ALGS, but gave no promises that all the three players will stick together.
“NRG leaving Apex is without a doubt a sad moment for the esport, as it may foreshadow further issues, but I am excited to find a new place to call home and work to build up this game to live up to its potential,” sweetdreams said.
