Shroud reveals why he will never return to pro gaming
shroud (Mixer)Mixer star Michael ‘shroud’ Grzesiek has delved into why he will never go pro in Valorant (or any other game for that matter), and the onus is on his streaming career taking priority.
Shroud is a former Counter-Strike pro who competed at the very highest level for over five years — even snagging an ESL Pro League title along the way.
So it goes without saying that the 25-year-old knows a thing or two about what it takes to become a professional of the highest caliber and maintain that for some time.
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But with shroud seemingly getting into his Valorant groove ever since the closed beta was released on April 7, plenty have speculated as to whether he will be looking to turn pro on Riot’s tactical shooter.
In typical shroud style, he put any rumors to bed during a recent stream when prompted by his chat as to whether he’d be going pro in Valorant.
“No! I didn’t say that, it was a joke,” shroud contested. “You’re not going to see me go pro in a game ever again – we’re past that.”
Video segment starts at 5:42 for mobile users.
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After planting his flag, shroud opened up on the complexities of going pro in a game as tactical as Valorant while being a full-time streamer, explaining that the pair do not go hand-in-fist.
“If you truly want to play at the top (like at the top-top), you cannot stream your practice,” the Mixer star admitted.
“That’s just an easy way for people to just creep on your strategy and how you’re going to play… So granted, as much fun as playing a game professionally is, I can’t stream it at the same time.”
Grzesiek later added that juggling both streaming and playing pro as two separate entities is “pretty challenging.”
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When a viewer argued that Call of Duty professional, Seth ‘Scump’ Abner, manages to do it, shroud immediately slammed the esport, saying: “Call of Duty ain’t sh*t, dawg.”
While the former CS pro made his stance clear, he continues to enter high-stakes tournaments with Valorant pros in a bid to continuously compete at the highest level.
