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Professional Dota 2 players from two TI-attending Chinese teams are currently affected by the ongoing Covid surge in Romania.
A big reason for this mishap is that Dota 2 talents from all the Chinese teams had been bunking together in the same hotel with a shared AC system. Team Aster was the first to test positive, starting with "Monet" Du Peng, Lin "xxs" Jing, and Ye "Borax" Zhibiao.
As the Chinese Dota 2 wing went on alarm, the rest of the teams disbanded their camps and started self-isolating when Monet and Borax tested positive. Currently, the entire roster and the staff from Team Aster, ten people in all, are covid-positive. In addition, two players from Invictus Gaming, Jin "flyfly" Zhiyi and Thiay 'JT-' Jun Wen, are also reported to be Covid-positive since September 30.
After four days of unresponsiveness, Valve finally communicates with the Dota 2 talents
Once JT- tested positive, the Invictus Gaming organization personally got in touch with Valve with suggestions and inquiries regarding covid-positive players. The mail was sent on September 30 to multiple addresses, including their PR mail, the DPC management mail, and Gabe Newell's mail address.
Reportedly, Valve has not responded directly to said e-mail. Radio silence from Valve regarding crucial matters often becomes the cause for community backlash. The Dota 2 player base is well-aware of Valve's unforthcoming nature, a stark contrast against their direct competitors, Riot Games.
Earlier this week, Team Aster Zhan "LaNm" Zhicheng had traced the root of the debacle to Valve's mismanagement. On his Weibo handle, he lamented the lackluster management from PGL studio, the organization that is hosting TI with Valve. Team Aster had since retracted the statement on his behalf, echoing PSG.LGD coach Zhang "Xiao8" Ning's assurance that PGL has been beneficial.
At any rate, The lack of communication from Valve's account in this regard has been jarring. Many Dota 2 community members are beginning to question whether they had any protocols in place at all regarding Covid-positive players.
As shared by Xiao8, Valve is considering a solution that allows Covid-positive players to participate in the tournament remotely. Their decisions, as well as further details, are not conclusive yet.
