After a storied 15-year journey in the professional Dota 2 scene, Galvin “Meracle” Kang confirmed he is hanging up his gaming gloves earlier today after his latest team, Myth Avenue Gaming, bowed out of the International 2023 Southeast Asia Qualifiers in the second round of the lower bracket.
Meracle took to social media shortly after the heartbreaking loss, announcing his retirement and expressing heartfelt gratitude for the teammates and fans who’ve been by his side.
“Couldn’t have asked for a better group of people to play with for my last ride,” he said about his teammates Krish, xsilearn, poloson, and ponlo.
As the Dota 2 esports community bids adieu, one thing’s for sure; Meracle’s long legacy in the game will remain unshaken. He wasn’t ever the biggest superstar despite using a similar name to the legendary Amer “Miracle-” Al-Barkawi—with whom he was often confused—but he was certainly a fan favorite to the end.
Meracle’s biggest achievement was winning BTS Pro Series Season Seven: Southeast Asia with Galaxy Racer in 2021. The Singaporean star won many other smaller events and often wowed fans with his performances at major events despite never winning.
Everyone from orgs like Complexity Gaming to former teammates like Adam “343” Erwann Shah and Jaron “monkeys-forever” Clinton, the latter of which said he’s the best Naga Siren player he’s ever played with (a sentiment Alliance legend Jonathan “Loda” Berg agreed with) wished him well in retirement. So did the many fans he’s won along the way.
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It truly is the end of an era. Meracle debuted for First Departure in 2012, at a time when Dota 2 was still technically in its beta and only two The Internationals had been held. If he decides to stay in the scene, the community would be thrilled.
