After the explosive match between Entity and RNG in the lower bracket first round of the Dota 2 The International 2022, which Entity won, fans immediately criticised support player Dzmitry “Fishman” Palishchuk of Entity Esports. Fans watching the broadcast saw fishman halt the game just before GGs were called. This action is viewed by many in the Dota 2 community as an example of “BM,” or bad manners, which is simply unsportsmanlike behaviour. But did Fishman really suspend the game as some fans claim in order to mock RNG? If this was really the case, we examine the available evidence.
The game we’re discussing is a highly charged emotional contest. The International 2022 Playoffs’ last game on Day 1 turned out to be a grindfest, lasting 107 minutes before it was finally over and became the longest main stage TI match in history. Therefore, it was not surprising that many fans also became invested in the game. Entity pushed on RNG’s throne in the last seconds of the game, and fishman stopped play before GGs were called. Fans reacted fast to this and said that fishman had degraded his rivals. To further stoke the fire, the majority of RNG’s roster was actually not on stage because they were recovering from COVID while performing from their hotel rooms. As a result, the supporters who had compassion for xNova, the sole RNG player on the field, felt aggrieved by the perceived slight.
Video, however, shows differently. The stop appears to have been an inadvertent result of fishman dropping his headset on his keyboard, which, logically speaking, punched the F9 button and resulted in the halt. A fan who was present at the time of the incident recorded it on video. Fishman’s in-game perspective at the time, which showed his cursor dragging the screen to a corner, is another piece of evidence that backs up this claim. This behaviour indicates that the player has lost control of their mouse and is not using the keyboard or mouse at all.
Entity.Fishman threw his headset and it paused the game. He did not intentionally BM or pause the game. from DotA2
On social media, Entity Esports also felt the need to clarify the situation.
“We wanted to clarify, as we have personally asked @FishmanDota2 that his pause is accidental. He hit the table too hard and din’t mean to disrespect @RNG. If anything, we have full respect to RNG for playing despite being covid positive. You played like warriors.”
The company declared the following on Twitter:
“GG. Awesome game. Thats why we like dota. Also i have to say that I didnt pause on purpose. I guess it happened when i hitted headset on the keyboard. Im sorry and ofc i respect team RNG! Wp you guys beasts. Can t understand how you can play good like this with covid.”
Fishman also wrote on his social media accounts:
Me after watching the headset video a few times https://t.co/KjZHxNeJiS pic.twitter.com/Qf0ibXlWD5
— NAVI (@natusvincere) October 20, 2022
It goes without saying that not everyone accepts the explanation at face value. Famous esports group Natus Vincere implied that anyone who agreed with Entity and fishman’s claims is a fool in a tweet that read:
We think it was a sincere error. Entity and Fishman have both made amends, and it appears that RNG has no animosity toward Entity. No matter what you think, Entity will play the loser of today’s match between Team Liquid and Team Aster tomorrow, perhaps facing elimination in the lower bracket of Dota 2 The International 2022.
