The ‘prodigy’ Patiphan has returned to professional Overwatch play, retiring from X10 Crit’s Valorant roster.
Valorant fans were dismayed to learn that X10 Crit's Patiphan "Patiphan" Chaiwong would be retiring to return to Overwatch. However, it was unclear at the time what team he would be signing with for the Overwatch League ahead of Overwatch 2's release.
We now know that the star Valorant player that impressed heavily during Champions in X10's cinderella run will be heading to the LA Gladiators.
Will Pati's wrist injuries continue to haunt him?
Patiphan had worried fans earlier in the year with wrist injuries while he was playing for X10 Crit. It's unclear if these will continue to plague him during his stint in the Overwatch League. None the less, it seems that the Gladiators are more than willing to take the risk.
Pati's time in Valorant was marked with a fair amount of success. Aside from X10's cinderealla run which ended in the quarterfinals, he won the ESL Thailand Championship, Ryzen Radeon Master, Len Tee Baan 3, and the Arena Valorant Cup.
A bright star in Overwatch League's future
Pati only just became eligible to play in the Overwatch League on September 3, wrapping up his Valorant career where it now seems he was biding his time. He became famous in Overwatch in Contenders playing for both Eternal Academy and briefly as part of World Game Star Phoenix in Korea before heading to Overwatch.
He's been widely hailed as a "prodigy" in Overwatch, and if his crack aim at Champions is anything to go by, he will be a bright star for Overwatch. That game has been in something of limbo with the transition to Overwatch 2 coming up, and a 5v5 environment. Valorant sharing the same number of players may be a help in transitioning back.
X10 Crit's crws seemed unsure of the team's future in the wake of Patiphan's transfer back to Overwatch. Some of the team's players could also head into retirement. They may also head to free agency ahead of the 2022 VCT season, which will kick off in late January.
Dates for the next season of Overwatch League have yet to be announced, but have been confirmed to use Overwatch 2.
Header photo: Colin Young-Wolff/Riot Games, remixed by Dustin Steiner.