N0tail spoke about his Dota 2 experience, sharing that he almost gave up on playing professionally but the victory in Frankfurt in 2015 inspired him.
N0tail Had Almost Given Up at One Point
OG’s esteemed veteran, Johan “N0tail” Sundstein, reminisced about his career in the latest episode of the organization’s Monkey Business show. He said that if OG hadn’t won the Frankfurt Major from 2015, he might have given up on playing professionally.
According to N0tail, the 2015 victory was a turning point in his career that reassured him his efforts matter. At that time, the player had played Dota for three years, following his exit from Heroes of Newerth. As a Dota 2 player, N0tail competed under the banners of some of the most esteemed teams in esports but failed to reach the resounding success he wanted.
At one point, he felt so crestfallen that he almost gave up on playing in the 2015 season. Despite the difficulties, he pushed forward and formed the (monkey) Business roster which eventually came to be known as OG. At that time, most of the team’s players were fairly new to esports. Yet, despite all odds, OG became champions and took $1,110,000 back home.
N0tail is now glad to have persisted as the 2015 Major victory is exactly what inspired him to keep moving forward.
“I think if I wouldn’t have won Frankfurt, if that part of my Dota career would not have gone well, I wouldn’t be here telling a story of how I got out on the other side happy. Because at that moment it had been half a year with C9, getting kicked from Team Secret after making it and going really hard and really trying hard with Fnatic for almost three years. Yeah, eventually struck through it. It took everything.”
The Victory Taught N0tail to Believe in Himself
N0tail said that his “redemption arc” began after that victory. He became more reassured and started to genuinely enjoy competing. He said that he is thankful to his teammates for being so energetic and motivated as this truly inspired him to keep moving.
Since that moment, N0tail became a staple in OG’s lineup. After the 2015 Major victory, OG managed to win three more Major events and prevail at The International two times in a row. His contributions to OG have cemented him as the richest player in esports in terms of prize money. His winnings have earned him more than $7 million, motivating him to continue playing Dota 2 professionally.
N0tail hasn’t retired yet but is currently on OG’s inactive roster, sharing his profound experience with the organization’s newer players.
OG had a troubled 2021 campaign and couldn’t replicate its past successes but is looking forward to coming back in full power this year.