The Austrian David “Aqua” Wang (22) was able to fulfill a dream at the age of 17, which many teenagers have: He won the World Championship in Fortnite in duos and took home a whopping prize money of 1.5 million euros. Today he is 22 years old and his life does not seem to be as bright anymore. He has apparently entered into a deal with a betting site for Counter-Strike 2 (Steam) and has been kidnapped as a publicity stunt.
This was the peak of Aqua’s career: In 2019, Fortnite hosted a major World Championship in the USA. Since Epic had previously lowered the minimum age for participants , teenagers dominated the event.
The Austrian David “Aqua” Wang won the duo World Championship with his partner and became, at the age of 17, the most successful eSports player that Austria has ever produced. He has so far earned a total of $2.2 million in prize money from Fortnite. The second-placed Austrian, Klaus Konstanzer, has made “only” $635,000 with Fortnite.
However, in recent years, the prize money for Aqua has become scarce. Epic Games has significantly reduced eSports in Fortnite. Such a live event like the Worlds has not happened again. In retrospect, the World Championship has been viewed critically, as there might have been collusion among the professionals. Almost all winners had the same “coach”. He may have coordinated the movements of the most successful players so that they kept out of each other’s way for as long as possible to increase their chances of winning.
Austrian disappears from social media for 2 months
This is the stunt: Wang is now a streamer on Kick. As the site Dotesports reports, the former champion suddenly disappeared from social media in December. He was gone for two months, which didn’t really attract anyone’s attention. Such breaks are not uncommon for players.
But shortly after Valentine’s Day, a controversial betting site for Counter-Strike 2, CSGOEmpire, published a photo (via X), claiming they had “kidnapped” someone. They showed a photo of someone tied to a chair.
Shortly thereafter, on February 20, Wang released a video (via X) showing him as a kidnapping victim of CSGO-Empire.
Seemingly under duress, he stated that he had an “exclusive partnership for life” with CSGO-Empire. That’s just wonderful.
He says he feels good and has officially quit Fortnite. People should keep gambling.
Through the arrangement, expression, and imagery, it was suggested that CSGOEmpire had kidnapped him and was forcing him at gunpoint to say the text. But it is clearly a promotional gag that plays with CSGOEmpire’s image as the “bad boy”.
Controversial advertising stunt with a controversial betting site
Here’s the perception: One user condemns this action, stating that Aqua either makes himself a part of a pathetic social media campaign by CSGO Empire or is simply foolish.
Another user writes: “Just when you think CSGOEmpire couldn’t get any more embarrassing and further disgrace themselves in the Counter-Strike community, they turn to Fortnite.”
Other people talk about an “incredible downfall”.
However, there are also people who believe: “He made the deal of a lifetime.”
The site Dotesports calls the action “tasteless, insensitive, and simply offensive;” but apparently both sides are sticking to the partnership. Dotesports also notes that Aqua, in the context of the advertising stunt, responded to a post from CSGOEmpire using a racial slur. This was the “N” word (via X).
In Counter-Strike, there is a large betting scene with significant money at stake. This is highly controversial but seems to be largely tolerated by Steam operator Valve. There are frequent controversial actions: Steam: E-sport team promotes gambling in CS:GO with a pro who just turned 18 – Faces sharp criticism
