A player of League of Legends has had his high rank become his downfall. He was arrested in an internet cafe in China. After his presence was announced, he caught the eye of an undercover police officer. Apparently, you just cannot hide as a Challenger in China.
Why do strong LoL players stand out in China? In the Chinese megacity of Chongqing, a high-ranking LoL player visited an internet cafe. He is referred to as the “strongest King” in the Chinese press, which is comparable to a “Challenger player” in our terms.
The player who has now been arrested apparently plays on the Chinese server Iona, the first and oldest server in China: This server is known for having one of the toughest solo queues in the world. Anyone who becomes a Challenger there truly has what it takes.
Presence of a Challenger player announced loudly
In China, internet cafes are akin to “public arcades” for gamers, where they spend their time, and it is common for high-ranking LoL players to be treated like celebrities. When the “strongest King” entered the cafe, his presence was announced loudly.
This is how it led to the player’s downfall: When the player went to machine 19 to play and his presence was announced, it caught the attention of Yihao Zhang, an undercover police officer who was in the cafe to surf the net. Zhang himself plays LoL and took a closer look at the strong LoL player.
As the officer approached him, he noticed that the robust LoL player with a ponytail looked very similar to a wanted suspect. The suspect was wanted for bodily harm.
So the officer took a picture of the suspect, confirmed it was really the wanted individual, and reported it to the on-duty police officers. They arrested the player after he finished his game.
The officer says:
“I had an appointment to play a game. When I went to the restroom at noon, I heard it. The Challenger came online and I saw a man with a messy ponytail who looked like our suspect before.”
These are the aftermaths: The arrest of the LoL player has caused quite a stir. On Chinese message boards, people are making jokes about it. Chinese LoL players say, “And that’s exactly why I’m not a Challenger!”
In English-speaking forums, they find it utterly insane that one gets called out in “real life” for being so good at LoL. They say it’s like a top athlete entering the hall in China.
Internet cafes in China are an important part of the gaming culture. But gaming in public is not always chic:
