Splyce is the latest organization to drop its Overwatch team

Splyce is the latest organization to drop out of Overwatch esports, with CEO and co-founder Marty Strenczewilk announcing today that Splyce is “taking a step back” from the scene and releasing its entire roster. Splyce joins the ranks of compLexity, Denial, and Red Reserve as organizations that have shed their Overwatch rosters in the past few weeks, with TSM also deciding not to field a team. Money seems to be one of the main factors here, as many endemic organizations are being iced out of impending Overwatch League slots due to their rumored price of millions of dollars. For Splyce, Strenczewilk says that it’s the lack of major competitions right now, but he still believes in the future of the game. “There’s a couple of $5-10K online cups every so often, but that’s about it,” said Strenczewilk in a YouTube video. “Outside of that, there isn’t much competitive Overwatch and that’s been challenging for our players. It’s been challenging for us in growing a fanbase around the game, and so it doesn’t make a lot of sense to keep investing resources in the title currently.” A recent report suggested that the owners of NFL teams the New England Patriots and Miami Dolphins had purchased the first two slots in the league, with Dot Esports sources saying that the former was discussing a pricetag of up to $20 million in the negotiations. With that kind of number in discussions, don’t be surprised if more esports organizations bow out of the Overwatch scene as big-money owners set their eyes on the game.