It is with great sadness today that we announce the retirement of long-time compLexity Starcraft player Kevin “qxc” Riley. Kevin first joined compLexity back in December of 2011 and has been the core of our SC2 division ever since. His accolades include an all-kill on one of the most successful teams of all time in the Korean GSTL, where he took out Incredible Miracle. His other notable achievements include wins in the CSL and various tournaments in North America. His philosophy of innovating his gameplay and unique insight to the game would lead him to appearing on many StarCraft 2 shows and playing the role of an analyst in some of the world’s premier tournaments.
Below is his official notice of retirement:
I’m retiring with no intention of returning to progaming. My interest in playing and competing has dwindled substantially as of late. While I did well during the LoTV beta by winning some weekly cups and getting 3rd place at the Red Bull Archon tournament, after Red Bull I struggled to find any motivation to practice. Part of me felt some amount of injustice at the patch that hit shortly before that event. I know that if I had prepared better or played better then we could’ve qualified for the next step but it still hurt. Beasty and I had been practicing LoTV since ~April individually as well as internal archon mode customs for months before the event. To see all my preparation fail me again was too much, especially when it seemed like some of the other teams had only practiced a relatively very short time. Regardless, for about a month after the event I tried practicing on and off but never found myself interested in putting in the time and effort to adapt and improve.
As I step away from Starcraft 2’s competitive sphere, I’ll be focusing more heavily on the board game I began work on earlier this year, code named Discord. I haven’t been looking for any commentary jobs within the scene. While I’m not adverse to the idea, right now it feels best to just focus my efforts elsewhere. For years and years I’ve devoted so much time to competing. The opportunities I’ve had I wouldn’t trade for anything else. I’ve been able to travel the world and meet so many different people. While I was never a champion, I had some good results here and there. Starcraft gave me meaning that I sorely needed in my early college years while providing a solid focus and place to invest my energy and competitive drive as the scene and my skills grew. I learned more about how my mind and body function while pushing the limits of what’s possible.
For the rest of my life, I will use the skills I gained from progaming with joy although even now it pains me so much to leave. Retiring is like giving up on a friend. We’ve spent so much time together and experienced so many different places and events. To simply have that cut out of my life hurts. I’ve always been in love with the idea of progaming. There’s nothing I ever wanted more than to walk on the front stage of a Dreamhack or IEM as a champion. I wanted to make this my life for as long as possible, but I’m finally acknowledging the reality of my results and motivation. It’s time for me to move on to something else where I intrinsically want to devote as much energy as in me. Life is what we make of it, and you can bet that I’m going to pour my soul into my next project.
I’ll be providing periodic updates on Discord including insight into the design process, future mechanics, and playtesting opportunities in the near future.
Thanks to everyone who’s supported me for all these years. It’s been a trip.
We’d like to thank Kevin for the time, energy and passion he contributed, as well as the best of luck in his future endeavors!