‘He just looked lost’: Behind the scenes of OpTic-Envy merger leaks

Davis “Hitch” Edwards had a monkey on his back for weeks, but went to Twitter for resolution on Nov. 8.

Edwards, who recently became the Creative Director of OpTic Gaming after the organization merger with Envy Gaming, had to spill his guts about something important and divisive.

OpTic founder Hector Rodriguez and ex-Call of Duty professional Will “BigTymeR” Johnson were chatting during what was expected to be a harmless podcast, but there was a screenshot seen around the Call of Duty world.

That’s where Edwards’ little fib came to play. That figure in the back left that totally looked like ex-Dallas Empire player Anthony “Shotzzy” Cuevas-Castro was definitely him. Edwards, who attempted to shift public attention from a clear leak of the merger before it was announced, said it was Rodriguez’s childhood friend Mario.

It was not Mario.

“The funniest part about that was that when I was telling everyone that it was Mario, Mario actually found out and saw that everyone was talking about him,” Edwards told The Dallas Morning News. “He obviously didn’t want a ton of attention but that was probably the funniest part.”

Leaks are still a divisive topic in esports. There are fewer traditional journalists covering OpTic Texas and the Call of Duty professional scene compared to the Dallas Cowboys and the NFL. A lot more YouTubers, bloggers and roster-move leakers jump in. Guys like Adam Schefter and Adrian Wojnarowski are widely accepted by NFL and NBA fans despite breaking trades and free agency pickups before teams announce. But, that’s part of the culture.

Call of Duty esports, while having its fair share of leaks, isn’t quite there yet.

But, the OpTic team faced slipping information with humor. The fact that it was Cuevas-Castro in the photo was perfect, because his new nickname is Leakzzy.

“Obviously everyone knows about Ant and his multiple leaks, not just one,” said OpTic Texas main AR player Brandon “Dashy” Otell. “Ant’s leak on stream was pretty funny, but I didn’t really have a favorite.”

OpTic Leakzzy

Cuevas-Castro poked fun at himself for accidentally sending information to the Call of Duty intel hounds. He didn’t want anybody telling him what the third gamemode alongside hardpoint and search and destroy would be for the upcoming CDL season.

He’d accidentally leak it.

The Mario thing was pretty unlucky. Wrong sliver of the Heczquarters in Frisco at the wrong time. And the merger had already been suggested long before there was any Shotzzy involvement.

The DotEsports report from Jacob Wolf and Cory “CRONE” Davis broke the news of talks between Envy and OpTic in late August. The screenshot didn’t come until Oct. 3.

That’s the almost consensus favorite leak.

“I think that was my favorite one because he just looked lost,” OpTic Texas head coach Ray “Rambo” Lussier said. “Whatever shot they got of his face was just like ‘huh?’”

The flood gates opened after that though.

Cuevas-Castro leaked the official OpTic Texas logo to his own stream, then leaked Zack “Zlaner” Lane’s deal with OpTic within 24 hours. The official video for Zlaner followed later that evening, and Lane’s heartfelt message made up for lack of surprise.

Prepared rollouts were why Rodriguez liked avoiding leaks.

“I don’t like leaks simply because I think I can offer a better story and message that gives fans what they sign up for,” Rodriguez said. “When they get a leak like that it’s like getting the spoiler ending to their favorite show.”

No matter how under wraps things may have seemed, there were still small details that slipped through the cracks. Not all of them hit the nail on the head.

Honorable mentions

The assumed title for OpTic Texas was always OpTic Dallas. There was never even a suggestion that it would be anything other than OpTic Dallas. Some CDL followers complained that the leaked logo didn’t represent Dallas enough. Someone even adjusted it so the OpTic “O” became a “D.”

Envy Founder Mike Rufail, who has been good buds with Rodriguez for over a decade, loved that part of the pre-merger saga.

“My favorite leak by far is the fact that the team is called OpTic Dallas,” Rufail said. “It’s funny because when people think they are leaking something they think it’s absolutely true, but what they don’t understand is that they don’t control the business side of things. It can change very quickly.”

OpTic Texas player Indervir “iLLeY” Dhaliwal had a successful pre-merger period until his haircut was posted. His barber tagged both Dallas Empire and OpTic in a Snapchat.

Dhaliwal was confident it wouldn’t be seen, but tried to play it safe anyway.

“I saw it and in my head I was laughing and thought in my head that no way anyone was following my barber, right? So, I asked him to take it down real quick,” Dhaliwal said. “I didn’t really think it was a big deal but then I saw it was on everything. I was just mind blown.”

The new guys were thrown in the offseason blender. OpTic veterans Seth “Scump” Abner and Otell had their mouths zipped shut. That’s part of the OpTic process.

“I’m kind of used to it by now. Especially the first time I joined OpTic I had to wait a while before I could say anything,” Otell said. “It’s hard because you are streaming and people are asking you what team you are joining all the time and there are other sources suggesting your next roster.”

How leaks and reporting continue to develop could define what esports journalism looks like. For now, the OpTic and Envy crew are relieved the hard part is over.

Find more esports coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.