Overwatch pros suspended for online relationships with female fans

Two professional Overwatch players from Korea have learned the hard way that you should never double-cross your fanbase.

Team Lunatic-Hai players Lee Tae Jun and Geum “Dean” Dong-geun were found to have been engaged in inappropriate online relationships with female fans, including one that was reportedly a minor.

They were meant to participate in the upcoming OGN’s Apex Season 2, which is arguably the world’s largest pro Overwatch tournament.

However, team management was swift in responding to the accusations, eventually finding the truth and slapping the players with a two-month ban.

“Both of them have done something they should not be doing as esports players and we have taken steps to prevent recurrence,” Lunatic-Hai said, translated via Reddit.

The story first came to light on Reddit and was picked up on Inven, which was where one of the fans posted about her relationship on the forums.

This opened a massive can of worms for Tae Jon, as it was discovered that he was involved in online relationships with at least three other women.

He initially denied the accusations, but the truth always comes out.

Dean took his acts a step further, creating a Twitter account creepily called “DunggeonVictims” and using it to show proof that he was engaged with the women and was brazenly asking for photos.

A number of Korean-speaking Redditors pointed out that one of the fans may have been a minor.

Dean and Tae Jun apologised for their actions, although much of the damage had already been done.

“I’ve learned a lot from this incident. I am going to take time off to reflect and think deeply about this. I promise that this will never happen again and will be cautious with my actions,” Tae Jun said (via Kotaku).

“I always thought that I shouldn’t do this, and is not appropriate for my position,” Dean said. “But I couldn’t hold myself back and resulted in this.I deeply regret contacting fans privately several times and sorry about my actions causing harm to the fans who love us and my teammates.”

Lunatic-Hai was prompt in its banning of the players, obvious in response to what could be seen as extremely damaging to its brand.