The inaugural Hearthstone world champion splits with the team to go “in a different direction than competitive play.”
After a year-long tenure, James “Firebat” Kostesich and Cloud9 are parting ways. The Hearthstone champion, streamer and personality confirmed the news on Twitter, stating that his and Cloud9’s goals are no longer aligned.
Firebat came to Hearthstone fame in 2014 when he became the esport’s first world champion, defeating China’s Xieyu “TiddlerCelestial” Wang in the grand finals. Firebat followed up his success with a slew of great finishes the next year, becoming Archon’s most decorated player and the winningest competitor in Hearthstone history at that time.
Firebat left Archon early in 2016, amid allegations of owed salaries and contract changes but found new home mere months later, donning the jersey of Cloud9, where he competed for the entire 2016. With Firebat’s focus shifted from competitive play to streaming and producing, however, the champion’s results waned and the highest he placed was a top eight at MSi EGLX Major in May.
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Firebat’s tweet indicating the departure from Cloud9 points to him likely embracing a career behind the talent desk or in tournament production. The former C9 star was seen behind the mic at major LAN events such as StarSeries and the World Championship, and was also responsible for the hugely successful Batstones—an online series of tournaments where rules are bent to create a different Hearthstone experience.
The split comes just a few months after the player himself expressed his determination to compete in HCT and re-conquer the competitive world.
