The Dota 2 community owns its memes. Players have long histories within the scenes, and few are as infamous as Clement “Puppey” Ivanov, whose rage was honored in a competition during last night’s Manila Masters matches.
Dubbed the Battle Of The Rages, three fans were invited on-stage to show off their best rage-quits, inspired by the game that has inspired many a rage-quit. Two commentators, host SirActionSlacks and commentator LD, were joined by Puppey himself to decide the winner.
Captain of Team Secret, Puppey is known as one of the best drafters in Dota 2, but also as one of its most infamous ragers. In a lengthy blog post last year, former teammate Jacky “EternaLEnVy” Mao detailed his experience with the team, including a video of Puppey throwing his headset at a monitor during practice.
Owning the joke now, the Manila Masters offered three spectators the chance to appease Puppey himself with their rage, and they did not disappoint. One fan, during the interview portion, simply said “I play Legion jungle,” a phrase that would set off just about anyone who has played a game with a Legion Commander in the jungle.
The soon-to-be winner Henry went first, and upended the folding card table and smashed up his monitor. The host even stopped him on his way down the steps with a chair, with a glint in his eyes that would make Bobby Knight blush.
Though Henry would win, the real champion of the night was a fan who called himself Puppey Junior. Wearing a Team Secret shirt, he put a headset through his monitor hard enough to send it flying off the stage.
Frankly, Puppey Jr. was robbed. You can catch the competition in its entirety on YouTube, and tune in later tonight for the penultimate day of the Manila Masters, where more segments built solely on communal Dota in-jokes are sure to happen.