Greg 'IdrA' Fields leaves esports behind

This article was originally published on GameSpot's sister site onGamers.com, which was dedicated to esports coverage.

One of the most iconic non-Korean Starcraft players of all time in IdrA has today revealed that he will no longer be involved in the franchise, nor esports, as he aims to continue with his studies. The announcement came in the shape of a post on teamliquid.net, where Fields explains that his reasoning behind the decision is due to number of reasons which included low streaming values, as well as several deals with companies related to the esports industry falling through.

If I wanted to continue to scrape out a living I probably could, by lowering standards, accepting donations, and whatever else. But I've never liked the game and I don't see that changing anytime soon so I see no reason to scrape by with no future just for the sake of staying with it.

Fields was without a doubt one of the most influential players in the Western esports scene during his prime in both Brood War and SC2. In Brood War especially, where he became the first non-Korean to endure the modern day KeSPA training schedule for more than two years when he practiced with the teams eSTRO and CJ Entus during his stay.

In SC2, his success came in the game's early days with a number of impressive results in the open seasons of the GSL, as well as MLG Orlando, which was the first stop on the circuit to feature the game. In late 2012, he reached another career-high peak as he dismantled Ilyes 'Stephano' Satouri and Shin 'RorO' No Yeol at the BWC 2012 Grand Finals, but following his peak, and the subsequent release of HotS he never reached the same height again.

In the end, IdrA is easily one of the most successful American players to have ever touched either of the games in the Starcraft franchise, and his departure is indeed a giant one in the world of esports.

Photo Credit: gamefront.com, lairdphotos.com