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In light of recent events and the massive outpouring of posts in public forums, we, the TF2Center team, feel it is our responsibility to post a statement addressing these events and the comp TF2 community’s concerns.

For those of you who aren’t aware of what has transpired, this is what has happened:

In December of 2014 MasterNoob, the founder of TF2Center, offered to have TF2C sponsor DeutschLAN, a new European TF2 LAN organized by prominent members of the European TF2 scene. MasterNoob’s initial plan was for TF2C to contribute €2000 prize money but unexpectedly lackluster donations to TF2C during the months of February and March forced him to realize that TF2C would only be able to reasonably field €500. What happened next is unclear to everyone: Masternoob thought he conveyed the change in sponsorship amount to one of the DeutschLAN organizers and proceeded accordingly, even hoping to generate enough additional funds to contribute towards DeutschLAN’s proposed expense fundraiser. Meanwhile, the organizers of DeutschLAN continued believing that TF2C planned on donating the €2000 prize money, with additional money being given towards the LAN’s fundraiser. As a late revelation of the actual amount TF2C planned to sponsor stood to hurt both TF2C’s reputation and reliability (and did), as well as DeutschLAN’s plans and organization, it’s reasonable to conclude that what occurred was the result of miscommunication and/or an unfortunate mistake.

Not long before the issue with the DeutschLAN sponsorship was discovered, the TF2Center team had to deal with an internal issue with one of our moderators. This individual undertook certain actions that we felt undermined the purpose and duties of the admin team. While we don’t believe this individual’s intentions were malicious, we do consider his actions to be unethical and our outrage justified. In the aftermath of his actions, arguments between him and members of our team occurred, culminating in his resignation. During this incident and in the weeks following, bitter and hostile exchanges transpired between this individual and members of our team.

Recently, MasterNoob approached one of the DeutschLAN organizers and requested that the aforementioned former moderator not be allowed to attend the LAN, in exchange for an additional 500. It was during this conversation that the miscommunication regarding the change in prize money came to light. As a result of MasterNoob’s request, and the problem with the prize money, DeutschLAN abruptly dropped TF2Center’s sponsorship publicly on the ETF2L forums, and several TF2Center admins resigned from the TF2C Team. The most notable resignation came from TF2C admin and DeutschLAN organizer kKaltUu, who explained his decision in a few forum posts as to why he was resigning from the TF2C Team and why DeutschLAN had removed TF2Center’s sponsorship as main/named sponsorship.

Those are the events which bring us to where we are now.

One of the most difficult lessons for any organization to learn is that poor judgment exercised by a few people reflects on all team members as well as the organization as a whole. As such, while MasterNoob intends to make his own apologies regarding his decisions, it is the entirety of the TF2C team that is authoring this statement.

To the players and organizers of DeutschLAN: We deeply regret our inability to live up to our original planned contribution and the miscommunication regarding the change prize money. We completely understand and respect your decision to revoke our main named sponsorship. Additionally, we’d like to go on record as stating that our demand on who attends your event was wholly unprofessional and never should have happened. We apologize for our actions in this matter and we’ll be diligent in preventing anything like it from happening again. We wish you well in finding another main sponsor.

To kKaltUu: You’ve been an asset to the TF2 community on multiple levels and your work with TF2Center has significantly helped in its growth. It’s a shame that you felt more comfortable disclosing your resignation publicly rather than coming to us directly, but let bygones be bygones. You deserved far better than we treated you after you tendered your resignation from the TF2C team. Your ban from TF2Center has been removed, and we hope for the best in your future endeavors with the TF2 community.

To the aforementioned former moderator: We apologize for attempting to interfere in an area of your life outside of TF2Center’s purview. Although we may never agree on the ethicality of your actions, there is no longer any mention of you on the forums’ wall of shame, which has been removed in its entirety.

To our playerbase: Since TF2Center opened its Beta last year, 106,000 of you have played competitive-format Team Fortress 2 with us. It hasn’t always been an easy ride, and this past week TF2Center has seen its biggest bump yet. We messed up, and, what’s more, it’s inevitable that we’ll mess up again in the future. So while we can’t and won’t promise you that we’ll never mess up again, we do vow to always try and be accountable for our mistakes and to learn from them.

Each member of the TF2C team is an admin because they believe in the TF2 comp community. It’s important to the entire team that our contributions to the comp scene are positive ones. In the small world of e-sports, comp TF2 is a tiny pond that has already has too many sections dividing it; the last thing we want to do is to divide the community further.

Keep writing to us in our Suggestions subforum, tell us how we can better become the organization you need us to be. We’re incredibly sorry that you had to shout so loud for us to hear you this time, and we promise to listen harder now. We will be introducing a significant restructuring of our internal operations, which will be highlighted to the public at an upcoming date.

We made some big mistakes, and, once again, we’d like to offer all those negatively affected by our actions our sincerest apologies. We’re determined to emerge from this incident a better, wiser organization and it’s our hope you’ll be there to share that with us. Whatever your decision, however, please know that it’s been our honor to play with you.

Sincerely,

The TF2C team

Does anyone really a give a fuck anymore?

Quoted from Fuxx

Does anyone really a give a fuck anymore?

well it’d be douchey to promise a statement and then never posting it you know

Thank you for getting around to this and keeping to your word. There is some semblance of respect from me regained for you finishing this.

Quoted from Void

I second what kkaltuu said, although I still have an issue with MasterNoob trying to essentially bribe a LAN organizer into banning a player from the LAN. That is ridiculously unethical and, atleast in my opinion, something that cannot be forgiven with the simple statement.

Also, the fact that MN went and posted what RTC said on his ‘wall of shame’, and the fact that that is even there, shows that he still is acting the way he was before, even given this statement. I’d be hard-pressed to believe any actual change will come of this.

The fact that MasterNoob asked to remove RTC from the event is inexcuseable and unethical, the entire staff agrees.

The wall of shame thread was also deleted earlier if you didn’t notice.

In my honest opinion: All in alll its a good apology but to what it truely comes down to is how you go forward from now on.

Quoted from Marty

Keep writing to us in our Suggestions subforum, tell us how we can better become the organization you need us to be. We’re incredibly sorry that you had to shout so loud for us to hear you this time, and we promise to listen harder now. We will be introducing a significant restructuring of our internal operations, which will be highlighted to the public at an upcoming date.

Sincerely,

The TF2C team

I hope this will actually happen because if it doesn’t nothing changed besides the admittion of fault. I guess will see in the coming days if masternoob and his team really meant it.

While an apology is good and all, this feels more like an apology from the staff that already act mature and fair. The staff that already didn’t agree with Masternoobs way of handeling this matter.

So due to that I will not really view this dead horse beating any differently before. I’d have to see something concrete from Masternoob and it better come out sincere. But it also feels a bit late since it is more or less beating on a dead horse. You can only wait for so long,

It’s a very well written post. I don’t know how much involvement MN and MT had in writing this post but having been there and done that with the TC debacle and the apology posted back then by Foxy I must admit I’m skeptical about what happens next. Especially now that this post has mysteriously disappeared from the TF2C forums (didn’t take long did it?).

The thing is I know MT & MN reasonably well because I had to work very closely with them when I was overhauling the suggestions & bug reports sections. I know how stubborn both of them are and I can’t imagine them changing this quickly over this. As long as this is the case then I really fear for the future of the site.

You might be wondering at this point why I even care. I don’t work for the site anymore and I don’t use the site anymore this much is true. The reason that I still care is because like other people have said before, it’s a really great site that a lot of people including MN & MT have worked really hard on. It could be one of the most important parts of the community in the run up to a Valve supported match making system but instead it’s ruined by the actions of a few and it’s sad.