Perkz announces competitive break with potential for retirement
Team Heretics' League of Legends midlaner Luka "Perkz" Perković will be going on a competitive break, leaving the door open to whether or not he will return to active play. The decision comes two months after the player was benched for Artur "Zwyroo" Trojan.
Perkz steps back
Perkz is taking a break from competitive League of Legends. On Twitter, the Croatian announced his decision, citing motivational issues and sharing that he would take time away from the competitive arena.
"Decided to take a break from competing. [I] realised I played to reach MSI or Worlds and compete internationally and didn't really enjoy the road on the way," the 25-year-old wrote.
During the LEC Winter Split, Team Heretics only reached 7th place in the LEC rankings, after which the team underwent significant roster changes and saw Perkz benched while former Team Heretics Academy player Zwyroo was promoted to the main roster.
LEC Spring saw minor improvements under the new direction, finishing fourth in the regular season and fifth in the playoffs, losing to Fnatic in the lower bracket quarterfinals. With these results, Team Heretics didn't manage to qualify for MSI.
Perkz’ future
In a follow-up Tweet to the announcement, Perkz shared that he is looking to stream both LoL and VALORANT with this now freed-up time. Stating that he had taken an interest in Riot’s Tactical FPS, he wrote: "I enjoy it as I'm learning something entirely new while getting my brain stimulated."
According to Perkz's statement, a potential retirement is not out of the question. "Taking a few months off will make me see if I want to move on or not," the midlaner wrote, leaving the door open for a return if he was to re-discover his desire to compete.
Perkz is one of Europe’s most accomplished League of Legends players, winning nine domestic titles during his time in G2 esports. In 2019, he was part of the team’s golden generation, winning the Mid-Season Invitational and coming in second at Worlds 2019, remaining the closest team to win both international tournaments of the year while also lifting both domestic trophies in LoL history.