Moonton clarifies Diggie ban for MPL PH Playoffs after OhMyV33nus hits out at it

Moonton was prompted to clarify its Diggie auto ban ruling after Johnmar "OhMyV33nus" Villaluna lashed out at it. MPL PH

By Ivan Saldajeno

PASAY--Johnmar Villaluna suddenly went from joyous to saddened when the Blacklist skipper was asked about the decision of Moonton to ban Diggie.

According to the support player also known as OhMyV33nus, Blacklist was only notified of the decision just early into game day.

"To be honest, nabigla kami kasi 12 midnight kanina lang kami na-inform," Villaluna said, baring that Blacklist practiced for the MPL Philippines Playoffs with hero quintets that include Diggie.

"Wala na kaming time para mag-prepare para i-adjust yung pinaghandaan namin buong araw kahapon na drafts, so talagang napunta kami sa disadvantage," Villaluna added.

Despite the "handicap", Blacklist still found its way sweeping arch rival Smart Omega in the first round at the SMX Convention Center here.

Still, Villaluna lashed out about the ruling.

"First time yata ito nangyari na nagkaroon ng auto ban sa playoffs. Parang weird. To be honest lang, personally, medyo stupid para i-auto ban lang nila nang ganoon," the 2022 SEA Games gold medalist quipped.

Shedding light on the matter, Moonton said that the "auto ban" had something to do with a bug it noticed during recent games involving Diggie.

"We have observed a visual bug related to Diggie's lock settings and Young Again's passive ability, allowing the user to see the opponent outside its vision range. With this, Diggie will be banned from the tournament until 16 May 2023," Moonton said in a statement later in the night.

This means the ban will continue until the Southeast Asian Games in Phnom Penh, where Bren Esports will represent the Philippines under the Sibol banner.

The SEA Games MLBB event runs from May 12-14.

"This measure was implemented to maintain tournament integrity and fairness--all teams have been informed ahead of the matches," Moonton further said.

Bren will play Blacklist on Friday in the MPL PH upper bracket semifinals.

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