Envy Gaming Converts HCS Team Partnership Slot to OpTic Following Recent Merger
Lunchbox Hired as OpTic Halo Head Coach and Elumnite Joins as General Manager
OpTic Gaming, winners of the 2017 Halo World Championship and one of the most successful teams in competitive Halo history, is back. Following the recent merger of OpTic with esports and entertainment organization Envy Gaming, the combined company revealed the previously announced Envy Halo team set to compete in Microsoft’s Halo Championship Series (HCS) launching in December will be rebranded as OpTic Halo.
Envy was one of nine esports organizations initially invited to the HCS team partnership program, which is part of a relaunch for Halo esports competition coinciding with the Halo Infinite video game releasing December 8.
The Halo Championship Series kicks off in Raleigh on December 17-19, 2021. The previously announced roster of professional players Pistola, TriPPPey, aPG, and Lucid will compete for OpTic Halo. OpTic has also added former pro player Jason “Lunchbox” Brown to serve as Head Coach and Marcus “Elumnite” Lovejoy in the role of General Manager.
Lunchbox began his esports career in 2007 and enjoyed one of the most storied careers in Halo history before retiring from competitive play in 2019. Earlier this fall, Lunchbox was voted the 9th Greatest Halo Player of All Time by the HCS.
Elumnite is a former professional Halo player who competed from 2008 to 2014 before moving into coaching and management roles. He has worked with Envy Gaming in team operations since 2016, including serving as manager of the 2020 Call of Duty League World Championship Dallas Empire team.
“I’m incredibly excited to be back in the Halo community,” said Lovejoy. “We have worked closely with the team at HCS over the last year to help design the infrastructure for a lasting esports scene that will show off the new Halo Infinite gameand the best Halo players in the world for years to come. Bringing the OpTic brand back to HCS is going to be great for fans and future competitions.”
The OpTic Halo roster, which will make its debut at the HCS Kickoff Major Raleigh on December 17, 2021, features:
- Justin “iGotUrPistola” Deese – One of the winningest players of all time in Halo esports with 19 major event wins including two MLG National Championships. Dreese played for OpTic in 2013 and Envy from 2015-2017 and in the spring 2018 season.
- Bradley “aPG” Laws – One of the longest-competing players in Halo, Laws has been active professionally since 2009 winning at least one event with four different organizations. He played for Envy in 2015 and briefly joined OpTic in 2015 and 2016.
- Tommy “Lucid” Wilson – A veteran with multiple World Championship appearances, Wilson played for Envy in the spring 2018 season.
- Joey “TriPPPey” Taylor – A pro player from Envy’s 2018 roster returning to competition.
Ghibli-esque Hoa is Tomorrow’s Steam Daily Deal!
