North American organization NRG has announced significant changes to its Valorant division. Demon1 and Marved have been removed from the effective roster.
NRG made a massive investment in 2024, signing world champions Ethan and Demon1 and reuniting Marved with his former teammates from OpTic Gaming. At first glance, the new NRG lineup was one of the scariest rosters in the world, brimming with talent and accomplishments.
However, the roster seemed to have succumbed to pressure and could not meet its expectations.
The NRG squad failed to qualify for both international Valorant events in 2024, missing VCT Masters Madrid and VCT Masters Shanghai. Their VCT 2024: Americas Kickoff run was spoiled by the Sentinels, who went on to lift the trophy at Madrid.
VCT 2024: Americas Stage 1 wasn’t any better, as NRG faced an early Group Stage exit after placing last in Group Alpha.
Demon1 was arguably the best player in the 2023 season. He made his debut in professional Valorant and lifted the Champions 2023 trophy in the same year. He quickly became well-known for his laser-sharp aim and flashy Jett plays. Demon1’s personality caused him to taunt and trash-talk many players and teams, but he certainly had the skill to walk the talk.
VCT Roster Update: Demon1 has been moved to the NRG VALORANT reserve roster.
Max will remain part of NRG as we prepare for Stage 2 and the remainder of our VCT 2024 season. pic.twitter.com/8Js78Na4Te
— NRG (@NRGgg) May 25, 2024
The Evil Geniuses roster disbanded, and fans thought Demon1 had found an upgrade by joining NRG. However, in 2024, Demon1 is only a shadow of his former self and could not replicate his performance wearing the white jersey.
Marved played in Sentinels before getting picked up by NRG. He had a disastrous year playing with Sentinels but was still a stand-out player on the team. NRG thought it would be great to pick him up, as the lineup lacked a Controller, and he had previously worked with crashies and Victor.
VCT Roster Update: After careful consideration, we have decided to release Marved from the NRG VALORANT roster.
Thank you Jimmy for bringing the NRG everyday, we know you’ll be a great addition wherever you end up next. pic.twitter.com/onIIKsnEnl
— NRG (@NRGgg) May 25, 2024
Most fans wonder why Marved was removed from the roster, as he was one of the team’s top performers. Many agree that he was not the team’s problem but got the short end of the stick.
The updated NRG roster is as follows:
- Ethan “Ethan” Arnold
- Austin “crashies” Roberts
- Victor “Victor” Wong
- Chet “Chet” Singh (Coach)
There are strong rumors that s0m and FNS will return to the team. The two players played in NRG before being replaced by Marved and Demon1. In that roster iteration, s0m was the team’s primary Controller, while FNS was captaining the ship.
However, if the predictions are true and the two rejoin the team, s0m will likely become NRG’s primary Duelist, while FNS will play Controller and shoulder the in-game leader role. The pair took a break from competitive Valorant to pursue content creation, mainly live streaming.
FNS recently became G2’s official streamer, but the contract could see an early end if it is true that he will return to professional play.
Header: NRG Esports
