Despite video games being a stationary competition, there is still quite a bit of physical endurance involved. In order to play at the highest level, gamers need to be in shape when it comes to their wrists and hands. This also means that one small injury could potentially end a professional’s career at an early age. It looks like this might be the case for one topCall of Dutyplayer.
Professional gamer Thomas ‘ZooMaa’ Paparatto is announcing hissemi-retirement fromCall of Duty. He stated that, due to a thumb injury, playing “through the weakness and pain in my hand just isn’t possible anymore.” This means terrible things for the 25-year old who still had years ahead of him at the professional level.
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ZooMaa was a top player for the New York Subliners, which has been one of the world’s best teams when it comes toCall of Dutyesports. ZooMaa announced this injury was pulling him out of that world “for the foreseeable future.” Although the Subliners recently announced some roster additions—including Asim and Diamondcon—the loss of a successful and longtime member of the team is a hard blow. This retirement comes right at the announcement ofCall of Duty: Warzonebeing introduced into the competitive league.
This injury is something that ZooMaa had struggled with in the past, but he had surgery that fixed it for a while. It seems that with recent competitions, this hand and wrist pain has returned and is causing the professional too much pain and muscle weakness to continue performing at the highest level of gaming — including helpingNY Subliners win the first Home series eventback in July. It is unclear if further surgeries would be able to fix his hand enough for him to return in the future.
ZooMaa did say that he lovesCall of Dutytoo much to step away entirely, although there is no telling what he means by that. There is always a chance that he switches gears and becomes a voice for the game’s development. Dr. Disrespect has had a similar role at times, such as offering todesign a new Gulag map forCall of Duty: Warzone. With how much passion ZooMaa has for the franchise, anything will end up being possible for the former professional.
If nothing else, ZooMaa will still be around cheering on his former team or encouraging other gamers. While theseCall of Dutyteams frequently compete against each other, there is still a lot of camaraderie and kindness passed between them. Gamers all over have already reached out with kind words for the injured gamer, and many more are sure to follow.
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