H2K has a problem. A few days ago, H2K delivered their third open letter  to Riot and the community. Each letter is largely the same – H2K complains about what Riot is doing saying they need to do better, then they spend several paragraphs explaining why they are important to League of Legends. At this point, it seems like the letters could only be doing more harm than good, especially since H2K freely lies within them.

H2K’s newest letter addresses the biggest changes that have happened to the game but phrases them as if H2K’s participation is the central fact and that Riot is still the enemy. It says they are happy that Riot “pulled back” from original plans and that if they hadn’t, H2K would have been forced to leave the league. They also mentioned that though Riot is helping financially, it still isn’t enough, and went on to say they are “hopeful” that Riot will live up to their promise to successfully launch an EU franchised league in 2019 and followed this by once again reiterating how important a team they are in the EU LCS.

We should stop and clarify this point. Riot has at no point confirmed or promised a franchised EU in 2019. In fact, Riot has gone out of its way to show that they are not doing the same thing with the EU that they are with NA. EU will still have promotion and relegation – albeit once a year – and while the Challenger series was removed, it was replaced by an international tournament that serves the same function. Riot also called 2019 a “partnership system” not a franchise as H2K insists.

And this is H2K’s biggest problem. These open letters are supposed to show transparency and to show the community the hardships that teams face, but H2K’s agenda is so obvious that it removes any impact the letters may have had. H2K’s first and second letters were extremely aggressive, all but accusing Riot of cheating and abusing the EU LCS teams. While their third letter has toned down considerably, it still feels like thinly veiled threats, complaints, and self-promotion. The fact that Riot never announced enfranchisement for the EU, making sure not to use those words, and that H2K then specifically used “franchised league in 2019” as a promise Riot has made is the height of rhetorical BS, the kind of thing we expect from a politician, not a team owner.

No other team has lamented the way H2K has, constantly citing costs of operation and how mean Riot is to them. Even after Dignitas – a seasoned NA team – and Immortals – a team that went to Worlds – were cut from the 2018 roster, neither team took to the internet to complain in the sniveling manner that H2K has, and frankly, it’s getting old. Sure, H2K ends their letter with a “we enthusiastically look forward to what’s ahead”, but from what we’ve seen since September, all that really means is they look forward to enthusiastically whining and blaming Riot for their financial mismanagement while either teams take proactive measures to stay relevant.

It’s time to stop, H2K. Really.