The Real Old Man Dota: Doctors Advise 66-Year Old Grandpa to Play Dota 2 All Day
Move over Clinton “FeaR” Loomis. There’s a new (old) sheriff in town.
At a Dota 2 tournament held at the Acclaim Computer Cafe in Iloilo, Philippines last Saturday, March 28, 2015, Philippine eSports Organization (PeSO) Executive Director Irymarc “Tryke” Gutierrez met a 66-year-old grandfather who is a regular patron of the internet cafe.
According to a brief interview with Tryke, the yet unnamed grandpa was advised by his doctors to play computer games as a form of stress relief and mental exercise.
The real Old Man of Dota explained that his doctors specifically recommended that he play Dota 2, a strategy-heavy game, over other more culturally accepted elderly pastimes such as Mahjong.
The 66-year-old said that as he grew older, he began to just sit and stay at home where his mind deteriorated. Nowadays, he staves away mental degradation with a rousing game of Dota 2 — or five games, as it turns out.
Patrons of Acclaim Computer Cafe say that the Old Man of Dota comes in every morning to play for the entire day, only leaving to take breaks for meals and go home at night.
Tryke met the elderly gamer during a Dota 2 tournament at Acclaim. He came to watch the tournament and root for the locals that he has come to know and love.
While many of us who have been playing the game for a long time may not necessarily recommend matchmaking public matches as a “stress reliever”, lolo‘s years of real life experience is looking like it has prepared him for the world of computer gaming.
Oh and postscript? His favorite heroes are Sniper and Viper. Looks like lolo is a terror of the mid lane. At the very least, he keeps up with the metagame.
Photos courtesy of Project Iloilo. Photographer: Justine Win Cañete
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