It is with sadness but the best of wishes that our partner, Korean StarCraft II team MVP, says goodbye to one of their premier Terran players,  Kim “sC” Seung Chul as he retires from competitive StarCraft II.

sC, known for his strong mechanics and early tactical aggression, decided to leave StarCraft II to pursue League of Legends. According to MVP’s coach, Choi Yoon Sang, the MOBA has been tempting sC since its debut in 2009. After finding he had more fun with League of Legends than StarCraft II during practice, sC made the decision to switch.

sC’s StarCraft II career has seen many successes, earning him a strong fanbase. Perhaps most memorable is sC’s  series against  Lim “NesTea” Jae Duk during the May 2011 Code S Semi Finals, which many fans claim to be one of the best matches ever played in StarCraft II. sC’s fame comes despite having battled severe medical problems involving his lungs, resulting in several hiatuses from his former game of choice.

sC is not the only player to leave StarCraft II for another suitor. The same day, Team Dignitas’  Ryoo “SeleCT” Kyung Hyun announced he would also be quitting StarCraft II and would be considering playing Valve’s Dota II competitively in the future. Three players from SlayerS,  Kim “Puzzle” Sang Jun,  Choi “Coca” Jong Hwan and  Hwang “Min” Doh Hyung, have also moved to League of Legends.

StarCraft II forums have lit up with disappointment since sC’s announcement. The string of switches comes as League of Legends grows rapidly in popularity, causing some StarCraft II players to speculate a decline in their game’s popularity. According to new data from Xfire listed on Forbes.com, League of Legends is the most popular online game, played well in excess of a billion hours in Europe and North America between July 2011 and June 2012, nearly double that of runner-up World of Warcraft and about nine times that of StarCraft II.

“He had more interest in LoL so I respect his decision,” said  Coach Choi about sC’s switch. “After growing his skills at home, I await for him to become a professional LoL player.”