ODPixel quits job, joins Dreamhack Season 3

Owen “ODPixel” Davis quit his job to move to Sweden and join Dreamhack Season 3 full-time. The British caster will join hosts Jorien “Sheever” van der Heijden and Shane “Shaneomad” Clarke to cast with Andy “Draskyl” Stiles for the new season, starting with the first of the main qualifiers, on April 6.

Quit my job and moving to Sweden on Sunday. http://t.co/CJCP8ROXSG The dream is certainly real. Thank you everyone for helping me get there!

— Owen Davies (@ODPixel) April 2, 2015

ODPixel is the new and upcoming caster that has been receiving praise for his broadcasts from fans and Dota 2 personalities alike. Viewers first started to make noise about the caster a few months ago, when he co-casted some matches with Beyond the Summit. Since then, ODPixel’s popularity has rocketed, making way for him the main casting scene.

He is known for his British humor and banter, as well as for his accent. He recently graduated from the University for Music Technology and adds music to his drafting phase, team fights and end of game. When asked, ODPixel has stated that his favorite thing about casting is “the adenaline when something exciting happens, and being able to share my excitement with the viewers”. This explains what many, including himself, agree is his biggest strength: hype.

Rise to popularity

ODPixel stated that he had been casting “on and off for about a year and a half”, primarily for amateur tournaments in the UK scene. Together with his friend Chris “WakeyPixel” Wake, Davis started from the Pixelpipeline studio, which was in fact his own bedroom, where they used to hang a sheet behind them. During that time, Lysander “Lysander” Xonora noticed ODPixel’s casting and sent him a private message on Twitter, asking him try out co-casting with him. David “Godz” Parker and David “LD” Gorman took notice and gave him this opportunity.

13 Followers away from that tasty round number of 400. An evening of streaming in an aim to close that gap! http://t.co/zEV99ijGd7 LET'S GO!

— Owen Davies (@ODPixel) February 12, 2015

ODPixel joined Lysander for the Beyond the Summit Major All Star tournament coverage. Viewers recognized him from the UK scene, small tournaments and from PyrionFlax’s stream.

Thanks to everyone who's followed me after the recent @hitboxlive and @BeyondTheSummit stints! I have 1000 followers! Here's to the future!

— Owen Davies (@ODPixel) March 16, 2015

On March 16, Reddit users started a thread asking Valve to consider ODPixel as a TI5 caster. Four days later, ODPixel casted the infamous 200-minute-long match between Cloud9 and Scaryfacezzz. It appeared that following this series, his popularity and attention escalated overnight.

If you aren't following @ODPixel @PurgeGamers, what the hell are you doing with your life?!

— BeyondTheSummit (@BeyondTheSummit) March 20, 2015

I just want it on record that my stream and I knew @ODPixel BEFORE he became #1 caster

— PyrionFlax (@PyrionFlax) March 25, 2015

Dreamhack

A big congratulations to @ODPixel who landed a great deal with @DreamHack today! A great gig for a great talent!

— BeyondTheSummit (@BeyondTheSummit) April 2, 2015

Owen “ODPixel” Davis, during a Reddit “Ask Me Anything” session:

It used to be me checking skype in the morning, seeing if i was being asked to cast. if i was, I would then go to work, and skip my lunch break to leave early in order to return in time to cast. Now i have quit my job, and dreamleague is my saviour. I will spend all my time researching teams for you guys.

Dreamhack’s ASUS.ROG DreamLeague Season 3 begins on April 6, with the first main qualifiers for the league. The open qualifiers started last weekend and consist of four consecutive weeks, with the top four teams from each open qualifier advancing to four different main qualifiers. DreamLeague will begin on May 4 and continue until the LAN playoffs, taking place in Sweden, between June 13-15.

Highlights