Doublelift

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Doublelift comes from California, and started playing console games before jumping to PC titles such as DotA, World of Warcraft, and Heroes of Newerth, eventually moving to League of Legends. In an interview with Machinima in 2013, Doublelift said his relationship with his parents was strained, because of his dream of being a professional esports player. "I would always struggle with my parents... we would just argue over everything, especially games. When I wanted to play they thought it was just a complete waste of time. It got worse and worse over the years." Doublelift first entered professional League of Legends when he gained the attention of George "HotshotGG" Georgallidis, founder of CLG, who recruited him as a substitute Support player. Shortly after, Doublelift left CLG to become the starting Support for Epik Gamer. He later joined UnRestricted as the starting AD Carry, and the team was acquired by Team Curse later that year. Doublelift's first major tournament was DreamHack Summer 2011, also known as the Riot Season 1 Championship. Hosted in Sweden, he needed his parents' permission to go, but at the time his beginning esports career was a secret to his parents. "They wouldn't let me go... They were like 'You're going to die if you go to Sweden for Dreamhack'." He was ultimately allowed to go after Doublelift's older brother helped convince their parents. Doublelift was timid and socially awkward around his teammates. "I was really awkward and really introverted at the time. I was just that typical Asian guy who does nothing but play games. When I finally met my team I was like 'hi' and that was like the only thing I said. I said nothing after that. I was just a presence with them but I didn't interact with them very much." In a Reddit AMA, Doublelift said he owed it to Epik Gamer for giving him the opportunity to begin his career. "Without Epik Gamer, I would have never made it into the pro scene most likely." When Doublelift returned home, he said his parents were not proud of his accomplishment at Dreamhack. "They wanted me to go to college." Tensions grew between him and his parents over his choice of career, until in 2011 his parents told him to leave the house. He did, taking his prize money from Dreamhack and his computer. Doublelift wrote about the event on Reddit in a thread titled "Hi I'm Doublelift, formerly of team [Epik Gamer], and to

In Their Own Story

The tension between Doublelift and the competitive grind was palpable long before he became a household name. In 2013, after representing North America at the All-Star tournament in Shanghai, he admitted to being tired of playing 'all day every day' and wanting a break that felt impossible to get. By 2014, he noted that while fans saw a dream life, reality meant practicing sixteen hours a day only to lose and feel frustrated. This exhaustion led Team SoloMid to announce his hiatus for the 2017 spring split. Owner Andy Dinh stated Doublelift would have to compete with replacement WildTurtle to earn his spot back, a sentiment teammate Bjergsen supported, noting he felt Doublelift wasn't committed enough to simply take six months off and return. Tragically, just before the 2018 finals, Doublelift received devastating news: his mother Wei Ping Shen was killed and his father Guojon Peng seriously injured after an alleged stabbing by his older brother Yihong Peng in their San Juan Capistrano home.

Reader's Guide

Doublelift's career includes stints with Counter Logic Gaming (2012–2015), Team SoloMid (2016), and Team Liquid and a brief return to TSM (2017–2020). In 2014, Doublelift and CLG finished third and fifth, respectively in the spring and summer playoffs, and did not qualify for international events. CLG and Doublelift were fined on January 6, 2015, after being found guilty of poaching ZionSpartan. CLG was fined $2,000 while Doublelift was fined $2,500. For the first eight weeks of the spring split, CLG was never lower in the standings than tied for second place. In the end, they lost a second-place tiebreaker to Cloud9 and so ended up in third place in the regular season. Ultimately, CLG lost to Team Liquid in the quarterfinals and ended the split tied for fifth place with Gravity Gaming. Doublelift was benched during the Summer LCS due to an injury incurred from playing basketball. In August, Doublelift helped CLG win their first-ever LCS Split playoff title. The victory also qualified them for the 2015 League of Legends World Championship. At Worlds CLG failed to make the bracket and finished 12/13th. On October 31, CLG informed Doublelift that they were not going to re-sign him. After CLG released a statement, Team SoloMid announced that Doublelift would be joining, replacing long tenured AD Carry WildTurtle. On his new team, Doublelift reached the finals of the spring split, and faced off against his old team CLG. TSM fell 3–2 to CLG, and took a second-place finish. In summer, Team SoloMid added a new support to pair with Doublelift in the botlane, picking up Vincent "Biofrost" Wang. The team saw significant improvement in the summer split, improving their previous 9–9 record to a 17–1 standing at the end of the regular season, and earned a bye into playoffs. Doublelift also earned First Team All-Pro honors for his performance. Doublelift once again made it to the finals, and this time won, defeating Cloud9 3–1, to give Doublelift his second title. Before the start of the 2017 season, TSM announced that Doublelift would be taking a hiatus from professional League of Legends during the spring split, saying "it's time for a small break." While he would remain contracted to the team, he would be streaming full-time until his return to professional play in the summer when, according to TSM owner Andy Dinh, he would have to compete with his replacement to retur

Did You Know?

• Doublelift's famous 'Everyone else is trash' quote was said at the 2013 League of Legends All-Star tournament, not during any LCS split.
• Doublelift's older brother helped convince their parents to allow him to attend DreamHack Summer 2011.
• Doublelift became homeless in 2011 after his parents told him to leave the house, following his return from DreamHack.
• Doublelift was fined $2,500 in 2015 for poaching ZionSpartan.

Early Struggles and Professional Beginnings

Born in California on July 19, 1993, Yiliang Peng played console games before moving to DotA, World of Warcraft, and Heroes of Newerth. His relationship with his parents was strained over his gaming dreams; they argued constantly until he was told to leave the house in 2011. He attended DreamHack Summer 2011, the Riot Season 1 Championship, only after his brother convinced their parents. Homeless and without a degree, he took his prize money and computer to pursue pro play. He wrote guides for Team Curse to pay rent and started as a substitute support for Counter Logic Gaming before becoming the starting Support for Epik Gamer, where he later joined UnRestricted (acquired by Team Curse) as AD Carry.

Dominance and Controversy at Counter Logic Gaming

From 2012 to 2015, Doublelift played for CLG. In August 2015, he helped them win their first LCS Split playoff title, qualifying for Worlds where they finished 12th or 13th. Earlier that year, CLG was fined $2,000 and Doublelift $2,500 for poaching ZionSpartan, with a restriction on fielding him. In the Spring Split, CLG held second place for eight weeks but lost a tiebreaker to Cloud9, finishing third in the regular season before losing to Team Liquid in the quarterfinals. Doublelift was benched during the Summer LCS due to a basketball injury. On October 31, 2015, CLG informed him they would not re-sign him.

Championship Glory and Peak Performance at TSM

In 2016, Doublelift joined Team SoloMid replacing WildTurtle. He reached the Spring finals but lost 3–2 to his old team CLG. In Summer, with new support Biofrost, TSM went 17–1 in the regular season, earning a playoff bye and his First Team All-Pro honor. They defeated Cloud9 3–1 in the finals for their second title. Before 2017, he took a hiatus from professional play during the spring split to stream full-time. Owner Andy Dinh and teammate Bjergsen stated he would have to compete with WildTurtle to return, as they felt taking six months off without commitment was unfair.

Competitive Persona and Cultural Impact

Doublelift is known for being a fierce competitor who trash-talks opponents, famously stating 'Everyone else is trash' at the 2013 All-Star tournament. He holds records of 5 All-Pro First Teams, 1 Split MVP, and 1 All-Pro Third Team across 18 splits. His career has seen him play for Counter Logic Gaming, Team SoloMid, Team Liquid, and 100 Thieves. Currently, he is a content creator, streamer, and semi-professional player on his own team, Near Airport.