StarCraft II is one of the biggest competitive RTS games in the world. Some of the most impressive plays come from the pros who compete in official tournaments. But not every player is an older, experienced man. Riccardo “Reynor” Romiti has caught everyone’s eyes for being the winner of the StarCraft II World Championship Series Winter: Europe at only 16 years old.
Romiti was recently featured on ESPN for his accomplishments, who wrote about him while he had a celebratory dinner at a Korean BBQ. Along with GamersOrigin eSports director Yann-Cedric Mainguy, Romiti spoke about his efforts, his victories, and more.
Romiti began his RTS journey on his eighth birthday, where his father took him to the store to purchase StarCraft: Brood War.
“I actually have no idea why StarCraft. I just saw StarCraft and was like, ‘I want this one.’ And my dad was like, ‘It’s the difficult one.’ But then I convinced him, and we started together.”
He didn’t even bother with the game’s single-player campaign. He just played with his father. His favorite was the Zerg due to the focus on micro units and unit numbers. By the age of nine, he had beaten his father in a game. It wasn’t long before he entered the competitive scene.
By 12 years old, Romiti had already achieved the rank of Grandmaster, becoming the youngest player in the world to do so. Since then he’s been attending tournaments, winning sponsorships (we see that RedBull cap), and just having fun with it.
The fun he finds in the game is what keeps him playing. And with such accomplishments under his belt, Romiti could make a career out of this. Our hats are off for him today and we wish him a wonderful future.
