After several weeks as a free agent following his departure from Dream Team, Super Smash Bros. for Wii U Mario player Jason "ANTi" Bates has joined North American multi-game esports organization Immortals. ANTi will begin competing under the Immortals banner at the upcoming 2GG: Abadango Saga in Santa Ana, California on Sept. 24.
"ANTi comes to us as both a top-tier Smash player, and a genuine showman who has nothing but love and respect for his fans," Immortals CEO Noah Whinston said in a press release. "We rarely see a player with such talent across the board, and we're thrilled to welcome this natural fit into the fold."
ANTi entered free agency on Aug. 23 after payment disputes with Dream Team, who failed to pay him on time, taking 22 days to pay his monthly salary. After entering the market, he became one of the hottest free agents in the scene due to his social media presence and consistent top play at events.
This marks Immortals' first and only expansion into the fighting game genre. In late June, ANTi took first place at Community Effort Orlando. ANTi also placed in the top-8 of The Big House 5, PAX Arena, Shots Fired 2 and Get On My Level 2016.
Prior to the signing, Immortals were best known for its North American League of Legends team and Brazilian Counter-Strike: Global Offensive squad. The team also added an Overwatch squad yesterday after publicly trialing mixes of players through online tournaments.