Russian Dota 2 pro player Pure draws out a symbol of war in-game during match against Ukrainian team

A professional Russian Dota 2 player is allegedly under fire for incidentally drawing a controversial symbol relating to the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

The conflict erupted on February 24 of this year and has been a sensitive topic across the global discourse. Since then, internet personalities and content creators alike have shown their true colors on their platforms and even through fan-favorite video games.

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Dota 2 pro draws 'Z' on in-game minimap, viewers react

Virtus.pro's Ivan "Pure" was clipped drawing the letter 'Z' in-game during a recent Eastern European Dota 2 Pro Circuit match. The Russian team's opponents at the time belonged to the Ukrainian team, Mind Games.

In the bottom left corner of the screen, Pure is seen drawing out the letter 'Z' on the minimap that is supposedly only visible to teammates. However, the match itself was livestreamed on Twitch and casters watched on in confusion as the Dota 2 pro immediately scribbled over the symbol.

For Russian nationalists, the letter 'Z' is indicatively a war symbol, and was first seen on Russian military tanks amidst the Eastern European crisis. Soon enough, those in power and famous personalities were seen sporting the symbol to endorse the raging conflict surrounding Russia and Ukraine.

The letter 'Z' does not exist in the Russian alphabet, but there are two explanations for its existence. It could possibly mean "za pobedy," or "for victory." Some also predict that it could also stand for "zapad" or "West." The latter can be attested by Ukraine's placement on the world map, as it is west of Russia.

While it has not yet been confirmed whether the Dota 2 pro himself aligns himself with such ideologies, his decision to draw the letter 'Z' in a match against a Ukrainian team during a televised event was received pretty poorly.

A viewer gave a rough translation of the fiasco, explaining how the casters reacted to the Dota 2 pro drawing the letter. The first caster did not seem amused, while the second pointed out that he attempted to cover it up.

This led to the first caster questioning the meaning behind the drawing, possibly referencing the 1998 romantic classic, The Mask of Zorro.

One viewer asked outright what the letter 'Z' meant in this context:

Other viewers came through with their own explanations. A few commenters compared the symbol to its German N*zi counterpart that was used during the Holocaust and persists to this day:

One viewer pointed out that the incident was not an 'accident,' and that the attempt to cover up his mistake was probably enforced by a teammate:

Many commentors watched on in total disappointment as they witnessed potentially deplorable behavior.

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Virtus.pro's Pure apologizes

Pure issued an apology in Russian via the official Virtus.pro Twitter account on April 29.

He explained his reasoning for drawing the symbol in the first place, and stated that he did not have any ill-intent to cause harm or offense to anyone:

"There was a long pause in the game. The guys and I were talking and drawing on the minimap. When we realized what exactly my drawing turned out to be, we tried to cover it up. I didn't mean to offend anyone, it all happened by accident. Peace to all."

Virtus.pro is yet to comment on the state of the Dota 2 pro's status on the team since the incident.

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