Fortnite controller pro Issa forced to quit after persistent hand injury

Issa "Issa" Rahim, one of Fortnite's most accomplished controller players, has been forced to quit the game at just 19 years of age after suffering consistent hand injuries related to a car accident.

quit

Read: https://t.co/SkrRWM1YfT

— issa (@issa) November 30, 2020

"As many of u know I signed with an org and was gonna try content creation but it just doesn't work with my hand," explained Issa in a statement posted to Twitter.

"I appreciate every single one of you that supported me on my journey over the past 3 years and I'm very grateful for all of you, I had the best time of my life and became one of the best which has always been my dream."

Issa was one of the Fortnite's breakout esport stars championed for his ability to keep up with mouse and keyboard players while he used a PS4 controller.

His career was as long as Fortnite esports itself making his first official appearance in the Fortnite Summer Skirmish Week 5 - the first Epic Games sanctioned competitive events.

• Read more: The best controller players in Fortnite

He signed for Ghost Gaming soon after and became known as Ghost Issa, alongside Ghost's other signed controller players Aydan Conrad and Liam “Kamo” Fillery, the latter of which he would frequently compete with as a duo, were all widely regarded as the best controller players in the world.

Kamo (left) and Issa (right) were, at one point, considered the best controller players in the world. (Picture: Ghost Gaming)

Issa would qualify for 2019's Fortnite World Cup, competing as a solo player he placed in 37th proving that, in the world of Fortnite at least, controller players could compete with the best. On 13th July of that year, just weeks prior to the World Cup he had spoken of an injury that forced him to quit his "day job" expressing his fears that it could one day ruin his Fortnite career.

l2 spamming isnt doing me good, rip my wrist pic.twitter.com/fDhf031BcD

— issa (@issa) January 21, 2019

Competitive appearances after the World Cup become sporadic, over eight months passed before he was next seen at an event and he made frequent public references to the state of his hands, often claiming that the nature of Fortnite competitive play was far from the best thing for his condition. 

In March of this year he attempted to re-ignite his ailing Fortnite career partnering up once again with Kamo for the FNCS Duos. The pair would qualify but his attempts to play consistently, after believing that his injuries were behind him, were thwarted. In June he revealed he had Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS), effectively nerve damage in your hands that causes tingling, numbness and pain.

• Read more: Best controller settings for Fortnite Season 5: Linear/Expo, deadzones, button configs, more

With hopes of a return to regular competitive action dashed, he hoped to forge a career as a content creator having announced that he was set to be signed by a new organisation.

Sadly content creation also seems to be a step too far now explaining in today's statement that it "just doesn't work with my hand."

Adding, "still gonna stream every once in a while, but I'm mostly gonna focus on other stuff and do my thing."