Interview with Mushi at Dreamhack Mumbai

We had the chance to interview the legend, Mushi himself at Dreamhack Mumbai.

How was your DreamHack India 2018 experience?

Mushi: I’ve been to India before, 7 years ago, so Mumbai is a good place for such an event. It’s been a pretty good and unique experience for me so far and I like it.

What are your thoughts on the current scenario of old players still staying relevant in the scene, since there is a notion that esports is a sport for young players and usually people take retirement in their late 20s?

Mushi: I don’t think esports is a sport only for young players. Esports has been on for some time now and been the oldest Dota 2 player right now, Fear, is still on the scene and I don’t think he is even old because even though you’ll be getting older, you’ll have tons of experience which will improve your game.

What are your thoughts on the Dota Pro Circuit System?

Mushi: It’s really good! I like it, but personally I would prefer having more tournaments than less tournaments. Like this year there were 5 minors and 5 majors, it was okay for the majors to be honest, but minors were just way to less from my perspective. It was like nothing.

Have you ever thought of playing for teams outside of South East Asia or China?

Mushi: Yeah. If there is a good team from anywhere in the world, I’d play with them.

Since you are a free agent, what are your future plans?

Mushi: I’ll probably join a new team for the next season.

Who would you be interested in playing with?

Mushi: I’d be interested in playing with a lot of teams.

As a professional esports athlete, what struggles have you faced in coming so far?

Mushi: I think the biggest struggle was not having freedom, because if you achieve something, you’ll be standing high, but if you fall down or are not strong enough, it’ll be almost impossible to make it. I’ve been playing for so many years, so I have faced most of all the problems.

Do you think that TI gets harder each year?

Mushi: Not really, to be honest. I think that TI is like more teams participate each year, but it does not get harder. I think that sometimes, it’s actually easier. Not all teams can perform that well. So in the end it becomes more about making money.

In India, not enough people are aware that esports is a viable career choice, so how was your parents’ support in helping in your career and what advice do you have for the Indian parents?

Mushi: My parents didn’t support me at first. They used to say things like, ” You want to play games? Why?” Because ten years ago, they knew nothing about esports. The thing is that you need to prove it to them, you need to achieve something and show it to them that you are making money while doing something that you love. Ten years ago, the esports scene in Malaysia was totally different, but now people recognize it. In India, it might not be recognized yet, but with more events coming, and more players participating in them, people will start to recognize esports as a viable career choice.

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