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The most prominent Dota 2 player in Malaysia has left his long-time team. What's next for Mushi?
In a surprising and unforeseen announcement, Yee Fung ‘Mushi’ Chai – which many consider as an icon in Fnatic, as Danil ‘Dendi’ Ishutin is to Na’Vi – revealed that the seasoned player will be hanging up the Fnatic jersey and leaving the organization. As the South East Asian region is growing extremely competitive, taking a break now can be both detrimental and beneficial for him. While Mushi states that he is still unsure of his future plans, here are a few routes where we think he will likely take.
Back to China
A move to the mainland seems to be the most predictable path for Mushi, who has played major roles in premier Chinese teams like Team DK and EHOME. The region itself is just as competitive as South East Asia, but China is where experience is highly valued – and Mushi has no shortage of it. The language barrier which deters most players from training in the region is not a problem for Mushi, not to mention his network of contacts there.
The talent pool in China is also considerably larger than South East Asia, which will be one of the primary reasons for him to consider a move out of the region. Free agents such as Feichi ‘Ferrari_430’ Luo and Hock Chuan ‘ChuaN’ Wong are likely allies for Mushi to consider teaming up with, along with some of the fresher blood in the Chinese scene. All in all, China seems to be the natural route for Mushi to grow towards, and few would find a better place to grow anywhere else.
Putting his experience and skills to use
Age may be a factor to consider for Mushi, who is turning 27 at the end of the year. In a game that heavily relies on reflex and speed in decision making, Mushi may find his years catching up to him as the majority of competing players are still in their early 20s. However, he has the experience of playing and leading a team, both traits that makes him extremely valuable as a coach.
Coaches are becoming more valuable in the scene, where many players have taken temporary or permanent roles as a coach in various teams such as Evil Geniuses, Complexity, Cloud9 and Alliance. Most teams with coaches attributes part of their success to the directions and insights provided by the eagle-eyed position of their coach. Despite Mushi not having any coaching experience, we have seen his leadership skills within Fnatic and in his previous teams, and are confident that he can assimilate into the role without any trouble.
Full time streaming
Streaming has become a viable source of livelihood recently, with many companies offering lucrative stream deals to prominent figures of the gaming community. Team Secret was offered USD250,000 to have their games streamed on a Chinese streaming platform for a small number of hours a month, and several professional players such as Jiang ‘YYF’ Cen have moved from playing competitively to streaming.
Mushi had a previous streaming contract with Douyu.TV, and should be able to secure a sizeable contract with any streaming platform in China as the Chinese fans are known to warm up to him. Despite not being in the competitive scene, this is something Mushi is able to do while supporting his passion and livelihood with a streaming partnership, and still be relevant in the community. Should he consider retiring but still be in the scene, this is one route that he can take.
Retiring – for good?
Alas, all good things must come to an end, and for Mushi it is no exception. Despite the unthinkable fact of life that a prominent figure in the scene such as Mushi would throw up the towel and bid his farewell to the scene, it would not be the most surprising thing that Mushi could do. With his past successes and sizeable prize winnings from his years of competing at a high level, Mushi should be able to retire comfortably.
Whatever the path Mushi will take in his journey in life, as true Malaysian Dota 2 fans, we can only wish him the best and support his decision, whichever it may be. Where do you think Mushi will go?
The opinions expressed in this article are the author's own and do not reflect the opinion and stand of RedBull.com eSports.
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