BnTeT: "I think that I'm still capable of playing internationally"

The 29-year-old feels he still has a lot to offer to the tier-one scene.

Alter Ego come into the RMR as outsiders for qualification after coming together just before the Major cycle began. Armed with the experience of Hansel "⁠BnTeT⁠" Ferdinand and Hyun-Pyo "⁠XigN⁠" Lee, as well as the last-second addition of Gan-Erdene "⁠dobu⁠" Batbold, the squad is looking to upset the apple cart in Shanghai.

For BnTeT, who spoke to HLTV during the Asia RMR media day, the tournament could mark his return to a Major after more than five years away. "I think every Major is every player's dream, even if some of the players made one before. I did, but I still want to make it again," said BnTeT.

The 29-year-old also touched on the roster's composition, the left-field signing of Jane "⁠aidKiT⁠" Apostoloski, and his wish to return to international play.

If you cannot see the Soundcloud embed, listen to the interview here.

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You're back at a LAN tournament. I think it has been a bit more than a year since your last LAN tournament on HLTV, so how does it feel to be back?

It feels so amazing and surreal for me to be able to play at the RMR again. I just feel like this opportunity is really good for us to show what we are capable of, and hopefully, we can show that to everyone.

This team came together for the RMR. Did you have any input in putting together the roster?

Yes, all of us have ideas in mind to put the best five together. We changed a lot of players with the previous roster as well, and when I thought about it, XigN was the first name that came into my mind. After he came, we just created what we think is best for us and suitable for all of the roles. Each of us gives ideas about who we think is the best for the team.

Talking about XigN. He is someone who has been in this scene for a long time, like you. Are you two in charge of the leadership?

XigN is basically the main IGL of the team, and I am more of a second caller, or anyone in the team could be a second caller. dobu also has a strong voice in the team, but the main caller is XigN.

You recently added dobu before the RMR. Why did you choose him?

We just think that dobu is the perfect fit for us, we really want to make the best five for this RMR, roster-wise. We were interested in dobu back in the day as well, but he couldn't join us at that time. It is also a good chance for him to show that we made the right choice.

You also have a European player, aidKiT. How did he end up joining you guys?

It was basically our coach, bali, who said that he'd been following aidKiT for almost two years. He said to me and XigN that this guy has the potential to be a good AWPer, and we wanted to know more, so we trialed him. And after a couple of trials, he actually showed that he is a really good AWPer who fits our style. So that's why we chose him.

You were away from the tier-one scene for a while. How have these last few years been for you personally?

These last few years have been great. I think even though I didn't go to as many LANs as I did back in the day with TYLOO, I gained more experience playing with other teams as well, like in Gen.G, EXTREMUM, TYLOO again, NKT, and now Alter Ego. I gained a lot of experience from many teammates, so LAN doesn't mean everything. But for me, if I play with a lot of rosters, I gain more experience and make myself ready to be able to show it in this tournament.

Talking about this tournament. If you make it through, it will be your first Major since 2019. How important would that be for you?

It's really important for me and every player. I think every Major is every player's dream, even if some of the players made one before. I did, but I still want to make it again. I really think that I'm still capable of playing internationally and showing what I'm capable of. So I just focus on myself, my team, and our game plan for this Major. We just focus on beating the enemy.

Does it maybe feel even more special because the Major is in your home region?

For me, that is the case. Because Asian CS has been going down after COVID, I would say, and because VALORANT came out as well. Hopefully for this Major, an Asian team can qualify for the top 16 again, or maybe the top eight or grand final. It would be so great for the scene, and hopefully, many players will come back to play CS and compete in Asia again.

You're facing The MongolZ in the first round, which is a pretty tough game. How would you rate your chances of booking one of the three Major spots?

For me, we're just going to focus on what we have and our gameplay. For sure, they're a really good team, their results and achievements are better than ours. But we will just focus on our game plan and see if we can beat them.

Date	Matches
Perfect World Shanghai Major 2024 Asia RMR
11/11/2024	The MongolZ 09:00 Alter Ego	Match