6.84 re-ignited Arteezy's love of Dota 2:

6.84 reignited his passion for the game and Team Secret win more if they don't practice according to Arteezy in an interview with b2ru from Na'Vi during the MDL tournament in China. The Canadian commented that their hardcore training in Turkey preceeded an early exit at Starladder XII, forcing the team to rethink their approach. He also reflected on his departure from EG, admitting he acted "selfish". (Image: BeyondtheSummit)

Secret at MDL (Image: Replays.net)

Arteezy humbled after dust settles on EG departureDota 2 fans were stunned earlier this year when

Artour 'Arteezy' Babaev switched from

Evil Geniuses to

Team Secret, in a move that saw several players exchanged between EG, TS, and

Cloud9.

In the recent Na'Vi interview by Yana "b2ru" Khymchenko, Arteezy shared his thoughts on why he made the change, admitting that he acted "selfish" and "took the kid's way out", but then noted the similarities between the two teams. He continued with thoughts on Team Secret's anti-practice strategy, which Chinese teams to watch out for, and his enjoyment of the new patch.

Interview conducted by Yana "b2ru" Khymchenko (for timing of questions click below)

*** Click to view question timings and topics ***

Every Interview Question

Notable sections bolded:

00:39 - Why did you decide to change teams (from EG to Secret)?
01:40 - Was EG shocked?
02:29 - What's your dream?
02:47 - What does a victory mean to you?
03:10 - Can you be a pro player all your life?
04:05 - Do you want to go to university?
04:26 - What do your parents think about your DoTA career?
05:21 - Do (your parents) understand what happens in the game?
05:44 - Do you think (your parents) are proud of you?
05:56 - Can you compare the atmospheres between EG and Team Secret?
07:02 - Is American mentality different from Europeans?
07:27 - How do you usually practice? Which tournaments do you use?
08:02 - Why bootcamp in Istanbul?
08:13 - So you're not practicing right now. Do you think tournaments are the best practice for you?
09:04 - What do you think about Chinese teams? Are they stronger in comparison to European teams?
09:42 - What can you say about Na'Vi's team? Can they show a good result, why did they lose (MarsTV)? Is it because of a stand-in?
10:32 - Do you feel confident you can win TI right now?
11:21 - Who do you like to practice with?
11:45 - What do you think about the new patch? Do you like it or the previous one? What do you think about the new items?
12:45 - Do you like the carry role? Which do you like the most?
13:32 - Do you play supports sometimes?
13:53 - Do you spend time with teammates outside of DOTA? Do you have shared interests?
14:26 - Can you describe all your teammates in a few words?
15:08 - Do you have something to say to your fans?

"Scrimmaging is Pointless" (07:27)

Arteezy questioned the importance of scrimmages in the interview, stating they don't compare to competitive games in effort or intensity. He argued that no team will scrimmage with 100% of the commitment that they show during competitive play, and that if even one person is slacking off then "the whole scrimmage is useless". He noted that while scrimmages are useful to practice strategies, tournament experience is the best.

The results certainly support his point: Team Secret have won both the Red Bull Battlegrounds and the Summit 3 without any practice. Prior to that they spent 6 days training for StarLadder Season 12, where they lost 2-1 to

Fnatic (then

Team Malaysia*) before being eliminated by

Alliance in a 2-0 sweep. He did however state that Team Secret does plan to practice prior to The International.

Vici Gaming: "Alway Going to Bring the Good Game" (09:04)

Arteezy considered

Vici Gaming to be the best team coming out of China, even going so far as to say "there's no one at the same level as them". He believes that there's a "big gap right now in China" between VG and others, citing teams like

PSG.LGD and

Invictus Gaming in the next tier. While he continues to state that Western teams match up well with Chinese teams besides VG, winning "60-40", at 11:10 he shares his belief that LGD could finish in the top 3 at The International 5 due to the presence of team captain

Zhang 'xiao8' Ning.

Few would argue that Vici, currently ranked #1 in China and #2 overall by joinDOTA rankings, is considered to be one of the biggest challengers to Team Secret, currently ranked #1 overall. The two teams first met at ESL One New York, where Vici swept Secret 2-0 before going on to defeat Arteezy's then-team EG in the finals. They next met at The Summit 2, where Vici won 3-2 and again went on to become the champions.

DAC 2015 was the first tournament in which the current Team Secret, with Arteezy as carry, met Vici Gaming. Their games resulted in a 2-1 win for VG. Both teams then attended StarLadder 12 but never played each other due to Team Secret's early elimination. The Summit 3 was their most recent meeting, with Team Secret getting their revenge on VG 2-1, eventually going on to become champions.

New Patch: "I Really Feel Like I'm a Kid Again" (11:45)

While others argue its merits, Arteezy finds patch 6.84 rejuvenating. Indeed, it's one of the few questions where he showed true happiness and excitement, now playing "12 hours a day" after rediscovering his love for the game.

Perhaps it's in reaction to his hate of 6.83, with its rubberbanding mechanics and dominance by heroes such as Troll Warlord and Batrider. He states that he "didn't want to play (DOTA 2) games at all" after tournaments, and turned to others like Runescape in his free time. But now he's streaming DOTA 2 pubs more than ever.

While he criticized 6.84 for including too many new items simultaneously, he feels it helps balance. He cites that previously "Ghost Scepter countered physical, but there was really nothing to counter magic. Besides Hood. But now there's Glimmer Cape." He asserted that there's a greater need for knowledge of mechanics and timing now, and that it's made the game more "complex". He added that complexity is necessary for a fun game.

The interview was conducted during the MarsTV Dota League, a Chinese tournament held in Shanghai from the 3rd-8th June.