Royal Uzi: "I would like to say that we would beat them [SKT1] in the future."

This article was originally published on GameSpot's sister site onGamers.com, which was dedicated to esports coverage.

October revealed a number of world-class teams to western League of Legends' fans, one such team was Royal Club from China. Last month we caught up with Pak Kan Wong, otherwise known as Tabe, as he retired after his teams' second place performance at Worlds. This time we caught up with another player who had a massive impact at Worlds, Tabe's former teammate, Jian Zihao, Royal Uzi.

We spoke to Uzi about a number of topics, including his nickname 'crazy dog', his recent role transitions and a few things about Worlds.

• · Favourite Food: Potatoes
• · Favourite Drink: Coke
• · Favourite Champion: Vayne
• · Least liked Champion: Shen
• · Most fun Champion: Vayne
• · Hometown: Hubei, China
• · Favourite Colour: White

What made you decide to become a professional gamer?

The combination of my strong interest in League of Legends and the great feeling of competing made me become a professional gamer.

How were you introduced to gaming? eSports?

I got to know eSports through playing games. I would still say my strong interest in eSports, which has triggered my desire of playing in this industry.

What was your family's response when you told them that you were going to be a professional gamer?

My family has always been supportive for what I am doing and the lifestyle I choose to live.

What are your goals for your career?

I hope I can be the world champion someday.

What do you think you need to do in order to accomplish that? Are there certain areas of your gameplay you need to change? Or something else?

More hard work I think. We need to develop our own style in the way we play and our strategies. Learning other peoples’ strategies without having our own characteristics won’t make us world champions. More practice is also very important.

How has your social life been impacted by your professional gaming career?

Surprisingly my social life has been more colourful after being a professional gamer. Like a big family, my teammates and I always go out together and have fun together. I enjoy this kind of life very much.

What kinds of things do you and your teammates do together when you aren't playing LoL?

We would normally play some good tabletop games such as The Werewolves of Miller's Hollow.

What has been your most memorable fan-meeting moment?

The most memorable moment or rather the constant feeling of being touched comes from the strong support from my fans whenever I was on top of the world or rock bottom. I am always very grateful to them. I also go to interact with my fans online as well, which I enjoy very much.

What has been the most memorable moment of your career? Explain why.

I would say the time at Worlds. It’s unforgettable to me both when we beat OMG to the finals and when we were beaten by the SKT1 at the finals. They both served as the acknowledgement of our hard work and encouragement to us for better performance in the future (S4).

When you and your teammates were setting up for the final match versus SKT1 at Worlds, what did you talk about to prepare for the match?

SKT1 is considered a very competitive team and we had therefore done a lot of research on them long before the game. We had seriously discussed a number of strategies as our preparation and we made sure we didn’t overstress and treated it differently.

Looking back on your game against SKT1, what do you think you needed to do in order to win that match?

I didn’t really give it any thought actually. The fact is that we lost and we can’t go back to it anymore. I would like to say that we would beat them in the future.

Do you have any pre-match rituals (either personal, or as a team) that you do in order to prepare?

Not usually. It’s not a must for us as team as we went through a lot together and we know each other very well and we trust each other very much.

What events brought you together so closely as a team?

I would say that’s a gradual change rather than a specific event. We got to know each other more and more through time and events and we went through ups and downs together, which really brings us together.

When you are in a very important match, and you are behind, what do you do to try to stay calm and come back in the game?

We would cheer each other up and regain confidence in our team when we are behind.

Your nickname in Chinese is 狂小狗 which means crazy dog, how did you earn this nickname?

My original ID in Chinese server was 狂小禹(crazy xiaoyu), later it was changed to crazy dog since my style of playing was very rough and competitive like a crazy dog.

You have recently changed roles within the team three times, from ADC to Jungle, now to Mid. Why were there so many changes?

That’s actually for a better team performance. We have discussed the possibilities after two players retired and we have come to a decision that it might be better that I move to Mid.

Which position are you most comfortable at? Which do you enjoy playing the most? Why?

My favourite position is still ADC, which is also the position I am best at because it’s a position that can “carry”. However, I would love to work hard on playing mid for a better performance and better future for our team.

How has the transition to mid lane been so far for you?

I’m still slowly studying it right now and I will try my hardest to practice it.

What is your favourite part about playing mid lane?

I can find more opportunities to gank, which can benefit my teammates.

How do you feel about the recent changes to League of Legends with regard to the different mechanics?

I don’t really know that much since the Chinese server hasn’t updated the S4 yet. I would like to think the mid would play a more important role in S4. The updates in maps and the mechanism of the game will lead to the revolutionary changes to the strategies.

How will you and your team prepare this year and ensure that you will be the champions in Season 4 and not the runner up?

We don’t really want to think about it right now but I can assure you we will play our best in every game.

Do you have any closing remarks for your fans around the world?

I want to say thank you to our fans, we wouldn’t get this far without their support.

Translated by: Wang Xinrong
Photo Credit - Riot