Faith_bian returns to Dota 2
Many fans of Chinese Dota 2 were surprised when they learned that Chinese veteran Zhang “Faith_bian” Zhuida is returning to the professional scene after a year of absence. However, the reason behind this may not be solely the player’s desire, but rather the stagnation of the region itself, where new talents have not emerged.
During his team’s performance at BetBoom Dacha Dubai, Faith_bian provided some clarifications regarding his return to professional Dota and his decision to use a new nickname inspired by a legendary composer.
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Returning to professional Dota 2
However, more interesting statements from the player came in an interview with Escorenews, where he discussed his return to professional Dota 2 and the reasons why fans can see him back on the server – primarily due to the lack of new players in China.
Faith_bian claims that the chances of returning to professional gaming were exactly “50-50.” He felt unprepared for such a step after a long break and his time spent in Germany, where he worked as an analyst since 2023. One of the main factors behind his return is the absence of new players in the Chinese region. He even noted that he “would not have come back” if new faces were emerging in the teams.
“It seems that there are no new players in China playing Dota 2, there simply aren’t enough of them. Maybe people don’t have time to play, or they prefer mobile games.” There could be many different reasons, but the fact is that there are no newcomers. We have players with high rankings, but they don’t play on the Perfect World (Valve’s regional servers) server because there’s no one to play with,” said Faith_bian.
The best teams in China right now
If we look at the top teams in China right now, aside from the young talents from LGD Gaming, the rosters mainly consist of veteran players from the region. This could mean that the region has only stabilized for a very short period, and this does not bode well for the future if veterans like Faith_bian decide to retire again.
While the player doesn’t have an answer to why new players aren’t actively starting to play, Faith_bian believes that this year, the top Chinese teams will work even harder because the “region is not in the best condition right now.” Considering that several other players, like Ori and Ame, have also resumed playing after a short break, he hopes that the younger generation of professionals will see the appeal of this game, potentially attracting even more players in the future.
