At ESL Pro League PARIVISION are playing their first event since adding Abay "HObbit" Khassenov to their lineup permanently, but already the new iteration is finding success, picking up a memorable win over Natus Vincere on their way to a playoff appearance.
Having returned to tier-one play after a number of years toiling away in the lower reaches of Europe's scene, HObbit admits that it's not easy to adapt to PARIVISION's system. "It's a big experience because the system which they're using is super different," he says to HLTV after his team secured their playoff berth.
"I never played in such a big system, you know? A lot of stuff you need to remember and a lot of stuff you need to understand. It's hard, but still, I understand that it's my chance to play on the highest level right now."
With an appearance in the legendary Spodek Arena on the horizon, HObbit spoke to HLTV about adjusting to life in his new team and what he's bringing to Dzhami "Jame" Ali and Dastan "dastan" Akbayev's system in PARIVISION.
Listen to the interview here.
Okay, HObbit, congratulations. Back in the Spodek, how does that feel?
For me nowadays it's like a dream.
Tell me about playing for PARIVISION for a bit, then going back, and then coming back again. How excited were you to have this opportunity back?
Of course, to play for PARIVISION, it's a big honor for me. I respect a lot the players who I'm playing with. For me, first of all, it's a big experience because the system which they're using is super different, I never played in such a big system, you know? A lot of stuff you need to remember and a lot of stuff you need to understand. It's hard, but still, I understand that it's my chance to play on the highest level right now.
And what are you bringing to the team? Because dastan spoke about your experience and everything like that. You say it's hard to understand the system sometimes, but you're bringing stuff to the team too, right?
Yeah. I'm trying to add a lot of stuff that was working in my career. Of course, I'm trying to fix their system. Sometimes their system is too big, and I'm trying to filter it, I'm going to say. I think I never said this before, but I was giving all my heart every time in every team. Here, I'm doing the same, but I'm working with my mind even more, and with the team. I'm trying to also give simple answers which they can use in the game.
And what is that like? Because they've obviously got the two young players still. How are you moulding, helping those guys out with your experience and everything, and also understanding the system at the same time? It sounds quite hard to do both.
Yeah. I said already that I'm doing all my stuff, but only they can say how I'm helping them. Yeah. I'm not going to say anything, but I'm doing all my best. That's it.
And on just being back in tier-one, because it was a few years out: did you think you'd get this chance again? How exciting is it to be playing in arenas again in two days' time?
It's really different. The game has changed, the meta changed, and I'm trying to adapt to it and I'm enjoying it. That's it.
And dastan said to me at the start of the event, he said, "I want to win a trophy with HObbit before HObbit retires." It'd be pretty good if it was this one, right?
I'm already happy to play with them. For me, that's enough.
Dzhami 'Jame' AliPast 3 months
Abay 'HObbit' KhassenovPast 3 months
Natus Vincere
Aleksi 'Aleksib' Virolainen
Mihai 'iM' Ivan
Valeriy 'b1t' Vakhovskiy
Ihor 'w0nderful' Zhdanov
Drin 'makazze' Shaqiri
Andrey 'B1ad3' Gorodenskiy
Dastan 'dastan' Akbayev
PARIVISION
Abay 'HObbit' Khassenov
Evgenii 'FL1T' Lebedev
Dzhami 'Jame' Ali
Vladislav 'xiELO' Lysov
Ivan 'zweih' Gogin
Dastan 'dastan' Akbayev