photo by: DreamHack

On the day off at the DreamLeague Season 11, the Stockholm Major we had the chance to talk with the fresh free agent Mason “mason” Venne. Mason joined the South American team Infamous earlier this month and came with the team to the Major in Stockholm. Unfortunately, they got eliminated in the second round of the lower bracket playoffs and the very next day Mason was already out of the team.



We took the opportunity to ask him what happened with Infamous and him, what are his plans for the rest of the season. We’ve also talked about the North American scene and we touched on how he feels about this year’s Dota Pro Circuit system.



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Thanks for accepting to do this interview given the unfortunate turn of events at Infamous and your stint with them. So, to go straight to the subject, please walk me through what happened between you and the guys, and why did you drop out while we are still in Stockholm.



Me and Infamous got along when I got there, everything was fine at the beginning. But as time progressed, it became obvious that me and the management, not the players, we’re not seeing eye to eye about the game, about the team and ultimately we decided that it was just not going to work out, me being on the team.



It’s already time for open qualifiers for the next Major. NA first wave starts actually tonight, are you planning to get a stack and try in the second wave, or do you have any plans aligned right now, and perhaps we will see you in the closed qualifiers?



I think I’m gonna pass on this Major. I want to play on a team where everyone is committed to each other and wants to move forward and progress, and I thought like maybe that was going to happen here, on Infamous, but it didn’t. So, yeah I’m not looking to make any stacks or anything that will have a ”temporary” status.



Have you ever considered to join a team as a coach or take the event analyst path, be on the panel?



I think about it sometimes but at the same time, I really want to compete. And if I’m not competing I rather just play pubs and try to get better, improve on my own. There are thoughts on mind, you know, but I haven’t seriously considered them. I haven’t tried to actually become a coach or an analyst on a panel for an event.



I spoke to Envy two weeks ago in Kiev at the Minor and he made this blunt statement about the NA scene being behind. He actually said “there’s barely any good teams in NA,” and explained how it is detrimental for the players to practice, to scrim in the region right now. What are your thoughts about the NA scene, is it this bad?



Yeah, I think NA is a little bit behind. I think Europe, CIS, China, even SEA to some degree are all doing better than us right now. I feel like the NA pubs, in general, are very poor. It’s very hard to get better with what you play versus and what you scrim versus in NA. It’s very hard to improve yourself in that environment so, I agree that NA is a little bit behind.



I would like to hear your opinion on this year’s DPC system. It changed a lot from the first one we had and I would like to hear your take on this no roster lock rule. I feel like this has a huge potential of screwing up some players right before the TI. What are your thoughts?



To be honest, I thought about this and I do see a problem with it. People have all the chances to get f**ed up because the points go to the organization, not to the player. Honestly, It’s kind of a shitty situation and unfortunately, I don’t have a real solution. But I’m sure Valve could have thought about it better. Also, this is a little tangent, but I feel it’s very strange that the first place at a Minor gets more money than the last place or second to last at a Major.



Hopefully, they will change it for the better in the next competitive season.



I hope so. I mean, they always try to do something a little different. I think it’s always improving over time but you know, there is always room for better.

Are you a Dota Auto Chess enthusiast?



I play with my friends sometimes, but it’s not really my thing. I rather just play Dota, I spend all my time in Dota.



To wrap up this interview I will ask you who do you think will win this Major. It’s a bit of a different one, with three Chinese teams in the upper bracket semi-finals.



Secret without a doubt. They are the powerhouse team in my opinion. They are so experienced, they always come in with good ideas in terms of strategies, they seem unphasable, Secret is really a good team.



Thanks a lot for talking to us today and I hope we get to see you at events more often.



Thank you for interviewing me.

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