After two years if the LCS, Bae “Bang” Jun-sik returned to the LCK to join Afreeca Freecs. KeSPA Cup, the first competition after his return, didn’t go as well as he would have hoped for as Afreeca Freecs were the only team to not get a single win. Although the team’s results weren’t that good, Bang had three consecutive games without any deaths. Bang considered KeSPA Cup a positive event and a good to warm up for the new season.

How have you been after returning to Korea?

After the LCS season was over, I came back to Korea. I played a lot of solo queue and was practicing a lot. Since the pandemic got worse, I mostly stayed home and played games. I cooked a lot too. I didn’t do anything too special.

You were in the LCS for two years and returned. What was the biggest reason?

I felt that I wanted to return to the LCK. It’s a place that I feel the most comfortable — that’s probably why I wanted to return. I missed the feeling of the LCK. Rather than the language, I missed the atmosphere of the league.

How were your LCS days, your days in LA?

It was a good experience. Playing in a new environment itself was fun, working in an English language culture. I feel that I needed that experience in my life and I feel my world is bigger now.

According to Impact, you seemed to have had some trouble adapting to living in America.

There were some things that stressed me, but it wasn’t because of the region. There were just a few things that didn’t suit me well.

Most of the players that played in the LCS bring up problems with the solo queue.

Well, NA solo queue is infamous. Compared to the KR solo queue, the quality is relatively bad.

You would have had a lot of offers. How did you end up picking Afreeca Freecs?

After leaving LCS, I only thought of playing in the LCK. The reason I chose Afreeca Freecs was that I thought this team was the team that I could contribute to the most.

You’ll be playing here for at least one year. How is the team’s playstyle?

I’ve always thought that there’s a correct answer to League of Legends. I’m not sure about the playstyle, but I do feel that the team tries to play toward the correct answer.

It’s just starting. How is the team synergy?

It’s improving more and more each day. Every day is full of improvements. Even now, we understand each other well enough. We understand each others’ plays and are getting used to it. There’s still more to improve though.

How was the KeSPA Cup?

It was fun. It’s been a long time since I played in an official game in Korea. Competitions and scrims are different, so it was positive to experience something like this before the LCK starts.

Which bot laner are you looking out for the most?

I’m looking out for Ghost, Ruler, and Teddy. They’re the players that showed and proved the most and I felt something different from them in scrims. It feels that they have a very high level of concentration during the scrims as well as competitions. I believe that would translate to good performances in the spring split.

How are the new items?

Compared to the previous seasons, I think there are many more fun items. There are champions that got better because of the items like champions that use Goredrinker. The game has become more interesting.

A lot of players retired recently. What does that mean to you?

It didn’t mean much to me. It’s not like people retired only this year — players have been retiring every year. As for me, I started in 2012. Players like Maknoon, MOKUZA, or VinylCat retired and left. I’m quite used to it now.

As for you, how long do you think you’ll be playing?

I want to play at least up to my 10th year. I do want to play for longer, but I still have to do my military service. It’s most likely that I have to stop playing regardless of my will.

The next Asian Games will feature esports. If you were to be picked into that team and win the gold medal, you could be relieved of your military service.

Esports was in the 2018 Asian Games as a demonstration event, but I wasn’t picked back then either. I’m not looking forward to it too much.

Lastly, a word to the fans?

I’m preparing well for the upcoming LCK season. I’ll be grateful if you cheer for us a lot. Although we won’t be able to meet at LoL Park because of the coronavirus, it’s fortunate that we could at least play online.