India has a big pool of talented fighting-game players, but they lack discipline, focus, and constant training: Indian Tekken pro Abhinav Tejan opens up about nation’s FGC scene

Struggling against all odds and baiting enemy mistakes with some risky “footsies” is part and parcel for any fighting games professional worth their grain of salt.

And for Abhinav Tejan, the title of “best Tekken player in India” comes with its own hurdles that the 27-year-old had to grind out of his system regularly.

In an exclusive conversation with Abhishek Mallick of Sportskeeda Esports, India’s prodigal Tekken star opens up about his professional journey and gives some valuable insights on the nation’s FGC scene.

Here is an excerpt of the conversation.

Q1. Abhinav, tell our readers a bit about yourself. What’s life like outside stomping players in fighting game servers?

Abhinav: Hi, I am Abhinav Tejan, and people in the gaming community know me as Tejan. I am a 27-year-old professional competitive gamer from Delhi. The game that I compete in is called Tekken, a fighting game, and currently, I am playing the 9th iteration of the series, called Tekken 7.

I play this game a lot because it has become my profession, and sometimes it feels like a job, so I have to take a breather every now and then. What I mostly do if I am not practicing is that I go out and hang out with friends, talk to my parents, and do things that are not related to gaming.

Q2. For how long have you been playing fighting games? Walk us through some of your fondest memories with the genre while growing up.

Abhinav: I first played Tekken when I was 5-6 years old. I went to an arcade shop with my older brother where I saw Tekken 3 for the first time, and it looked amazing.

The gaming arcade that Abhinav Tejan used to visit (Image via Abhinav Tejan)

It had a different kind of attraction compared to other games at the arcade at that time. Maybe it was the graphics, or perhaps it was the 1v1 competitive nature of the game that lured me in. But it put a different kind of impression on me than the others.

I think it may be why I am still playing Tekken after trying out other competitive games like Dota 2 and CS: GO.

Q3. What was the first tournament you attended? How nervous were you while going up against some of the best that the region had to offer?

Abhinav: I used to play this game casually during school because I didn't know there was a competitive scene for it at the time. But after I graduated from high school in 2010, I found an advertisement for a LAN gaming event, which had a Tekken 6 tournament as a featured title.

At that time, I had a PS2, and the only Tekken game you can play on it was Tekken 5, so I practiced on Tekken 5 and went to the tournament. I didn't go there to win.

I just went there to have fun, but after I reached the top four in the event, I started getting nervous. I calmed myself down and took the win. It was a comfortable victory for me because most participants were Counter-Strike and Dota players.

Q4. As a professional Tekken player, how has your journey been so far? Can you shed some light on some of the hurdles you faced along the way before being hailed as one of the best Tekken players in India?

Abhinav: Around 2010-2011, I won most tournaments because most players participating were just casual players.

But after 2011, word started spreading out about the events and me. After that, better players from other cities like Chandigarh and Meerut began to join tournaments and halted my winning streak.

I found a community for Tekken players in Delhi as well, and we started training together. It took me a while to reach the level of top players, and I started winning tournaments again in 2013.

Q5. With fighting games like Street Fighter, Dragon Ball Fighter Z, Mortal Kombat, and Guilty Gear already having thriving esports scenes and communities, why is Tekken the title you specifically focus on?

Abhinav: The reason I focus on this game is that around 2012, Tekken was the biggest fighting game in India. The community for the game was huge compared to other games at that time, and it is still the case in India today.

Unlike Tekken, other fighting games like Street Fighter, Dragon Ball Fighter Z, Mortal Kombat, and Guilty Gear are all 2D games not in terms of graphics but mechanics.

In 2D games, you can move your characters to only four directions: up, down, left, right, but in Tekken, a 3D fighting game, you can move inward and outward as well, making the game hard compared to others. This makes it appealing to me.

Q6. What’s the atmosphere like back at home? How supportive are your parents with your career choice?

Abhinav: Every parent wants the best for their child. My parents are the same, they may not be supporting me vocally, but they do support me a lot in other aspects. When I needed money to travel to international tournaments back in 2017 and 2018, they helped me and never stopped me from gaming. They are quite chill about my career choice for now.

Q7. Tell us about some of your achievements as a professional Tekken player. What were some of your career highs?

Abhinav: If we talk about my achievements in India, I have made it to every single grand finals of a tournament since 2014 and won most of them. I also have won every single qualifier of IESF and represented India five times internationally.

2018 was my best gaming year because I won Dreamhack Mumbai, which had a massive prize pool of 5.5 lakh rupees. Right after that, I placed third in an open Tekken World Tour event in Singapore called SEA Major 2018. The same year, I placed fourth at the IESF 2018 Taiwan.

Q8. Which of the Tekken games were your favorite so far, and why?

Abhinav: My favorite Tekken game is a somewhat controversial one: Tekken Tag Tournament 2.

The game was really hard, and it had a vast character pool that made it even harder to master. Hence, it received a lot of criticism from the gaming community, but it was still my favorite game.

The reason is that I had fun playing the game with my friends. Hanging out at my friend’s arcade every day, talking about the game, and improving were the best memories of my life.

Q9. Who is your favorite character in Tekken 7, and why?

Abhinav: Nina Williams is my favorite Tekken character because she is a badass, and I love her personality. And If we talk about gameplay, she has some of the most unique moves and difficult to execute combos in the game, which I find a welcome challenge.

Q10. Which Tekken 7 character you find to be a tough matchup to counter based on your playstyle?

Abhinav: So I usually play a defensive style and like to counter my opponent’s offense, but if they go defensive, it becomes tough for me to counter.

Q11. If Tekken 7 were to introduce a tag game mode, which two would you choose as your duo?

Abhinav: I will choose Nina Williams and Asuka Kazama because both of these characters’ playstyle is totally opposite. So they fill each other’s weakness out; Asuka is a defensive character while Nina is offensive. Moreover, I used to play this same duo in Tekken Tag 2.

Q12. Controller vs Arcade Stick vs Keyboard: Which is your weapon of choice?

Abhinav: I play on a PS4 controller because I have become used to it. Around 2010, it was really hard to get your hands on an arcade stick, so the only other thing I had was a controller. I would love to switch to an arcade stick in the future, but it is a lot of work, which I am avoiding for now.

Q13. What is the most challenging fighting game you have played so far? What made it so difficult for you to master?

Abhinav: Tekken is the name that comes up on every players’ lips when we ask for the hardest fighting game, but for me, it was Guilty Gear. The combos execution was the main barrier, as they require specific types of inputs that are hard to do on a controller. So I had to drop the game eventually.

Q14. You were recently able to seal a spot in the finals of the Esports World Championship. How do you feel about being able to represent India in Tekken on an international stage?

Abhinav: It always feels great to represent India on an international level, but it also comes with a lot of pressure because I am playing for India, not for me, in these types of tournaments.

Q15. What are your thoughts on the potential and raw pool of talent in the current Indian FGC scene?

Abhinav: To get to the top in anything requires focus and training. That is why, for the last eight years, I have made it to the grand finals of every single offline tournament in India.

The other player who mostly reached the grand finals was my training partner, Loveneet Dogra, and it hasn't changed much in recent years.

India has a vast pool of great players, but because of the lack of discipline, focus, and constant training, they are unable to bring out their full potential. That is why sponsorship is necessary to bring out their talents to the fullest. Financial backing is what the Indian FGC lacks significantly.

Q16. Who, for you, has been one of the most inspirational fighting game players?

Abhinav: Knee from South Korea is my inspiration in fighting games. He always plays defensive, which is my choice of gameplay style as well, and even after turning 35, he is still winning championships.

Q17. What is the best moment in professional fighting game tournaments that you have ever witnessed?

Abhinav: I am sure everyone in the fighting game community has heard of “Evo Moment 37.” It was a clip of a match between Daigo Umehara and Justing Wong.

Daigo was at a chip of health, and Justin Wong did a super with Chun Li, a 15-hit combo string. If Daigo had failed to block even a single hit from that, he would have died, but he evaded all 15 blows, which required nearly a frame input, and he took the match.

Q18. What are some of your expectations for Tekken 8?

Abhinav: Tekken always had a problem with character rosters. So for Tekken 8, I want a smaller character roster to make it easier for new players to get into the game. I also wish for more fundamentals to be included from previous games like Tekken 6 and Tekken Tag 2 so that the game remains deep for professional players.

Q19. What do you feel is Tekken esports' future now that so many fighting game titles are becoming more and more popular?

Abhinav: For the past few years, we have seen a massive increase in the popularity of Tekken not just internationally but in India as well. Thus, we have seen an increased prize pool and an enormous rise in the number of players.

This is good for the game, and I want this pace to remain for the Tekken series, and hopefully, Tekken 8 will be more popular than Tekken 7. However, It will take a while to catch up to the popularity of other big esports games like CS: GO, DOTA 2, and Valorant.

Q20. What words of advice would you give the next generation of fighting game talents in India who are still struggling to make it big in the scene?

Abhinav: Tekken is a challenging game because of the considerable move list and a huge character roster, but don't get intimidated by that. Just play this game for fun first, make your social circle in the gaming community, and learn the game with them little by little.

Tell your friends about your setups, improve those setups, participate in every tournament possible and watch the game you have lost, and improve on it. It will take time, but Tekken is a rewarding game, so it will be a fun journey. Best of luck!