Before Jason ‘f0rsakeN’ Susanto was topping the scoreboard in matches at VCT Stage 2 Masters Copenhagen, where Paper Rex finished second, the Indonesian teenager was a young player looking up to his eldest brother.
Kevin ‘xccurate’ Susanto was a professional CS:GO player in South East Asia until his recent retirement earlier in 2022. He played in prominent Asian squads like Recca Esports, TYLOO and NKT. The eldest of four sons, xccurate competed on the world stage at a number of events, including the FACEIT Major in 2018 and the IEM Katowice Major in 2019.
“When I was younger, all of my brothers just always followed me whenever I play some games,” xccurate said in an interview with Dexerto. “I played CS 1.6 years ago and they were like, ‘I want to play also.’”
The 24-year-old paved the way for f0rsaken to enter esports by showing their parents that it is a viable way to make a living. xccurate said that his parents are supportive of his and f0rsaken’s career, with their father handling the teenager’s contract and business.
xccurate admitted that becoming a professional player was a gamble for him as he had to make a choice between finishing school and starting a career in esports.
“Because I proved to them that with this game, or with this esport, I can be successful. That’s why right now, all of my brothers want to follow in my steps,” xccurate said.
f0rsaken at the top of Valorant
Currently, f0rsaken is one of the best players in the world and almost brought South East Asia its first Valorant Masters trophy in Copenhagen. Despite the bittersweet ending to Paper Rex’s run following the defeat to FunPlus Phoenix in the final, the teenage talent managed to make history for his region as one of the focal points for his team.
Paper Rex are known for their aggressive set plays and kill-hungry style, and much of that is predicated on f0rsaken and Jing Jie ‘Jinggg’ Wang’s ability to find frags. The team’s type of play is unique and almost unreplicable, according to OpTic head coach Chet ‘Chet’ Singh and Fnatic IGL Jake ‘Boaster’ Howlett.
After Paper Rex defeated OpTic Gaming and made it into the grand finals of Masters Copenhagen, xccurate posted a tweet congratulating his younger brother. He also often calls and texts his brother before and after matches with advice and words of encouragement to boost his confidence.
f0rsaken was a little surprised by the public demonstration of support after the match. His brother had not shown this kind of support when Paper Rex placed fourth at VCT Stage 1 Masters.
“Last time, he was not curious or anything. Like, he just doesn’t care about me. But I think this time, I don’t know… I mean, I’m happy about it,” f0rsaken said after the match against OpTic, laughing.
xccurate said that he wants to keep his younger brother humble, only giving praise to significant achievements. He said he has seen other FPS pros in the region let success get to their heads and doesn’t want the same thing to happen to f0rsaken.
“That’s why I rarely give them some praise until they show me a really big achievement,” xccurate said. “So I want them to keep getting motivated and just stay humble. That way, my brother can become a very good player… he already did a really good job in this tournament.”
The now-retired CS player also said he wants his brother to do things that he was never able to do during his time in esports, like play abroad in North America or Europe. xccurate found it hard to compete for an international team as he struggled to adapt to the environment and got sick easily.
Keeping in touch
Paper Rex lost the grand final of Masters Copenhagen 3-2 in a series where f0rsaken did not play at his usual level. He bounced back on Haven, the fourth map, to put up some great numbers but did not have a carry performance like in his previous matches. Despite that result, f0rsaken’s family group chat was buzzing with praise for his performance and tournament run.
“Even if he wins or losses I will still be proud of him,” xccurate said hours before his brother’s match against FunPlus Phoenix. “That’s the most important thing.”
When asked what his family told him before and after the match, f0rsaken said that his eldest brother offered him some advice, similar to what he had done before the OpTic Gaming match, and that his whole family was giving him praise.
“He’s supporting me and my family as well, they’re cheering me on as well, telling me: ‘Don’t be sad, center yourself. Just be proud. You did a great job,’” the teenage pro player said.
f0rsaken and his team will compete in Valorant Champions come September, they will be labeled as one of the favorites of the tournament and he will probably be a prime target for opponents to pick on in-game.
No matter what heights competitively, or places abroad, f0rsaken’s Valorant career will take him, his brother, and the rest of the Susanto family, will be right behind him.
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