By SHAZWANI CHE RAHIM
It is not easy to find a person who can be very passionate about something for a very long time. For an individual to spend more than a decade in gaming because of his strong interest towards it requires a lot of passion and sacrifice. Ian Cheong Bing Tian, 22, has spent that amount of time in gaming.
Cheong is an Event and Management final year student at Taylor’s University who wants to pursue his future career in any job that the Media field can offer. Also the eldest son from two siblings, Cheong is very determined and confident in whatever he does. He can stand on stage with a microphone in hand and talk to hundreds of people without any fear. Despite on how he can stand in front the crowd without fear, this guy who loves blue colour only has one hobby which is gaming.
Cheong has first stepped into the gaming world when he was four, when his father brought home the first gaming console which was a PlayStation One. “That was when my journey as a gamer began,” Cheong says. He kicked start his gaming list by playing the legendary game Super Mario N64 and is currently a full-time PC gamer. He is one of the Diablo and Counter-Strike players and is hoping to reach the highest rank which is called Global Elite. Cheong also explains that besides his father, his cousin is the biggest influence in his gaming life as back then he only got to play PlayStation right up to the release of its second version.
“It started with my dad because he used to game a bit, and then later evolved to my cousin which is also another gamer, so he got me into the whole PC world of gaming” The student that has been a gamer for 18 years mentions that all of his male cousins from the ages of 25 to 32 are his influences. Cheong willed to spend most of the years gaming because to him, gaming is an art. “You get to express yourself, you get to be in the characters that you are not, and you can be anyone you want,” Cheong explains. He also adds that gaming is another way for him to release stress besides having a pint of beer, preferably a stout.
The former Selangor state runner expresses that he can game the whole day if he has nothing else to do but he only spends a few hours gaming every day. “On an average would be three to five hours,” Cheong says. “I game every day but there are days that I’m out the whole day, responsibilities call for my attention and I come home I’m just so tired then I just crash,” he adds. To have gaming as a part of his life, he tells that if one day his gaming mouse is broken, he would immediately get up to get it fixed or purchase it online without hesitation. However, his gaming habit has never been complaint by anyone but only by his mother, “Well when I was younger I had no sense of responsibility but now as I am older, it’s controlled.” Cheong also shares that he has to be smart in managing his time for studies, gaming, family and friends.
He is very passionate in gaming and he is very responsible in everything he does which makes him a good leader. His leadership skill assisted him to be the founder and the first president of KDU College Games Club which was formed between the periods of time of the year 2010 to 2011. While he was there, he organized several activities for participations. “I organized club meetings, gaming events, and I had members as well as myself to teach people who were keen on gaming.” He also adds, “One of our responsibilities was to kill the stigma of gamers are boring, useless. That was one of our mottos.”
Cheong has also dedicated his more than 10 years of life on an online game called Dota, “I started Dota when I was 10, and the journey was a bumpy one in a sense that everyone knows that when you start Dota, things are hard to learn, you can’t comprehend the game and other factors.” He overcame those challenges with the help from his cousin who also acted as his mentor. As he got better in playing the game, he started to join competitions. “But after a while, it just gets very boring. To be honest, I’ve actually quit from Dota, I don’t find the thrill in it anymore as I did when I was really addicted to it,” he explains. At the age of 17, Cheong has organized his own Dota tournament with the help of a group of his friends. “It was fun, at such a young age you’re given an opportunity to organize your own tournament, you gained a lot of pro gamers to compete for such a small tournament, you get really touched about it,” Cheong expresses how he feels like to be an organizer. The tournament was involved with teams from all over Kuala Lumpur where they had to sign up to compete for three top prizes.
Kelvin Ng Kai Xiong, 27, has been friends with Cheong for five years ever since they met in KDU College. Ng has won first place inCall of Duty 4 Sling HD 2009 in Singapore and also the winner of the biggest tournament in Call of Duty 4 in Malaysia, CiC7. He has been gaming since he was 16 and up until now, he still games with Cheong on a regular basis; around three to four times a week. As a senior gamer, Kelvin says, “Ian has a lot of potential in competitive gaming, a lot of room for improvement. He shows enthusiasm and competitive spirit in gaming which makes him a good team mate.”
Cheong still sees himself as a gamer when he reaches 30 year-old. “I would still be gaming casually, probably I would have a family but that won’t stop me because it’s a passion and a hobby.” He also adds, “Honestly, I see myself as a grandfather and still playing games.” Cheong’s strong interest in gaming is planned to be passed on to his children in the future which he would teach them to be a responsible gamer.
Cheong is an Event and Management final year student at Taylor’s University who wants to pursue his future career in any job that the Media field can offer. Also the eldest son from two siblings, Cheong is very determined and confident in whatever he does. He can stand on stage with a microphone in hand and talk to hundreds of people without any fear. Despite on how he can stand in front the crowd without fear, this guy who loves blue colour only has one hobby which is gaming.
Cheong has first stepped into the gaming world when he was four, when his father brought home the first gaming console which was a PlayStation One. “That was when my journey as a gamer began,” Cheong says. He kicked start his gaming list by playing the legendary game Super Mario N64 and is currently a full-time PC gamer. He is one of the Diablo and Counter-Strike players and is hoping to reach the highest rank which is called Global Elite. Cheong also explains that besides his father, his cousin is the biggest influence in his gaming life as back then he only got to play PlayStation right up to the release of its second version.
“It started with my dad because he used to game a bit, and then later evolved to my cousin which is also another gamer, so he got me into the whole PC world of gaming” The student that has been a gamer for 18 years mentions that all of his male cousins from the ages of 25 to 32 are his influences. Cheong willed to spend most of the years gaming because to him, gaming is an art. “You get to express yourself, you get to be in the characters that you are not, and you can be anyone you want,” Cheong explains. He also adds that gaming is another way for him to release stress besides having a pint of beer, preferably a stout.
The former Selangor state runner expresses that he can game the whole day if he has nothing else to do but he only spends a few hours gaming every day. “On an average would be three to five hours,” Cheong says. “I game every day but there are days that I’m out the whole day, responsibilities call for my attention and I come home I’m just so tired then I just crash,” he adds. To have gaming as a part of his life, he tells that if one day his gaming mouse is broken, he would immediately get up to get it fixed or purchase it online without hesitation. However, his gaming habit has never been complaint by anyone but only by his mother, “Well when I was younger I had no sense of responsibility but now as I am older, it’s controlled.” Cheong also shares that he has to be smart in managing his time for studies, gaming, family and friends.
He is very passionate in gaming and he is very responsible in everything he does which makes him a good leader. His leadership skill assisted him to be the founder and the first president of KDU College Games Club which was formed between the periods of time of the year 2010 to 2011. While he was there, he organized several activities for participations. “I organized club meetings, gaming events, and I had members as well as myself to teach people who were keen on gaming.” He also adds, “One of our responsibilities was to kill the stigma of gamers are boring, useless. That was one of our mottos.”
Cheong has also dedicated his more than 10 years of life on an online game called Dota, “I started Dota when I was 10, and the journey was a bumpy one in a sense that everyone knows that when you start Dota, things are hard to learn, you can’t comprehend the game and other factors.” He overcame those challenges with the help from his cousin who also acted as his mentor. As he got better in playing the game, he started to join competitions. “But after a while, it just gets very boring. To be honest, I’ve actually quit from Dota, I don’t find the thrill in it anymore as I did when I was really addicted to it,” he explains. At the age of 17, Cheong has organized his own Dota tournament with the help of a group of his friends. “It was fun, at such a young age you’re given an opportunity to organize your own tournament, you gained a lot of pro gamers to compete for such a small tournament, you get really touched about it,” Cheong expresses how he feels like to be an organizer. The tournament was involved with teams from all over Kuala Lumpur where they had to sign up to compete for three top prizes.
Kelvin Ng Kai Xiong, 27, has been friends with Cheong for five years ever since they met in KDU College. Ng has won first place inCall of Duty 4 Sling HD 2009 in Singapore and also the winner of the biggest tournament in Call of Duty 4 in Malaysia, CiC7. He has been gaming since he was 16 and up until now, he still games with Cheong on a regular basis; around three to four times a week. As a senior gamer, Kelvin says, “Ian has a lot of potential in competitive gaming, a lot of room for improvement. He shows enthusiasm and competitive spirit in gaming which makes him a good team mate.”
Cheong still sees himself as a gamer when he reaches 30 year-old. “I would still be gaming casually, probably I would have a family but that won’t stop me because it’s a passion and a hobby.” He also adds, “Honestly, I see myself as a grandfather and still playing games.” Cheong’s strong interest in gaming is planned to be passed on to his children in the future which he would teach them to be a responsible gamer.