“India Valorant Community surely has the potential to compete at an international level” - Divyansh 'scargod' Jain

From GodLike Esports to Force One Valorant roster, Divyansh 'scargod' Jain has proven himself to be a competent professional player. Other than esports, Jain has also garnered quite a bit of success as a content creator,

From a humble start with Counter-Strike: Global Offensive to playing Valorant professionally, Divyansh Jain has had an interesting journey. He now has a channel that has received more than 13k subscribers in the last year.

In an exclusive conversation with Sportskeeda Esports’ Suryadeepto Sengupta, Divyansh Jain opened up about his journey from Counter-Strike to Valorant, his YouTube experience and the future and potential of the Indian gaming community.

Following is an excerpt of the conversation.

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Divyansh, do tell us a bit about yourself: about your journey from Counter-Strike Global Offensive to Valorant, and how your time has been with some of the organisations you have been in so far?

Divyansh Jain: I’m a 3rd year BBA student from Delhi. My esports journey started off very unexpectedly, as I never imagined I’d be playing esports professionally one day. Valorant (happened) because of all the opportunities I have received to be part of an organisation. During my time with each of the organisations, I have obtained much-needed exposure and experience at the start of my career.

When was the first time you decided to pursue a career in professional esports? Were your parents supportive of your decision? What were some of the most memorable moments of your early career?

Divyansh Jain: I always wanted to be a professional athlete, but because of my studies, I never gave myself any chance at CS: GO back then. But the launch of Valorant, as well as the coinciding lockdown, gave me the opportunity to try that out this time. My parents were always very supportive of my decision, and they always want my happiness in whatever career I pursue.

It has not been a long journey that I have many memorable moments, but I do miss my first team that included Knight, Shivy, Whitehorse and Smx. That team was my first ever professional team, and my teammates gave me the motivation to play and become better and better every day. They will always remain close to my heart.

How influential would you say video games have been for you while growing up? What were some of your favourite titles at the time?

Divyansh Jain: I have loved video games since I was about ten years old. My brother used to play Counter-Strike 1.6, and obviously, being the younger one, I used to look up to him and play the same without having any knowledge of the game.

Later, I got myself a PlayStation 2 so that when my brother was playing on the computer, I could play some single-player games on the console like God of war,and NFS. But playing multimode in Counter-Strike 1.6 was one of the best things that happened in all the multiplayer games I’ve played and enjoyed.

Back in August 2020, you played at the NODWIN Gaming Invitational as part of Team Xyaa and then as a part of Team Mumbai during Skyesports Championship 2.0. How influential would you say those early tournaments were in your professional Valorant career?

Divyansh Jain: Those tournaments made me realise I could be good at this game. They were the most influential tournaments for me mentally as well as socially. That was the moment I gained some recognition, which gave me the motivation to participate in professional tournaments and play competitively.

Do tell us about your journey with GodLike Esports. You have played multiple tournaments from Valorant Power Up to The Esports Club Invitational as a part of the organisation. What would you say were some of the major takeaways during your time in that particular roster?

Divyansh Jain: The journey with Godlike Esports was amazing, as I gained the most exposure with that organization. GodLike Esports is where I went to my first-ever boot camp. I met my professional teammates for the first time. I got to know how the community works internally. I experienced how the players live in a boot camp. I understood the importance of synergy in a team. GodLike was like the first of many things for me as a whole.

You have been playing alongside Shivam 'shivyzz' Ajmani and Abhay 'knightrider' Mulchandani ever since FAR Esports. How has teamwork and coordination evolved over time?

Divyansh Jain: Shivy and Knight are the players who do not consider me as their teammate, rather they consider me as their friend. They are the teammates who are always there for you. Even in the bad times, they’ll never be negative towards any player but will always motivate him or her to be more hardworking.

Words like 'synergy' and 'coordination' are very small words when it comes to talking about these two. They are more like a family now, who will be there for you, no matter what.

Apart from being a Valorant pro, you garnered some success as a content creator as well. Your YouTube channel currently has over 13k subscribers and is growing bigger by the day. Can you tell us a bit about how you started with the whole concept of concept creation and the hurdles you faced during the channel’s early days?

Divyansh Jain: At the early stage, it was tough to gain consistent viewership, as there were many talented and successful content creators out there whom people love to watch. Tournaments like the Nodwin Invitational and Skyesports helped me gain success, as I got the opportunity to showcase my skills and get recognition as a content creator as well.

Team Mumbai in Skyesports will always be special to me, as I got the chance to play with S8UL and get the love from their fans.

Where do you see yourself, both in your professional esports career and content creation career, in the next five years?

Divyansh Jain: Obviously. I hope to see myself as one of the best players in the esports industry and, along with that, the growth of myself as a content creator as well.

How do you think Valorant has set itself apart from other competing FPS esports titles? Is there any sector where you think Riot Games should make drastic changes to be more appealing towards competitive players as well as casual players?

Divyansh Jain: Valorant has some mechanics similar to other FPS esports games such as CS: GO, Overwatch and R6 Siege. Riot Games is working very hard to increase the game’s popularity, but some of the recent decisions might backfire. The decision to limit the ranked lobby above Diamond 3 to the duo only is extremely infuriating. Shouldn’t the lobby be interdependent amongst players? Oftentimes, the gameplay style clashes and the match ends up being a tough one.

I also hope that if we can get Indian Faceit servers in Valorant, it would be great to play with better teammates and strong opponents.

Who is your preferred agent, and how does the agent complement your gameplay style?

Divyansh Jain: Astra, Omen, Viper and Brimstone are my preferred agents, as their controller roles suit my gameplay style.

Valorant has risen to be one of the more popular esports titles within just a year of its launch. Do you think the game has a long-time sustainability potential, or will the player count reduce to a much smaller but stable number over the years?

Divyansh Jain: Valorant still has the hype and the potential to become one of the best FPS esports titles out there. Valorant has risen to be much more popular in India than expected, which is due to various reasons, one of the major ones being the PUBG mobile ban in India.

Now that PUBGm is coming back as Battlegrounds India, it could affect consistent player numbers. I believe the player base might get reduced to a stable and consistent number.

Which international esports players do you consider to be your role model?

Divyansh Jain: I don't have a role model internationally; I watch a lot of players like Nitro, Steel, Subroza nowadays and try to learn from as many players as I can.

Do you think the Indian Valorant community has the potential to compete at an international level, on par with NA or the EU valorant community?

Divyansh Jain: India Valorant community surely has the potential to compete at an international level, as this game is very creative itself and Indian Tier 1 teams do consist of some promising players who are working very hard to prove themselves and compete at an international level. But it would take time to come on par with NA or the EU Valorant community, as the approach there is much more advanced and smart at the moment.

You recently played The Villager esports playoffs as ForceOne Esports and managed to grab the fourth position, losing a close game against Team Mahi. How is your journey going on with ForceOne esports?

Divyansh Jain: Villager esports tournament was a nice ride, and we fell short of reaching the LB finals by a very close margin. My journey with Force one has been good so far, and this time I want a title for myself. I have a team with a lot of potential; the synergy has been building up, We were very unfortunate with a few events like COVID-19 taking over the team practice, and all we could do was pray for the well-being of the players. Now things look promising; we have long-term future goals set for ourselves and let’s hope for the best.

Do you think video games have reached mainstream acceptance in India, or are they still considered a niche demographic?

Divyansh Jain: It hasn’t reached mainstream acceptance all over India; many parts of the country are still lacking (acceptance), but things are surely changing. Soon, there will be a time when video games will not be a questionable career option for gamers.

Any words of wisdom for the upcoming generation of Esports players?

Divyansh Jain: Hard work is the only way to work your way through. Other approaches will get you far but won't give you the satisfaction which you’ll get by working your way through by yourself. Have good individual skills; learn the game; play it how it’s supposed to be played, and don’t let the opportunity slip by if you get one.