Alkaren on his transfer to HEROIC: “I felt that Team Spirit Academy had hit a ceiling after kyousuke left.”
CYBERSHOKE Esports sniper Alimzhan “Alkaren” Bitimbay spoke with OFFSTAGE about the reasons behind his departure from Team Spirit Academy and his loan to CYBERSHOKE Esports, and also reflected on the differences in communication between Russian and English.
On his move from Team Spirit Academy to HEROIC
I just wanted to test myself on the Tier 1 scene and see what I could do there. I remember that period when we were playing for Spirit Academy... I felt that our roster had hit a ceiling after kyousuke left. We had already outgrown the academy’s level of play. Even though we were strong players, none of us could compete in Tier 1 tournaments.
On my loan to CYBERSHOKE
I guess I missed playing on a team the most, because I’d been stuck on FACEIT for half a year. I’d gotten, let’s say, tired of it. I wanted to play team-based CS, where you can communicate and all that. ...> I felt that if I joined CYBERSHOKE, I’d be able to climb the ranks higher than, say, at Spirit Academy, when we were playing on the Tier 3 scene. The team accepted me very easily.
On the difference in communication between Russian and English
I feel more comfortable playing on Russian-speaking teams. At HEROIC, there were times when I knew what needed to be done but couldn’t convey the information quickly enough. Because of this, our plans would fall apart, no matter how well-suited they were to the situation at the time.
My English is at an intermediate level, roughly B1–B2. <...> When you communicate in English within a team, they might use broad terms to describe a single position, whereas in CIS teams, the information is more detailed.
Earlier, CYBERSHOKE Esports announced the loan signing of Alkaren from Team Spirit. Over the course of a month, the 19-year-old sniper competed with the team in three tournaments, posting an average rating of 1.17. The team’s next event is CCT Europe 2026 Series #6.
