syndereN on “The Dark Carnival”: “There will be at least a second act.”
Troels “syndereN” Nielsen Lingholt and Shannon “SUNSfan” Scott on the We Say Things podcast discussed a possible second act of “The Dark Carnival,” the absence of Maurice “KheZu” Gutman from The International 2026, and the Chinese teams’ chances at the year’s premier tournament.
On the second act of “The Dark Carnival” and the automaton characters
syndereN: There will be at least a second act. I hope TI will be connected to this event in some way. Obviously, we’re both hoping for a climax in the form of a large-scale multiplayer PvE mode—something we feel the game has been missing for a long time, and perhaps everything is leading up to exactly that.
However, we can’t rule out the possibility that it will turn out to be something like the final mode from the previous event—that is, a single-player experience. Personally, I’d find that disappointing: it’s much more interesting to play with other people and explore the new formats Valve comes up with. But overall, the impression is very good.
For me, the biggest disappointment in all of this, if I may say so, was the automatons. They’re perfectly fine, but not a single one made me think, “Oh yeah, I have to get this,” even when I’m playing those heroes. That’s why I’d prefer one or two Arcana-tier items over a bunch of mediocre ones.
On KheZu’s Absence from The International 2026
syndereN: Purge was invited, but KheZu wasn’t—and I think, deep down, we were all in shock. Maurice, in the organizers’ general opinion, is on the same level as Quinn from Insania—maybe they’re even slightly ahead right now thanks to their achievements and pro status, but KheZu is every bit their equal. And the fact that he wasn’t invited is just a disgrace. He’s only been to one TI, which is incredible in itself, and before that, he worked remotely for two or three years in a row.
SUNSfan: This is a total oversight. He’s either the best, or at least one of the best analysts, without a doubt. He’s a pleasure to work with, and obviously he’s a good friend of mine, so I’m a little biased, but he’s really good. As far as I know, he has excellent relationships with everyone, so there’s no hidden conflict. Sometimes people aren’t invited for personal reasons or because of past disagreements, but KheZu isn’t one of those people.
On Chinese teams at the main tournament of the year
SUNSfan: But how bad would it be if no Chinese teams made it into the top 8 at all?
syndereN: That would be pretty disappointing for the fans. But what do you think the odds are? More or less than fifty percent?
SUNSfan: That not a single Chinese team will make the playoffs? There are three of them, after all. I’m confident about two—Xtreme Gaming and LGD Gaming will make it.
syndereN: I’m very confident that two of them will still fall short. Vici Gaming is a borderline case for me.
SUNSfan: Got it. So, almost exactly fifty-fifty?
syndereN: I think so, yeah, something like that.
SUNSfan: But I hope they pull it off. Man, I love Faith_bian.
syndereN: There’s a chance Xtreme will pull it together in a week. But Resilience, in my opinion, aren’t strong enough, even though they look better than Xtreme right now—I get that. However, on the big stage with high stakes, Xxs’s magic might just work.
SUNSfan: You’ll see, Xtreme will go 0-4.
syndereN: To be honest, that wouldn’t even surprise me. I see arguments for both them advancing and them completely falling apart.
Earlier, Austin “Cap” Walsh commented on Jonas “SabeRLight-” Wołek’s involvement in covering The International 2026: “Speaking for myself, I’m most interested in SabeRLight-. He’s an active pro player who has more personality and charisma than, perhaps, half the entire scene combined.”
Photo by Shannon “SUNSfan” Scott.
