“Karsa, the player, is saying goodbye.” Jungler Hung “Karsa” Hau-hsuan is retiring from professional League of Legends after 11 years.
Hung "Karsa" Hau-hsuan announced his retirement after 11 years of professional League of Legends. He did so through a heartfelt video, where he thanked those close to him and the people he met throughout his long career.
Karsa retires - "The player may retire, but the story will continue."
Karsa posted a 15-minute video on his official YouTube channel, formally announcing his step away from professional League of Legends. His career began in 2015 with Flash Wolves, so this marks the end of an 11-year stint for the jungler.
Karsa's career from Flash Wolves to PSG
His time with Flash Wolves was the most unforgettable, he says. "That was the most beautiful part of my career, the happiest period. Because that was when I had just started playing professionally. It really felt like 'the newborn calf fears no tiger,'" Karsa continued. "Every match, I went on stage just thinking only about winning. My time with FW, for me, was the most pure period."
He found some success with FW, winning IEM Taipei, the LMS Regional Finals, and qualifying for the quarters of 2015 Worlds. They also made semis in 2016 MSI.
He also named his biggest regret. It was the 2017 All-Star final against the LPL, where he and Chang "BeBe" Bo-Wei represented the LMS. He was sad that he couldn't "give myself or Bebe a beautiful ending," since Bebe was retiring after this match and Karsa was about to transfer to the LPL for 2018.
With RNG, he found more success. They went on to win the LPL Spring and Summer splits in 2018, plus an MSI trophy lift in the same year. This win, to Karsa, was the most significant one of his career.
Concluding his lookback, Karsa confessed that the past two years with CTBC Flying Oysters and PSG Talon were his lowest period. "In the beginning, I was expecting to take on a carry role for the team," he said. "After returning to the PCS, those two years with CFO and PSG were, honestly, times when I couldn't keep my form in good shape. I also couldn't carry the team the way I imagined."
He revealed that he requested PSG to either replace him or have a second jungler on the roster after his first split with the organization.
Because this was the last time I get to see everyone as a player, standing on stage, I honestly felt reluctant to leave that stage. Deep down, I really wanted to cry. But I felt that if, at the very end, on my final time on stage, I broke down crying like that, it wouldn't look very good. So in the end, I just hoped to say goodbye to everyone with a smile.
For a few years, Karsa would become absent from Worlds. He would not qualify for an international event from 2021 until 2024. His retirement seems to have been long planned, since he revealed that he was reluctant to leave the PCS stage on his last match to qualify for Worlds.
"Why did I suddenly fall from such a peak?"
Karsa gave many thanks throughout the video, but he named a couple of people in particular whom he holds the most gratitude for. Then-PSG Talon coach Cheng "CorGi" Pin-Lun was one. Karsa said that the coach has helped him tremendously improve his gameplay.
For his out-of-game life, Karsa openly discussed that he tried different approaches, including therapy, seeing a psychiatrist, and even ChatGPT, to deal with the mental and emotional effects of his "downfall." Out of all of these, Karsa said his psychiatrist helped him the most.
Messages from Karsa's teammates and family
The video concluded with messages from other players whom Karsa has played with or against throughout the years, as well as his family.
Notable names include Liu "Crisp" Qing-Song, Gao "Tian" Tian-Liang, Bai "369" Jiahao, Yu "JackeyLove" Wenbo, Tsai "HongQ" Ming-Hong, and coach CorGi.
It was then capped off with a message from Karsa's mother.
Since you were young, you showed so much talent in esports. Your hard work and perseverance - your mom and brother are both very proud of you. After your retirement, mom hopes you can find more things that you truly enjoy. Mom will always support you.
Karsa will continue to be a public figure, and he vows to stream more to his fans. He did not confirm any forays into other positions as a competitor, such as coaching.
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