Artem "Niku" Bachkur has become one of the main revelations on the professional Dota 2 scene recently. This season, the young midlaner has already made a name for himself in the Navi Junior roster, and in early July, along with other academy members, he was promoted to the club's main lineup. While Niku is focused on preparing for the Riyadh Masters 2025, we have prepared an interview with him. Read below about Artem's career start, working under Artstyle , and his preparation for the year's main Dota 2 events.

You're only 16, yet you've already made a big splash on the professional Dota 2 scene. What does "Dota" mean to you? What place does it hold in your life?
For me, it's more than just a game. It's my way of life. I wake up and I'm already thinking about "Dota." My whole day revolves around it.

What do you like most about "Dota"? Do you just play for fun, or are you more drawn to the competitive process, tournaments?
Both. I enjoy the gameplay itself and the competition. Although it can be tough sometimes—you lose a few games in a row, and everything becomes irritating. But the competition, the tournaments, the feeling that you're an athlete, an esports athlete—that's very appealing.

There aren't many young players in Dota 2 right now. Many are moving to LoL or other games. Why do you think that is?
Maybe because Dota 2 is more complex than other games. To play at a high level, you often need experience from childhood—like when your brother plays, and you're next to him from a young age, gradually understanding the mechanics. In something like LoL, you can figure it out in a month.

Tell us a bit about yourself. Where were you born, at what age did you start playing Dota, and how did you decide you wanted to become a pro player?
I got interested in Dota 2 when my brother was playing—around 2015. I would sit next to him, watch how he communicated in the game, how opponents flared up in chat—I liked that. I wanted to feel that advantage, the high rating. I started playing myself around the age of 8-9, against bots and in custom games with my cousin—still on Skype. Around 12, I started playing ranked games on my brother's account, which had about 4000 MMR. I immediately dropped 1000 MMR, but by 13, I had brought it back to 4000 MMR.

Were there moments when your brother asked you to "boost" his MMR?
My brother always said I played worse than him and not to ruin his stats. But then he went to study, had no time for the game, and the account basically became mine. He'd visit every few months, see the 6000 MMR, and joke that he could have boosted it himself—but I doubt it (laughs).

How did your nickname—Niku—come about?
It's related to my brother. He didn't know what nickname to choose, and our mom once said, "I saw news about a satellite that rotates counterclockwise—not like the others." So we came up with "Niku"—something that's not like everyone else. I picked up this nickname playing on his account and kept it for myself.

Do you have idols on the pro scene? Maybe someone influenced your playstyle?
I liked Topson the most—he's just top-notch. I look up to him and want to reach his level. But I think my style is more similar to Malr1ne and Larl . However, my biggest idol is Topson . And, of course, SumaiL , who won The International at my age, but now he plays worse than others.

Did you calibrate on your own account? Do you remember your first rating?
No, I didn't have a classic calibration—I played on my brother's account. There was already a rating, so I just continued playing. So I didn't have my own "from scratch."

How much MMR do you have now?
I had almost 16,000 MMR about four months ago. Then it went down a bit—now it's around 15,400 MMR.

Were your parents against you dedicating so much time to the game?
My mom wasn't too worried. I joined Navi Junior at 14—that was 9th grade. There was nothing wrong with a child playing computer games at that age. And when a salary appeared—all questions automatically disappeared.

How did you join Navi Junior? Tell us more.
I was playing ranked games, was in the top 300. The manager of Navi Junior messaged me—said not to sign contracts with others. If I made it to the top 100, there might be a chance to join the lineup. Then Korb3n from Yellow Submarine also wrote to me, but I chose Navi Junior.

You've had a chance to work with Artstyle . What kind of coach was he?
He was my first coach, so I didn't really understand how everything should look. But he supported the team, maintained morale, helped with ideas and drafts. He had a somewhat unconventional view of the game, but sometimes it worked. There just wasn't a clear training structure back then, and because of that, there was no progress—so after a year and a half, he left.

Now you have a new coach— TheHeartlessKing . How is it with him?
A completely different level. More discipline, more focus on the game. He handles analytics, helps Zayac with drafts, watches matches, comes up with tricks. He supports both morally and strategically. He's both an analyst and a coach.

How does Zayac perform as a captain?
He got involved very quickly. A few days after arriving, he said, "We can't go on like this, we need to change our approach." And we introduced rules: no TikTok during training, proper sleep schedule, nutrition, no arguing. We became more professional.

After the changes, you qualified for The International and Riyadh Masters. Due to good results, your entire lineup was promoted to the main Navi roster. How did you react?
We already understood that it would happen. The main lineup failed two qualifications. It was clear that we would be promoted. It wasn't a shock.

But is the pressure greater now? After all, Navi is a legendary team.
There's no pressure from the organization. From the fans—not much either. We just need to win. That's the main thing.

Let's talk about the unofficial rivalry with the previous main lineup. How did you perceive it?
For us, it wasn't a rivalry. We just knew: there are them, and there are us. They played in another region, we played in ours. Sometimes we were better, but there was no idea of "we have to prove we're stronger." We just played and developed.

How's the preparation for Riyadh Masters going? What are you working on?
We've been playing together for a long time, so the focus is more on the game—drafts, nuances, fixing issues. Our team-building is already fine.

Who are you scrimming against? How's it going?
We've played against Falcons and Tundra. Lost everything (laughs). Haven't played with others yet.

Are you preparing any unexpected drafts?
We're playing simpler for now. Later, when we feel confident, we can come up with something.

Might opponents underestimate you?
Could be. And that would play to our advantage. But still—we'll just play our game and try to win.

What's the goal for the tournament?
At least to get out of the group. After that—let's see how it goes.

You ended up in a group with Talon, Spirit , and Xtreme. How do you assess it?
It's a competitive group. Talon has an unstable game, Xtreme—we'll see. There's a chance to even take 1st or 2nd place.

You're the second youngest debutant at TI after SumaiL . Does that mean anything to you?
It's just cool. But it doesn't change anything. I already know I'm young. For some, this tournament is the last, for me—it's just the beginning. So I play without pressure.

How do you like the new tournament format?
Interesting. The Swiss system is something new for Dota 2. I think both viewers and players will find it interesting.

What result at TI would satisfy you?
At least to make it to the playoffs. I want to go as far as possible.

What do you think about the idea that TI is "not the same"? The prize pool is smaller, the hype has died down.
Maybe so. But I came at this time—and this is my path. I play as it is. And 5 million in prize money is not bad either.

Would you like the return of compendiums? In 2016, it was cool—you level up, you wait. Now you don't even want to buy it.
Yes. The compendium would immediately solve the prize pool issue. I would like it, but for some reason, they decided not to do it like before.

Is Valve doing enough for Dota?
As for esports—I think so. But I would like more frequent patches, more frequent meta changes, but I'm fine with it. For solo players, I'd like to see improvements in the ranking system.

Lastly, a few words for Navi fans.
Cheer for us. We're no longer Navi Junior—we are Navi . We're preparing, we want to show our best game. Support us and experience it with us.