‘Balance is life’: Eric Tai on being a father & gamer

MANILA, Philippines — As far as Eric “Eruption” Tai can remember, he’s been into gaming “big time,” from playing Atari games as a kid using the joystick, then moving on to Nintendo, Playstation, Xbox, DOTA and now Mobile Legends.

The former It’s Showtime host and athlete has been acknowledged as the first celebrity to reach the highest rank, a.k.a. mythic status, in Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, one of the most popular multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) mobile games.

“I love that it’s super competitive, it’s new. I’ve only played this game for five months, and I’m already on the highest tier. I love it because a lot of my friends play it. There’s a lot of celebrities playing here — Donny Pangilinan, Jorross Gamboa, Jason Abalos, Daniel Matsunaga, Alodia (Gosiengfiao), Myrtle (Sarrosa)... I could go on. But for me, the best ML player na celebrity is Zaijian Jaranilla. He’s very good,” Eric said on the sidelines of the Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Southeast Asia Cup (MSC) presscon on Tuesday at Novotel Hotel. During the presscon, he joined Moonton e-sports manager JJ Lin in announcing the 12 teams from nine countries that will compete for a minimum prize of US$120,000 in the MSC on June 21 to 23 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. The event is being held in Manila this year because according to Moonton, developer of Mobile Legends, the Philippines is the second biggest regional market for the videogame.

Eric, however, wouldn’t consider himself a professional gamer. “I consider myself a very competitive, passionate gamer. When I say passionate, I don’t wanna stop at a certain rank,” he said, adding that being in the top-tier somehow goes to show that “I put in the hard work. I also study the game.”

Thanks to his gaming skills, Eric signed a contract with Facebook gaming. “It’s now my work. I basically get paid to play games. It doesn’t even feel like work.”

He’s also been live-streaming his gameplay. “From Facebook gaming and my streaming — I’ve been doing it for two months pa lang — I’m acquiring (big) endorsements but I cannot announce them yet.”

Eric is also a sought-after events host in the e-sports scene, a booming industry in the country. “That’s why I say Legend, baby ko, (is) katas ng e-sports yun last year. Totoo! Because we were able to do in vitro fertilization (IVF) and it’s very, very expensive. The minimum expense is P300,000 to P500,000, not including the extra (action) needed. With our process, we’re very lucky. It was a huge blessing because we didn’t have to repeat any process. All the first, second and third tests, we passed. We didn’t have to pay extra and nakapag-ipon na kami. Yung e-sports events ko last year were really, really big. They pay well. I don’t want to say it, but mayaman ang e-sports industry, the creators, the games, the computers, they have the money.”

Eric is passionate about e-sports, but some limits had to be drawn as well, owing to his personal experience. There was a time when he got addicted to videogames and nearly jeopardized his relationship with wife Rona Samson. He revealed, “Muntik kami maghiwalay dahil sa DOTA, sa e-sports before, kasi na-addict ako, sobrang addict ako, and at that time of my life, medyo nawala ako sa landas. I just always wanted to play. Like it was Showtime, DOTA, Showtime, DOTA.”

He continued, “She almost left me and went back to Seattle but then we made a deal. The deal was, I can only play three times a week, T-TH-S. There are a number of hours but as long as I do my work first, then (sports) training. Fulfill those responsibilities first ­— she gave me that option. A year later, I started making money off e-sports — I started hosting games and I started joining celebrity show matches.”

Whether he’s playing in front of people or when he’s hosting it, Rona saw in him genuine passion and told him to “do whatever you want as long as you’re responsible, I trust you,” Eric recalled, “then in Amazing Race, nakita niya yun, lahat ng gaming skills, I was able to use that,” referring to the time the couple joined and became third placer in Amazing Race Asia in 2016.

Nevertheless, Eric stressed that there’s a right time and right place for gaming. For him, an indicator of being addicted to it is when it affects the way you socialize and function in your life, work and relationships outside gaming. “Puyat, that’s another sign,” he added.

“Addiction is very hard. It’s so hard to battle it. But once you start making, at least, small goals like this week, I’ll go to the gym kahit isang beses lang or tatakbo ako kahit dalawang beses, or work or study, whatever you need to do first. Make those small goals first and there’s change.”

Eric credited his wife and his being an athlete to overcoming his own “addiction” to gaming. “If you’re an athlete, you know discipline. It’s your friend, it’s also your enemy. If you find that discipline, you can basically do anything,” he said.

“I’m thankful that I was an athlete. My parents always wanted me to go play sports muna, study muna, then you can play the game. In order for me to play the (video) game, I had to do three things first — house chores, homework and sports,” said the former national rugby player. “I ended up intertwining that in my life now. I do the same thing although my priorities have changed. I have a (three-month-old) baby now. I have father responsibilities of providing for the family, supporting love at home — love for spouse, kids, even the kasambahay. Once all that is done, then I can be able to do the gaming thing.”

Right now, his gaming plans are maximizing the streaming platform, creating content and “hopefully, doing my best to help motivate the kids.”

“I wanna be a voice, an example, an ambassador to kids, that e-sports is great, gaming is awesome, if there’s potential to be a professional gamer, go for it. But if you think you’re just doing it for leisure or pleasure, balance it. Balance your life. Go to school, follow your other passions like playing instruments, whatever it may be. Whatever your talent is, harness it, just don’t waste time playing. Balance is life.”