FPX continue their roster overhaul as Life joins Dragon Ranger Gaming and sScary exits after a brief return.
CHINA – FunPlus Phoenix have officially parted ways with two members, Qu “Life” Donghao and Natchaphon “sScary” Matarat. While Life will remain in VCT CN after completing a transfer to Dragon Ranger Gaming, sScary’s future remains unclear after the Thai player only recently came out of retirement three months ago.
Life leaves behind the team he represented for the past two seasons with FunPlus Phoenix, a period in which the squad qualified for all three international events in 2024: Masters Madrid, Masters Shanghai, and Champions Seoul.
Domestically, FPX also established themselves as one of China’s strongest teams that year, finishing second in all three stages behind only EDward Gaming. Individually, Life was one of the standout performers of that 2024 campaign, playing as the team’s primary duelist and helping drive both their firepower and overall results.
That momentum, however, did not carry into 2025. FPX endured a difficult season, finishing outside the podium in every split: 5th-6th at Kickoff, 9th-10th in Stage 1, and 7th-8th in Stage 2. Although Life still showed flashes of his old form especially towards the latter half of the year, where he remained one of the team’s main offensive threats, FPX were unable to convert those performances into stronger results once the official circuit resumed. Their struggles continued into this year’s Kickoff, where they exited in 11th-12th place.
Life will now move to Dragon Ranger Gaming, the reigning VCT Ascension CN 2025 champions. Based on roles alone, his arrival could see him slot into a position occupied by either Zhang “Akeman” Haoran or Lin “SpiritZ1” Dingyu, though the team’s final structure remains to be seen.
Meanwhile, sScary’s departure brings an early end to his short comeback stint after retirement. Since returning, the Thai controller player featured in six series during the OFF//SEASON and three more in VCT CN Kickoff, where FPX failed to secure a win against TYLOO, Bilibili Gaming, and JDG Esports.
Statistically, the numbers were underwhelming, with sScary posting a 0.90 VLR rating and 172.9 ACS across 141 rounds played in Guangzhou. His exit comes despite head coach Nikola “LEGIJA” Ninić having spoken positively about his former BLEED player during an interview in Fuzhou at the VALORANT Radiant International Invitational.
Former Team Vitality player Blendi “kovaQ” Kovaci is set to take over FPX’s import slot as sScary’s replacement.
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