how a streamer with cerebral palsy drags in “tanks”

It is rare to find such motivating people as Vasily Nadein. He has been streaming on his YouTube channel STAN GAME for several years now and differs from other bloggers not only in his inexhaustible positivity, but also in his manner of playing – Vasya does it with his feet. The hero of our article was born with cerebral palsy and cannot move independently or hold a mouse in his hands. However, he famously deals with enemies in “Tanks”, teaches others how to build tactics correctly and at the same time talks about his life. Read this interview (taken by our colleagues from the editorial office of M. Click) and always keep in mind that Vasily answers every question with a laugh and a smile.

How long have you been playing video games? Do you remember the first time you sat down at a computer?

Just for the computer? I probably sat down when I was 12. I was still playing Doom and NFS back then. It was an old, old computer that had been written off from the factory. Before this I played Sega. When you switch from a joystick to a mouse and keyboard, everything is so unusual and unusual. But I got used to it quickly; it was enough to play like this a couple of times. Especially with racing it was easy – there are only four buttons.

Tell me how you hold the mouse and keyboard?

There's nothing complicated there. The keyboard is on the floor, as is the mouse. I just put one foot on the mouse and the other on the keyboard and play. I even have a video on my channel where I sorted it all out.

Everyone's attention is focused on how you accurately aim and quickly move the tank. Did you train for a long time or did it just happen on its own?

I wouldn't say I trained for a long time. Rather, you just had to get used to tanks specifically. Because before that I played shooters, like STALKER or Medal of Honor. That is, I’m already used to being guided. The most difficult thing was, of course, driving back and forth, left and right. And aiming is basically normal. The only thing is… for example, playing on medium and light tanks turns out worse, because there is practically no armor there. And on heavy and tank destroyers there is a slight advantage. That is, fighters are not so noticeable, and heavy ones are stronger. In general, there are no problems with management.

What kind of hardware do you have?

I have several videos on this topic, but now I’ll tell you briefly. ASUS ROG STRIX B550-F GAMING motherboard, AMD Ryzen 7 5700x processor, and 32 GB of Kingston FURY Beast Black RAM. GEFORCE RTX 4060 Ti graphics card. Logitech K360 keyboard, A4Tech XL-747H mouse, FIFINE T-669 microphone. But the camera and headphones are no-name.

You already said that you used controllers. How do you feel about consoles now?

I don't play on console, no. I could do it before, but now I can’t because my legs have gotten bigger. If I try to play on a controller now, I'll probably just break it. Plus it will be very uncomfortable for me. Early gamepads were somehow simpler, probably. I simply break the modern ones: I press – and it sucks! Usually the cross would fly out.

You still completely switched to PC, right?

Yes. And there are many advantages to this. There are a lot of games, often free (laughs – editor's note).

Are you playing for yourself? And how much time do you spend on your PC?

Since the appearance of the channel, I practically don’t just play – only on streams. Three hours is enough for me. Sometimes there are impulses to go through some singles. For example, Far Cry fourth or fifth. I will still be watching it on the channel.

Your main goal now is to develop your channel?

Yes! I liked it, it resonated with me. I see the response. I see that I somehow motivate people.

How did you get into streaming in the first place?

I started streaming around 2018, but the hardware was so-so then. And I didn’t bother much with the channel.

And in August 2021 I had a problem with the microphone – I spent the whole day trying to fix it. I took it down, installed drivers on it, but it just didn’t want to work. Then the next morning I solved this problem in 5 minutes, naturally. And at that moment I thought so hard. I think I’m 29 years old, in six months I’ll be 30. So what do I have? A collection of cars and that's it. I was somehow even ashamed that I had achieved nothing. I decided that I needed to leave some kind of mark in this life. Some small but bright. And so I started streaming every day.

But overall, is this process more of a hobby or a job for you?

At first it was work. I just wanted to make money. And now I’ve already joined in and I can’t live without it. Without subscribers, without streams it’s boring.

Did you have any other ideas besides streaming?

I was also thinking about the let's play. But if you play with your feet like a let's play artist, then people can get to the bottom of it, as if it were a montage.

You're about to have a good laugh. It happens that people come to live broadcasts and say that this is a lie and a setup. I had a case when a guy came in and asked if I was ashamed. In terms of? Why are you ashamed? And he replies: “They play for you, and you just sit there and chat.” During the game, I pick it up live and lift the mouse by the wire with my foot. He apologized. He says he made a mistake (laughs).

Did he follow you?

Yes, he became a subscriber. So it goes.

In general, are your subscribers growing well?

Not good. Am I not interested? (laughs), or – who knows… But a very good-natured community gathered, and there were never any haters.

Have you advertised somewhere?

Tank streamers helped me a lot. This is Stas DVS (D_W_S Channel), Alexander Zlobin (Zlobina Channel) and Khasya (Xasya). I even have a video with Alexander Zlobin, it was released in 2022. And people still come here because of that video. I'll tell you how we met. Then I celebrated my first thousand subscribers, and suddenly I received a message on VK from Zlobin with an offer to promote my channel and play together. That’s what happened, but there were some oddities. During the battle, my mouse's sticker came off and it kept clinging to the carpet. I lost the first fight dry. Then I won – the honor had to be defended.

Let's talk about something pleasant. Do they send you donations?

Yes, definitely. Now, for example, my computer is completely built from donations. This is about 90 thousand. I collected the entire amount over the summer. There are difficult months, and there are more fishy months. Money is transferred both by regular donors and by visiting donors. It happens that a person just comes to the stream, throws in five thousand and leaves.

Thanks to the channel, I bought a gift for my mother. I saved up money from donations and ordered her jewelry. A friend received this pendant, hid it in his home, and then handed it over during the holiday. Mom was in such shock: they say, how did this happen to me, and so quietly.

Why do you think people watch your streams? What do they want?

I'll tell you one such case. One day a man came into the stream and said hello. And then he said: “I look at you and understand that everything in my life is not so bad. I wanted to hang myself today before I saw you. Thank you for getting me out of the loop with your example.” I motivate people to live and fight.

Do you know any other streamers with specialties?

Yes. I have a couple of such comrades. For example, Victor. He is 36 years old and lives in Belarus. He has his own channel Tankman General. He even suggested that I create a clan of children with special needs in “Tanks”. I actually had a dream to create a league of such guys, but I have to start with a clan. There are already four of us.

Let's do a blitz. I ask you a question and you answer quickly. Top 3 best games?

STALKER, Medal of Honor: Allied Assault and Need for Speed: Most Wanted.

Favorite video game character?

Worm Jim.

The most attractive heroine from games?

Anya from Metro: Exodus.

War Thunder or World of Tanks?

Still, War Thunder. More varied and complex.

What advice can you give to aspiring streamers?

Believe in yourself. Buy a good microphone and don’t be silent while streaming. Now new channels appear regularly, but no matter how you go, the person in the frame is simply silent. Guys, no one is interested in this.

And be positive. People are so tired of the blackness around them, so they need an outlet.

Vasya, are you special people or disabled?

I would say “people with special needs.” You see, I even raised this question on the stream. Usually when they write some article or news that someone visited an orphanage or an orphanage for children suffering from something… You immediately imagine that they are suffering. But you don’t have to suffer with cerebral palsy. Live almost fully and enjoy life. So I don't have any limitations.