I’ve known about the EVO Championship Tournament for years now but have never actually watched it as it was happening. I enjoy fighting games even though I’m not very good at them – They take a lot of practice, patience and perseverance to be good. Timing and reading your opponent is absolutely crucial, and I really can’t think of a more competitive genre.
For those who are not aware of what EVO is, it’s the biggest fighting game tournament that takes place in the US and hosts top-tier international players.
This year’s EVO took place in Las Vegas and was probably the biggest one to date. I watched some of the streams from this tournament and the turnout was simply incredible – A sea of pumped-up players and fans, screaming and cheering while watching the best players in the world play against each other on an emotional rollercoaster ride. The tournament allows each player a single loss with few mental breaks between matches and multiple heartbreaking, but at the same time inspiring, moments. You can really see a player’s frustration and breakdown after losing a match that he deserved, likewise you can almost feel a winner’s ecstatic state after defeating a big-name opponent. I’ve never seen a player go from ecstatic to utterly broken after losing within a 10-minute span as I have while watching this tournament. It was the most entertainment I have ever gotten from watching people play. It’s very cool how players play mindgames with each other. Faking out attacks, unleashing deadly comebacks during bleak situations and “styling” really affect the competitor’s game. A player goes from confident and flawless to crushed and owned in a constant juggle. You can blatantly see it in their game, and you can read it in their face.
This year the tournament included Super Street Fighter 4, MVC3, BlazBlue Continuum Shift2, Mortal Kombat and Tekken 6.
Anyway, I’ll quit my babbling for now and link some awesome videos from the streams.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-hIDjh98Po
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjkbVBe_2s0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xpi1n5OZFfI
*Sigh* I wish I was there, in Vegas, watching one of the most entertaining gaming events and then going to see the strippers right after. What a weekend that would have been!
