Despite attention turning to BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle, BlazBlue: Central Fiction isn’t done yet! The challenging 2D fighter still finds lots of appreciation at tournaments around the world. One player that has been standing out for a while in the United States is Fame96. The Atlanta, Georgia local made himself particularly known for his Susano’o play in Central Fiction, widely considered to be the best at the character — as well as among the most skilled BlazBlue players in the country. He has only been competing since 2014.
The recent Final Round 20 tournament gave Fame96 a real opportunity to showcase his talent as he faced international and local players. “I would always be amazed by how people in tournaments played,” Fame96 told Shoryuken. “And I finally found a game I would actually want to compete in — BlazBlue. Through PG|SKD and others’ guidance, my power in BlazBlue quickly raised to new heights.”
At the tournament, Fame96 faced many skilled opponents, including Japanese players Abegen and PONOS|Garireo. Having triumphed over Abegen in a fairly close set, he moved on to facing Garireo in an extremely tense Winners Finals set, which Fame96 narrowly won (see the video below). After that, Fame96 moved on to fight Garireo again in the Grand Finals. Catch up on the amazing action in the videos, and keep scrolling for our Q&A with the player.
Woocash: Walk us through the matches with Garireo.
Fame96: In Winners Finals, I was in peak condition. In my mind, I was brimming with excitement and anticipation to get to fight him again so soon after NEC. While I love the fact that I get to play him again, the sense of dread creeped up on my shoulder due to the fact that I have to play the Susano’o/Litchi match-up, which is easily one of his worst. In Winners Finals, I noticed there were cracks in his armor. He was making crucial mistakes and dropping game-winning combos that he usually doesn’t drop, so I took full advantage which allowed me to win.
In Grand Finals, I knew it was reasonable for me to win. I had six games to work with. I simply tried to do my best and push forward. By the time Garireo won the 2nd game, I noticed immediately that he downloaded me. I tried to adjust, but I was too far gone. My mental state was pretty much shot, and by the time I snapped myself out of it, it was already 5-0. His mistakes at this point were very minimal and very hard to take advantage of, so my situation was very bleak, making me lose hope.
Woocash: You play multiple games, how do you manage that?
Fame96: I generally try to give each game the amount of time I feel like I need to give it to keep myself polished and/or improve. In Central Fiction’s case, I have been playing so long and learned so much about the game that I don’t really need to practice that much anymore. I can generally pick up a controller and just play from there. Dragon Ball FighterZ, on the other hand, is a new game, and a rather stressful one at that. It requires a lot of you at all times, in my opinion, due to what the game gives you. So I often play it a lot to stay in shape. When SoulCalibur VI and Cross Tag Battle come out, I will definitely dedicate time to them. How much, however, will depend on how much I like the games.
Woocash: Which game is most important to you?
Fame96: BBCF is still the most important to me, but DBFZ is the current priority in terms of actively practicing.
Woocash: What are your thoughts on BBCF specifically? Do you feel the game has faded?
Fame96: This version of BBCF is definitely my favorite version of the game. I like the dynamic that Overdrive brings and since they buffed Instant Block meter gain and adjusted the more obnoxious tendencies of the higher-tier characters and Exceed Assault, I find it even more fun than CF 1.0. Whether or not the game fades will depend on how the community and tournament organizers treat the game alongside BBTAG when the latter comes out. If they don’t treat BBTAG as its own thing and make it take BBCF’s spot, BBCF’s future may become grim.
Woocash: What are your plans for the future? And would you ever consider becoming a sponsored player?
Fame96: Mostly going to be going to local stuff. I don’t really have the money to travel. I am very open to becoming a sponsored player. I would love to travel more and compete in the games that I love to play.
You can see more videos of Fame96 on Biftuteki’s YouTube channel.