Like it or not, we’re esports now; it is always amazing to see fighting game players named among top players of other games that receive bigger mainstream exposure. Today, Daily Dot eSports has done so in a big way, in naming what they believe to be the top ten players in esports history. Not surprisingly, they included fighting game players in the mix–Daily Dot named two people who are hard to argue against in their list–Tomo Ohira and Daigo Umehara, who are ranked 7th and 4th respectively.
Ohira, for those new to the scene, is considered the first powerhouse of competitive Street Fighter. Cutting his teeth in the original iterations of Street Fighter II–The World Warrior, Champion Edition, and Hyper Fighting–around arcades across Southern California, Ohira’s legendary status includes people such as Mike Watson and Jeff Schaefer corroborating stories of Ohira being “unbeatable” in the game. Playing in a time without internet or even recorded footage–let alone sponsorships and ESPN-broadcasted tournaments–Ohira laid the groundwork in the competitive FGC before walking off into the sunset at the old age of 17 to focus on things like college and the opposite sex.
Umehara, on the other hand, needs little to no introduction. The Japanese titan for multiple decades began by making a name for himself in Vampire Savior, before winning multiple titles at Evolution across multiple games, such as Guilty Gear, Super Street Fighter II Turbo, and Street Fighter IV. Umehara first became truly famous worldwide after the landmark Evo Moment #37 went viral.
With claims from Schaefer that Umehara could not have beat Ohira, and the higher rank of Daigo on this list, it still remains to be unseen who is the better player. While Daigo’s placing is attributed to his success at high level competitions over his career, Ohira making the list off his iconic–and at times, mythological–status in the FGC is still a credit to his play.
If you are curious who else made their list outside of our world of frame advantages and hitboxes, click here.
Source: Daily Dot eSports (Twitter)