Category: Fighting Games

When it comes to Guilty Gear, the Evolution Championship Series is not just a test to see which player outshines the rest; it’s also a reunion of sorts. Though the distance between the island of Japan and North America hasn’t shrunk at all, maybe the same can’t be said about the skill gap. Will the Japanese triumph once again at the Las Vegas crowning tournament, or will a player from another country upset their dominance and earn worldwide respect?

Usually, console releases lag far behind the arcade, which gives Japanese competitors an innate advantage. Arc System Works slightly changed this flow with an “early access” PlayStation 4 demo of Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR-. While even that extra month or so is not that meaningful of a timeframe, it at least gave valuable preparation time for new characters like Johnny, Jack-O’, and Jam. Raven and Kum Haehyun, the two console-exclusive entrants, will also have a chance to display their tech. -REVELATOR- has been out in arcades since August 2015, though other than a few system changes, there aren’t drastic modifications to the cast. It’s not like Dizzy is coming out right before Evo, right (ahem, Street Fighter V)?

Moreso than the demo, in other ways, there’s been more communication than before between the two scenes. Thanks to MajinObama, we have English commentary on premiere exhibitions streamed by Joniosan. GodsGarden regularly streams on YouTube, usually showcasing top players like Machabo, who frequently explain how to beat certain characters. Short of an actual “Fighting Game Player Wiki,” which Japanese players actually have, it’s easier than ever for international fighters to find resources and communicate thanks to services like Twitter and Discord.

So Who’s Coming?

An online resource lists 87 Japanese players (Gear players are marked with ギル) confirmed for Evolution. Two notable names that are not on the list are Karinchu and Ain. As MajinObama stated during an interview with Shoryuken, work and other life reasons can get in the way of traveling abroad, even if it’s for a tournament as important as Evo.

Jonio, Samitto, Machabo, Rion, Nage, Kazunoko, Nakamura, Koichi, and FAB are probably the more famous names on the list.

FAB is a legendary Potemkin player, and watching him bury unprepared players should provide some of the most hype at this year’s Evo. Potemkin is a rare breed, so that’s all the more to FAB’s advantage, not to mention frame-perfect execution and other miracles he performs on a regular basis. It’s also worth keeping an eye out on 310, a Venom player known for crazy setups.

The players who are tying up with characters considered particularly strong, like Sin and Johnny, are Dogura, Machabo, and Jonio. Machabo in particular presents himself as a potential winner, though it was Dogura who had the opportunity to gain experience at Community Effort Orlando 2016, the biggest US event leading up to Evo. HM|Dogura not only triumphed but started to use Johnny in addition to Sin, a monstrous combination. On a more intriguing note, GGP|Kazunoko fought against him as Raven. Raven’s had a short run since he’s a console exclusive character, so Evo will be a stage that helps players decide their thoughts on the immortal masochist.

Can’t forget about Ogawa, the winner of the last year’s Evolution. No Woshige this time, however.

What about the players from other countries and the US?

While the Japanese players dominated CEO, that event and Combo Breaker 2016 point to some standouts, most notably Kid Viper (Johnny), PAG|Lost Soul (Elphelt), Faulty Defense (Sin), and PG|MarlinPie (Zato-1). Those players also happen to use very strong characters in the game, so the odds are in their favor in many matchups.

Lost Soul had an amazing set against MarlinPie at Combo Breaker, which definitely contributed to the Japanese players’ recognition of Lost Soul, who set up a Wiki page for him. Elphelt has a terrifying reputation in the States, and interestingly, it’s not quite the same in Japan. Perhaps Lost Soul will change that even more with this tournament. Faulty Defense also fought Kid Viper at that tournament.

Reunion

Obviously, there are many more great players from US, Canada, Colombia, and Korea, among other countries. While the above listed can be seen as “favorites,” there’s certainly room for surprises. Upsets can come from a lesser-known player, a new console character like Raven, or a fighter considered less powerful. Heck, FAB has good chances of getting far despite using a character easily killable by Sin. What’s going to be exciting to see is a check of skill between Japan and the rest of the world. This event is going to tell us a lot about how far apart the scenes are.

Furthermore, the highest placing North American player qualifies to play at Toushinsai 2016, a Fall tournament in Japan. Aksys Games will also run a separate Toushinsai Qualifier tournament, so two people have a chance to step up.

Who are you speculating to win this year’s Evolution? Will it be Japan? Who’s your favorite player?

And will Dizzy be as strong as Johnny?

Source: Kakuge Checker, Aksys Games, Godsgarden

With the new mechanics of Street Fighter V requiring you to use a Critical Art in order to secure a chip victory, sometimes the thing standing in the way of a win is being able to find a means to make sure that chip damage connects. While most people have typically tried to incorporate the Critical Art into a blockstring, they usually see their efforts frustrated by a well-timed V-Reversal.

Recently, Laugh sat down with Core-A Gaming to show a technique to ensure chip deaths in situations that warrant it. In the video, he explains how to properly time your Critical Art in order to make inescapable situations for your opponent. He also offers advice for Guile to compensate for his charge timing.

A very short, but succinct video, Laugh shows himself ever the mastermind behind understanding of game mechanics, and passes his wealth of information along to other players to allow the community to grow. This is definitely worth a watch.

Source: Core-A Gaming

Arcade Shock is no stranger to collaborations with Japanese arcade part manufacturers on special limited edition items. This time, they’ve teamed up with Seimitsu for a very special, limited edition ball top.

The Seimitsu x Arcade Shock “Massage” ball top is unique in that it features a set of dimples that are supposed to help alleviate stress on the player’s palm. Each ball top takes 4 to 5 hours to make via 3D printing since traditional molding is unable to perfectly create the massage dimples. The surface of the ball top is hand washed and smoothed with no paint or chemical coating applied.

Only 60 of these will be made, 30 of which will be available exclusively at Arcade Shock’s booth at Evo 2016. The remaining 30 will then be made available for purchase online at a later date.

Source: Arcade Shock

The second Dead Or Alive Festival, Team NINJA’s big tournament for Japanese Dead Or Alive 5 players, is taking place this weekend in Tokyo, Japan.

To help celebrate, Team NINJA just dropped a new trailer for the event. The trailer highlights what will be taking place this weekend, such as the art and cosplay contests as well as the main Dead Or Alive 5 Last Round tournament itself. This includes footage of some of the visiting American players, ilike last year’s champion Kristian “MC Kwiggle” McLean, who the Japanese will have to overcome if they want a shot at this years Battle Royal final at Final Round.

Source: Team NINJA

Ibuki has always been known for having a wide variety of ways to keep opponents guessing, and her bag of tricks is bigger than ever in Street Fighter V. In a new video, PAN demonstrates how to make the most of Ibuki’s tools to create and maintain pressure while keeping opponents on their toes. Frame traps, meaties and a lengthy segment dedicated to proper V-Trigger placement fill this nearly eight minutes of footage.

As expected of a ninja, deception and technical know-how are two core factors in being a successful Ibuki player, and this video will certainly help make learning such a tricky character a bit less overwhelming.

If you’re looking for even more Ibuki strategies, be sure to check out our previous tech roundups.

Source: PAN

The Daily Dot’s latest Best of III features an interview with our favorite smiling slugger, Evil Geniuses’ Eduardo Perez, better known as PR Balrog. In the interview, Perez talks about his hopes for Evo and his new attitude about Street Fighter V now that his trademark character is part of the game. He mentions his initial impression of Balrog was that he looked overpowered, referring to the high-damage exhibition displayed at the CEO reveal, but now that he has spent time with the character, he feels, in his words, “complete” and enjoys playing the game more than ever.

Eduardo is also asked about how the top contenders in the US will fare against the titans of Japan. You can hear his honest opinions on that and much more in the full interview.

Source: The Daily Dot