Rami “Potatobrain” Nuseir was, during the Tekken Tag Tournament 2 days, easily Canada’s best player. That’s why his appearance on Woolie’s (of Super Best Friends fame) talk show “Tale’s From The Loser’s Bracket” seems out of place: for a show billing itself as “A fighting game show for everyone stuck in the middle”, Rami certainly isn’t.
Not that his appearance isn’t welcome! This 30-minute+ podcast is dense with great information for new and experienced players alike. Rami talks about the surge of players in the Tekken community, parallels between 2D and 3D, and gives valuable advice to 2D heads on what adjustments they’ll need to make way in the 3D sub-genre.
Announced during West Side Saga, 2GGaming and Esports Arena have announced that Fire Emblem Saga will be the Fall season finale for the 2GG Championship Series. As it is dedicated to Nintendo’s tactical RPG, 2GG is looking to invite as many Fire Emblem character mains to compete in the penultimate Saga before the actual 2GG Championship. So far, the confirmed invited players are:
MKLeo (Marth, Corrin)
Pugwest (Marth)
Mr. E (Marth)
Ryuga (Corrin)
Ryo (Ike, Roy, Corrin)
Cosmos (Corrin)
Captain Levi (Roy)
Dath (Robin)
I could see both Earth, Fuwa, Nojinko and Rizseau from Japan getting invited through this Saga’s compendium, alongside Europe’s best Roy TheFlow and top New York Ike San. With ZeRo having a tournament-ready Lucina and Nairo having a pretty good Robin, we could see the Saga Curse being broken by someone winning with a Fire Emblem character.
Following the events of West Side Saga, the 2GG Championship points table has been shaken up a fair bit, with Tweek knocking komorikiri off the third place spot. ZeRo is still way out in front, gaining an almost 500 point lead over second place Dabuz following his fifth Saga victory. With Fire Emblem Saga being the Fall season finale, players will receive double points if they manage to place highly, so expect that points table to change even more.
For more information on Fire Emblem Saga, check out its official smash.gg page.
The next episode of Tension Pulse is nearly upon us, and with it, a fresh set of competing Daredevils willing to show off their best. In this next instalment of the streamed Guilty Gear Xrd REV 2 exhibition series, you can expect to see some exciting first-to-seven sets from players ready to showcase characters of choice.
We have one player returning from past events, and that’s Mynus with his impressive I-no. He’ll face FNM|HarlockSwag’s Potemkin, so after the REV 2 changes, which have turned the matchup on its head, it will be interesting to see how it plays out! We’ll also see Omi’s Elphelt face off against MechaMacGyver’s Haehyun. Your guess is as good as mine!
FNM|HarlockSwag
On the match: “I think the exhibition will be a good opportunity to showcase what I can do as a Guilty Gear and Potemkin player. I hope that it will also bring some more light to the Toronto anime scene as a whole.”
On his opponent: “I think Mynus is a strong I-no player and probably one of the best in North America. Before REV 2, the matchup of I-no vs Potemkin was pretty bad I felt, due to “Chemical Love” hitting Potemkin even on crouching. However, with the recent changes, I feel he has as much of a chance as any other character. Looking forward to the match!”
On his own playstyle: “I feel that my playstyle is similar to that of any other grappler players in any fighting game. Due to limited mobility, being able to make the right reads as well as finding openings to the opposing players’ blockstrings and approaches in neutral can turn the game around in an instant. Instant Blocking is one of my favorite mechanics, and I do the most of it because it gives me a feel of how my opponent likes to pressure as well giving me Tension resources to work with throughout each round.”
TSB|Mynus
On the match: “In REV 2, this matchup became a little bit more nuanced, and in turn harder for I-no due to functional changes that Potemkin received. His new crouching animation affects poking him from 3/4ths screen with HCL, and some crouching confirms from max range as well. His ability to hold Flick is also a huge boon when dealing with HCL; as a countermeasure you’ll see more approach from the neutral position from me, using I-no’s new vertical dash movement to attack Potemkin from angles I couldn’t do before in REV 1.
All in all, I believe this MU is almost even now, with I-no having a slight advantage because of movement and 663 VCL YRC. Something like 5.5 in I-no’s favor.”
On his opponent: “ I haven’t heard of, nor seen HarlockSwag play before the announcement of the exhibition, but according to our resident NYC Potemkin beast Shine (TSB Shine, not OG|Shine who likes to break stuff) he is incredibly skilled and strong. Of course, I will be training a bit with Shine, and going over some training regimens to deal with a long set in this MU. Not trying to lose fam, really not. If I can control his movements and score an early knockdown without using meter, that round can end real quick in my favor. Obviously though, if you play Potemkin, you’re either really dumb, or incredibly too smart for your own good. I hope HarlockSwag is the latter.”
On his growth since the last exhibition: “Since the last exhibition vs. my brother Doren2K in March, I’ve been training in Japan at Mikado arcade for a month and a half during April-May, playing all of the best Japan had to offer. During KSB in Osaka, I was really close to beating Omito in pools, which was a huge confidence boost, and later came back to Tokyo to one-character-victory some teams (including GF) at Mikado when I teamed up with one of my favorite I-no players and friend, Turio.
Coming back to the US, alongside the NY homies Sway, Makotofox, and Blaze, we have taken over the TSB tournament circuit. In addition to running TSB weekly now (three Fridays and one Saturday each month), we’ve brought the brand to multiple tournaments on the EC so far this summer. This new view as staff, a tournament organizer, and Japanese translator has given me a new focus in the FGC which has helped me become more disciplined as a player.
I hope this focus will translate to me putting on a good show for everyone!”
MechaMacGyver
On the match: “As someone that doesn’t get a ton of chances to travel I’m excited to have the chance to show a style of Haehyun that’s a bit different from what’s en vogue :^).”
On his opponent: “I’ve watched footage of Omi play in Norcal and do well which speaks to his strength as a player given the killers that area has given us. My experience vs. Elphelt I would say is pretty fleshed out thanks to having NerdJosh as a training partner as well as regularly running sets vs. Vevion and Munsu. I don’t want to come off as overconfident since every Elphelt is dangerous in their own unique ways, and I’m well aware I could run into a wall of shotguns and rifles.”
On his own playstyle: “I think my own playstyle is very centered around reading my opponent and trying to overwhelm them before they can react. I believe Jam is a very linear character, so to make up for that, I like to incorporate hard reads and gimmicks into my gameplay to keep my opponents guessing.”
Omi
On the match: “First, I am very glad that Tension Pulse invited me. I didn’t expect that. I’ve been getting ready for the coming matches. I think the exhibition is a good chance for many players to dig more about certain match-ups. I’m excited to play on Sunday.”
On his opponent: MechaMacGyver, I know he’s Socal (correct me if I’m wrong), I think EL v KU match-up is in Kum’s favor. I also talked to Foo about this MU as I lost to him in the United Norcal Dogfight. I am ready and look forward to playing him.”
On his own playstyle: “My Elphelt is, many said, aggressive. I consider myself a rushdown type of player. Once I got the knockdown I have many ways to do okizeme. That is usually the pattern. Once I get the oki-knockdown loop, match-up doesn’t matter anymore.”
Catch the next episode of Tension Pulse live on Silva_hime’s Twitch channel. The first set, between Omi and MechaMacGyver, starts at 9:00 PM ET/8:00 PM CT/7:00 PM PT. Following that, Mynus will fight HarlockSwag. As for the commentator stations, nobodyexe and TheArm will grace the matches with their insight.
Looking to catch up on the last episode of Tension Pulse? The last episode included hectic matches between four players:
Last weekend, Celtic Throwdown 2017 was held in Dublin, Ireland. Though a lot of eyes were focused on the Street Fighter V, Injustice 2 and Tekken 7 competitions, due to this event serving as a Capcom Pro Tour Ranking event, a Ranking event for the Injustice 2 Pro Series and a Challenger event for the Tekken World Tour, this tournament was also the site of the first ever tournament for Marvel Vs. Capcom: Infinite.
Streamed by Lythero and set up by Capcom UK community manager Matt Edwards, the event featured the likes of Lythero, FH|PaulPesci, PRLS|FaisalDante, Dansim, and of course, Unequalled Media’s Tyrant.
You can catch the event in its entirety below, along with some pre-match comments from Lythero about how this tournament came to be. There’s plenty of strong players and tech on display here, with several characters and Infinity Stones being, so there should be something for any and all fans of Mahvel to enjoy.
Did you enjoy a look at this early look at the potential future of competitive play at this early stage? Give us your thoughts on the comments below. You can also check out our full coverage of the event here.
Marvel Vs. Capcom: Infinite will be released on September 19th in North America and Europe for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC, with a Japanese release following on September 21st.
The way “Stage Interactables” (the term for optional, unblockable attacks players can activate around each stage) function in tournament play has been a point of derision in the Injustice community since the dawn of the series.
The derision is mostly centered around their unblockable property, with different sides in the community arguing for and against their perceived fairness. Regardless of which side of that debate you fall on, though, you likely won’t be a fan of the fact that some of these interactables can be glitched to the point of absurdity.
Here, MK_REO demonstrates two o these glitches. On the “Red Sun Prison” stage, the user of the stage’s laser can get interrupted, causing several placement and hitbox size changes for the active laser. More impractically, on the “Metropolis” stage you can actually trap your enemy out of the boundaries of the map. The setup requires crossing up your opponent with an air-to-air, landing a successful grab immediately afterwards, then doing a Super Attack while they are recovering from the throw.
ROX Gaming’s Knee, whom is widely considered to be one of the greatest players of the Tekken franchise, recently put together his own tier list for both Tournament play and Death Match play. In short, this is his view of how character viability changes in short vs. longer sets.
For those that speak the Korean language, Knee joined KURO KURO on their channel for the creation of the tier list.
For those that want to jump to point, though: Flying_Wonkey has helpfully screen capped the final tier lists.
Perhaps the biggest shakeup from the Japanese tier list we saw earlier in the year is the rise of the Mishima Matriarch, Kazumi. Knee’s list includes the new console characters and is, interestingly enough, also more compact.
Competition has always been a constant driving force throughout human history. There has always existed an insatiable need within the human heart to prove one’s superiority over another person. Whether it be gladiators in the ancient Roman Colosseum, sports teams battling on their field of choice, or players squaring off in any type of game imaginable, players and spectators alike always want to know who is the absolute best. However, when it comes to truly determining this, the process can actually prove quite challenging.
Starting off by noting that he got 513th place out of 2,622 Street Fighter V players and 641st out of 1,278 Tekken 7 players this year at Evo, Gerald Lee begins a very intriguing and informative discussion about how these placings are essentially meaningless because they are shared with so many other people. He goes into the topics of seeding by tournament organizers looking to maintain the integrity of the event, so that the world’s best players don’t meet in round one of the bracket.
Lee also debates the merits of single-elimination/double-elimination vs. a round robin format, as well as the reason the FGC prides itself on running open bracket events. While invitationals like ELEAGUE’s Street Fighter event are becoming more popular, events like these reduce the chances of unknown players make big upsets.
It’s a great watch if you’re unfamiliar with how this process tends to work, or if you would just like a refresher course on everything. You can catch the video below, and be sure to give us your thoughts on the types of tournament formats you prefer, whether they be inclusive or exclusive, in the comments section below.
DreamHack hits Canada this weekend! And like most DreamHack events, the Montreal edition is bringing a healthy dose of Street Fighter and Super Smash Bros., with a $10,000 prize pool in each game.
The Capcom Pro Tour Street Fighter V competition at Montreal is a Ranking Event, giving players a chance to score earn more points on the leaderboards. Meanwhile, the Super Smash Bros. Melee and Wii U tournaments are a part of DreamHack’s own Smash Championship, leading into DreamHack Winter later this year.
Some of the players competing in Super Smash Bros. events include ChuDat, HugS, ESAM, Larry Lurr and Dabuz. The Street Fighter V competition includes international stars Nemo and John Takeuchi along with North American veterans like Justin Wong, NuckleDu, K-Brad, LPN, Blitzman and more.
If you’re looking to tune in, the action is split between DreamHack’s dedicated fighter and Smash Twitch channels.
If you played the original Pokkén Tournament on Wii U, there’s not going to be a whole lot that’s new to you in the Pokkén Tournament DX demo. The demo still takes place in the tournament-standard Ferrum Stadium locale despite the additions of new stages, and the two playable returning characters of Charizard and Pikachu are nearly identical to their Wii U counterparts. Virtually all changes for both of them come in the forms of new stance and special cancels that we’ve known about since the 1.5 arcade patch. Even my least-favorite mechanic in Pokkén Tournament, invincible exhaust frames, has made a return, although it “feels” like the invincibility window isn’t quite as long as it used to be.
Frankly, for an idea of new features in Pokkén Tournament DX, you’d do better by just visiting any Nintendo promo video.
The real meat of this demo is the opportunity to try out the previously arcade-exclusive Empoleon. This new Standard-Type fighter brings a really fresh and different style of combat to the Pokkén Tournament universe that I think might just fit some players that couldn’t find a main in the original version. Namely: Empoleon is an offensive-minded stance character.
Empoleon might just have the game’s worst walk speed, but that doesn’t mean he lacks mobility. Far from it: thanks to moves like Aqua Jet (5A), Empoleon can zip across the field quickly, and immediately transition into what I will forever refer to as his “HM Stance,” since the game doesn’t give the transition a specific name. Every move from it is named after a Hidden Machine from the main RPG series. HM Stance has:
Cut – A fast, safe combo ender used to score a knockdown or wall-splat. Useful for staying in Duel Phase, and has decent pushout on block.
Waterfall – Unsafe, high-damage combo ender that will almost always cause a phase shift in juggles.
Rock Smash – has Counter Attack property, counter pierces. Also gives a defense debuff.
Surf – Jump Cancellable, can also wall splat, throw breaks.
Because of Aqua Jet’s range and incredible speed, it is a powerful whiff punisher that allows Empoleon to play some terrifying footsies against non-zoner type characters. It also has a “Level” system, in the sense that there’s three versions of Aqua Jet: the further away you are from the opponent, the stronger the damage and the more hit/block stun you get from the move. The longer range Aqua Jets even allow you to combo into the slower Rock Smash/Surf options, which have their own mixup utility.
Arcade player punishing a jump back attempt with Aqua Jet > Surf, which gives him great wall carry and a setup for his other stance, “Slide.”
Aqua Jet has a great synergy with Empoleon’s other stance, “Slide.” By doing his Ice Beam, Jump X, Duel Phase 2[X], or Field Phase back [X], Empoleon freezes the floor and slides in a direction of the player’s choosing. From here he has the following options:
Jump Cancel – Useful as Empoleon can either shoot air projectiles with Jump Y, use his counter piercing Jump A attack, or continue pressure with another Jump [X]
Slide Attack – Limited use sliding attack.
Slide Projectile – Shoots multiple water bullets at the enemy. Somewhat slow moving, good zoning tool in Duel.
Hydro Cannon – The cornerstone of Empoleon’s wakeup game. This move does a gigantic amount of chip and normal damage, wall splats, shoots a giant projectile, and is +0 on block, allowing for pressure situations. Bonus: it has an amusing animation interrupt if you propel Empoleon into a wall.
Mastery of Slide and HM Stance is going to be key to Empoleon’s neutral game. It’s complex, interesting, and different from any of the other game’s characters. It’s also a pretty unique way to balance out the intentional slow pace of other aspects of his game — namely, his walk speed and his incredibly slow jab speed.
Lest you fear that Empoleon is nothing but a close-range fighter, he also comes equipped with some light zoning options. The aforementioned Ice Beam and Jump Y projectiles eat up a ton of space from full screen, and will likely define matchups where he may want to be more conservative with going in — the Machamp and Blaziken matchups immediately come to mind. It’s not quite enough to classify him as a zoning type character: he still probably wants to get in versus the likes of Chandelure and Braxien. But it does make him well rounded and versatile, appropriate for a Standard-Type.
If there’s any deficiency in Empoleon’s game, it’s his defensive options and his grab game. His grab in both phases does pitiful damage, but both Field and Duel Phase grabs do give him setups for pressure. He’s also fairly limited when he’s not the one in control. Empoleon will rely a lot on Blocking, Counter Attack, and Drill Peck — the latter of which is a low crushing, short range attack that can lead into HM Stance and serves as one of his fastest panic buttons. Empoleon does have an anti-projectile move in Defog, but its slow startup makes its use a little tricky. It does have a HM Stance transition, though, which potentially means you could Surf forward afterwards.
All-in-all, if Empoleon is completely distasteful to you but you’re already sold on Pokkén Tournament, the demo probably isn’t worth a try. If you haven’t played Pokkén before now and want to try out a wide variety of play, then the quick-moving Pikachu, grappler Charizard and heavy-hitter Empoleon should be a diverse enough cast to give you an informed opinion for your purchase. If all the new characters have the interest and complexity of Empoleon (and from what we know of the arcade version, they do!) then DX has many interesting future battles for the community already surrounding the game.
In the mid to late ’90s — not to mention a bit of the early 2000s — there were a slew of fighting games bent on cashing in on the fighting game craze caused by Street Fighter II, Tekken, and Virtua Fighter. While some are remembered for their innovations to the genre, and others are remembered for being poorly designed, some are hardly remembered at all.
TheFightersDen chronicled some of the forgotten fighters of the past. Whether they’re good, bad or ugly, they deserve to be remembered as part of the history of the genre. How many do you remember? These might actually be worth throwing into the mix of meetups or even mystery tournaments.
