Category: News

With Injustice 2 on the horizon and the competition in Street Fighter V‘s 2017 Capcom Pro Tour season heating up to a fever pitch, it seems more players are catching the eyes of sponsors and finding new homes. With YOMI and GutToughGaming recently closing down, three of their former members have just risen from the ashes, as Team Method has made its initial foray into the fighting game community by acquiring the trio of Slyverrye, REO, and Mikeand1ke12 to comprise their initial roster. The trio will be making their debuts under their new banner at Combo Breaker later this month, as well as Evo, both Premier events on the CPT, as well as part of the Injustice 2 Pro Series.

Slyverrye has recently risen to prominence over the last year with his impeccable Liu Kang play in Mortal Kombat XL, particularly with the Shaolin Monk’s Dragon’s Fire variation. Some of his recent placings include getting 5th at Northeast Championships XVII, 9th at Kumite In Tennessee 2017, 3rd at Winter Brawl XI, as well as coming in 7th at the Kombat Cup Season 1 finale.

Formerly of YOMI, REO needs no introduction to followers of the NRS scene, as he is known as the “mad scientist” of their games, due to his extensive tech creation. Though his tournament resume is too extensive to list, he is most known for gracing a trio of Evolution top 8s, placing 2nd in 2011 and 2013 for Mortal Kombat 9 and 7th in 2013 for Injustice: Gods Among Us.

Lastly is Mikeand1ke12, formerly of GTG, who has proven himself to be one of the fiercest American Lauras in Street Fighter V‘s second season, due to his success at the Red Bull Proving Grounds events–where he qualified for last year’s finals, coming in 3rd. Riding the momentum of Laura’s buffs–netting 25th at Final Round 20–as well as this new sponsorship, he should be a force to be reckoned with in the coming months of the CPT. He will also be learning Injustice 2 as well.

Method has also signed a new team manager, Nick “Spammy” Pelter, who will oversee the FGC trio’s activities, while also acquiring new players to the fold, by providing them with a top class experience.

You can see some of their reactions, via Twitter, below.

We're excited to announce Team Method FGC! Welcome @MK_REO @SylverRye @Mikeand1keFGC #ComboBreaker #Evo2017 https://t.co/pl8mma9aer pic.twitter.com/V9TClu9XVH

— Method (@Methodgg) May 15, 2017

In there for injustice 2 yall! Happy to be apart of the team! https://t.co/HxqzLUceZW

— Method|SylverRye (@SylverRye) May 15, 2017

So excited to be part of @Methodgg Competing in Injustice 2 along with the team will be amazing! https://t.co/PoNiXIqVHB

— Method|REO (@MK_REO) May 15, 2017

For all my supporters and friends and anyone who was interested. I found a home and a very good one. The journey continues! @Methodgg https://t.co/io3P6DE4z9

— Devon Petties (@Mikeand1keFGC) May 15, 2017

We here at Shoryuken would like to wish this new team and their manager all the best in their future endeavors, and we can’t come out with a stylish impact at Combo Breaker on May 26-28!

Source: Test Your Might via StreamMe; MethodGG (Twitter); MK_REO; SylverRye; Mikeand1keFGC

One of the pioneers of the fighting game genre as we know it today is Sega. The company experimented a lot with the genre back in the nineties, resulting in the birth of a number of classic fighting game franchises. That said–the company hasn’t really done much in the genre as of late. However, some recent moves by the company may yet change all that.

Sega recently made a business presentation named “Road to 2020.” In this presentation, one of the bullet points lists the “Revival of major IPs.” While the statement itself doesn’t specifically mention fighting games, it’s still good news for fans of their classic franchises. Virtua Fighter has always been one of their most well-known IPs–even if its arcade-centric releases and technically-demanding reputation did hurt series sales.

Now, whether or not this could lead to a new Virtua Fighter–let alone one that could finally really break out, outside of Japan–is still up in the air. But statements about creating “global hits,” as well as simultaneously releasing games globally, do give hope that the some of the obstacles that held the series back may be addressed.

Source: Sega via Gematsu

For those of you who saw Razer’s Kun Xian Ho playing at ELEAGUE’s Street Fighter V invitational last week, you may have noticed that he was using a deceptively simply-looking but effective mix-up with Ibuki. Specifically, he debuted the mix-up in his match against Joshua “Wolfkrone” Philpot.

Xian’s mix-up caught Wolfkrone twice in a row at one point; as Way of the Scrub points out in their new video, the key to whether Ibuki is in front or behind her opponent depends on whether on not Xian adds a very small delay before he hits her air jab to air forward kick target combo. If he doesn’t delay, then Ibuki will be in front, if he does add the slight delay however, then she’ll appear behind his opponent.

Source: Way of the Scrub

Meanwhile, The King of Fighters XIV currently has the lowest number of registered players.

As we get closer and closer to Evo 2017, the present “leaderboard” for event registration has been shared–and for the most part the results are what one would expect: generally consistent with 2016’s closing numbers, and reflective of each game’s overall popularity:

1. Street Fighter V
2. Super Smash Bros. for Wii U
3. Super Smash Bros. Melee
4. Guilty Gear Xrd REV 2
5. Tekken 7
6. Injustice 2
7. BlazBlue: Central Fiction
8. Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3
9. The King of Fighters XIV

Street Fighter V already has a substantial lead, with the two Smash titles finishing the top three, for now. Guilty Gear Xrd REV 2 is currently in the 4th spot–but Tekken 7 and Injustice 2 are possible contenders to overtake it as they get into the hands of the gaming public! The Player’s Choice winner Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 is presently only in 8th place for its Evo swan song; and newcomer The King of Fighters XIV could use some more love, sitting back in last place.

Of course, we’ve still got about two months for this list to get shaken up a bit with new sign-ups. Registration is still open for Evo 2017 through smash.gg–and you can join additional games after your initial registration too, so get in there and support your favorite titles!

Evo 2017 takes place at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Nevada on July 14-16, 2017.

Sources: Evo, Joey Cuellar (Twitter)