Category: News

Today marks one month since we all got our hands on the release version of Street Fighter V. Since that day, we’ve poured hours into training mode, netplay, locals with friends, small tournaments at the corner comic shop, and yes, even survival mode (gotta look good). We’ve been practicing, to say the least, and now it’s time to pile into a car with our buddies–or, I guess hop on a plane, but everyone loves a good road trip–and make our way out to some major events to feed the pot, gain some experience, shake off our stage fright, and finally see what all the hype is about.

But how, exactly, do we prepare for such an excursion? What steps are necessary to ensure that our tournament trip is a successful one, even if we don’t make it out of pools? BROKENTIER’s Jay “Viscant” Snyder touches on this topic in the latest entry of his “Hit the Ground Running” series. When it comes to tournaments, Snyder’s no slouch; on top of years of experience traveling to, participating in, and placing well in major events, this veteran took home first place in Marvel vs. Capcom 3 back at Evolution 2011, so he knows his stuff when it comes to the tournament world.

Whether you’ve been attending tournaments for years yourself, or if your first planned major is just around the corner, Snyder’s advice is certain to offer some necessary insights. His tips range from checking the names of the other players in your pool and doing your best to study up on their style when possible and deciding which bits of tech you may not want to try and use in a high-pressure environment to things as simple as not staying up all night drinking and remembering to eat.

As obvious as some of this may sound, it’s easy to forget when everyone in the room starts yelling in unison with Akuma or when you see a favorite player of yours take a seat on the main stage. Hype is everywhere, and you should take part in it when you can, but remember that you’re also there to compete.

Be sure to check out the original post in full over at BROKENTIER.

Source: BROKENTIER

With just a few days left before Final Round 19 kicks off in Atlanta, the tournament organizers have revealed a last minute addition to their sponsor list, and it’s a big one.

The Pokémon Company International will reportedly have a presence at the event, providing head-to-head setups for Pokkén Tournament, the unique fighter that’s set to launch later this week. Apart from providing free-play stations all weekend, the developers have also put up $500 for an impromptu competition in what will then be a game that is merely a couple days old.

The bracket will be limited due to time constraints, but Final Round organizer Larry “Shin Blanka” Dixon is hoping to allow at least 32 players. Details are still limited on how attendees can register to participate, but we’ll keep you updated.

Final Round 19 is scheduled for March 18-20 in Atlanta, Georgia. More details can be found here.

Source: Final Round, special thanks to FunkyP, PokéMilln, and KOA|The Apple BOOM

While a great way to keep up on your training between tournaments, playing fighting games online is typically a crapshoot in terms of quality connections and opponents. Sure, some titles do it better than others, but it’s always a smart idea to have an idea of which players to look out for before jumping into netplay.

With Street Fighter V currently dominating discussion (both good and bad) in the fighting game community, Patrick “DaFeetLee” Lee has compiled a list of some of the stronger competitors rampaging through the Capcom Fighters Network. Though still a work in progress, this breakdown should do wonders in helping you learn matchups and characters. Even better, it also provides some insight into the pseudonyms specific players are using instead of more familiar names.

Of course, a project of this magnitude will likely never be perfect, but Lee is open to suggestions on Twitter. Give him a polite shout if you find that someone is missing or an entry needs to be edited.

Source: DaFeetLee

After a short period of maintenance last night, Nintendo has revealed the existence of yet another balance update for Super Smash Bros. for Wii U and its handheld counterpart. As with past patches, nothing official was released to explain exactly what was adjusted, but the Smash community is nothing if not diligent and quickly worked to put together their own change list.

While a complete breakdown is still in the works, early discoveries are available for viewing on Smash Boards. Some of the more notable tweaks include an increase in Mewtwo’s weight, slight buffs for landing recovery on Greninja’s forward and back airs, an improvement of Kirby’s knockback growth on smash and hammer attacks, and a decrease in damage on Zero Suit Samus’ up and neutral airs.

But that doesn’t mean the newest characters haven’t seen changes of their own. Bayonetta and Corrin have both received their fair share of nerfing, with the former’s Witch Time and the latter’s speed and damage taking hits.

Even though development on post-launch content may be over, this update shows Nintendo’s willingness to continue improving Super Smash Bros. for the competitive community. How long players can expect to see these updates, however, remains to be seen, but let’s enjoy the support for now.

A full list of known changes can be found here.

Sources: Perfectly Nintendo, Smash Boards

After all the excitement new characters bring to the table, Famitsu is bringing things down a notch with a recent report on Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR-‘s lobbies. These online stomping grounds will be rendered in 3D with arcade cabinets representing open matches, much in the same way Persona 4 Arena Ultimax’s lobbies functioned.

While players are waiting for open spots, they will be able to distract themselves by fishing in the lobby pond. Far from a mere distraction, however, this pursuit will earn customization parts and emotions for their online avatars as well as alternate colors to use during battle.

In addition, -REVELATOR- is also said to feature a revamped training mode for beginners that utilizes an on-screen arcade stick to visualize inputs, and a two-part story that pairs the original arcade chapters with a brand new narrative on consoles.

Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR- launches for PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 on May 26 in Japan, June 7 in North America, and June 10 in Europe. Pre-ordering will allow access exclusive demo before the official release, though exact details are still forthcoming.

Source: Famitsu via Hachima Kikou, Gematsu, tip via Kurushii

After all the excitement new characters bring to the table, Famitsu is bringing things down a notch with a recent report on Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR-‘s lobbies. These online stomping grounds will be rendered in 3D with arcade cabinets representing open matches, much in the same way Persona 4 Arena Ultimax’s lobbies functioned.

While players are waiting for open spots, they will be able to distract themselves by fishing in the lobby pond. Far from a mere distraction, however, this pursuit will earn customization parts and emotions for their online avatars as well as alternate colors to use during battle.

In addition, -REVELATOR- is also said to feature a revamped training mode for beginners that utilizes an on-screen arcade stick to visualize inputs, and a two-part story that pairs the original arcade chapters with a brand new narrative on consoles.

Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR- launches for PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 on May 26 in Japan, June 7 in North America, and June 10 in Europe. Pre-ordering will allow access exclusive demo before the official release, though exact details are still forthcoming.

Source: Famitsu via Hachima Kikou, Gematsu, tip via Kurushii

While many of Final Round 19’s official rules are still unclear (clicking the appropriate link on their website simply downloads a document with a ‘Coming Soon!’ message), one in particular regarding Mortal Kombat X has caused quite a stir as of late.

According to organizer David Richardson, the tournament will be allowing the use of the game’s newest downloadable characters, just two weeks after their release. For comparison, the Evolution Championship Series ruleset, which most tournaments adopt to keep parity throughout the year, makes characters released within three weeks of their events illegal during competition.

Apart from the unfortunate Kung Lao bug caused by Kombat Pack 2 fighter Alien, this decision raises numerous questions about viability and fairness. Is two weeks enough to time to learn how to counter these new characters at a high level? Furthermore, can players master using them at a high-level, so much so that it would throw a wrench in an otherwise level playing field?

We caught up with Razer’s Carl “Perfect Legend” White for his thoughts on the matter. As a longtime tournament competitor, he doesn’t agree with the decision, saying that there hasn’t been enough time to learn the massive amount of matchups the Kombat Pack 2 characters added to Mortal Kombat X.

This sentiment is shared by NetherRealm Studios’ Ed Boon. “Players need time to learn new character matchups, so to include new characters that are less than three weeks old doesn’t make a lot of sense,” the creative director explained on Twitter, stating that it’s less about promotion and more about giving competitors ample time to practice. “It’s more important that all players have a fair shot at winning,” he concluded.

Attempts to contact head tournament organizer Larry “ShinBlanka” Dixon for his unique insight went unanswered, but we will be sure to update this article as soon as we receive a response.

We also want to hear from you, our readers, on this matter. Below, you’ll find a poll with a simple question: do you agree with this decision? Feel free to follow up with specifics in the comments.

Final Round 19 is scheduled for March 18-20 in Atlanta, Georgia. More details can be found here.

Sources: David Richardson, Kitana Prime

While many of Final Round 19’s official rules are still unclear (clicking the appropriate link on their website simply downloads a document with a ‘Coming Soon!’ message), one in particular regarding Mortal Kombat X has caused quite a stir as of late.

According to organizer David Richardson, the tournament will be allowing the use of the game’s newest downloadable characters, just two weeks after their release. For comparison, the Evolution Championship Series ruleset, which most tournaments adopt to keep parity throughout the year, makes characters released within three weeks of their events illegal during competition.

Apart from the unfortunate Kung Lao bug caused by Kombat Pack 2 fighter Alien, this decision raises numerous questions about viability and fairness. Is two weeks enough to time to learn how to counter these new characters at a high level? Furthermore, can players master using them at a high-level, so much so that it would throw a wrench in an otherwise level playing field?

We caught up with Razer’s Carl “Perfect Legend” White for his thoughts on the matter. As a longtime tournament competitor, he doesn’t agree with the decision, saying that there hasn’t been enough time to learn the massive amount of matchups the Kombat Pack 2 characters added to Mortal Kombat X.

This sentiment is shared by NetherRealm Studios’ Ed Boon. “Players need time to learn new character matchups, so to include new characters that are less than three weeks old doesn’t make a lot of sense,” the creative director explained on Twitter, stating that it’s less about promotion and more about giving competitors ample time to practice. “It’s more important that all players have a fair shot at winning,” he concluded.

Attempts to contact head tournament organizer Larry “ShinBlanka” Dixon for his unique insight went unanswered, but we will be sure to update this article as soon as we receive a response.

We also want to hear from you, our readers, on this matter. Below, you’ll find a poll with a simple question: do you agree with this decision? Feel free to follow up with specifics in the comments.

Final Round 19 is scheduled for March 18-20 in Atlanta, Georgia. More details can be found here.

Sources: David Richardson, Kitana Prime

Last week, Microsoft and Iron Galaxy Studios gave us a look at the full spectrum of alternate colors guest character Rash will have available in Killer Instinct Season 3, and now they’ve set their sights on the return of Kim Wu.

Most of Kim’s colors revolve around the basic purple that’s associated with her character. Reflecting her new backstory as a spunky fashion design student, this is matched with a plethora of bright colors in both her clothes and hair.

For those who prefer a more classic look, the team also dropped images of Kim’s retro costume. Unlike her modern design, each alternate for her retro costume is mostly based on a single dominant color, reflecting the character’s 90s roots.

You can check out all the variations of Kim Wu’s modern and retro costumes in the individual galleries below.

Click to view slideshow.
Click to view slideshow.

Kim Wu joins Killer Instinct alongside the rest of the Season 3 content on March 29.

Source: Ultra-Combo