Week of June 8th to the 14th, 2015.
Fighting Games Weekly is a place for all things fighting games. News, game discussion, events, streams, videos, players, drama, everything fighting game related.
Don't know what to watch right now? Check the FGCPros Twitch Group or Jaxel's Stream Viewer. If you want to watch multiple streams at once, you can use Jaxel's customizable multiviewer as well. If you are looking to see what events are coming up past this week, check out the FGC Event Calendar that our own Malice215 put together.
New to FGC-GAF is the FGC-GAF Index which lists the fighting games GAFers plays as a neat reference with some rough statistics to boot. To add yourself to the index, quote this post and use the survey link below. Please remember to save/bookmark the "Edit your response" link so you can edit your responses if/when you buy a game already on the list or a new game that releases in the future.
Last week's thread. An archive of previous FGW threads is available here.
Fighting Games Weekly is a place for all things fighting games. News, game discussion, events, streams, videos, players, drama, everything fighting game related.
Don't know what to watch right now? Check the FGCPros Twitch Group or Jaxel's Stream Viewer. If you want to watch multiple streams at once, you can use Jaxel's customizable multiviewer as well. If you are looking to see what events are coming up past this week, check out the FGC Event Calendar that our own Malice215 put together.
New to FGC-GAF is the FGC-GAF Index which lists the fighting games GAFers plays as a neat reference with some rough statistics to boot. To add yourself to the index, quote this post and use the survey link below. Please remember to save/bookmark the "Edit your response" link so you can edit your responses if/when you buy a game already on the list or a new game that releases in the future.
Last week's thread. An archive of previous FGW threads is available here.
Last year, GAFer Shouta helped organize donations from various FGC-GAF members to send fellow member QisTopTier to EVO. Q suffers from Facioscapulohumeral Muscular Dystrophy, but has always wanted to go to EVO and we're looking to double up this year and send him to EVO again!
If you want to help out, you can check out the details and pledge on this spreadsheet.
E3 is just a week away, and promises to bring some big news for fighting games. Let's take a look at what to expect below:
- Street Fighter V is will be at E3 in a big way, obviously. Don't think I need links to substantiate this.
- Many are anticipating new Super Smash Bros. DLC announcements in light of Roy and Ryu files being found in a recent 3DS patch, Nintendo hosting their own ballot for characters they want to see in Smash and Lucas releasing in close proximity to Nintendo's Digital E3 event. It has been a while since we've seen Pokken Tournament as well, and a console release announcement could be in the cards.
- Project Soul is hosting it's own character poll on their Facebook for the "future of Soul Calibur," and GAF insider Verendus listed a new Soul Calibur in a list of titles, around half of which will be announced at E3.
- Namco Bandai also is set to show a fighting (or wrestling!) game for PS4 and X1, which could speak to either Soul Calibur or Tekken 7. With Tekken 7 already having DS4 support built-in, it's no stretch to suggest this title might be Tekken 7.
- With Phil Spencer trying to renew PC gamer's faith in Microsoft by appearing at the E3 PC Gaming Show and with Microsoft Studios informally noting that they are gauging interest in a PC port, it isn't so unlikely that KI could hit PC in the near future. Furthermore, with KI being pushed as a a long-term project with yearly updates, it's not too crazy to expect a third season for the project to be announced, perhaps in conjunction with a PC release.
- Rivals of Aether is scheduled to show a new trailer and reveal 2 new characters some time in mid-June, which would coincide with Microsoft's E3 press conference (where they also had their game showcased last year).
DreamHack Summer 2015 [ Saturday ] [ 9AM Sweden | 3AM EDT | 12AM PDT ]
- DreamHack continues it's support of USFIV through their summer season.
- Capcom Pro Tour Ranking Event
- More information is available here.
- ECT returns, promising to bring the hype with UMK3 and UMvC3 exhibitions on top of all of the tournaments.
- This event continues through Sunday.
- More information is available here.
- Nintendo resurrects the granddaddy of eSports for a day of speedrunning, shooting and fighting.
- More information is available here.
Every week, FGW will spotlight one GAFer to get a better picture of their history with fighting games, their preferences, and much more. For this week's FGW Player Spotlight, we will be taking a closer look at Cyberman65!
What fighting games do you currently play, what is your all time favourite and why?
Right now, I play Super Smash Bros. Wii U and Persona 4 Arena Ultimax. Even though there's some weird and janky stuff in them compared to other fighters, these are the only two I enjoy. I'm glad that both of the games are going to be at EVO as it will be my first time attending.
But definitely SSB4 and the Smash series in general is my favorite. I've been playing the series ever since the first one in 1999. I just really like how the game plays and how its different than any other fighter.
What are your favorite mechanics from the current selection of fighting games and why? What are your least favorite and why?But definitely SSB4 and the Smash series in general is my favorite. I've been playing the series ever since the first one in 1999. I just really like how the game plays and how its different than any other fighter.
I have many favorite mechanics in games, but the Shadow Rampage mode in P4AU would probably be #1. Since I only like playing the Shadow versions of the characters in the game, pulling off long combos against other people during matches is like a extra bonus and feels great. Though, since my character has some non-burstable Shadow Rampage combos, I do feel like I get some undeserved wins sometimes, haha.
A mechanic I'm not really too fond of is the custom moves in SSB4. Something that I wouldn't really want to go into, but I just feel like they aren't really made/good for competitive play. I don't mind playing against them, though. Maybe changing the presets that the community came up with would change my mind.
What got you into fighting games? Are there any other genre of games you play?A mechanic I'm not really too fond of is the custom moves in SSB4. Something that I wouldn't really want to go into, but I just feel like they aren't really made/good for competitive play. I don't mind playing against them, though. Maybe changing the presets that the community came up with would change my mind.
Fighting games back then was a genre that I was casual in. Between friends, we would always go at it all the time. I used to love going to arcades back then and try to find a MvC1 machine to see if I could finally beat Onslaught, but never succeeded, probably due to mashing too much and not blocking.
Around 2011 is when I started taking fighting games seriously, along with having a big drive for it after watching my first EVO. SSF4 AE and MvC3 were really exciting for me to watch, but I didn't understand most of the tech that was going on until I started playing and learning myself. I also learned that a lot of people preferred using a arcade stick, which I'm glad that I made the transition to it from a pad since its easier for me to do inputs now.
Other genres that I enjoy playing are RPGs, Action, Adventure, Rhythm and a bit of Sports. I never really played/grew up with shooters.
What is your favorite fighting game character and why?Around 2011 is when I started taking fighting games seriously, along with having a big drive for it after watching my first EVO. SSF4 AE and MvC3 were really exciting for me to watch, but I didn't understand most of the tech that was going on until I started playing and learning myself. I also learned that a lot of people preferred using a arcade stick, which I'm glad that I made the transition to it from a pad since its easier for me to do inputs now.
Other genres that I enjoy playing are RPGs, Action, Adventure, Rhythm and a bit of Sports. I never really played/grew up with shooters.
Definitely would have to go to Phoenix Wright from UMvC3. I actually never played any of the Phoenix Wright games, but once I actually saw the trailer and messed with him when the game came out, he became a favorite. I've always been one of those people that love playing/maining the "joke" characters, so he's been on my main team ever since the beginning (Phoenix Wright/Spencer/Rocket Racoon).
Describe your style of play, and how do you play (local, online, etc.).
I play a very rush down style, no matter what character I'm playing. Sometimes this really affects me during matches and I have to tone it down to a defensive style. I'm still working on this.
For P4AU, I mostly stick to online as there isn't really a scene at all where I am. For SSB4, I play both online and locally, shoutouts to SmashGAF. The scene here locally is pretty big as there is at least one tournament per week. Its also great to meet new players and learn/get advice from people on how I play and what ways I can improve.
What do you feel are your biggest strengths and weaknesses as a player?For P4AU, I mostly stick to online as there isn't really a scene at all where I am. For SSB4, I play both online and locally, shoutouts to SmashGAF. The scene here locally is pretty big as there is at least one tournament per week. Its also great to meet new players and learn/get advice from people on how I play and what ways I can improve.
Probably my biggest strength is that I don't like to give up. If I'm losing against you consistently, I'll keep playing against you until I learn the matchup more or do better than I was at the start. Its just something that I've always stuck by.
My biggest weakness is probably adapting to people's different playstyles on the fly. This has probably costed me a lot of losses that shouldn't have happened.
Best and worst moments in the your fighting game career?My biggest weakness is probably adapting to people's different playstyles on the fly. This has probably costed me a lot of losses that shouldn't have happened.
Best moments came from a couple of things. Recently, I went to Smash at Xanadu 100, which is a local in Maryland for SSB4. This particular Xanadu, there were people who entered and came from 9 different states, which led to having 146 people there. I placed 17th and felt pretty good about that, but felt like I could do better. The drive there wasn't the greatest, though, haha.
Another one is beating a player in a tournament that I've always struggled with for a while. This has probably happened to a lot of people, but its just a great feeling when it finally happens.
A worst moment doesn't really come to mind, but going to APEX 2010 and not getting out of SSBB pools wasn't great.
What do you want from future fighting games?Another one is beating a player in a tournament that I've always struggled with for a while. This has probably happened to a lot of people, but its just a great feeling when it finally happens.
A worst moment doesn't really come to mind, but going to APEX 2010 and not getting out of SSBB pools wasn't great.
Just proper balancing. I feel like SSB4 did a pretty good job on that.
Who should be on next week's GAF Player Spotlight?
Snacks the sober sea lion would be a good one.
Since Dahbomb strongly encourages pre-orders, what games do you plan to buy that have been officially announced?
Really looking forward to Persona 4: Dancing All Night, Kingdom Hearts ? and Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection. I'm sure there's a couple of more games I'll buy that will get announced at E3.
Code:
06/30 BlazBlue: Chrono Phantasma Extend (NA)
SUMMER Skullgirls 2nd Encore
2015 Rivals of Aether
Q1/16 Street Fighter V
TBD Beast's Fury
TBD JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Eyes of Heaven
TBD Next The King Of Fighters Title (tentative)
TBD Pokken Tournament
TBD Rise of Incarnates
TBD Tekken 7
TBD Tekken X Street Fighter
TBD Yatagarasu: Attack on Cataclysm
TBD Yatagarasu: Legend of Raven
Super Desperation Radio [ 9:30PM EDT | 6:30 PDT ]
- Hellpockets and various other members of the KoF community discuss KoF and happenings in the FGC.
- Out of the ashes of The BOX Arena, comes the San Diego FGC's newest organized weekly for UMvC3.
- Weekly FGC show dedicated to match analysis, teaching, commentary, news, debates, and more! Hosted by UltraDavid and James Chen.
Kachitagari TV (JP) [ 9PM JST | 8AM EDT | 5AM PDT ]
- Bon-chan, Kazunoko and Fuudo's new show, focusing primarily on SSFIV AE ranked matches but is branching off into other games as well.
- Logan Sama, organiser of the old WSO weeklys in London, invites some of London's finest to Capcom UK HQ for first to 5 sets in USF4.
- NYC VF crew presents VF5:FS tournaments casuals out of The Next Level arcade in Brooklyn.
- New Jersey's largest weekly featuring UMvC3 and Injustice.
- JamessMK & DarKNaTaS host a raw and uncut weekly talk show discussing events in the FGC with various FGC personalities.
- Weekly FGC show dedicated to match analysis, teaching, commentary, news, debates, and more! Hosted by UltraDavid and James Chen.
- iPlaywinner hosts a weekly talk show featuring alpha stream monsters Harrison and Honzo Gonzo.
Game Spot Versus KoF Casuals (JP) [ 7PM JST | 6AM EDT | 3AM PDT ]
- KoF 1998UM, KoF 2002UM and KoF XIII C action from Japan.
- A weekly show featuring Mago, Tokido, and Momochi. They go over the tournaments they will participate and have participated in overseas and in Japan, as well as the general news in SF. For long periods of the year, there is a student-teacher session involving one of the 3 Topanga members taking a player under their wing and teaching them how to play SF. The show features rank matches (sometimes random char. matches) and ends with a 8 man online tournament featuring players around 4.5kpp such as Poongko, Inco, and more.
- NYC's biggest weekly at The Next Level Arcade in Brooklyn featuring SSFIV AE, UMvC3 and TTT2. If the Teamsp00ky link is not working, it is likely on the backup stream on Arturo's channel.
- Often, WonderChef will stream Injustice pools up until Top 4.
- SoCal's biggest weekly at Super Arcade in Walnut, featuring Injustice and SSFIV AE. Season details are available here.
Fraud City [ 7:30PM EDT | 4:30PM PDT ]
- Bifuteki streams tournaments for 4 games (UMvC3, USFIV, MKX and KI) in pairs on a rotating week-to-week schedule.
- Hold Back To Block hosts a weekly roundtable discussion of various happenings in the FGC.
- A bi-weekly Smash podcast discussing recent events, news and issues in the Smash community, hosted by Scar, Prog, Cactuar and Sheridan.
- Galloping Ghost Arcade presents an Injustice weekly out of Chicago.
- A weekly FGC talk show hosted by iPlaywinner, featuring a varying, ensemble cast of prominent members of the fighting game community.
- Aris' new weekly show, discussing whatever he wants to! The format resembles old ATP podcasts.
- The UMvC3 and KoF XIII branch of Wednesday Night Fights also hosted at Super Arcade in Walnut, California.
The Smash Break Bi-Weekly [ 6PM EDT | 3PM PDT ]
- The Break hosts a new Melee bi-weekly to replace Rokunaya Bi-Weeklies which are ending.
- Arturo streams a BlazBlue and Guilty Gear bi-weekly out of Next Level arcade in Brooklyn.
- For those who know how to use Nico Live, also join the GODSGARDEN community page on Nico to know when Ura KaoTV! goes live.
- A bi-weekly Skullgirls event hosted by members of the Skullgirls development team, often featuring preview builds of the game.
Rebel Up [ 7PM EDT | 4PM PDT ]
- Super Arcade's anime bi-weekly, featuring GG, BB, P4A, SG, Gundam and older anime games as well.
GGPO VanBats [ 4PM EDT | 1PM PDT ]
- Weekly GGPO Vampire Savior ranbats streamed by GAFer Rotanibor.
- SuperDojo and Team OXY partner up to create a new weekly for the SoCal Melee community, featuring doubles and singles.
On GAF we have various members that stream fighting games from time to time too. If you would like to add your channel to this thread, send me a PM.
Often, some fighting games can seem intimidating to players new and old. Below are a bunch of resources that may be of aid to new players, or handy as references.
- Learn How To Play Fighting Games Free eBook from Shoryuken is a fantastic primer for new players to the genre.
- Footsies Handbook is a guide to the potentially elusive, but integral part of doing well in any fighting game.
- NeoGAF's Arcade Stick Thread is the place to go for questions about anything arcade stick-related.
- Step Up Your Game is an editorial series by Justin Wong that covers a multitude of topics, notably focusing on strengthening your mental game and playing smarter instead of harder.
- Tips for first time competitors will help you straighten out those nerves and expectations when you head out to your first tournament.
- Domination 101 is almost a cult classic article in the FGC, which has Seth Killian telling us how he really feels about the idea of "cheapness" in fighting games.
- Team-building Guide by our very own Karsticles, which helps make it easier to approach team-building in MvC games, and games with similar synergistic elements.
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If you have any suggestions for the OP, please do not hesitate to post in this thread or (preferably) PM me to let me know.