EVO 2018 had some great moments. As the premier tournament for all great fighting games, Evolution brings in the top competitors for Dragon Ball FighterZ, Street Fighter V, Tekken 7, Guilty Gear and more! There were many upsets and surprises throughout the games. Surprisingly, this tournament had a lot of awkward moments that annoyed and even angered fans. Fighting game communities (FGC) are incredibly vocal about their opinions and aren’t afraid of censorship. (See r/kappa NSFW)
Bad
Tekken 7 DLC
Tekken 7 has been releasing new DLC characters since the console release. The inclusion of Akuma from Street Fighter was the start of a string of guest characters to join the Tekken 7 roster. Geese from The King of Fighters series was well received while Noctis from Final Fantasy XV got mixed responses for their Season 1 DLC. The newest addition for Season 2 announced at EVO was Negan from The Walking Dead. While two returning favorites from the franchise, Anna and Lei, were well received, most people are confused on why Negan was added. He doesn’t really fight characters or humans in his TV show.
Many fans wanted different characters and constantly asked Katsuhiro Harada, Executive Producer of Tekken 7, on Twitter for their favorites. In particular, Kiryu Kazuma from Yakuza was a popular request. The Walking Dead is an incredibly popular franchise and most players reactions have been positive on YouTube.
Super Smash Bros 4 Grand Finals
Super Smash Brothers for Wii U is an awesome game but competitively there is one character that tops the rest: Bayonetta. Known for her agility, recovery, strong moves, and the ability to launch and combo you in the air to death has made her the best character in the game. The tournament was intense by Top 8 and there were plenty of upsets but the final two players decided to troll and ruin the most exciting moments for everyone.
TL; DW: The Smash community hates Bayonetta because she is OP. The two players were friends and decided to just talk and waste time while the audience actively booed them; both online and physical. They wasted so much time that the tournament officials forced them to finish. It was an embarrassment for the game, community, and it sends Smash 4 off with a whimper.
Dragon Ball FighterZ Grand Finals Delay
Dragon Ball FighterZ was the biggest game at EVO 2018. It had the most players and highest viewership. Grand finals were between SonicFox and Go1 who have been the biggest competitors in the scene. They have faced each other in various tournaments before EVO and have won several different tournaments. They are considered rivals in the Dragon Ball FighterZ community due to the numerous time they have played against each other.
Grand Finals being between the two was considered fate and was awesome. Go1 was coming from losers bracket so he had to win 6 games to earn the championship. Not only did he reset the bracket, he won convincingly; 3 straight games against SonicFox. Go1 was incredibly serious and not his usual cheerful demeanor. He wanted the win. Then a 5-minute stall occurred. SonicFox asked to switch sides. After a coin flip, he moved to the left side and then 3 – 0 Go1. Fans were elated and SonicFox won an EVO tournament at the most popular game. Some viewers believed the delay threw off the momentum for Go1 and gave SonicFox time to mentally recover. You are allowed to switch sides according to the tournament rules at EVO but it still led to controversy. Also, SonicFox came out of the closest but who cares, he is a furry and godlike at fighting games.
Did you watch EVO this year?