EVO is getting closer. My brain is deleting other things to fit in the sensory overload that is Evo. Needless to say, I'm getting very excited. EVO then posted the number of competitors. That number: 8,541.
EIGHT THOUSAND FIVE HUNDRED AND FORTY ONE people have registered to fight in a gaming tournament. There's another shocking number. 4,228 of those competitors are signed up for Street Fighter 6. When I said in my review that Street Fighter 6 is the most fun I've had since Street Fighter 2 Turbo: Hyper Fighting, I meant that. There are going to be some new stars to come from these tournaments. Tekken 8 has 2,521, and Fatal Fury COTY has 1,576, for it's first year in the tournament. Guilty Gear Strive is at 1,508, in it's 4th year.
Even the extended line up has some more manageable numbers, as Rivals of Aether II has 358, Blazeblue Centralification at 247, and Capcom VS SNK 2 at 236. The games will be held on EVO stages, but the not the Arenas, which again, is insane to even think about trying to keep up with.
Then there's the crossover entrants, which means some people have signed up for multiple games. 943 people have registered for both Fatal Fury COTY, AND Street Fighter 6. Here's hoping those aren't running concurrent of each other. 60% of entrants are only registered for one game, and the game leading the single bracket percentage is Tekken 8 at an average of 1.63. Rivals of Aether also has 44% of it's entrants playing just that one game. Whew!
Street Fighter 6 leads by Country, with representatives from USA, Canada, Japan, Brazil, Australia, France, and Taiwan. Mexico preferred Fatal Fury COTW, , while the UK, and South Korea went for Tekken 8. Puerto Rico chose Guilty Gear Strive.
If you want to take a closer look at these, go check out the article by Trevor Lukan on the EVO website. Also, check out Mike Ross' story on why he once left the scene of fighting games, and returned with more of a purpose. Hope to meet him, too.
