LONG BEACH - K Beast came all the way from the East Bay and won the 2 Good Gaming Tatsunoko vs. Capcom tournament, beating his friend Phampy in the finals.
K Beast was a chip away from losing in the first semifinals, but pulled off a miraculous comeback to win and go to the title match. And then he was a chip away from going to a second championship match, but rallied again. The videos are on our YouTube portal if you haven't seen them yet.
I talked to him about the comebacks as well as his gameplay and the Tatsunoko vs. Capcom scene. You can check it out below.
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LOS ANGELES - YoMomma was on the team that won the Players Bowl VIII crew vs. crew battle, and he let it be known it was the start of something big for he and the players on his team.
The crew battle was highlighted by a win by Mr. Moss over Problem, a win that sealed the tournament championship. There were some other big highlights, including a 16-point comeback to keep the team in the tournament.
Whether YoMomma is right about his team being the best is up for debate. There won't be another major event until the Raleigh Madden Challenge in the late summer.
In this podcast, I talk to him about the crew battle at Players Bowl VIII, plus his thoughts on Madden 11 and some of the changes that are possibly coming to the game. We also brush a little bit on his run-in with Convinced.
You can listen to it below.
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LONG BEACH - Last week, Royalflush posted on the Capcom Unity blog about the scene he loves a lot -- Tatsunoko vs Capcom. I thought it was a friendly call to other communities and spectators not to give up on them, that the game is exciting and competitive.
Seems appropriate. Mention a current fighting game right now and one of two probably come up before Tatsunoko vs Capcom. I have seen these guys at various events throughout SoCal over the past few months. Action is fast-paced. Matches are intense. Comebacks are crazy. The spectators hang on every character switch, assist and combo.
From what I've seen in tournament play, Tatsunoko vs Capcom is good. A lot of the matches have been close and there have been some amazing comebacks and close calls. The K Blade vs Phampy match is a great example; K Blade made two insane comebacks to beat Phampy and win the title (I'll post the video late tonight or tomorrow).
While being good at SSFIV can build a great foundation for playing a multitude of other 2-D fighting games at a competitive level, it's not always that appealing to players who look for something else in their fighters. SSFIV can be quite demanding in terms of dexterity and execution, but it really rewards those who are spot on with both of those, while those who can't keep up with the higher-level players just get left behind. TvC may seem very basic at first, but as you continue to understand the game mechanics, the same elements of dexterity and execution are easier to achieve and heightened levels of these truly make for a skilled player.
On Saturday, I asked Royalflush about his commentary and the future of the competitive scene. What's hurting the competitive scene? Is Evolution 2010 the end-all or the beginning?
You can listen to the interview below.
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SAN DIEGO - The winner of Willy's Workshop Super Turbo tournament was Bob Painter. The name didn't ring a bell to me, because I'm not that old of a tournament veteran. I have to give big thanks to MarkMan for pointing out that Bob has been around for more than a decade.
Obviously, he's still playing today, as he came by to Mira Mesa and won the 30-player tournament. I must admit I fumbled a little bit (a lot?) through this interview because I really had a lot of questions for him, and yet I really didn't know what to ask a longtime veteran. I asked him what the changes are between then and now, plus his thoughts on the changes between Super Turbo and HD Remix.
Major League Gaming recently did an interview with Orlando regional champion Mew2King. If you're wondering where M2K thinks he stands in terms of being the best in the community, he addresses it here.
I'm also glad to see him share his thoughts on the East Coast vs. West Coast battle, as well as his thoughts on Ally, who he beat to win the Orlando regional title.
MLG: Well, you and Ally were clearly at the top of the pack, both in singles and doubles. What do you think about him as a competitor? How does his playstyle differ from yours? What are the keys to beating him?
Mew2King: He's extremely smart. I'm more aggressive than him generally, but I have to camp against him a lot in order to beat him in singles. He's more of a counter-attack player, and his reaction time is better. I'm not saying anything that would regard to making beating him easier, because that would be unfair. There is no easy way anyway, period.
The Untouchable is the first ever Madden Challenge champion. He was once a part of the tournament scene and has now transitioned over to poker. However, he made an appearance at Players Bowl VIII on Saturday.
Philly Ron talked to The Untouchable and discussed the differences between both tournament scenes and what's makes each of them stand out. The Untouchable also mentions the one thing that really turns him off when it comes to this generation's players. You can check it out below.
Convinced has been at the top of the Madden scene for the past couple of months. His win at the Hall of Fame tournament opened up a lot of eyes. Now, he takes his skills to the biggest annual grass roots tournament, the Players Bowl.
With some of the community's top players scheduled to compete, Convinced can prove once again that he is among the elite. He talked about the upcoming Players Bowl in this interview:
GLENN: How active have you been since the Hall of Fame tournament? What kind of tournaments or online events have you been involved in and how have you done?
CONVINCED: Ive been very actice since the HOF tourny, ive been in the finals of the ASK madden tourny, and Big City Chicago. Losing to Gares in the ask Madden Tourney and winning Big city Chicago.
GLENN: How much are you looking forward to the Players Bowl?
CONVINCED: I'm very excited for Players Bowl, to chill with everyone and compete for a lot of cash.
GLENN: Are you going to be involved in any big matches outside of the tournament? What about crew matches?
CONVINCED: Yes. Me and my crew the Renegades will be participating in the crew vs crew championships and looking to win it!
GLENN: Do you think you have to change your strategy much after winning the Hall of Fame tournament?
CONVINCED: No, not much at all. I just need to tweak a few things in my gameplan and I'll be fine.
GLENN: Are you sticking with the Raiders?
CONVINCED: Yes, gotta go with you know this late in the Madden season, and the Oakland Raiders are all I know. Their team just fits me perfectly.
GLENN: People are heralding your defense. Is that what you like to focus on when you practice and play in tournaments?
CONVINCED: Yes. Defense wins championships, and Madden tournies haha, but seriously it's playing good defense is my main focus when playing.
GLENN: Anyone you have to worry about as you prepare for the tournament?
CONVINCED: As much I hate to admit LIL man is my biggest concern mainly because he knows all my plays better then anyone else because we have played so much online this year,
GLENN: If you get to the finals, who would you like to face and why?
CONVINCED: I would like to play one of my guys from my own crew so we can go home with that cash LOL but seriouly I wanna play Problem because aside from myself he has accomplished the most this year.
IRVINE - I hadn't done a Players Choice podcast regarding Brawl, and I figured this week was a good time to do one. TourneyPlay 5 took place this past weekend, and one of main events was the Brawl singles tournament. A few players from out of state, including MLG Orlando regional champ Mew2King, came out to Orange County to compete.
Another out-of-state competitor was Jem. Hailing from the Pacific Northwest, Jem is a Smash veteran. He's also one of the many Meta Knight users in the nation. In this chat, we talk about using Meta Knight, playing in Southern California tournaments, and what he hopes to accomplish at MLG Columbus.
You can listen to the interview below.
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Ken, by many accounts, is much better in Super Street Fighter IV than in the previous vanilla version. Joon is one of the few players in Southern California that has used Ken in both versions. He recently finished second at the Primetime Gamers' tournament in Compton.
After the tournament, I asked him about why he's sticking with Ken and what makes him different than in the previous version. We also discuss matchups and his run in the tournament.
You can listen to the interview below.
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COMPTON - Onlinetony213 was the latest winner of the Primetime Gamers Super Street Fighter IV tournament this past weekend. He used Seth to win the title with an unbeaten record. He's said repeatedly he does not like the changes that were made. In this post-tournament interview, he talks about the changes as well as the matchups he faced.
You can listen to the interview below.
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Bloguin is the revolutionary blog network specifically focused on helping bloggers get the most out of their websites. We're currently working on building a large network of online communities and hope to expand our blogging coverage to include a wide range of topics. 
The Bloguin Network allows advertisers to promote their products and services to our ever-growing number of visitors. We offer both site-specific ad placements as well as the ability to run a network-wide campaign. If you're interested in working with Bloguin to meet your advertising needs, please contact us.
The Bloguin Network is always looking to expand. We're specifically looking for blogs in the sports, entertainment, and video games field, but are open to adding any type of quality site. If you're a blogger and interested in joining our network, please fill out our application form.
The Bloguin Login gives you full access to everything our network has to offer. Your name and password will work for each and every one of our sites. Signing up is simple, and will allow you to post in all our forums, create member blogs, and access other cool features! What are you waiting for? Create an Account! 