Daigo Umehara's Event Schedule 2015

- Canada Cup's Master Series [January 9-11]
- 5th Niconico Shotenkaigi [January 18]
- Yonpahi radio show [January 23]
- 6th Niconico Shotenkaigi [January 25]
- Taipei Game Show [Jan 31]
- Tokaigi 2015 [Feb 1]

Sunday, July 31, 2011

Evolution 2011: After Hour

After Hour is the money match event after the end of the second day of Evolution 2011.

July 31, time is Las Vegas local time

JP Guest: Umehara, Nyanshi, Fuudo, Nabe, Shiro, Shungoku Neurosis, Tokido, Gama no Abura

  • 00:50 Tokido (Aku) 1-2 Cynistar (Aku) *20,840 viewers
  • 1:08 Mago (Fei) 1-2  Inthul (Fei)
  • 1:16 Mago (Fei) 2-0  Inthul (Fei) *Mago wanted a rematch.
  • 1:21 Umehara (Yun) 2-0 Jewelman (Hon) 
  • 1:28 Shungoku Neurosis (Dic) 2-0 Humanbomb (Yang) *The commentator said S.N. is the best looking JP there. 
  • 1:35 Umehara (Yun) 2-0 Broly (Chun)
  • 1:43 Umehara (Yun) 2-0 Ryan Hart (Yun) Umehara won 4 rounds straight
  • 1:4X It seems like all of the JP players went back.
  • 1:49 GamerBee (Adon) 3-0 Air (Ryu)
  • 2:01 GamerBee (Adon) 2-0 Sanford (Ryu)
  • 2:06 Laugh (Ryu) 3-0 Air (Ryu)
  • 2:16 Ryan Hart (Oni/Yun) 1-3 Laugh (Ryu) *18,000 viewers
  • 2:28 Poongko (Seth) 2-0 BurnYourBra (Ken)
  • 2:33 GamerBee (Adon) 2-0 Laugh (Ryu)
  • 2:39 Ryan Hart (Ryu) 3-1 Laugh (Ryu/Fei) *16,900 viewers
  • 2:49 Poongko (Yun/Yang) 2-1 SherryJenix (Vip)
  • Sabin is commentating. I'll stop watching this.
  • 3:07 Shiro said he'll play on the stream soon so I come back and watch on mute.
  • 3:13 Poongko (Yang/Seth) 0-3 Ryan Hart (Yun) R.H.'s Yun beat Poongko's Seth twice | *16,000 viewers
  • 3:22  Poongko (Seth) 2-2 Hsien Chang (Yun) *Stream went down after that score. So it's better to watch something else after all. :)

Evolution 2011 Summary: Day 2

Related posts
- Pre-Evo 2011 Updates
- Evolution 2011 Summary: Day1
- The Japanese - Who's coming to Evo 2011

Streams
- Main channel (for SSF4AE, MVC3, all games in Sunday)
- Sub channel (for Tekken and BlazBlue)
- Main channel (low bandwidth)

(chronological order, time is Las Vegas local time)


MvC3 Pools
  • Justin Wong 2-0 RF
  • Noel Brown is in Losers 
  • [Winners] Pool qualifier: Justin Wong, Richard Nguyen
  • [Losers] Pool qualifier: AndyOCR, Noel Brown, Smooth Viper
  • 11:20 - [Winners] Pool qualifier: Tatsu, Fubarduck, Ryry
  • 12:00 - [Winners] Pool qualifier: Clockwork, Flash Metroid
  • 12:00 - [Losers] Pool qualifier: Chris G, Dr. Chaos, Nerd Josh
  • 13:30 - Chris Hu eliminated (lost a match and forfeit)
  • 13:30 - [Winners] Pool qualifier: Tokido
  • 13:40 - [Winners] Pool qualifier: Frieda
  • 14:25 - Umehara won a match because his opponent didn't show up. (no stream)
  • 14:30 - Umehara on the stream for the first time? | Umehara 2-0 Jake | He's still using the old team: Wolv, Dante, Aku
  • [Winners] Pool qualifier: Marn
  • Floe 2-0 Maximilian
  • 14:55 - Umehara 0-0 Dawoo | 2nd game perfect'd | Umehara went to Losers.(no stream)
  • 15:00 - Noah 2-0 Kang | Noah is the little 8-year old kid who showed up at Revelations. He used Dictator in SSF4AE (IIRC)
  • Mike Ross 2-1 DR Ray
  • 15:12 - Combofiend 2-1 Yipes
  • F. Champ 2-0 Tom Hawk
  • [Winners] Pool qualifier: Sanford Kelly, Xian 
  • 15:39 - [Winners] Pool qualifier: F. Champ
  • 15:48 - [Losers] Pool qualifier: Umehara
  • Noah 2-0 Cronos
  • LamerBoi 0-2 Foo 
  • [Winners] Pool qualifier: Combofiend
  • [Losers] Pool qualifier: Yipes
  • Mike Ross 2-0 MazeMaker
  • Floe 2-0 Dragoomba
  • [Winners] Pool qualifier: Mike Ross
  • [Losers] Pool qualifier: Floe
  • [Losers] Umehara 2-1 CJ Showstopper | He perfected his opponent in second game. | Intense match
  • 16:29 - Noah 2-1 RoyalFlush 
  • 17:10 - Mago eliminated. He's out of all competitions now.
  • [Winners] Pool qualifier: Noah 
  • MarlinePie 2-0 Skoot 
  • PR Rog 2-1 NAS 
MvC3 Pool Round 2
  • Justin Wong 2-0 Sabre
  • 18:15 - Frieda went to Losers
  • Marn 2-1  Deltrimantix
  • 18:32 [Losers] Umehara 2-0 Essex 
  • Justin Wong 2-0 Yoshi13
  • [Winners] Mike Ross 1-2 Renegade 
  • Fubarduck 2-0 Clockwork 
  • [Losers] Frieda 2-0 Wentinel
  • Combofiend 2-1 Fanatiq | A comeback
  • 19:18 - Umehara eliminated?
  • 19:18 - Frieda eliminated by Yipes 
  • Justin Wong 2-0 InfiniteImage
  • [Winners] Santrax 2-1 Renegade
  • 19:38 - [Losers] Noah 0-2 ChrisG
  • [Losers] Floe 2-0 Fubarduck 
  • PR Rog 2-1 Combofiend 
  • 20:16 - Top 32 bracket [Pic] It's official, all Japanese players were eliminated. So no more update for this game.
MvC3 top 8
Winners

- PR Rog
- F. Champ
- Viscant
- Justin Wong
Losers
- Mine
- Combofiend
- Noel Brown
- X-Ray

BlazBlue Pools
  • Tokido was on stream 2 times
  • 09:26 - [Winners] Tokido in top 4 of Pool 1 
  • 10:10 - [Winners] Tokido qualified 
  • 19:15 - [Winners] Tokido in top 8

Tekken Pools
  • 14:50 - Kayo playing on the stream. | Kayo (Lili) 2-0 Bossoog
  • 14:55 - Kayo (Lili) 1-2 Renzo (Lars) | Kayo made a big comeback in second game.
  • 16:38 - Tokido (Bob) 2-0 Ryry 
  • 16:59 - [Winners] Tokido (Bob) 2-1 JustFrameJames (Law) A comeback
  • 19:15 - Ryan Hart in top 8 
  • 19:26 - [Losers] Tokido (Bob) 2-1 FA ATL REDD (Law) | A comeback | Tokido in top 8 now

Updates
  • 9:50 - GG stream up 
  • 10:35 - 23,000 viewers 
  • 10:50 - Daigo Umehara's autograph session at MCZ booth 11am - 1pm 
  • 12:20 - Daigo Umehara's autograph session [Pic]
  • 13:10 - Mr. Jared cosplaying Bridget! [Pic][Pic2
  • 14:38 - Kayo is on Stream 2 talking to Aris (commenator). [Video]
  • 14:45 - Ryan Hunter and Seth Killian are the commentators on Stream 1
  • 15:07 - 29,300 on Stream 1 (MvC3), 9,200 on Stream 2 (Tekken)
  • 15:24 - 8,100 viewers watching BlazBlue on Stream 2 
  • 15:26 - Marvel vs. Niitsima (MvC3 producer) [Pic
  • 15:50 - S-Kill out, Keits in
  • 16:05 - Ricky Ortiz [Pic
  • 16:10 - SSF4AE Balance Patch announced for Fall or Winter. [Pic]
  • 16:37 - S-Kill said "Poisons gender to be decided by fan voting" 
  • 16:39 - 32,000 viewers
  • 16:56 - Choco in a nice yukata on GG stream 
  • 17:15 - Umehara in Super Street Fighter II Turbo side tournament [Pic][Stream
  • 17:22 - View from main stage [Pic]
  • 17:28 - MomoChoco [Pic]
  • 17:35 - Gama-san talking with (Tekken producer) Harada on GG stream
  • 17:39 - Tokido is in BBCS top 64, Tekken top 64, MvC3 top 128 
  • 17:42 - (SF4 producer) Ono joining Harada on GG stream
  • 18:15 - Ryan Hunter & Keits out, James Chen & UltraDavid in (commentators) 
  • 18:50 - Tokido giving interview [Pic
  • 19:00 - Team MCZ Japan plus Nyanshi and autograph session. [Pic][Pic]
  • 19:14 - Umehara and Nyanshi in a match [Pic
  • 19:20 - Shiro Team at a sea food restaurant [Pic
  • 19:55 - UltraDavid out, Skisonic in
  • 19:58 - Chen out, S-Kill in
  • 20:05 - 35,000 viewers
  • 20:10 - Umehara at MCZ booth [Pic]
  • 20:40 - Someone challenged Shiro to a money match and lost [Pic]
  • 20:40 - Umehara won the Super Street Fighter II Turbo side tournament and got $860.
  • 21:46 - 36,800 viewers 
  • 22:23 - There're around 4,000 viewers on GG+NSB chanel combined. 
  • 00:38 - 27,800 viewers watching MvC3 East Coast vs. West Coast.
  • 00:41 - West Coast won 5-2.

Saturday, July 30, 2011

Evolution 2011 Summary

Related posts
- Pre-Evo 2011 Updates
- Evolution 2011 Summary: Day 2
- Evolution 2011 Summary: Day 3
- The Japanese - Who's coming to Evo 2011

Streams
- Main channel (for SSF4AE, MVC3, all games in Sunday)
- Sub channel (for Tekken and BlazBlue)
- Main channel (low bandwidth)

SSF4AE Pools (chronological order)

  • Fuudo (Fei) 2-0 SinisterX (Dha)
  • Kindevu (Yun) 2-0 GameWizard
  • [Pool 7] Shungoku Neurosis is sent to Losers by Mike Ross
  • Sabin (Dha) 2-0 Keybot (Bla)
  • Floe (Yang) 2-0 Airic (Dan) 
  • Dieminion (Gui) 2-0 Johnny Castille (Rose/Fue)
  • Kindevu survived the pool and in Winners (4 wins)
  • Ranmasama (Ruf) 2-0 Jebailey (Boxer/Ryu)
  • Shiro is sent to Losers by Sabin (Rose) He got the first game plus first round but still lost.
  • Fuudo survived his pool in Winners. He sent Dieminion to Losers
  • Floe is in Losers
  • Chris G is in Losers
  • Infiltration (Akuma) 2-0 Kwyjibo (Cody)
  • Justin Wong (Rufus) 2-0 Gliggarman (Oni)
  • Wolf Krone survived the pool in Winners
  • Ryan Hart (Ryu) 2-0 Jesus Paez (Guile)
  • AndyOCR is in Losers
  • Shungoku Neurosis and Shiro survived the pools in Losers
  • Sabin survived the pool in Winners
  • Infiltration (Aku) 2-0 MenoJazz (Abel)
  • Toxy (Aku) 2-0 hAMM (Box)
  • Justin Wong (Ruf) 2-0 JewelMan (Honda) The Honda gave away a free game from a big mistake.
  • Kayane (Chun) 1-2 GrandMasterJ (DeeJ) She went to Losers
  • Ryan Hart (Yun) 2-0 Banksters (Yun)
  • Mago, Ricky Ortiz, ChocoBlanka are in Winners final of their pool.
  • Justin Wong (Ruf) 2-0 Alphonso (Yun)
  • Infiltration (Ryu) 2-0 Fatbear (Yun)
  • Xian (Yun) 2-0 KX (Ibu)
  • Justin Wong and Ricky Ortiz survived the pool in Winners
  • SherryJenix (Viper) 1-2 Choke King (Claw)
  • Ryan Hart (Yun) 2-0 Cynistar (Aku)
  • Gootecks is in Losers
  • Mago survived the pool in Winners
  • Starnab (Fei) 2-0 Lamerboi (Gui)
  • Other people who qualified their pool in Winners: Toxy, Ryan Hart, Infiltration, iPeru, Fubarduck, Hugo101, Xian, Tatsu
  • (Canadian?) Air is in Losers.
  • Other people who qualified their pool in Winners: Chris Hu, Min, Latif 
  • PR Rog (Box) 0-2 Starnab (Fei)
  • Warahk (Gui) 2-0 Steve H (Sagat)
  • Other people who qualified their pool in Winners: Combofiend
  • JuiceBox (Abe) 2-0 Erickson (Dha/Ryu) 
  • RF (Sagat) 2-0 DJ Vest (Blanka) 
  • UltraDavid (Dan) 1-2 Hydro (Gouken) Heartbreaking!
  • Other people who qualified their pool in Winners: Flash Metroid, Perfect Legend 
  • RF survived the pool in Winners, but Laugh in Losers
  • Yipes (Dic) 0-2 Rule (Yun)
  • Other people who qualified their pool in Winners: Vangief
  • 14:15 - Tokido (Aku) 2-0 Kinetic (Yang)
  • Poongko (Seth) 2-0 El Cubansomething (Claw)
  • Other people who qualified their pool in Winners: Starnab, JuiceBox
  • Filipino Champ (Dha) 2-0 Brandon (Gui)
  • 14:35 - KayoPolice (Viper) 2-0 Jon Layton (Fei) She won 4 rounds straight. Then gave a hug to her opponent.
  • Momochi (Yun) 2-0 Blockbuster Jon (Adon)
  • Momochi (Yun) 2-0 German Luger (Claw) 
  • Now all in Winners final 4 of their pool: Nyanshi, Poongko, F. Champ, Tokido 
  • Poongko (Seth) 2-0 Ronnicle (Sagat) 
  • Hsien Chang (Yun) 2-0 Zerosomething (Juri) 
  • Momochi (Yun) 2-0 negroMAX (Guy) 
  • 15:30 - KayoPolice (Viper) 2-0 Killer Kai (Ryu) Kayo was on her knee with her stick on the chair. She lost just 1 round, made opponent dizzy twice.
  • Poongko (Seth) 2-0 phisomething (Box)
  • 15:40 - Tokido (Aku) 2-0 Sol (Sakura)
  • Nyanshi in Losers final and was eliminated? [Pic]
  • KayoPolice sent to Losers (not on stream)
  • Banana Ken (Ken) 2-1 Jayce the Ace (Viper) 
  • 16:00 - Kayo eliminated (not on stream)
  • GamerBee (Adon) 2-0 Chaelle (Dud)
  • Nabe won his third game, says Mago
  • 16:48 - Umehara won his first match
  • In Winner final of their pool: John Choi, Alex Valle
  • Alex Valle (Dic/Ryu) 2-1 Blahguy (Abel) 
  • Qualified the pool in Winners: Alex Valle 
  • Marn (Vip) 1-2 John Wayne (Zan) Marn to the Losers
  • 17:39 - Umehara playing on the stream for the first time! It's Winners Final of his pool
  • Umehara (Yun) 2-0 IPW Deuce (Yun) He won 4 rounds straight. And looks like he's using the prototyped SFxTekken stick from before.

SSF4AE Pools Round 2?
  • GamerBee (Ado) 2-0 Leland (Zan) 
  • Alex Valle (Ryu) 2-0 Mincersomething (Fue) 
  • Alex Valle (Ryu) 2-0 Future Champ (Fei)
  • Poongko (Seth) 2-0 Mike Chow (Abe) *combo exhibition
  • 18:38 - Tokido (Aku) 2-0 Weapons Left (Zan)
  • Ruin (Yun) 0-2 Shady K (Ryu) 
  • Cupcake Panda (Juri) 0-2 Kenshin T1 (Bla) 
  • Justin Wong (Ruf) 2-1 Fubarduck (Yun)
  • Kindevu is now in Losers
  • Mike Ross now in Losers
  • AndyOCR (Dic) 2-0 Salsa? (Chun)
  • Vangief (Zan) 1-2 Dr. Ray (Fei) Vangief to Losers
  • 19:25 - Umehara playing Long Island Joe (no stream)
  • Ruin (Yun/Aku) 2-1 James Jones (Ruf)
  • Shiro won 4 matches 
  • Kazi (Fue) 0-2 Starnab (Fei) 
  • Umehara defeated Long Island Joe 
  • 19:40 - Mago 1-2 Justin Wong *38,700 viewers Mago to Losers
  • 19:52 - Umehara (Yun) 2-0 John Choi (Sagat) *40,000+ viewers Umehara lost a round
  • Ryan Hart (Oni/Yun) 0-2 Latif (Vip)
  • F. Champ (Dha) 0-2 Poongko (Seth)
  • Alex Valle defeated GamerBee
  • Mago (Fei) 2-0 Aquasilk (Zan) *41,000 viewers
  • Alex Valle, Momochi, Flash Metroid still in Winners, GamerBee, Sanford in Losers
  • Chris Hu (Oni) 0-2 Infiltration (Aku) 
  • Sabin lost to Xian and was eliminated by Kindevu.
  • Mike Ross eliminated 
  • Shungoku Neurosis eliminated

SSF4AE Top 32 
  • [Losers] Mago vs. Ryan Hart (no stream) 
  • [Losers] Kindevu (Aku) 1-0 Leslie (Sagat)
  • [Winners] 20:55 - Umehara (Yun) 2-1 Alex Valle (Ryu) *44,300 viewers
  • [Losers] 21:07 - Mago (Fei) 2-0 Infiltration (Aku)
  • [Losers] Shiro eliminated Banana Ken (no stream)
  • [Winners] DR Ray (Fei) 0-2 801Strider (Makoto)
  • [Winners] Fuudo (Fei) 2-1 Xian (Yun) Fuudo made a comeback
  • [Winners] Combofiend (Guy) 1-2 Flash Metroid (Zan)
  • [Winners] 21:42 - Tokido (Aku) 2-1 Momochi (Yun) epic match *45,700 viewers
  • [Winners] CJ Truth (Fei) 1-2 Wolf Krone (Vip) 
  • [Winners] Justin Wong (Ruf) 1-2 Latif (Vip) *46,800 viewers
  • [Losers] Evans (Fei) 2-0 Combofiend (Guy) 
  • [Losers] Kindevu (Yun) 2-0 F. Champ (Seth/Dha) 
  • [Losers] Mago (Fei) 2-1 Momochi (Yun) Wow.
  • [Losers] Alex Valle (Ryu) 0-2 RF (Sagat)
  • [Losers] JuiceBox (Juri) 2-0 CJ Truth (Fei) 
  • [Losers] Shiro (Makoto) 2-0 Kun Xian (Yun) OMG. *S-Kill's reaction after the match is priceless.
  • [Losers] Justin Wong (Ruf) 2-0 Hsien Chang (Yun)
  • [Losers] GamerBee (Ado) 1-2 DR Ray (Fei) 
  • [Losers] 23:10 - Kindevu (Yun) 2-0 Evans (Fei)
  • [Losers] Mago (Fei)  2-0 RF (Sagat)
  • [Losers] 23:20 - Shiro (Makoto) 0-2 JuiceBox (Abe)
  • [Losers] Justin Wong (Ruf) 0-2 DR Ray (Fei) 
  • [Winners] 23:35 - Umehara (Yun) 2-0 Tokido (Aku) Umehara in top 8 now
  • [Winners] Poongko (Set) 2-0 Flash Metroid (Zan/Vip) Poongko in top 8
  • [Winners] Latif (Vip) 2-0 801Strider (Makoto) Latif in top 8 now
  • [Winners] Fuudo (Fei) 2-0 Wolf Krone (Vip) Fuudo won 4 rounds straight and in top 8
  • [Losers] DR Ray (Fei) 0-2 Flash Metroid (Zan)
  • [Losers] Kindevu (Yun) 2-1 801Strider (Sagat/Abel)
  • [Losers] 00:17 - Mago (Fei) 1-2 Wolfkrone (Vip)
  • [Losers] Tokido (Aku) 2-0 JuiceBox (Juri) Tokido in top 8
  • 00:30 - It's over.

    SSF4AE Top 8 (playing on Sunday)
    Winners
    - Daigo Umehara
    - Poongko
    - Latif
    - Fuudo
    Losers
    - Flash Metroid
    - Kindevu
    - Wolfkrone
    - Tokido


    Updates (Time is local time)
    • 9:20 - Kindevu and eLive boss [Pic]
    • 9:30 - Nekohashi proved that Umehara is alive. [Pic
    • 9:55 - [Rumor] Someone said there're 50,000 viewers on PSN's Home. Screenshot is needed.
    • 10:00 - First panel [Pic
    • 10:10 - Gama-san has his own station [Pic
    • 10:20 - Tokido and Umehara [Pic
    • 10:30 - Tokido (and Gama-san?) [Pic]
    • 10:35 - 25,000 viewers on the main stream
    • 10:50 - Umehara, TOPANGA, Shiro Team [Pic
    • 10:50 - Umehara and Jebailey [Pic]
    • 10:50 - Commentator station [Pic] and behind [Pic]
    • 11:00 - Famitsu blog published Mago and Tokido interview (probably done by Gama-san) from yesterday [Link
    • 11:50 - Kayane [Pic
    • 12:00 - James Chen in, UltraDavid out. Ryan Hunter stays. (commentators)
    • 12:05 - Mago and Tokido at MadCatz booth [Pic
    • 12:10 - MomoChoco [Pic
    • 12:14 - Ryan Hunter out, Skisonic in 
    • 12:28 - Shiro said the match against Sabin was due to be streamed, but Sabin refused (The Contradiction 2!)
    • 12:30 - Fuudo, Kindevu, Alex Valle, MomoChoco, Frieda [Pic
    • 12:45 - James Chen explaining Damage Scaling to the viewers. Exactly what a good commentator should do. 
    • 12:45 - Shiro wanted to do a $500 money match with Sabin.
    • 12:55 - Tekken CG movie booth [Pic
    • 13:00 - Gama-san streaming on GODSGARDEN channel
    • 13:00 - Ricky O. received Hello Kitty goods from Japan as a gift from Choco. (Choco asked if he likes Hello Kitty earlier) [Pic]
    • 13:05 - Gama-san's station became Japan booth [Pic
    • 13:30 - Choco is streaming on her channel [Link]
    • 13:35 - Nekohashi interviewing F. Champ. He said he'll be in Japan for a week for SBO and NSB with Mike Ross and John Choi
    • 13:58 - Kayo is on GG stream, in C. Viper costume!
    • 14:00 - Ryan Hunter in, Skisonic out. Finally.
    • 14:05 - Kayane and Mago [Pic
    • 14:16 - James Chen showing why he's one of the best commentators by telling Tokido/Nuki story in the first Evo in 2002
    • 14:26 - Daigo Umehara panel started [Pic][News]
    • 14:37 - Gama-san goes to help Kayo on the stage in her match. People pronounced her name Keiyo instead of Kayo
    • 14:40 - Viewers shot to 31,500 then dropped to 30,000 after Kayo match. (main channel)
    • 15:15 - Nyanshi's head [Pic
    • 15:20 - Choco's body [Pic
    • 15:40 - GG stream up 
    • 15:47 - 33,000 viewers 
    • 15:49 - Ryan Hunter out, SRK Keits in
    • 16:05 - Nekohashi interviewing Tom "inkblot" Cannon on GG stream. He said the first Evo has 64 participants but now 2,500.
    • 16:20 - Alex Jebailey got Yellow Card for performing Fatality in a Mortal Kombat 9 match. (unconfirmed) 
    • 16:30 - Kayo and Kayane and Kara are on GG stream [Pic]
    • 16:39 - Chen out, Skisonic in
    • 16:55 - Skisonic out, Chen in
    • 17:30 - Chen and Keits showing knowledges. Other "commentators" should take note.
    • 17:58 - (Tekken producer) Harada punched (SF4 producer) Ono in the face [Pic
    • 18:00 - Gama X (Ono's) Blanka [Pic]
    • 18:00 - The Bro Fists: Gama & Alex Valle [Pic]
    • 18:06 - Keits out, UltraDavid in
    • 18:08 - GG stream up. (MvC3 producer) Niitsuma is in the background
    • 18:15 - Shiro, Alex Valle, Shungoku Neurosis [Pic
    • 19:05 - The stream went down almost 2 seconds. 
    • 19:30 - 35,400+ viewers 
    • 19:59 - Chen out, Seth Killian in
    • 20:47 - UltraDavid out, Chen in.
    • 20:48 - Umehara using (Ono's) Blanka [Pic]
    • 21:55 - Gama-san received latest bracket info [Pic]
    • XX:XX - Changes in UMvC3 from the panel [News]

    Pre-Evo 2011 Updates

    Time is in JST.

    Tuesday, July 26

    Wednesday, July 27
    • Poongko is now in America, ready for Evo.
    • 17:00 - Gama no Abura and Frieda left Japan.

    Thursday, July 28
    • 1:00 - TOPANGA Team (Nyanshi, Mago, Tokido) and Shiro Team (Shiro, Fuudo, Shungoku Neurosis, Momochi, Choco) left Japan. GamerBee was leaving, too.
    • 10:00 - Gama-san and Frieda arrived and are in a hotel in Las Vegas. [Pic][Stream]
    • 11:00 - Shiro Team is in Los Angeles. [Pic]
    • 13:00 - GamerBee arrived.
    • 14:20 - Shiro Team arrived at Las Vegas
    • 14:50 - Nekohashi is in Las Vegas for Evo, too. He, Gama-san, Frieda, met F. Champ at a restaurant. [Pic]
    • 15:25 - Kindevu is in San Francisco staying at someone's house. He'll go to Vegas on the next day.
    • 16:30 - Choco is in Las Vegas now. 
    • 16:50 - Famitsu reported about Kayo coming to Evo.
    • 17:10 - Shiro Team checked into the hotel and began training. [Pic]
    • 17:40 - Gama-san met Shiro Team. [Pic

    Friday, July 29
    • 1:00 - TOPANGA Team arrived. They're staying at Flamingo, same with last year for Tokido. [Video]
    • 2:00 - MarkMan at the venue. [Pic]
    • 3:20 - Kayo leaving L.A.
    • 3:30 - Frieda met Mago & Tokido.
    • 6:00 - TOPANGA and Shiro Team in training. [Pic][Pic2][Pic3
    • 7:00 - Kindevu is now in Las Vegas.
    • 8:00 - Gama-san met Kayo.
    • Evo ballroom in panorama [Pic][Pic2]
    • 8:45 - Gama-san Team at the venue [Pic][Pic2]
    • The 57,500+ square feet grand ballrom [Pic]
    • 9:00 - Mr. Jared and Kayo. Her photo-essay is in his hands. [Pic]
    • 9:00 - Kayo playing KOF13 [Pic]
    • 9:20 - TOPANGA and Shiro Team discussing about countermeasure and noodle at the pool. [Pic
    • 9:40 - Evo 2011 trophies looks the same as last year. [Pic]
    • 11:00 - Gama-san still can't find Umehara. 
    • 11:00 - Seth Killian met Kayo and her staff? Two of them are likely to be her manager and hair stylist. [Pic]
    • 11:20 - MarkMan and Kayo [Pic]
    • 11:25 - Nekohashi met MarkMan at MadCatz boot [Pic]
    • 11:30 - Kayo and Kara [Pic]
    • 11:30 - Kayo practicing. [Pic]
    • 11:30 - Shiro Team and Chun-Li cosplayer. [Pic]
    • 14:00 - Shiro Team canceled pre-party plan and go to eat with TOPANGA Team including Nabe and Nabe's senior.
    • 14:00 - Shiro Team @KGB Burger (Mago recommended) [Pic]
    • 14:00 - Kayane and Kayo [Pic]
    • 14:20 - Insert Coint bar [Pic]
    • 14:30 - The line at Evo pre-party [Pic]
    • 14:50 - Gama-san still can't find Umehara. 
    • 15:20 - Gama-san, Kayane, Nekohashi [Pic
    • 16:45 - Gama-san, JuiceBox, Kindevu [Pic]
    • 17:10 - Gama-san with John Choi [Pic
    • ??:?? - Gama-san, Kindevu, Nekohashi with (MvC3 producer) Niitsuma group [Pic]
    • 23:50 - MadCatz with Kara giving away Team MadCatz signed photo. [Link]

    Saturday, July 30
    • 0:00 - Shiro won "Spot the Umehara" game. He arrived!

          Thursday, July 28, 2011

          [Evo 2011] New detailed schedule

          A new detailed tournament schedule of Evolution 2011 was released.

          SSF4AE is also confirmed to be the last game of the event, not MvC3 as it seemed in the first announcement.


          The Japanese - Who's coming to Evo 2011 (ver. 8)

          Nyanshi is confirmed. He's coming with Mago & Tokido, and is on the same flight with Shiro group. Gama-san and Frieda left together already.

          Kazunoko said he just got back from playing with (and getting beaten up by) Umehara tonight. So Umehara probably leaves very late.


          Update history
          • July 26: Choco is confirmed. She'll come with Shiro group. Leaving tomorrow's night.
          • July 26: Kindevu is confirmed to come. (He's at the airport and leaving with KayoPolice) Sako's Wife said that Sako's not coming, unless he changes his mind.
          • July 16: The list from the news in the previous update might not be accurate, since KSK did confirm (skip to 2:38) that he'll be at the Evo meeting held by GODSGARDEN in Japan. The event lets the fans come to watch the stream and cheer together.
          • July 16: Evo organizer revealed a list of Japanese players who are coming to Evo 2011. Kindevu (was thinking) decided to come. RF is coming. KSK seems to be on a secret mission, same with the last year. Nyanshi is a strong Sagat player, and was the main man behind TOPANGA Charity Cup, so maybe he's on a secret mission as well. Nabe is Tokido's pupil. He'll be both a player and a cameraman as revealed in the previous episodes of TOPANGA TV. Kuni, who was at Evo 2009 but not 2010, will return.
          • July 7: Choco revealed on NSB TV that Momochi is coming with Shiro. (skip to 2:16)
          • July 1: See this post.
          • June 25: Big news is Shiro just announced via Twitter that he, Fuudo, and Shungoku Neurosis will participate this year's Evolution.

          Confirmed
          - Daigo Umehara
          - Mago
          - Tokido
          - Gama no Abura (Media)
          - Frieda (Arcana Heart/MvC3/Mortal Kombat)
          - Shiro
          - Fuudo
          - Shungoku Neurosis
          - KayoPolice
          - Momochi
          - ChocoBlanka
          - Kindevu
          - RF*
          - KSK*
          - Nyanshi
          - Nabe
          - Kuni*

          Wednesday, July 27, 2011

          Eita begins BlazBlue

          Eita bought a copy of BlazBlue: Continuum Shift II and started learning since Monday.

          It looks like Eita wants to take a break from SSF4AE. He only played the game a couple hours on his channel in the past 2 weeks. He spent most of the time playing Atelier Totori (English version incoming) and Atelier Meruru. And now he's playing Noel.

          It's like he's switching from the Dark Side (Akuma, Oni) to the (B)right Side (cute characters). He joked that he'll cosplay Noel/Litchi/Taokaka at the Evo next year.

          For this year's Evo, he confirmed last night that he won't go. "No Money" he added.

          Anyway, he did say that he'll play SSF4AE, UMvC3, SFxTekken, BlazBlue in the future. (He wanted to try MvC3 but nobody to play with.)

          Tuesday, July 26, 2011

          [Ougon Musou Kyoku X] opening movie revealed

          The opening movie of Ougon Musou Kyoku X is revealed today. It has a new theme song sung by Motoki Zakuro from the ED of the original visual novel version.



          At the same time, a video showing a combo from all characters was also posted. This's the first time we see George and Rosa in action.

          Evo 2011: Pool Assignments

          The participating players of Evolution 2011 can now check their pool assignments at the official site. (and must report to the stations's judge 15 minutes before the pool starts) But anyone who knows the player's full name can check his/her pool, too.

          Daigo Umehara is in Pool 80 for SSF4AE and in Pool 46 for MvC3.

          Via UltraDavid, someone did a spreadsheet of the pool assignments of all known players here. (some infos are unconfirmed) And SRK also provides a fantasy bracket (for SSF4AE and MvC3) in the situation "if all the top seeds survive the pools" so you can imagine the rest.

          Update:
          - The spreadsheet above has Eita, but (the Japanese) Eita isn't confirmed to go. (And it's unlikely that there're 2 Japanese in the same pool.)
          - Shiro said Shungoku Neurosis is in the same pool with Mike Ross.

          PlayStation Home to stream Evo 2011

          The official PlayStation blog announced that PlayStation Home will be streaming all 3 days of Evolution 2011 event in their virtual theater using a new video streaming technology. The attendees will also get virtual items such as an Evo T-shirt for their avatar and virtual Evo trophy for their personal spaces.

          Sunday, July 24, 2011

          KayoPolice in Tekken: Blood Vengeance

          As revealed this week, KayoPolice will voice a character in Tekken: Blood Vengeance. And It will be her first voice acting work.

          The CG animation movie will be in theaters on July 26 for North America but on September 3 for Japan. Her role was not mentioned, but the official site says that her voice will be used in both version.

          From the site, the only possible character that still doesn't have a voice actor is Panda.

          Umehara, Tokido, Mago visit Mad Catz Japan office

          Daigo Umehara, Tokido, Mago visited Mad Catz Japan office this week and they posted pictures of them with signed fightsticks.

          - Tokido, Umehara, Mago with signed fightsticks
          - Tokido with signed TE stick
          - Mago with signed limited Chun-Li stick

          Umehara already went there once. This's the first time for Mago (as mentioned on his blog), and probably Tokido, too.

          Mago has the best autograph. Umehara used to joke that Mago practiced the signing more than the combos!

          Kao TV 2011.07.22

          - They streamed from Nvidia's place.
          - Special guest: KayoPolice
          - Because the show is now sponsored by Nvidia (since May), KSK and Kami-chan (brown shirt, from Ura Kao TV) will play various PC games, too. (Mark, an FPS pro, played Duke Nukem Forever after Kayo went back.)
          - Nvidia made them wear a green wig.
          - They played Dead Rising 2 in 3D, that's why they wear 3D glasses.
          - Watch here. (skip to 1:07 for Kayo)

          KayoPolice summary
          - She appeared in Kao TV for the first time since December last year.
          - She likes green color, so the green shirt went along with Nvdia's green theme. Coincidence.
          - The game on 3DTV blew her mind. She said Cody's face popped out in her kissing range.
          - She teased KSK by asking about the relationship between him and Tokido & Mago. (The topic is prohibited on the show. LOL)
          - She expected to win 5 matches at Evo. KSK then said it's top 128! (LOL)
          - KSK: What's a public viewing? Kayo: Pub. Lic. Booing?
          - She came with her manager and hair stylist.
          - "People say I'm scary when [playing fighting games]. That's not true^^" *cute mode activated*
          - For King of Fighters, she likes KOF2002 the most.
          - She's still inexperienced and doesn't have matchup knowledge for some characters. She didn't know what and how to deal with Zangief's U2.
          - She said she likes to play against Ryu, Ken, and especially Sagat. But she met a good Sagat at the end so she was on serious mode in the last match and told everyone not to talk. (but KSK talked anyway LOL)
          - At the end, she did a "monomane" (mimicry) of a sound of an old door of a ghost house.
          - She thought about cutting her nails for Evo to avoid an input error. (normally she plays with long nails)
          - She'll voice a character in the upcoming Tekken (CG) movie.
          - She was busy and still had to work after the show even it's after midnight.
          - She's good at acting and likes to play with camera/viewers. She always makes a "Doya" face (cocky face) after winning and pretend to be upset after losing.

          Friday, July 22, 2011

          Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 announced

          Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 was (officially) announced finally. You can read full details here or on SRK or on you favorite news sites. The first demo version is being streamed from Comic-Con.

          I'll just make a summary.


          Details from press release
          - November release (this year)
          - $39.99
          - 12 new characters. Strider, Firebrand, Ghost Rider, and Hawkeye were (officially) announced. (The entire roster leaked)
          - 8 new stages
          - Improved game balance
          - Improved online functionality
          - Spectator Mode (users watch online matches together)

          Details from Capcom's staff
          - X-Factor in the air.
          - "The Damage on X-Factor is going down 'a little bit.'"

          The changes reported by Floe on SRK (the demo version at Comic-Con)
          - Phoenix can do only one action each time in the air now. And she can only throw one fireball.
          - Wolverine's Berserker Slash is much slower, not invincible, and can be hit easily.
          - DHC glitch is gone.
          - Exchange glitch is gone.

          Video
          - The changes seen in the trailer by Maximilian
          - Ghost Rider, Firebrand, Hawkeye character breakdown by Maximilian
          - Seth Killian on GameSpot

          New Darkstalkers teased

          A message "Darkstalkers are not dead." was showed during Street Fighter X Tekken panel in Comic-Con 2011, reported by G4. Although Capcom staff confirmed that a new game wasn't announced, this's a good sign that something is happenning.

          We all know that producer Ono Yoshinori  has been trying to get a new DS approved by the superiors. Maybe a prototype is being made right now.

          FYI, Ono's team is making Street Fighter X Tekken which doesn't have a release date yet. A new Darkstalkers will probably come in 2013 earliest. Note that the last game of the series was released in 1997.

          Wednesday, July 20, 2011

          Tougeki 2011 qualifiers results (ver. 2)

          Time to update from version 1.

          Daigo Umehara, Mago, Tokido, and other top players are yet to play in Tougeki 2011 qualifiers. This means they won't participate at all or just wait until last minutes. There are 5 blocks left as of now.

          It was announced last week that the finals will be held again in Tokyo Game Show on September 17. This year's Tougeki Finals will finish in one day, instead of two like the last year. There is no information about streaming.


          This is a list of the well-known players that will be playing in this year's Tougeki Finals.


          Block B-2 (Kantou Area)
          Team: Star Mountain
          Player 1: Nemo (Yang)
          Player 2: Cabbage (C. Viper)
          (They re-entered)

          Block B-3 (Kantou Area: Tokyo Metropolitan area)
          Team: Kupaa Yari ni Kita
          Player 1: FU☆K Yun (Yun)
          Player 2: ☆Shin☆ (Juri)
          (They won over Shungoku Neurosis+Shiro team)

          Block B-4 (Kantou Area: Tokyo Metropolitan area)
          Team: Coolness
          Player 1: Suropuu (Fei Long)
          Player 2: Acqua (Yang)

          Block B-6 (Kantou Area: Kanagawa Prefecture)
          Team: Oonenzu
          Player 1: Kazunoko (Yun)
          Player 2: Ojisan (Yang)
          (They won over Nemo+Cabbage team)

          Block C-1 (Chuubu Area)
          Team: Yjojo
          Player 1: Y24 (Chun-Li)
          Player 2: a.k.a. jojo (Dictator)

          Block C-2 (Chuubu Area)
          Team: Rakushite Kachitai
          Player 1: Banbaban (Yun)
          Player 2: KOK (Fei Long)

          Block D-1 (Kinki Area)
          Team Seihei Ryouri Center
          Player 1: Noriyasu (Dhalsim)
          Player 2: Amiyu (Gen)

          Block E-1 (Chuugoku-Shikoku Area)
          Team: Thomas Gundan
          Player 1: MDR (Yun)
          Player 2: Haitani (Makoto)

          Block F-2 (Kyushu-Okinawa Area)
          Team: Shin Armageddon
          Player 1: Michael Tan (Ken)
          Player 2: Hachigashira-san (Yun)

          Monday, July 18, 2011

          Umehara going to Kuwait (again)

          A video message posted on YouTube yesterday revealed that Daigo Umehara will return to Kuwait again on September 28 (subject to change) this year.


          Umehara went to Kuwait last year on November 26 for his own exhibition match event. The challenger must buy a ticket (around 1,500 yen, excluding 4,500 yen entrance fee) in order to fight him, there's a hundred of them. Umehara told that he was invited by a guy who has the biggest house he's ever seen.

          Sunday, July 17, 2011

          Ougon Musou Kyoku PC gets Jessica, Princess Mode

          When 3 new characters (Jessica, George, Rosa) were announced for Ougon Musou Kyoku X, we assumed that it's console exclusive. Especially the Xbox 360 version is 7,800 yen (without tax) and the PC version is 1,500 yen on discount. But last week, after Jessica was introduced, she was added to the PC version three days later via a patch. (The difference is she dresses in Marisa Kirisame costume in PC.) Although she doesn't appear in Story Mode.

          Now we can expect George and Rosa to be added to the PC version, too.

          In other news, a new PC trial version with Princess Mode was released on Friday. Princess Mode allows a casual player to do a combo or special move by pressing a single button.

          Saturday, July 16, 2011

          Evo 2011 meeting by GODSGARDEN

          A public viewing event for Evolution 2011 stream was mentioned several weeks ago on KSK's private stream. At the time, it was kind of impossible because the tournaments will begin after midnight and end around afternoon in Japan. The concerns about place and participants come in mind. However, it's happening.

          There's a revelation both on last night's Kao TV and SRK that a meeting where fans can gather to watch the stream of Evolution 2011 and cheer on their favorite players will be held by GODSGARDEN at Akihabara Clark's studio in Tokyo. The entrance fee is 1,000 yen. The room can hold up to 200 persons, standing included. The event will also be streamed.

          KSK confirmed that he'll be at the event, so he's not going to Evo.

          Update: The event will begin on Sunday 21:00 and end on Monday 16:00. It's not 3 days nonstop as reported on SRK.

          Other details
          - Minors must have a permission from their guardian.
          - The studio is a dance studio. Participants take off their shoes at the entrance.
          - Refrigerator and freezer are provided.
          - Internet is provided. (wire)
          - Electrical outlet is available. (10 slots)
          - No smoking. (but there's a smoking area)
          - Food and drink are allowed. No alcohol.

          [Evo 2011] Umehara panel detailed, Meat Bun to sell Umehara Shinja T-shirt

          Evolution 2011 will have a panel dedicated to Daigo Umehara as already revealed in the trailer. Additional details were posted in the latest news today.

          • The panel is panel #3.
          • It will be held on the first day (Saturday morning 6:00 AM for Japan)
          • Seth Killian and Umehara will discuss about matches in Evo 2009-2010, moment-by-moment.

          The news also revealed that Meat Bun will start selling a limited edition of their "Beast" T-shirt at the event for $20. On the shirt, it has "98" which represents the year Umehara came and won his first title in America. Kanji on the left reads "Umehara Shinja" which means Umehara Believer, a term for Umehara fans/supporters that has been around for many years in Japan.

          Thursday, July 14, 2011

          Umehara in Kotaku's 10 best moments in pro-gaming history

          Kotaku's article from a guest writer The 10 Best Moments in Pro-Gaming History features 3 of Daigo Umehara's matches. The comeback from Evolution 2004, once again, was rated as the best.

          Anyway, I want to correct something in the article, though. (Fans probably knew.) Umehara didn't lose the match. He won (Losers final) and lost in the grand final to KO.

          Update: They removed the mistake.

          Gamer's Vision rebuild proposed

          On Monday, KSK, his colleague, and his alleged Yakuza boss were at their bar talking about KSK's contract on the stream. At the end, there was a (half-joking) proposition about the rebuild of Gamer's Vision in 3 years. The boss said he'll give KSK the supports he needs.

          Gamer's Vision was closed since November last year due to financial problem. It's understandable because nowadays most video games in game centers are also on the consoles. Vision never had Street Fighter IV, and the game may not even guarantee a profit.

          KSK wasn't sure if it's a good idea as going back to the business is a big gamble. They then made a poll. Rebuild Gamer's Vision, Want It or Not. The viewers voted Want 89.3%. (Coincidentally, 893 can be alternatively pronounced "Yakuza.")

          Capcom Unity asks Umehara Part 3 [2011 Edition]

          The third and the final part has arrived. Read the full article here.

          Highlights

          Keeping cool:
          I rely a lot on my experience, meaning my daily practice and my familiarity with the atmosphere of tournaments that I acquired over years. That experience has trained me to logically think, in stead of emotionally reacting.

          Physical and mental strength:
          Mental strength plays a major part in a fighting game. Part of being mentally strong is actually to be mentally stable and healthy. Second guessing your guts and being greedy leads to a mistake, and I believe those mistakes are avoidable as long as you’re mentally balanced. And in order to stay mentally balanced, you do need a healthy body.

          Read the first part and the second part if you have not.

          Evo 2011 stream detailed

          SRK announced the streaming details of Evolution 2011. There will be 2 stream channels. The main channel will stream SSF4AE and MvC3 exclusively on the first two day, all games in the finals (top 8), and will have all the 3 top commentators: Seth Killian, James Chen, and Ultra David. That is just what we were hoping for.

          Now we are waiting for the last piece and probably the most important information. Where?

          It was reported several weeks ago that they will use Ustream. We are waiting for an official confirmation. Note that while Justin.tv is streamer-friendly, Ustream is viewer-friendly. There were clearly more complaints about Justin.tv from the Japanese viewers.

          Evolution 2011 is between July 29-31. Check the time schedule here.

          Wednesday, July 13, 2011

          EG sign Momochi & ChocoBlanka

          Evil Geniuses (EG) announced today that they have signed Momochi and ChocoBlanka. The two now become a part of EG's fighting game division.

          This news suggests that we will see ChocoBlanka more in a tournament, and Momochi may start playing Marvel vs. Capcom 3.

          Sunday, July 10, 2011

          MAG-Net ep. 6: Street Fighter

          If you're a fan, you already saw this. And since we never had one, this's a summary of the 6th episode of MAG-Net show on NHK channel, May 9, 2010. There're clips with English subtitle on YouTube, but the video was from a camera and the subtitle isn't 100% accurate/complete. The screenshots in this post came from an HD version in my PC.

          MAG-Net (MAG・ネット) is a documentary TV program focused on Manga, Anime, Game related subcultures. Each episode has a different topic. Up until now, the topics range from mainstream works like Love Plus, Gundam UC, Bakemonogatari, Idolm@ster to stuff like Hatsune Miku, Touhou Project, and bishoujo games. The show is entertaining yet very educative.

          The episode we're talking about is dedicated to Street Fighter, but Daigo Umehara plays a big part in it.

          1. Introduction to Street Fighter
          - They briefly show players who competed in SF4, including Tokido, RF, ItaZan, and Ricky Ortiz.
          - They explain about command inputs and health bar.
          - They introduce Ryu, Ken, Chun-Li, Gouki, Rufus.

          2. MAG-NETalk
          - Ayana Tsubaki (a model who's into fighting games),  editor-in-chief of Arcadia magazine Sawatari, an assistant teacher from an international university come to discuss about their fighting game experiences.
          - Ayana (Ryu) had a SF4 match with Sawatari (Ken). She shows some FADC skill and won.



          3. The scenes
          - They show Capcom's official SF4 National Tournament on April 4 (2010) at Akihabara, Tokyo.
          - They introduce 7 star players in the tournament: RF (Sagat), Tokido (Gouki), Momochi (Gouki), Mago (Sagat), Iyo (Dhalsim), Kindevu (Rufus), and Umehara (Ryu). This leads to the introduction to Daigo Umehara, a world class player.
          - They show the 2004's dramatic comeback which they call "奇跡の逆転劇" (Kiseki no Gyakuten Geki) or The Miraculous Reversal Play, and explain it in slow motion.
          - They had an interview about it with Umehara. He said it was something he is able to do, but the important part was the sound.
          - They interviewed a foreign player named Nicholas about Umehara.
          - They show and talk about Umehara's trophies.
          - They talk about his training. Umehara says he practices everyday, 363 days a year to be exact.
          - They show Tokido and Mago at a game center in Yokohama.
          - They show and interview the surrounding spectators.
          - They interview Tokido and Mago about the National Tournament.


          4. The production
          -  They introduce Yoshinori Ono, the series producer. He talks about the creation of SF4: moving from 2D to 3D and the storyboards.

          5. Daigo Umehara's Street Fighter Courses
          - Lesson 1: Stick Gripping
          He teaches the way he holds the stick called "ウメハラ持ち" (Umehara Mochi)* or Umehara Grip. (Beast Note: This term has been around for years before the show.) It's similar to wine glass grip, but the palm is around the ball, instead of just fingers. He explains that this way gives more precision and proves it by showing input display of Shinku Hadoken.



          6. MAG-NETalk (Part 2)
          - They talk about character diversity.

          7. The production (Part 2)
          - Ono reveals character design candidates. Juri originally looks innocent.


          8. Daigo Umehara's Street Fighter Courses (Part 2)
          - Lesson 2: Practicing method of a combo
          He teaches Shoryuken > FADC > Metsu Hadoken combo by separating 3 steps into 2 parts.


          9. The SF4 National Tournament
          - They explain the format (3 on 3) and the brackets.
          - Umehara team has Bon-chan (Sagat).
          - Tokido and Mago is in the same team.
          - Okozukai 2000 yen has Kindevu, Momochi, RF.
          - Choco is seen in the crowd.
          - Umehara lost to MDR (Rufus) and his team lost to Team Kaiser Phoenix.
          - In the interview:
          Umehara: "I want to play a little more."
          Bon-chan: (to Umehara) "Sorry. Really sorry."
          Umehara: "It can't be helped."
          MDR: "I'm finally here, I defeated God, now I'm going to defeat everyone."
          - Team Kaiser Phoenix defeated Tokido team.
          - Momochi defeated MDR. Okozukai 2000 yen defeated Kaiser Phoenix to win the tournament. They received Golden Boxing Gloves trophy. (Beast Note: Ono then announced SSF4AE on the stage.)

          10. MAG-NETalk (Part 3)
          - They discuss about the future of fighting games, about being the best in Japan and then the best in the world.

          11. Ending
          - "This Spring, Umehara-san is sponsored by an American game peripherals manufacturer. And go overseas as a pro gamer."

          Thursday, July 7, 2011

          Evo 2011 seed standings

          Evolution official site released the final standings of all seeded players in Evo 2011. So I updated and corrected the old list.

          Player SSF4AE MvC3Tekken 6
          Daigo Umehara 64 (6th tie)2 (35th tie) 0
          Tokido 104 (3rd)130 (2nd)16 (6th tie)
          Mago 1 (53rd tie)32 (10th tie)0

          Wednesday, July 6, 2011

          SF4 is better than MvC3

          This post is not telling you that Street Fighter IV is a good game.
          This post is not telling you not to play Marvel vs. Capcom 3.
          The post merely compares two games without taking "fun" and "beauty" into consideration.
          Proceed only if you understand.

          This post is not actually related to the fact that Street Fighter IV isn't the main game in Evo 2011. But this's a good opportunity and it's something in my mind for a couple months now.

          I don't like a wall of text, nor I'm capable of making one. Let's go to the points as to why Street Fighter IV series is better than Marvel vs. Capcom 3 series, especially as a competitive fighting game.

          SF4 requires higher degree of skills
          Both games do require the same set of skills: input precision, mind reading, reaction, etc. But one thing you cannot argue is it's easier to do special moves in MvC3. This means it's easier to make a powerful attack or combo, and less chance of missing a punishment or dropping a combo. If you don't get the picture, SF4 is fighting with bare hands, MvC3 is fighting with swords. Both require skills. But swords deal more damage per hit, even with less effort. I could end this post by this point alone but there's more.

          SF4 is where the real competition is
          I still remember when the first SF4 was released. Some people whined about Ultra Combo and asked for once-per-round limit. I don't like Ultra Combo myself, because it's like a reward for being a weaker player. Anyway, most of the UCs can be evaded, and all of them don't kill in one hit. For MvC3, X-Factor can be activated anytime once a round. Its power (strength and speed boost, less damage scaling, etc.) and duration depend on the number of your characters. If you have only one character left, you get level 3 X-Factor. Level 1 can definitely kill one, level 3 lasts very long and can kill an entire team.

          For SF4, you still can argue that UCs may not be a game changer for top players. You can dodge it, you can bait it, you can even risk taking it knowing it doesn't kill you. You don't spend 10+ seconds running away from UCs. This leaves more room to exhibit a player's skills and potential. For MvC3, it's not just X-Factor alone that limits creativities. The damage scaling structure and the damage outputs are also a problem.

          MvC3 may not be a competitive fighting game after all
          In the past, some people laughed at Super Smash Bros. saying it's not worth being in a fighting game event. The funny thing is those people are probably playing MvC3 and think otherwise. I already wrote about this, MvC3 producer Niitsuma intended to allow players to do flashy stuff with less effort. (this interview) This's why we can't actually complain about things such as X-Factor, since the game was designed to be like that. The bar of accomplishment is lowered to attract a wider audience.

          MvC3 may still be a competitive fighting game, but not in the same level as SF4. But if you think a competitive fighting game should be designed with the philosophy in mind, MvC3 probably falls off the category.

          Umehara visits Mad Catz Japan office

          Mad Catz Japan revealed on both Twitter and Facebook:

          "Mr. Daigo Umehara visited our office on today. He gave us an autograph onto Street Fighter IV Arcade FightStick Tournament Edition Round 2."


          In case you don't know, Umehara uses "Umehara" (ウメハラ) as his signature in Japan, and "Daigo" (大吾) outside the country.

          KSK in Lotte Dance Contest

          Soushihan KSK, who is now a show producer and an actor, submitted his video for Lotte's YouTube Dance Contest yesterday. Here it is. I knew he's a good dancer!

          Evo 2011 tournament schedule revealed

          The tournament schedule of Evolution 2011 is revealed just now. There are both good and bad news coming from this if you are just a Street Fighter fan.

          The good news is the first day is dedicated to SSF4AE and Mortal Kombat 9 from pools to semi finals while other games are on the second day. You can skip the second day.

          The bad news is it appears that the last game to be played is MvC3, even SSF4AE has much stronger scenes and competition overall around the world. (Not to mention that MvC3 is a party game.) This shows that the organizers didn't look at the big picture. However, this could be a good news considering you can leave earlier.

          You can see the local time at the official site. Below is Japan Standard Time.

          Friday (July 29)
          SSF4AE and MK9
          • Pools: 24:00 (Friday midnight) to 10:00 (Saturday morning)
          • Quarter Finals: 10:00 (Saturday morning) to 12:00 (Saturday noon)
          • Semi Finals: 12:00 (Saturday noon) to 15:00 (Saturday afternoon)

          Saturday (July 30)
          MvC3
          • Pools: 24:00 (Saturday midnight) to 10:00 (Sunday morning)
          • Quarter Finals: 10:00 (Sunday morning) to 12:00 (Sunday noon)
          • Semi Finals: 12:00 (Sunday noon) to 15:00 (Sunday afternoon)

          Tekken 6 and BB:CS2
          • Pools: 24:00 (Saturday midnight) to 10:00 (Sunday morning)
          • Semi Finals: 10:00 (Sunday morning) to 14:00 (Sunday afternoon)

          Sunday (July 31)
          Starting from 1:00 (AM) on Monday

          • BB:CS2
          • Tekken 9
          • MK9
          • SSF4AE
          • MvC3

          Tuesday, July 5, 2011

          GODSGARDEN #4 detailed

          The details of GODSGARDEN #4 tournament was posted on the official site yesterday. However, some details are still unclear. For example, the details of participating players. There are 8 groups in the qualifiers, each group has up to 8 players. That makes 64 players maximum. There are 8 seed players from voting. That means they will add up to 56 players via an unknown method.

          Game: Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition (consoles)
          Date: August 20, 2011
          Time: 17:00 - 4:00 (The event lasts 11 hours.)
          Place: Asagaya Loft A
          Seating: 100 persons
          Entrance fee: 3,000 Yen on reservation, 3,500 on appointed day 

          Format
          - Double elimination
          - Fortune Box (A random selected player can choose his opponent, a player has the right to refuse a challenge once.)

          Tournament rules
          A player must choose and register only one character. It's fixed. No counter-pick. Changing Ultra Combo is allowed.

          Online player nomination
          You can nominate your favorite online player by using this form. (end on July 8) You can also choose his/her character. The online players will then be selected by voting.

          Player voting
          - Each day, you can vote up 5 times, and vote down 1 time. This quota will be reset after midnight. One vote means one point, voting down means point deduction.
          - The voting will begin on July 9, and end on July 31.

          Side activity
          There will be 10 consoles with arcade sticks for everyone at the event. You can bring your own stick.

          Ougon Musou Kyoku X dated, Jessica introduced

          Ougon Musou Kyoku X now has a release date. The latest news revealed that the Xbox 360 game will be released on October 6, and will retail for 8,190 yen (tax included).

          The news also introduced Jessica Ushiromiya, one of the three new characters. Her move list, ability, and sample combo video are revealed. In this series, even a normal move deals chip damage when blocked, her Shave Boost ability makes your character deal even more chip damage.

          Monday, July 4, 2011

          GODSGARDEN, TOPANGA now on TwitchTV

          I'm not sure if it's a coincidence or not, but a couple days after GODSGARDEN announced the opening of its channel on TwitchTV, today TOPANGA also started its TwitchTV channel.


          TwitchTV is basically the e-sports exclusive version of Justin.tv. I'm not sure which one is better now, Ustream or Justin.tv, feature-wise. (Ustream is better in the past.) But I think the main reason everyone is moving to TwitchTV is you can earn money.

          "TwitchTV created an innovative partner program in which gamers and tournaments share in the advertising revenue generated on their video streams. TwitchTV is also beta-testing other revenue generators for its partners including pay-per-view and subscription-based programs in which viewers gain access to exclusive content, or gain premium-level benefits such as ad-free viewing." (Full announcement)

          Sunday, July 3, 2011

          TOPANGA TV 2011.07.02

          - Around 3,300 viewers peak.
          - The teaching corner is called TOPANGA Fight Club.
          - Mago teached Higaki (a Sagat user) about Chun-Li matchup. How to avoid Tiger Shot punishment.
          - Tokido's pupil, Nabe, clearly didn't know how to attack. Tokido told him to practice some combos.
          - Mago is very good at teaching. He gave many useful advices.
          - They played a video message from GamerBee. (skip to 1:20) "I'm going to play Adon to its limit.  Thank you Japanese people for supporting me."
          - Tokido on Evo 2011 MvC3: "I already won." (Mago just wants top 3.)
          - Tokido on Evo 2011 Mortal Kombat: "I gave up. I leave it all to you Frieda!" (Frieda is one of the few Japanese who play Mortal Kombat.)
          - Mago won't play Tekken and BlazBlue at Evo 2011. (It's not like he plays those games anyway.)
          - Tokido finally showed off his Yun, after mentioned 2 weeks ago. (skip to 1:40) He didn't use in Australia because he wasn't confident.
          - Mago played Yang. (skip to 1:55)
          - Mago lost under Tokido's tag, Tokido was upset and told him to get his PP back.
          - Mago's Yang met and lost to Eita's Oni.
          - Watch here.

          SF3: Third Strike Online Edition lets you become Daigo Umehara

          If someone watched the famous dramatic comeback and tells you that he can do the same, now with the upcoming Street Fighter III: Third Strike Online Edition, you can tell him to prove it. Without the pressure from a huge crowd even.

          It's revealed for a couple months now that a trial (in fact, the hardest trial) in SF3: 3rd Strike OE lets you become Daigo Umehara by recreating the moment when he parried the whole Super Arts from Justin Wong's Chun-Li and then made a comeback with a big combo.

          Cross Counter had a very detailed coverage on the game since E3 (skip to 14:59 for the trial), in case you've missed it. The game is coming this Summer.


          See also:
          - GameSpot: E3 2011: Street Fighter III: Third Strike Online Edition Hands-On Preview
          - Kotaku: The Next Street Fighter Lets You Try to Re-Create the Coolest Street Fighter Moment Ever
          - VG247: Pretend you're Daigo Umehara in next Street Fighter
          - Official Xbox Magazine: SFIII 3rd Strike OE asks: Can you be Daigo?

          Saturday, July 2, 2011

          Kao TV 2011.07.01

          - Around 3,400 viewers peak
          - Hosts: KSK and Ren (a BlazBlue player, a regular in Ura Kao TV)
          - Guest: Kazunoko! (or Inoue in Guilty Gear/BlazBlue) The Yun player who is No. 2 on Japan's arcade BP ranking. First appearance on the stream!
          - Ren proved to be a good assistant, he's a good talker and knows what and when to talk. This helps KSK to stay on topics. They focussed more on the guest and the viewers, and they talked more about games.
          - Watch here.

          Kazunoko summary
          - He played under one of KSK's tags, starting at  2416 PP/1871 BP.
          - He used the famous "Umehara Mochi" (Umehara Grip)
          - He doesn't play on the consoles.
          - He thinks Guile and Adon are good against Yun.
          - About matches against Umehara: "I lost more than I won."
          - "If you don't use Yun/Yang/Fei Long, there's probably not much you can do."
          - About Yun's Genei Jin Palm Strike loop: "Since Umehara-san doesn't do it, I don't do it."
          - There're well-known players named "Inoue" in Capcom's games already, so he used "Kazunoko" as alias in SF4 instead. The reason is a secret. Though he feels embarassed and wants to change.
          - He is intimidated by Umehara and Tokido, so he doesn't talk to them much at the game center. Someone joked that since he talks to KSK like normal so maybe he thinks KSK is an underling! (Then everyone laughed.)
          - He doesn't play BlazBlue anymore.
          - His buddy (player): Nekojita and Reiketsu
          - Using the same character (Yun) with Umehara: He doesn't feel competing, since he thinks Umehara is in another level.
          - On Mago's Fei Long: "I lost more than I won."
          - He's being too modest, so KSK joked that it's like he's faking it. (LOL)
          - He encountered Ryukichi, a well-known grade 9 (junior high school) Fei Long player. After winning 5 times, KSK told him to go to sleep knowing he won't go until he won.
          - They made fun of his reaction after losing to a Ken. KSK joked that he snapped and tried to punch the screen.
          - Will you go to Evo?: "No" He's not confident.
          - If there's an invitation from abroad and it's all free: "Then I'll be happy."
          - When he stopped, he had 4576 PP/4357 BP and is world's 8th. The show is 2 hours 40 minutes, and he lost only 3 times.


          ItaZan on Gaccha! (2011.07.01)

          Itabashi Zangief, who just came back from Shadowloo Showdown 2011, appeared on Gaccha! show this evening. He played SSF4AE with Ayana Tsubaki and the viewers. However, the highlight was on the beautiful show host whose tension is very high when it comes to Street Fighter IV.

          As already mentioned, Ayana Tsubaki, an "Umehara Shinja", switched her main character from Ryu to Yun in red costume just like Daigo Umehara. Her combo into Genei Jin was impressive, though she couldn't juggle after that. But it's safe to say that she could be the strongest female player in Japan now.

          Friday, July 1, 2011

          Ougon Musou Kyoku PC trial version released

          A trial version of Ougon Musou Kyoku PC version is released today. There are 4 characters (Battler, Ange, Beatrice, Lucifer) and 2 stages to choose from. You can play against CPUs offline or even players in online battle mode which connects to the retail version.

          Download it here and experience one of the best (if not the best itself) fighting games of this generation.

          Ougon Musou Kyoku PC version (Buy it here.) was released in December last year and Ougon Musou Kyoku X for Xbox 360 is coming this Summer.

          KayoPolice joining Evo 2011

          KayoPolice, a Japanese model who can actually play fighting games, announced tonight on Game no Jikan show that she will be participating Evolution 2011, and will compete in Tekken 6 and Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition.

          Although she is not a competitive player, this surely will add more hype to the event, and some media or the show's staff are likely to be there for a coverage, too.

          KayoPolice's first photo-essay "Re-born" was released just last week. The book reveals her background and contains some of her semi-nude photographs.