All that glitters is not gold...

Street Fighter X Tekken (SFxT) has received a lot of press and a lot of promotion of late, though not always for the right reasons. The latest announcement is an unusual one - a gem system. Essentially, this allows people to customise and tailor characters to suit their playstyle. On the surface, it sounds interesting and beneficial. However, when some of the gems are detailed, a few eyebrows may be raised.

The same ones are being highlighted time and time again. There are two reasons for this. They are the ones that have been detailed in trailers or gameplay videos, but they are also the ones that cause most concern. The idea of allowing players to burn meter in order to auto-block or auto-tech throws is a strange one. These are going to have an impact in matches and, competitively, could have a detrimental effect. Matches may no longer come down to who is calm under pressure and pulls off a clutch read or counter, but who has certain gems stacked or the meter to use them.

While this does open up strategical elements: having meter to use, similar to how players would try to keep two bars in Street Fighter 4 to allow for a Focus Attack Dash Cancel (FADC) into Ultra, it penalises those who go for outright damage. The combo system in SFxT is an interesting one and requires meter to tag characters in and out to extend combos. Perhaps this is Capcom's way of stepping in to ensure that people don't try 60-100% combos.

There was an interesting point raised on Cross Counter Live (http://t.co/0KfCXg5n), where it was highlighted that when players at home pick Ryu, they have the same tools at their disposal as the top players in the world. If you draw a comparison to other professional games, and even mainstream sports, everything should be a level playing field. Poker became huge because anyone could participate or begin to play. People could play among friends and have the same showdowns, albeit on a different scale, as professional tournaments. Players should be able to emulate their idols or develop from beginner to competitor without having to shop at the same store as their idol.

The greatest games, and certainly the best competitive games, should be easy to learn but hard to master. It should be very easy for a beginner to come in and do something, but there should be layers of depth. Only the best will master games, but anyone can compete and learn. Any sport has this setup. The basics and fundamentals are very easy to learn, but there are more complicated plays or systems and so on that can be used to unlock the opposing player or team. Gems will not contribute to this; they pose a barrier instead as there will be certain mixes that work better than others and it becomes too difficult to learn the properties of every gem and combination.

The final point that illustrates that gems have no place in the competitive fighting game circuit is that of balance. It is difficult enough to balance a limited cast of characters, as most developers including Capcom have illustrated in the past. However, hundreds of gems and potentially thousands of combinations give reason for concern. There will be subsets that will be better than all the others and these will be exploited.

Will it succeed in a casual market? Who knows...Mortal Kombat had an automatic blocking system of sorts, and people became tired of it. Capcom are stepping onto dangerous territory. The fighting game market is becoming saturated once again. Games will fail and if pushed too far the market may collapse once more. Where will SFxT lie when the dust settles?


What are your thoughts? Let me know by commenting here or on Twitter (@Sabre0001).

My own Marvellous adventure

When Marvel 3 was released, I picked it up immediately. For some time prior to release, I wasn't sure that I would invest in it. I had found its prequel difficult to get to grips with and there was waaay too much going on for my poor brain to handle. But, after playing MvC3 at the Eurogamer Expo, I took the plunge and bought it.

And then swiftly traded it in. Once again, I found it difficult and couldn't find a way past a stream of bullets as Dante or Deadpool, or sometimes both, appeared on screen. As it was, I was still an average player at Street Fighter; a game that I had invested a significant amount of time in. I didn't have enough time going spare to get into MvC3. It's frustrating to lose...It's even more frustrating when that loss comes from the other side of the screen.

I kept in touch with the Marvel scene. I watched the occasional stream and kept on top of 'The Marvellous Adventures of Gootecks and Mike Ross". Slowly, the desire to play came back. So I picked it up once again. However, I had learnt from my mistakes.

I hit Mission Mode immediately and, strangely, made more progress with Wolverine than I had done in the past. He was always a certainty in the team. I had heard complaints about Sentinel, seen the patch and seen his influence on matches. So, for the first time, I picked him. I quickly realised you don't even have to play him well. If you can, it's beneficial, but a couple of hits per combo deals significant damage. Pair that with X-Factor and you're good to go. Unfortunately, my 2nd character is still undecided. I'm not sure who'll fit the mix or who I like.

Once I hit online, I was surprised. I was actually winning! Some of those thanks to my giant, hulking robot...Sentinel for example won one match single handed. I was in trouble and on the ropes. Then managed to link a couple of devastating blows together. With plenty of super meter to spare on his last character, I unleashed it. Dante didn't teleport, and instead blocked a stream of supers. Desperation set in and he pushed a button....and then lost. Not the finest win, but it would do.

I'm currently at 8-2 online. All was going well until I took a break from Ranked, and everyone disappeared. Player matches were a mixed bag. One player in particular had my number! My Wolverine is coming along nicely, Sentinel acts as a solid anchor in any team, but who do I put in the middle? Any suggestions appreciated. Comment below or @Sabre0001 on Twitter.

FOCUS: A Documentary - Review

If you've never heard of Mike Ross, EVO or the idea of competitive gaming, you don't need to worry. You don't need to switch off your set or ignore this DVD; FOCUS caters for you. Then again, if you do have an interest in the above, FOCUS is right up your alley.

FOCUS is a documentary about competitive gaming, Street Fighter, and in particular, Mike Ross. Mike is a 26 year old from California who likes playing guitar, hanging out with friends at comedy clubs and making videos. Now that the online dating-esque profile is out of the way, he also plays Street Fighter professionally and has established himself as one of the best players in the United States.

The adventure begins in May, 2010 and traces Mike's preparation leading up to the biggest tournament of his life, EVO 2010. Viewers are given a 360 degree look at what makes Mike Ross, well, Mike Ross. His family provide a background to Mike including how he started gaming, and when his competitive nature kicked off. Viewers are treated to candid interviews with Mike, his father, his brother and his friends throughout the documentary.

These break up the competitive footage nicely and complement the pace of the documentary. His family, as he puts it himself, are "here to look out for me". Mike's mother passed away tragically but still represents a pillar of support, inspiration and influence. These interviews are endearing and build a relationship with Mike that goes beyond the professional gamer image. From the outset, Steve Hwang tries to establish a connection between the viewer and Mike. 

This early glimpse at Mike's competitive nature establishes something that competitive gaming needs. When he was eight, he entered a tournament at a local arcade in a basketball game. He was beating players in their teens and this brought a crowd. There was a hook; spectators got invested. From this simple example, and primitive home video footage, Steve Hwang illustrates that the general masses need to see more than just a competitive video game. Spectators have to get emotionally invested, or be backing a particular competitor.

Mike is portrayed honestly. Fans of his various webseries (Cross Counter, The Excellent Adventures of Gootecks and Mike Ross, and The Marvellous Adventures of Gootecks and Mike Ross) will have some idea of what to expect. Most of the time, he doesn't take himself seriously; he will joke around and even when he is relatively confident, there is a modesty about him. He comes across as a likeable guy and is willing to interact with fans. However, he does not take losing well and will readily admit to being salty.

If you are a newcomer to fighting games or the competitive circuit, that one word could raise an eyebrow. "Salty"; almost single handedly highlighting one aspect that the entire documentary could fall down on. Games have a terminology and it is quite easy to get lost or caught up if you didn't quite understand it. However, Steve Hwang, Mike Ross and a variety of interviewees steer the viewer calmly through this potential minefield without ever seeming patronising. The interviewees know what they are talking about, and how to break it down in a viewer friendly manner. That is the simplistic beauty of FOCUS. It is casual enough for anyone to watch as an underdog story, without taking too much time out so that more veteran members of the fighting game brethren feel like it's a waste of time or detracting too much from the movie.

The documentary draws from a number of different elements of footage. Viewers are given a brief overview of the Street Fighter series, there are interviews and of course, there is in-game footage. This is used initially to showcase Mike's abilities and skills matched with a chorus of "oohs" from commentators and spectators. This enables the director to quickly arm viewers with knowledge that will come in handy later on in the documentary. Viewers are rapidly taught why Mike plays as E.Honda, how this character is typically played...and then how Mike plays.

For those who thought that playing video games as a living would be easy are quickly educated as Mike travels to a small 2v2 tournament to compete with "ShadyK". For a $5 entry fee, first place will earn $70, while 3rd place will win a handshake from the organiser. After the tournament, Mike says that winnings aren't his only source of income. He also produces videos on the side. While some payouts may be relatively small, Mike looks on the positive by saying that it's a good meal. Despite the difficulties that professional gamers may face, Mike says that if he were given the choice, he would want to be paid for video games over videography.

With that brief introduction to the pitfalls of competitive gaming, the documentary heads to Arizona for Devastation. The pressure, passion, highs and lows of competitive gaming are laid bare. It is here that the documentary title takes on a meaning. Competitive gaming is often as much about mental ability as it is about game skills. Mike highlights that newcomers will feel nervous because of the pressure, while more experienced players will feel a more positive sort of energy. It is important to manage these feelings and stay FOCUSed.

Tournament footage is broken up between in-game coverage and shots of Mike, the crowd and the other player. Again, this serves the purpose of making Mike a person that the viewer should be rooting for. Every reaction is captured from a raised eyebrow to a shake of the head. The commentary overture mixed with crowd reactions heightens the drama for the viewer. If you know the result, the action is still exciting; if you don't, you will be on the edge of your seat.

After matches, the audience is given a glimpse of Mike's reactions through a series of shots of him contemplating his last game to interviews regarding his thoughts on the game. Without giving too much away, he does say that after losing a match at Devastation, he just wanted to leave because he knew he would lose the next one if he was thinking too hard about the loss. Once again, viewers are shown that it is a mental game. This is reinforced time and time again throughout the documentary.

EVO 10 represents the biggest tournament of Mike's career. After the passing of his mother in 2008, he had a horrible tournament in 2009. This was his chance to prove himself, his chance for redemption. To add that extra element of pressure, he would have to move through a bracket featuring 2,000 players with an impressive prize pot on offer, and thousands of spectators online and in person.

It is at this point that the difficulties of professional gaming are put on the table. While Mike likes the idea of getting some payouts for smaller tournaments, he realises that it's not enough in the long run. He speaks candidly and says that things have to get serious or he would have to walk away. He "doesn't want to be wasting his time". This is another reason why EVO is so important, and why it weighs more heavily on his mind.

EVO is completely different to most tournaments. It is possibly the biggest in the world and draws thousands of players from around the world. Fans seek photographs and autographs, and Cosplayers roam the halls. But Mike is focused on making top eight. If he can do that, he establishes himself as a great player.

The crowd react to every combo and every missed opportunity. Shots of the crowd show how much this tournament means to some, even if they are not involved directly. Photographers stand by, posed with cameras to take reactionary shots. With this amount of nervous excitement buzzing around the crowd and commentators, one can only assume what the players themselves are feeling.

Those who followed EVO will know how it panned out. Otherwise it's like watching Titanic and hoping it doesn't hit the iceberg. But sometimes, it is not about the destination. What is important, is the journey to get there.

Mike says that Street Fighter could replicate skateboarding's success where it starts small and grows. It certainly could, and just like skateboarding it needs ambassadors. After watching this documentary, it is clear that he is someone that you would want representing a scene.

As stated, spectators need a hook to watch something that they may not have had an interest in. Steve Hwang captures it in FOCUS by portraying one man's journey and using more than just in-game footage. FOCUS is a documentary that will keep all entertained and interested, from the casual to the competitive. If you want your granny to understand competitive gaming, show her this. By the end, viewers will be hoping that Mike triumphs. They will, "believe in Mike Ross."

FOCUS is the debut documentary feature of Director Steve Hwang, an Asian-American filmmaker and graduate of Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. It currently has no set release date beyond "Spring, 2011". For more information, visit the website, Twitter and Facebook. 

The not-so-excellent adventures of Mark & Mike

Big thanks to Mike Ross (@thatmikerossguy) and Gootecks (@gootecks) for the inspiration - Check out "The excellent adventures of gootecks and Mike Ross". Had a friend over for some Street Fighter action and decided to do our own homage - unrecorded unfortuantely but it was a blast.

Street Fighter can be an enraging experience online! Losing to "scrubs", doing the wrong thing at the wrong time, forgetting to block and laaaaaag! Sometimes, it's important to realise that it's all for fun and not let the little things get to you. I get frustrated so this session was a great idea.

Super Meat Boy also played its part - it seemed a less frustrating game when played using the buddy system. Just get a group of friends around to pass the pad and mock each other, and the stress melts away!

So, we hit the net. I opened the way that a tribute should - Cody was used and "the boot" came into play immediately! We played characters that we mess around with, our mains, and characters that we haven't used. I wouldn't say we're amazing players but we can hold our own. We also won a lot more than I was expecting (on top of the previous skill element, we haven't played much recently).

It's great to be able to run it back with people you lose or enjoy a fight against - the one time I hit quick search too fast, I ended up in a 1 round, 30 second match....But I won!

We also gained the confidence to go into a one-button match. For those who don't know, and can't work it out, you pick a character and one button that you can use. We cheated slightly, thanks to a TE stick, and used 3K or 3P. I picked Bison and 3K - landed the U2 in one round. Lost the match 2-1 but it was a fun experience.

I would advise playing Street Fighter (and many games) using the buddy system. Remember that points aren't the most important thing in the world. Just play and enjoy! Maybe mix it up with something out-of-the-ordinary. Check out "The excellent adventures of gootecks and Mike Ross" (Street Fighter 4) or Day[9]'s Funday Mondays (Starcraft 2) for a little bit of inspiration.