For my sixth birthday, my dad took me to a baseball game. He really wanted me to be a sports kid. Unfortunately, he made the mistake of showing me Star Wars and Lord of the Rings first, so his mission was doomed from the start. The only thing I learned from that night was how unbearably boring baseball is.
But my old man didn’t give up there. He tried for years to make athletes of my brothers and I. Man signed us up for little league team every damn year. And every damn year, I did everything I could to get out of it. Try as he might, I hated that game.
It’s not that I dislike the concept of sports. I love games, and I’m a very competitive person. But I’ve always been far more nerd than jock. My favorite contests have always been more intellectual than physical. Chess, card games, esports, stuff like that.
You know what I do love? Martial arts. Sure, I generally prefered the over-the-top Dragon Ball Z kind, but the real deal is also pretty cool. However, squishy marshmallow that I am, you would never find me in the ring. I’m rather attached to my teeth, thank you.
Luckily, there’s a much safer alternative. One that fits into my interests very well. Fighting games.
Few games are as difficult, or as exhilarating, as these. In most online multiplayer games, you have a team you can rely on. Or, in the case of defeat: blame. But in something like Street Fighter or Tekken, you don’t have that luxury. It’s just you and your opponent. Whoever is the better player wins. Sure, you can blame their character, or a laggy monitor, or a poor internet connection. But excuses will never make you a better player. Defeat is soul-crushing. Victory, intoxicating.
I’ve been playing these games for about ten years. By myself, for the most part. Most of my friends and family are weak little cowards, and they never want to play them with me. They’re under the misconception that I’m really good. In reality, I’m just okay. The people who are really good run circles around me faster than sound.
Which is exactly why I love watching fighting games as much as I do playing them. Seeing what the pros can do with the same characters and mechanics is nothing short of inspiring. Watching your first tournament after getting into these games is downright magical.
Even if you don’t play, I think the FGC is an incredible thing to watch. It’s basically a real-life shounen anime that’s been running for decades. Real friendships, rivalries, even hatreds unfold on the tournament stage.
My favorite of these has got to be the rivalry between SonicFox and GO1. In the early days of Dragon Ball Fighterz, these two were the best of the best. America VS Japan. Every set they played felt like watching an actual Dragon Ball fight unfolding in real-time, so fast the normal eye could barely keep up. Yet for as intense as their battles were, the two had great respect for one another. When they played, it was all smiles. Their energy was infectious, and it made their every duel a delight to watch.
Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to participate in any local events. But I wanted to get in on the hype anyway. So I made plans to travel down to Vegas for EVO, the world’s biggest fighting game tournament. All the arrangements were made and ready. Just one problem: this was in 2020. COVID sent the world spiraling into a fever dream that still hasn’t ended. All my tickets were refunded, and my hopes were dashed.
Once I moved down to Florida a few years later, my love for the genre began to fade. I stopped watching tournaments. My sticks sat on the shelves gathering dust. It felt like that chapter of my life had closed.
Until Invincible VS happened. Now, I still haven’t watched Invincible or read the original comic. But I did see a trailer for this game when it was going into open beta. Well, I had the night off, and nothing better to do, so I decided to play a few matches just for the hell of it.
Something long dormant inside me awakened that night. I’m generally a polite, reserved person. But once I started taking wins, I was talking more trash than Spider-Man. I wasn’t good. But god damn, was I having fun!
Like a relapsing addict, I quickly became obsessed with fighting games again. I brushed off the old arcade stick and took to grinding online. When I had downtime at work, I’d catch the latest tournament footage. Soon, I realized it was time to try for another trip. No global pandemic could stop me this time!
But travel expenses could. Las Vegas is pretty far from Florida, and plane tickets cost more than hotel rooms, which are also not cheap. So EVO wasn’t an option. Luckily for me, there was another major event happening just an hour’s drive south: Community Effort Orlando, otherwise known as CEO. So I took the weekend off work, packed my bags, called an Uber, and rode down to the big city.
One of my biggest regrets is not taking as many photos as I had wanted to. I’m not a photographer, and my new phone sucks ass, especially its camera. It’s a shame, because not only did I fail to capture the pure exhilaration of the tournament, but I couldn’t show you all just how beautiful Orlando is.
I arrived the day before the tournament started, so I took some time to explore the city and relax. Grabbed dinner from a local pub, saw a movie (expect a Spider-Man review some time soon), and generally had a merry time sweating my balls off beneath the Florida sun.
Going into the tournament itself, I was all nerves. My anxiety demons whispered all kinds of nonsense in my ears from dusk to dawn. Once I stepped into the venue, they were silenced completely. Being surrounded by fighting game nerds and cosplayers, all chanting for the event to begin, shattered every one of my inhibitions.
My matches were scheduled for much later in the day, so I had plenty of time to browse the stalls and play some casual matches. It was a classic con-going experience. Only with more of me getting my ass whooped. A perfect warm-up for the actual bracket.
I didn’t make it past the first round of the tournament. The skill gap between my opponents and I was made immediately obvious. Luckily, they were all very nice and friendly people. We had a few laughs, they shared some good pointers, and I bade them luck in their next matches. It was the most fun I’ve had in ages.
For day two, I spent my time browsing artists’ stalls and watching the smaller tourneys wrap up. Looking back, I wish I spent more time playing casual matches. But I don’t have any regrets. Not when the viewing experience was so magical.
You know what I remember most from that baseball game? The energy of the audience. Specifically, the lack thereof. We were sat in an outdoor stadium in the middle of a surprisingly cold summer night. Even so, it was hardly a small crowd. But it was just so… quiet. Like everyone wanted to get out of there as badly as I did.
Not so here. Let me tell you, no one knows how to hype up a crowd like the FGC. Never in all my life have I met so many friendly, funny, and passionate people. Sure, they kicked my teeth in, but they were very pleasant about it, and gave me some great pointers to improve.
One thing I especially love about tournaments are the stories that unfold throughout. The trash talk, the rivalries, the on-stage gags, it’s like watching a shounen anime in real life. Or an unscripted WWE storyline where everyone wears normal clothes. Hell, they even had a ring and championship belts!
The one that stuck out to me the most was the 2XKO Top 8. In the first match of Winners Semifinals, a player named Galladiated was sent to losers by JakeytheSnakey. When it came time for him to play again in the Losers Quarterfinals, Galladiated began one of the most inspiring rampages I’ve ever seen in a competitive sport. Every match went down to the last round, but he always came out on top. Reaching the Grand Finals, he faced against JakeytheSnakey once again, this time for the championship belt. After another thrilling set, Galladiated reset the bracket. Both players continued at full throttle, bringing the game to 2-2. Finally, after a nail-biting final round, Galladiated emerged victorious. Watching him pop-off, then burst into tears, as the crowd roared all around, was one of the most memorable experiences of my entire life.
There were insane comebacks like that in just about every bracket I watched. By the end of day two, my palms were bright red and my voice was gone. Which made browsing the stalls for merchandise rather challenging. But there were so many amazing artists! What was I supposed to do, not recklessly spend money on too many posters?
Speaking of: if you’re looking for some incredible prints to decorate your living space, check out some of the artists I bought from. Their work is genuinely jaw-dropping. Plus, in an age of AI slop and corporate greed, it’s always nice to support small independent artists.
Unfortunately, I didn’t make it to day three. Because I hadn’t planned the trip out especially well, I had to check out of my hotel by 11 AM. There was no way I was carting around both my bags all day; my back and shoulders were already a mess of aches and bruises from carrying one. Besides, my throat couldn’t handle another day of cheering. So I called an Uber, gathered my belongings, and went back to ordinary life.
Returning from a vacation is always a drag. Who wants to go back to work after lounging for a few days? I’ll admit, I actually became depressed after coming home. Sure, it was a relief to sleep in my own bed again. But after such a prolonged adrenaline high, going back to normal really bummed me out. Which is partly why this article is so late. Sorry about that.
My days at CEO were some of the most fun I’ve had in a very long time. After years of admiring the FGC from afar, getting to actually participate in it was absolutely wonderful. So many wonderful and welcoming people, all competing to be the best, and having a blast along the way.
These games are a very niche genre. Which is partly why events like CEO are so low-budget compared to other major esports circuits, like DOTA or Rocket League. But if you are even remotely interested in any of these games, be it Avatar Legends or Smash Bros or Street Fighter, I’d highly encourage you to give them a go. You’ll struggle, that’s a given, but there are a ton of people in the community who will be more than happy to help. Even if you prefer just to spectate, you can still have a ton of fun, whether you’re watching online or you’re attending in-person.
Fighting games may not be for everyone. But the FGC certainly is. And I cannot wait to make the trip again next year.
Thank you very much for reading. I didn’t get this out as soon as I had hoped, but I’m still proud of how it turned out. Hopefully you enjoyed my rambling about this hobby I love so much. You making it to the end means the world to me.
Until next time, stay safe, and have a wonderful rest of your day!
Jonah's Books & Rants 
Leave a comment