Evo-2012
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Get hype: EVO 2012 results and Grand Finals videos
Another EVO Championship Series has come and gone, taking with it the hopes, dreams and aspirations of a community. EVO is the Super Bowl of fighting games, but also a cultural mecca for those who share the genre as their life's passion.This year's proceedings were punctuated by surprises, upsets and incredible displays of skill and technical prowess, perhaps more so than any EVO in recent memory. Last year's Super Street Fighter 4: Arcade Edition champion, Fuudo, tied with three others for ninth place at this year's tournament, for instance. Conversely, Perfect Legend successfully defended his throne as Mortal Kombat champion, becoming the first person to retain their title since Daigo Umehara's SSF4 victory in 2010.Head on past the break for results of the seven major tournaments that took place over the weekend, along with videos of the Grand Finals for each game, courtesy of IGN. If you're pressed for time, allow us to make some recommendations: Watch the first rounds of the Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 and SSF4:AE Ver. 2012 Grand Finals for two of the most exciting KOs of the weekend, and peep the King of Fighters XIII Grand Finals for the most excitable stream commentators in the entire world.
Watch the EVO 2012 Championship Series World Finals right here
The culmination of a full year's worth of regional tournaments set around the globe, the EVO 2012 Championship Series World Finals have begun in sunny Las Vegas. Players from the world over have assembled to compete in six games across three days, and you can watch all of the action right here on Joystiq.EVO's various tournaments (Friday/Saturday schedules here and here) are split across two streams: The primary stream above, and the secondary stream set up after the break. Today's events consist of Super Street Fighter 4 Arcade Edition Ver. 2012, SoulCalibur 5 and King of Fighters XIII, while tomorrow's festivities feature Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, Mortal Kombat, Street Fighter X Tekken and more KOF XIII. Finals take place all day on Sunday, from 10 a.m. PDT through the rest of the evening.Who will emerge victorious? Fight!!
PlayStation All-Stars joined by Heihachi and Toro
The roster in Sony's mascot mashup, PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale, has grown by two more fighters. Heihachi Mishima from Namco Bandai's Tekken series, and Toro, cartoonish marketing feline for Sony Japan, have both been confirmed for launch (on October 23) by Sony during an EVO 2012 presentation.In addition to the new characters, a new stage called Dojo has been revealed. Dojo (depicted above) is inspired by Chop Chop Master Onion's stomping/chopping grounds, as seen in Parappa the Rapper.Update: The PlayStation Blog has posted videos of both characters, which we've embedded below the break.
MadCatz producing limited edition EVO fightsticks
To commemorate this year's EVO Championship Series World Finals, arcade stick darling Mad Catz has created a limited edition "EVO Championship Series Arcade Fightstick Pro" for the PS3 and 360.Now, when we say limited edition, we mean exceedingly limited edition: Mad Catz is only manufacturing 600 of these arcade sticks in total – 300 for each system. While the parts used in the stick are not explicitly broken down, the fact that it's part of the manufacturer's Fightstick Pro line implies heavy usage of Sanwa Denshi buttons and sticks.For all intents and purposes, the limited edition joint appears to be a translucent purple version of Mad Catz's Street Fighter X Tekken stick, and at $159.99 it costs about the same as well. Pre-orders are now active at Mad Catz's GameShark shop.
Crashing EVO: SpyParty's Chris Hecker on depth and fighting games
When we asked Chris Hecker how SpyParty snuck its way into EVO 2012, we didn't think he'd actually tell us – revealing sensitive information is opposed to an entire half of his game's title, after all. We assume it was the other half that allowed him to divulge the details behind how SpyParty, a one-on-one asymmetric Turing Test, snagged a featured spot at the year's largest fighting-game gathering:"It all started with Seth Killian," Hecker said. "Seth and I have talked about my goals for SpyParty to be a game that can eventually be counted among the most intensely competitive player-skill games we have, games like Counter-Strike, Starcraft, LoL, Dota and Street Fighter, and he's been really supportive of that goal."Seth emailed me and asked if I'd be interested in bringing SpyParty to EVO. I knew a bit about EVO and was kind of blown away by the offer."SpyParty is one of EVO 2012's Indie Showcase titles, and will be available for anyone to try out on the expo floor, which is completely free and open to the public July 6-7 at Las Vegas' Caesars Palace.The game itself is based on subtlety, precision and practice, much like many fighting games, but it doesn't involve any twitch movements, bright, flashing colors or hadoukens – and it comes with a four-page manual that must be read before anyone attempts to play it. In terms of pacing for the American audience: if Mortal Kombat is football, SpyParty is soccer.
SpyParty selected as the Indie Showcase title for EVO 2012
Remember Spy Party, that sniper vs. spy game Chris Hecker made and showed off at our E3 meetup last year? The game, originally designed as the ultimate test of deep gaming skill, is getting a spotlight on one of the biggest competitive gaming stages as the Indie Showcase title at EVO 2012.That means Spy Party will be playable at the event in Las Vegas in two weeks, and Hecker says he's hoping to have the demos hooked up to the Internet, letting attendees play some of the top players online. 50 beta invites are also being given away right now, so head over and sign up if you're interested. Spy Party was designed to test and highlight extreme player skill, so it's awesome to see it get placed in an event that brings in skilled gamers from all over the world.
Here's what you'll be fighting over at Evo 2012
The organizers of the Evo fighting game tournament series have revealed this year's lineup of games, allowing you to start practicing now! Ideally, you'd have been playing a bunch of fighters already, but now you have a better idea of which ones you should be obsessively replaying. The roster includes Street Fighter X Tekken, Super Street Fighter IV Arcade Edition Ver. 2012, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, Soulcalibur 5, King of Fighters 13, and Mortal Kombat. Admittedly, you'll have a harder time getting practice in on a couple of those right now. The locations and dates for this year's events were also announced, with tournaments scheduled for all over the world. Shoryuken has the full list of locations for fightstick-toting pilgrims. This year, there are more tournaments, "which means more chances to earn seeding points." In addition, you can earn those points from any of those games, making it easier to move on if you're not a Street Fighter or MvC3 player.
Punchageddon: EVO 2012 comes back to Vegas July 6-8, 2012
It only makes sense there'd be another EVO, right? Last year's tournament was watched by over two million people online, and 2012's main event tournament is looking to blow it up even bigger. EVO 2012 has been scheduled for July 6 through 8, and will once again take place at Caesar's Palace Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. No participating games have been revealed, though Street Fighter X Tekken and Super Street Fighter IV Arcade Edition Ver. 2012 are likely candidates.
