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I've never used the Rida before!
I can't believe I've been able to use it!
I'm so convenient!
Everything changed from the insert coin.
Rida!
When I first started playing Street Fighter 4,
I realized that I had something special for me at the beginning of the game.
I don't see myself waiting for at least maybe 20 more years.
I wanted to get better at this game.
It's much more than just playing, it's being a part of this community.
What is Maros back up to to be honest it's just culture man
It's a game of 56 characters, 3v3 fighting game, half the roster is Marvel, half the
roster is Capcom, tons of great players that put a lot of hype.
It's a community game that will live forever.
How did I find Marvel vs Capcom?
I was at Alex Baillie's house and I was just chilling with him and then we went to Southern
Hills Golf Land and boom, Morivus Capcom 2 is there.
For some reason Morivus is Capcom 2, every time I think about it it just always reminds
me of my childhood man.
Like right now just me talking about it's unlocking so many memories as we speak.
It might be the best fighting game of all time, I really enjoy just figuring out just
endless possibilities of different teams.
So everyone wanted to just have a taste of that game.
Peter Rosas, Combo Fiend, David Lee, Shady Kay was good, Genghis, a lot of good players.
Vi was a part at one time.
He was the Model 2 player, a lot of people don't know that.
Ricky Ortiz.
We had Eddie Lee, Arturo Sanchez, Eric Perez, Chris Scat.
I had no idea that Malgris's Capcom 2 had the power and energy and influence to just
get everybody in a room just to get so many rivalries going.
East Coast versus West Coast rivalry.
That is what made Marvel 2 Marvel 2.
And it's not only Marvel 2, it's actually like every other game.
It was always, we have to be the best.
We have to be the best at everything.
East Coast versus West Coast rivalry was because I existed.
It was super West Coast dominated.
Not many East Coast players were able to kind of like put a dent into the West Coast players, right?
West Coast will always say that we was ass.
Like the only guys that would put damage into like to any of them,
like in any tournament was just in one at the time.
So that kind of sparked a rivalry just so for that alone.
East Coast versus West Coast was always a thing.
Even back in Street Fighter,
Marvel II I felt like brought it to another height
because it was people like smooth Viper,
people like Sue Miley, people like, you know,
people that like to embarrass people.
Who?
They like to embarrass you.
So that's what made it a height for me.
Those guys who are getting a model one,
when model two came out,
the same guys who played model one, played model two,
And I came into the scene and that rivalry was still there, man.
They were like, hey, man, don't let the East Coast guys win.
Don't let them win.
You know, you're West Coast, we got to represent.
My main team for a little bit was a Manito Cable Cammy.
It actually helped me win, like, East Coast Championship
6 against Rick Ortiz, Midwest Championships
against Alex Valle.
But I had a secret team prepared for B5, and it was Storm Sentinel Kami, and I realized
Kami when she does cannon spike, this is too long.
So I was like, let me try Cyclops, and that's when I started picking Storm Sentinel Cyclops,
and it was a team that I was really the most successful with.
I actually knew about Justin when I won B4.
Arturo Sanchez came to me and said,
hey man, duck, congratulations,
you won the tournament, good job, man.
There was a player on the East Coast,
he couldn't come, but he's really, really good.
So then they're like, all right, B5 is coming up.
You have to go to B5 and try to take the title from duck.
All right, this is B5, B2.
How do you find more exciting?
The heat or the smell?
That's a tough one, because all the heat
is all silent, buddy.
You can't escape the smell.
Woo!
Woo!
B5, boom. Here we go.
I'm playing Test and Long.
At the time, he was playing me with spiral cable Cyclops.
I'm like, wow, this kid is really good.
And once I beat him pretty bad when he picked that team,
the grand finals, he mainly switched to spiral cable Sentinel.
And that gave me a huge run for my money.
I had a plan to beat him, it didn't work out.
So then I thought to myself, I need to switch to Stormset and Kami because my thought process
is like if I hit sparrow once with Storm, I can kill sparrow right away with the Stormset
and that's literally what I did.
Music
He thinks that other people aren't doing anything.
Okay, good stuff man.
You won, you won the championship.
I would say the East Coast versus West Coast rivalry started
started because I like literally defeated their three best players of rick your tees
Alex Valle and duck dough at this in the same year these to dislike him
You know because you just win everything. It was literally called the long coast versus West Coast for a very very long time
One four-year streak all locals all
Mages or evils
You lost no chance. It was that good. I
Never had that emotional attachment
to that streak. I just thought about it as like the cash is coming.
Right? No hundred bucks here, 200 bucks during the bucks. I just want to keep doing good at
fighting games and helping my grandma out. Right? Justin was our savior. Justin was
like, oh, save us Justin. Justin, because nobody else was as good. That gave us
confidence to see him do so well. The East Coast started gaining more confidence
because we're like, yo, we want to back him. You know, we want to back him. We want to get good too.
So we're not just relying on Justin to be the person that saves
Marvel 2 was always the sweatiest match, the sweatiest games, because people were really coming after me for that streak.
There was many times where I was put in losers, but I never was eliminated from the tournament until 2004 against Sanford.
Welcome, guys, ladies and gentlemen.
This is IndyKissTV.
I'll be your host for the evening, Larry F***ing, please.
The match is starting.
Farmers story starts off.
With an unorthodox team, I'm going to be your star commander.
People will give Sanford credit.
I would say he's probably my greatest rival.
More than, like, I would say Daigo.
More than, like, Chris Cheedy.
Sanford is, like, the one person I don't want to lose to.
He plays me, definitely, than he plays everybody else.
When he plays against other people,
he plays, like, at 80%.
When he plays against me, it's like 120%.
Like for me, he tries to attack me a lot.
Against other people, he plays more defensive.
He's always gunning for me.
He always plays his best against me.
He adapts to the person that he's playing.
So whatever style you have,
he's adapting to that particular style to get to W.
He knows when I want to press a button
because he knows me in and out.
And it's really hard to figure me out.
So the fact that he did it,
that's like the biggest respect ever.
Just the first losing to me was huge too, because it showed that there's hope, anybody can lose, anybody can beat them.
He was the person that they couldn't lose, you know, so when he lost it changed the whole scene.
It made the scene say, hey, you know something?
We just need to get good.
Good, we're gonna start bringing the game to a higher level
so more players can be dominant like Justin
or getting dominant like Justin
or getting dominant like Sanford
or getting dominant like Ro.
Man, they need to see him grow, so.
Things make the scene grow and that's what I'm here for.
Oh!
Now give it up!
Oh!
Over to the silver!
Have a over to the silver!
To the silver, baby!
Judging by just how good I was playing that year,
I was excited to play Justin
because he's been whooping my ass like this all the time.
And mind you, I'm not like keeping an eye on brackets or anything like that.
Like, again, I'm just having so much fun and living in the moment.
It's only right if you're staying consistent, you're going to bump into this guy eventually.
That was something that needed to happen for me to prove myself something, you know?
Yeah, I actually, as a player, rushed on God.
He just has so many creative moments where it's just, I can never guess right.
Now, you know, I talked a lot of smack about Justin in the past about how much of a lame player he is.
And I mean that in a good way.
That means defensive for people that don't understand.
I don't think he's ever scared of anybody else.
big subs. Everyone's always scared of his big subs. The will to win is crazy. Like he
will literally run down that clock 99 seconds in order to get the job done.
Well, the good news is we all been knew about the one factor. So there's been a couple of
to come back before that one.
Not that severe though.
Oh, oh, oh, oh my God.
Oh my God.
You don't really soak it in until the match actually finishes.
And then you just say to yourself, what the hell happened?
You know what?
It wasn't even the L, I'm going to be honest.
It was the crowd reaction that really
made me realize that she was on the other end of Justin
Wong comeback.
I mean, there was people running up on stage saying,
was that like a collusion? Like did you give it up? Like it was one of those things. Shout out to
Be More Chun. He really pulled up. He's like, hey man, did that really happen? I was like, yeah.
I'm not that support.
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I
This fresh is not contained in streaming.
Those are just squeals of blood!
Reblah!
Ready to banish the darkness.
C'mon!
Let's live a little.
In the light is your deliverance!
Hello?
Whoa.
Mama Griggin 85 lives here?
Yep.
That's my mom.
The absolute legend who once came gaming on her phone to ruthless online streaming slayer
with no mercy for any living thing is your mom?
Hey guys.
Apple's with Peanut Butter?
How is this possible?
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No, she's so nice and real life.
Oh my God!
He's just down there!
He's down there!
No, he's not! He got the ball!
Oh, he's down there!
Oh, he's down there!
Look at this. He's in his head.
Good job!
Good job!
This is it. Ladies and gentlemen.
We're gonna get some five games at all.
I call for it.
Let's get into it.
Everybody around the world here in the venue at five.
Evolution!
Good morning, Las Vegas, Nevada, and welcome to the 2026 Evolution Championship Series.
A lot of players have pulled up, a lot of players have tried, but at the end, only eight remain,
and only one will X their names into the annals of history.
Ladies and gentlemen, we have the Grand Booth Fantasy vs. Rising intro video presented by Physician.
Let's get you.
I love you
I can't get me through
And I wanna go
Through all the great things I've been through
I reply
For the only reason I've been through
Is the endless sky
Your future is in my mind
I'm not a kid like them
Dancing on a future you'll never find
I'm absolutely loving the energy in this room, the first thing I need you to do on the count
of three, I want you to yell out who is going to walk away as our Evo Champion.
One, two, three.
Ladies and gentlemen, it is time to introduce our top eight players.
This introduction, of course, presented by Visa.
Player one, fighting out of Japan, Shio!
Player two, also fighting out of Japan, Zen Dori!
Next, the reigning and defending Evo champion, Kodi Koko.
From the United States, Monard.
Also from the USA, in Surging.
Put your hands together for Blue Sky Guy, B.H.K.D.
From Japan, Midiak!
Love, Midiak.
And last but not least, show some love to Paid Actor!
Ladies and gentlemen, I'll not let the hand fool you.
Of course, even though my man's name is Paid Actor,
when it comes to him and everybody on this stage,
This is the real deal, the Crème de la Crème,
and we are about to find out who is gonna be our EVO 2026 champion.
Let's send things over to our commentators, zero in time.
Yes, indeed, yes, indeed, folks.
I have one thing to ask of all of you.
I've been waiting all week for this one.
On the count of three, I need everyone in the crowd
to shout Believe in Victory.
Y'all ready?
One, two, three, Believe in Victory!
Grand Blue Fantasy vs Rising, it is a top 8 here at Evo 2026.
Zero alongside Tyrant and Men, I can't wait for this glorious action.
I'm so ready for this, man. Some of the best of the best.
When it comes to Grand Blue Fantasy vs Rising up there on that stage,
and this is going to be so electric, man.
We've got defending champions, we've got people that have come running up to the Evo before.
Yeah, it's going to be crazy.
This is quite disparate of not only characters, but like you said,
competitors across the board here and Men.
I'm really excited to see how it breaks down,
because it's a nail biter. It's really tricky for me to really kind of figure out exactly who
is going to make it into the championship seat and an impact grand blue versus tour finals.
That's right. Five star event here of course at evo Las Vegas and yeah we're going to be getting
now players locked and loaded. If you guys we're going to have some amazing matches on the way
but let's see the bracket right here. Let's see who could potentially be taking that path to take
Take that Evo trophy, you can see right there,
winners semifinals, we are gonna have Shio and Xanduri.
And then we're gonna have Coach Foko,
the reigning and defending champion up against Mono.
Yes, indeed, and on the loose side,
of course, insurgent up against Blue Sky Guy.
Man, what a way to start off that loose side,
and on the opposite end of it,
it's gonna be Mirai versus Aide Actor.
This is the top eight that I could never have predicted.
Of course, like, we have our powerhouses here,
some eyes to look out for, and y'all at home are gonna have an opportunity to follow along on this path as well.
I mean, this is quite the spread. I'm looking forward to seeing some of the performance here.
Again, characters for this game are going to be phenomenal.
I believe every individual player is going to be utilized in a unique character across the cast.
We'll see any repeats. I mean, this is Grandblue at its finest.
Oh, it's going to be a banger for sure. Some unfortunate country team kills there in the early stages, you know what I'm saying?
But you know, hopefully I could provide some variety as we go through the bracket there, but yeah, man
This is this is where it all pays off. This is where everybody has
Striving to get that W man. Everybody comes to Evo. They've been honing their craft and yeah, man
This is gonna be a big opportunity for the players not only to qualify
Like we said earlier with the five-star event qualification spot, but the points are huge at this event huge
Absolutely. So points are definitely gonna shake things up here
We do have some competitors that are qualified a little bit in the higher echelon of rankings here
But somebody wants to get a solidified position and we do have some folks are further down on the rankings here scoring only at 20 points
They're looking to jump up through the ranks and get ever closer to that qualified position
But let's not forget I did mention that you folks at home are gonna be able to help out with this bracket prediction
Let's take it over to those top eight predictions presented by PlayStation
Tournaments and you at home can actually take the opportunity hitting the exclamation point and number that you see here on the screen
to vote for who you expect to take it at this EVO tournament.
Who do you think is there?
Dude, it's tough, right? It's tough.
My two, I'm looking at, honestly, I'm feeling Zandori on this one.
Zandori's been two on fire.
I gotta go with the safe pig, Zandori as well.
You know, run a wrap at EVO two times running now,
and no Casper Saga here to stop him.
So yeah, man, I gotta go with Zandori right now.
Yeah, Zandori. The CAG is too strong, bro.
I mean honestly that dominant performs that we ended up seeing over at Japan and just the consistency from San Dori
I'm not a pressure, but I mean that consistency right is something to
Behold but also this on the other side too. I mean look at that the jump up a koji who's coji been locked in
Yeah, that has been a player that has been very consistent throughout the series and also jump it do hold on a second
Okay, I see you now. I want to see it's been surged at love honestly cuz I was gonna transition over like the consistency of competitors
Yeah, it has had an insanely stellar year, but that can also be said for BSG as well
Like this is that field is terrifying to try to make this prediction
Yeah, it's a tough one for sure
But right now coach a cocoa well in the lead look at that 27% of voters getting in on that one. Let's see here
Yeah, there you go. All right, look at that coach a cocoa rounded off the prediction here followed by Monarch
And again Monarch on the material so some folks are probably feeling pretty confident that the sniper fire coming from
from Monarch is actually going to be pretty difficult to deal with across this castle.
See how it plays out a little bit here before we get into our first match,
but let's take a look at our upcoming competitors here then we jump into the match.
I believe it's going to be Shio stepping up with the victory path presented by White Claw Serr.
Oh yes. There you go. See the path right there. I'm losing one game? Bro, KTP? That's crazy.
No, she is looking ready. She has been locked in and let me tell you loane is a nightmare character to deal with
And she always takes one in it for quite some time now that character
But also putting a surgeon into losers a very tricky match up there and surgeon is one of those very consistent players
That tries to overcome loin, but not gonna be doing it that time
Maybe get the run back here, but then Dory actually knocking DSG into losers out here for that top one for Robert and Dory
No games are indomitable. Indomitable Zandori.
Unstelfable. That's why bro. That's why I had to go against my pick, you know?
Flawless.
Yeah, we're looking on a flawless path for these competitors out here.
And I'm really looking forward to see how it all plays out, because honestly, there is definitely...
This is gonna set it, like, at least on the winner side here.
The path is certainly going to be settled for the rest of this bracket in terms of Ferros.
Yeah, right?
Um, their...
Shio can definitely overcome this Kagliostro. That's for sure.
LaWayne has a character that is quite capable of being able to overcome Kag,
especially when it comes to being able to do the set play with her.
Absolutely.
Spets is across the board, but man, those homies in Sammy and Tomey
are certainly going to come in clutch to try to cover things against Anandori.
That's right. Going to be, you know, trying to close that gap,
trying to, you know, prevent Kag from setting up and running her game
from anywhere on the screen. Yeah, LaWayne, definitely a threat.
You know, the character did get turned down ever so slightly,
I ever still have men it's gross still a monster. I'm sure you're pretty well aware over in your region
I'm noticing right this Europe is is low in territory, but I'm telling you and you inspired the world
That's what it was. You know, of course
We still have cackleo show on the side of Zandori and the absolute like speed that Zandori plays this character
He's insane to keep up with I mean how many throw baits do we see earlier coming up against that set and be a stream?
I'm sure that's at the forefront of his mind as we lead into this top eight run and across
everybody's buying as they want this path to get ever closer to qualification
victory. That's right these two have played previously at EVO events either
Japan 2025 and 2026, Zandori taking that both times so the EVO record definitely
in Zandori's favor here but Shio has got the W on him in the past so you know the
beast can be slain yes but can you do it here on the EVO Vegas main stage. That's
gonna be an important thing here and of course I know it's pretty early out here
here in Vegas, but hey, it is about the afternoon for me on East Coast time.
I'm with you, man.
Who's got Shio on this?
Let me hear it for Shio fans out in the crowd.
There you go.
Please, please.
I heard somebody really feeling for Shio right now.
Shrieking over there.
All right, but what about Zandori, the young gun, the indomitable?
Who's got Zandori taking this one?
Okay, a split crowd there.
Okay, Zero, I see you.
I'm okay.
I see you.
Newly sponsored here, newly minted jersey, ready to go.
Fresh.
off the press.
Yes, indeed.
We're back at it again in this arena once more, the fourth year at EVO.
That's a beautiful thing.
That'll begin, so let's go.
Here begins Mates' episode of Take Off to the Skies, this journey of top eight.
Kagano show up against Lil Wayne.
Open gambit is going to be really terrifying here.
Xandor, he gets that ball rolling.
It's going to be tricky for Lil Wayne to try to fight back.
Gio does have ace up his sleeve, especially when it comes to the ultimate throw wheel, but man, that set play is always going to be a very good sending deal.
But it was tough to watch again. I was racking my brain on how you escape some of those man-against-conference-and-go-drop-up-on-man.
I'm falling short of some answers out here, especially when you get to guess the throw baiting out there, and that has been so consistent.
The deep run-up, the instant teleport, taking those guys baiting out your throw.
Man, once you get that set play going, every match up's the same. Hands ready for E. Everybody.
Have you seen the start here? Look at that. The moment of caution here for Q to kick things off, but then Dory is the person to kick off.
That's right. He's got that rock there. Oh my gosh, he's immediately though firing back.
It's not too easy. Quickly trying to get rid of that low hex taking that slight risk, but golden throne.
We do have that behind us, nice spot there, the dash light, we cover that.
Nice there, we want a position for that Zanduari.
We're going to find a situation where you can get that set play going.
Okay.
Excellent throw, great block, we're going to poke here with the light.
Let's hope they try to take out the Sammy on that one too.
The dash here and it's going to be Raging Shane.
To close that one out, Zanduari taking the opening ganda in the first round.
Comfortably.
Yes, absolutely. Like once you took that first step to the corner and you started owning that position
That's the win condition here for Zandori. I always get the low aim which is all the better because low aim, if he's giving room
There's plenty of resources out on the field here
Get the trap set up here. Oh here we go. Not too straight back onto it. Calculated. All combo time
Watch back for a dead.
She'll find those gaps, get a little snack here, peace QA, nice jump out the teleport,
kinda baited handshakes to get out of dodge safely but she's too ready for it.
Alright, the latest on that escape, that's a lot.
Ableeds the bro wheel but gets caught!
That's a two-in-two, they're trying to get her!
Pretty with a quick dodge, very nice.
Alright, I'm gonna be excellent, go in, cat-bought, coast to coast.
There we go, we munching.
Stacked up here, needs one more touch.
She already takes a round.
He's certainly not out of the realm of possibility for Xandori,
but he just keeps a single touch as well.
For reasons to be out on the field,
Lowhex is sitting right on top of the other one.
Yeah, look at that.
Almost baiting him into something.
Oh my gosh, you throw ice rope!
Oh, that's a classic Grand Blue handshake out here.
First game toward Xandori.
Skybound cart, Xandori.
Looking locked in.
That was a close round though right at the end.
Ah, good of gone either way, people.
I'm really trying to settle in there, and it seems just like Shido was on the cusp of victory,
and sometimes it's the hardest opportunity to try to lock someone in, especially with the escape options that Kagli Oshiro has,
and you saw the caution there, right, trying to build up those resources,
snacking up, trying to get additional skybound barcades.
Right, those snacks did get toned down slightly, but still...
Big part of the Wayne's game plan.
Okay, here we go.
I'm gonna hit that combo limit for the reset. He's out immediately!
Sandori!
Cool and collected today. Wow spending the tip you can get out. Absolutely avoid the BC
Should back towards that corner, we know that's where tag wants you to be
Hey
All took was one escape, and yet still it seemed like Shio again, not too far off from Keep for Pace,
to just vent Dory a little more, uh, totin' on the damage helped her here.
Yeah. Shio could find solutions there with the, uh, back throw well timed,
you know, the ultimate DP was coming out.
But Xandor is just a little too prepared.
Just block on the sphere, try to build a little more resources on the approach.
Cross and Sos, and you'll, like, whip on her because you're trying to take out the catlock? Okay.
Immediately! Doesn't let Shio get set up at all!
Ultimate pack, stop just shorting it cut!
Oh no! Oh my gosh, the bros got smoked!
We're able to avoid the rock!
Okay, alright.
Stop there, back.
Oh gosh, Alliance.
That's range on the medium.
Ah, that's...
So unfortunate, teleport for combo, oh no, trust...
Oh!
Catching the recovery on that grab attempt!
This is gonna be super, huh?
No, it's a reason to come a limit, but to maintain it for one more kill, let's shield.
Oh, got him!
Turn the tide!
The party poppers!
Let's go!
HPA paying off!
Oh, shield!
One touch off!
And does get the first round on the board for himself this set.
Okay, she might be back here.
This guy has defeated Tandry in the past.
Yeah.
He's gonna have a 3-1 at a...
Oh!
And he's scoring here, but...
Ooh!
Alright, most of them got a little salsa. I definitely got cross-eyed for a second there.
Yeah!
Great. Please!
Let's get this up on my OBC right back!
Gio!
I'm gonna run him down.
Xandori always finds a way to get the hit!
Another meal.
Hold up the B.C., but no punish.
Good splash.
That's not how they're related there.
I'm gonna just get any kind of team going here.
the throw wheel too close to traspot log in that situation oh what a low poke here
shio taking control no one resources oh I love that straight to the racing
chain to normalize the combo ruin shio does get one up on the board here one
Wow, that's beautiful.
I'm not sure, it was only just over a month ago that these two cross paths, it was 3-1 in favor of Zandori.
This is it, right? This is where we see how far we can go.
Shio getting really changed things up here, Zandori, of course, sitting strong and ranking,
but that's not going to dissuade Zandori, we're trying to secure that locked position at the finals.
Absolutely, the points drop a fair for these top eight places is huge.
Of course, the first place will qualify second, gets to 300 points, which is a huge amount of battle.
And Shields, certainly finding those points, sitting for me at 20 on the rankings right now.
Yeah. I mean, Ligra, this match is guaranteed to be at least top three, which is a huge amount of points.
A 4% qualification. Okay, Samurai, big life, you've already...
Oh my gosh, the challenge.
Very good low profile, but you can check out it still.
Recovering time, see if I can turn the golden throne.
Stopping feeling tracks, that's insane.
Hey buddy, can't we go here and look around for that?
Oh!
Alright, setting up tracks.
Oh, we're landing on that one, yep.
It's gonna be combo time.
You got enough to finish the job here?
Oh, the combo limit!
The recognition number's just finished.
What's that time?
Oh!
Commit!
Throw bait, I'm telling you!
Xandor has been on it with these!
In that situation, what do you do?
If you're not just going to sit there, you have to do something!
Xandor is well aware of that!
Alright, I think we saw his Betsy Nando.
I'm so prepared for any kind of approach from Xandor.
Nice flashlight in return.
Another one to back it up!
Wow, everybody's faith.
Alright.
It's much more fun.
Alright, if we set that up in a B reset, it comes to the bros.
We're gonna challenge the teleport!
Smart, but unfortunately they get parity called out.
You know, the upper-tags in between the rock and the hard play is like a little throw there.
No escape, but she'll find one.
Sammy, tell me the dash, have you knocked the word?
Oh my gosh, the bro will just clear the screen, so nice!
I mean, this might be the sacrifice that's gonna last us here,
because I know he's certainly threatening this corner.
Alright.
He changes. She has been doing such a great job of avoiding being on this set-place situation.
Yes, the crowd!
Alright, let's see.
Oh!
With jab one, I'll take it!
The HPA, the ace in the hole.
Here we go.
Yeah.
Let him go. Let him watch it.
Mind games.
Flashback to Evo Ferranz, bro.
You okay?
That's crazy.
Okay.
Oh, he's tasty.
He's fever-stroke, but you don't even have enough health?
Yeah, that's right.
He won that.
I'd prefer to pass that in that situation.
Okay.
Alright, he X.
Happy, happy.
He's already Zandori.
Could be in trouble, is there?
Oh!
Nice coverage here from Zandori, but they're heavy.
That's where he's starting off the anti.
Right, EX, happy black people inside this shit already, Zandori!
Could be in trouble here, Zero!
Oh, nice coverage here from Zandori, but they're having this where he's starting up the anti.
Trap, close!
Gonna prevent Shia from escaping this corner, standard offense, but you can't jump either, the wall bounce full combo!
Having long in, there's our super SFDA!
Going to get that off in the Super Skydive. Art should seal the bill here if there's that story.
Drop a pose, get it up. Two-one.
Wow. Yeah, nice call off here, and again, you're caught on the back foot.
There's something about Cagliostro starting to force players to sweat, and really panic and fall into some of those, you know, former traps that were just avoiding entirely.
But, you see, you know, I'm not going to be dissuaded again here. Back in familiar territory, as it were.
I mean, that was a comeback situation.
That was a show was cooking that round.
That could have gone the other way.
A body wall spear is the deep one.
Yeah, that's right.
Yo, was that the best button for a reason?
Right?
It was character isn't moving.
Bulljunking now.
Let's confirm off the cat bot.
Yep.
I'm going to hit him.
Recept the hat.
Oh, he wants you to spot dodged it.
Exactly.
Give him a little flavor of what Zandori was throwing out earlier.
And look at the coverage.
Shiyo, does that give you steps back?
Because he changed the teleport to get into the air deep positions.
Look at this. Shiyo is gonna be so good.
Full season combat situations.
Okay, ult my hex.
That's their way from back.
Burrow wheel.
Tap off the silos.
Are we...
YOOOOOOH!
That was so good, dude.
That was so hard to do.
The double cover here to get close to pop the hex.
But, man, Zandori is gonna try to get this back here.
I want those resources.
I made it a vestment.
Oh, good tech.
Very patient. Smart game planning to show, but right now he's Zandori on fire.
Tech snap!
Cross up.
That's fine. I got out of the corner.
Carlyle is out though.
What expected to teleport there? That's why he backed off.
Yeah, very smart. He's waiting for some kind of anti-air.
Alright, Zandori.
Takes care of the pros.
Ease!
That's the life of combat against that once more.
Yeah, I'm not allowed to be seen there.
Oh, life! That's down the ultimate wheel with the perfect range!
Zandori's beautiful! Is this enough?
No!
Oh, takes up on Zandori! Set point!
Ten seconds left in the round!
Wow!
Another comeback!
Winning these situations! Awesome comeback from Zandori!
Nice to attack a bachelorette.
I'm gonna get you down to the right side.
Ooh, alright.
I'm gonna get you down, it's gonna do a lot of the wave.
It's gonna get you close, that's weird.
I'm gonna get you up to the laser.
Hold for the necks.
Take off.
Got her jammed. Awesome sauce.
That's right.
Get you a chance to set up.
Whoa!
E-necks.
I'll put your hole, I'll make it out of here to the needy DC, spare body.
Look at this.
Oh my gosh, that was so good. The movement was clean from Shio.
Oh no!
It's not over yet.
There we go. I was definitely getting nervous.
You could put in Zandori in this position time and time again.
Oh yeah.
I was hoping you'd get the finish, because man, another comeback from Zandori would be devastating.
Look at this, he's still in this.
He's not over yet.
Oh!
Beautiful timing on that.
And the background.
Wow, how did you take that?
That awesome sauce.
Massive read for shield.
A walk up.
Ex.
The limit.
This is going to be huge.
Is it enough to kill Zero?
Go to the damage output.
Oh my gosh.
Oh my gosh.
Yo, using his reactions against him.
That is so sovereign, Gio.
And it's just the mental stack of just,
if I take this hit from the ultimate,
then I get in the chip territory and I'm still worse off.
So I have to try to maintain what health I have remaining.
Borderline checkmate situation. Exactly. Exactly. One more step away here for full players.
Dash M, gonna get the knockdown. What's more, awesome soft corner carry. This is it here. Strong start for Xio.
Yeah, Xio's been getting these strong starts. From Rip, honestly. Here we go.
Ultimate wheel. Has a poke almost. Look at this.
forcing Xandori into a block stun situation there's the BC. Oh my gosh.
That's okay. We're still trying to poke out but Shio taking their time since we only need a single touch.
Round up and on set point the times have turned. Wow. Thanks for the favor and Xandori did not look happy for that round.
Here we go. Shio set point. What a turnaround. It spins there like you say.
Okay, it's a rush.
That's a range, good block with Dash.
He's knocked out.
Oh!
That's great. And there he is, bro!
It's calculated!
Oh yeah, calculated.
Fun fully intended.
Oh!
Still going up.
Okay.
Space on that line.
Andorino.
I rush him down the BC from Shiro trying to maintain space.
The splash!
They jump the teleport, just get some extra hand time, stopping Shiro with that alt-X.
Spacefungid, that's gonna be the back row!
Unfortunate that the sand door is just slightly missed on it.
Oh! Still trying, still definitely trying to get the air tier.
Better positioning.
I will there.
Takes an air to trap.
Oh the challenge! What a blow! Right there from Shiro!
Right in the corner.
Is this enough?
Ain't no way!
Wait, hold up!
Oh my goodness, Shio watching out for victory! 3-2, Homer's half-boy!
Wow!
Another in-famer of Shio!
Listen, Shio, the record for this one at EVO.
More often than not, it has been going to Zandori at EVO Japan,
but EVO Vegas will be Shios, guys! Give it up for Shio!
Wow! Winner's final now.
So impressive right there.
right there and that is like you said guaranteed the lock-in of the position
top two right so it's top three garrison points three rather yeah guarantee points
now so it's a hundred and fifty minimum yes the shio here that's a massive jump
massive jump 20 points on the board here me ride the other individual that
would be at 20 points total so certainly a lot of points to be gained here in
this again I set this this match and the next one is gonna really set the tone
for the entire bracket but I I mean our predictions are a little bit off
starting things out but there's still a possibility Xandori makes his comeback
here. Yep. Through the Lucius side. They walked at the knot. Xandori does make a
strong run on Lucius side. We saw that at Evo Japan. So maybe we get another
return. A rise to the occasion for Grand Finals but time will tell as you're
trying to run through the rest of this bracket. Absolutely yeah very possible of
course Xandori definitely not out yet but you know still has a shot to make it
to that finals. Yeah absolutely let's take a look back at this match here again in
In this corner position, just the dominant performance of set play coming from Loane here.
That was so good.
Constantly in position on these teleports, knowing exactly where Kaku-Liostro is going to reappear.
Yeah, the game plan was so good from Shio.
Definitely came prepared, you know, with the strategy and it paid off beautifully.
And it was really using Zandori's reactions against him with the...
I love the Ultima Bro.
Not even using it as like a combo tool or for damage, just using it as an opportunity to open up Zandori.
We saw it time and time again.
The spacing was beautiful, just everything working out.
Yeah, and honestly, Shio really getting on board with a lot of the checkmate scenarios that we're talking about here,
just to make sure that we can guarantee victories for ourselves, recognizing that we have that opportunity to seize victory.
Really well played. Zendori also excellent, right? Just constantly making these comeback scenarios here,
but that does put a toll on your mental endurance throughout the set here.
Now I'm on the back foot, I really got to step up to try to seize victory against Shio in these situations,
but man, look how dominant this was.
Yeah, this was it. This was just so good, like, all the way across.
Okay, and everything that he needed, all the resources,
and then that's what we were talking about right there.
Ultimate wheel, you spot dodged.
Okay, thanks for the game.
GG. Absolutely, absolutely.
I love that both players are utilizing that tactic as well.
Like, both players are really on top of trying to
temper the expectations of reactions here.
And this, the optimization of the mixture, we got that kill?
Yeah, optimizing it, man.
The very last hit there.
Sealing it for Xio.
Very, very well deserved to take it over Xandori,
which for a lot of people, ourselves included,
was the favorite to take it here at EVO.
So great stuff to Shia.
Yes, yes, all right.
So let's take it back to the bracket here
and see how the rest of this run goes.
Our next match coming up is going to be that Koji Koko
versus Monarch on her side.
I don't know how we play this one now,
because it's definitely going to be a Slava knocker,
like we just saw here with Shia in San Dori.
Because man, Koji Koko and Monarch,
we're talking Matera up against,
but it's most likely going to be Beatrix.
And I've always been kind of championing that.
Matera is kind of the anti-Beatrix character in a lot of cases.
That 5-0 is such a super dominant button,
especially against her Rive-free.
And you think about the full-screen zoning,
like, you know, she could do Rive-free full-screen,
but man, does Monarch keep that coverage
complete against Beatrix here?
Let's check out that victory path, though,
up on the screen as we have Koji Koko.
Quite the run, unfortunately, making a team kill against B-Paw.
But still, that 2-1 victory against Mirage, there's definitely going to be a lot of runbacks here.
Oh yeah, no doubt, definitely.
Cody Kodak, one of the ones to be looking out for here.
The reigning and defending Evo Champion, of course.
Yes!
So, you know, definitely one to watch out there.
And look at that.
You can see the player seems to have done, like you said, an unfortunate team kill there.
Form, uh, for, for, uh, B-Paw.
Yes.
Take it.
But here we go.
Victory path presented by Whiteclawsearch.
It's going to be Monarch's path.
Let's see, right here, man.
It had some incredible matches.
Yeah.
He went out in here with Monarch so you know shouts to him for always killing the handsome
Grandblue. Absolutely this is pretty early appearance here for Monarch. I was talking
earlier how traditionally Monarch kind of at the tail end of a qualifying run is
where Monarch really just steps up and does seize that position but this time
around Tom ain't at Evo in Grandblue. Huge. Very huge. I mean that's an early
rest period that you can take if you take it all at this point. You're gonna score
very high and of course you know Grandblue Tour lasts until November so those
last few opportunities are a few of far between at least stateside right the next
five-star event gonna be CEO and of course Boston Bluebeat for the four-star
event as well amongst many others across the globe including versus fighting
happening next month as well so plenty of opportunities across the globe but
stateside was opportunities are few and far between. Absolutely yeah good stuff
they're bringing up there's fighting showers to the homies back in the UK
holding it down with that one and congrats on getting the five-star event
That's awesome.
Yes.
Absolutely.
All right.
That's what we try to get our players set up here.
Koji, Coco, likely going to be committing to that beat.
Yes.
I know, of course, that we generally have that alternative character, but we're going to
take a look at the EVO fantasy pick, the top eight presented by AT&T.
Wow, look at that.
Everybody had Xander.
We did.
We did.
We definitely did.
to win with Zandori all right seventy eight point six percent pick rate to win
Wow, I mean you couldn't really go wrong with that pick considering the the historical play that Zandori has presented over last year
It's just very consistent top three competitor
But that just goes to show the level of play at that she always you know come with a game plan specifically for Zandori
You know you got to imagine they're going going into this tournament
You have to have a game plan for some of these top-top players and we we saw it in full effect in that last game
But let's see if that happens here as well
Damped up or going into a here. Let's give it up for these competitors here. Who's got Koji Coco taking the dump?
Yeah, I thought there might be Koji fans, but look mark is pretty calculated about this one here
Who's got Monarch fans out here?
Yeah, that's always home right there. Oh, yeah, you're talking about the big two of Grand Blue State side teams
Already the rivalry begins
Let's get it going here guys.
Patera has been looking insane this weekend, let me tell you.
You and me on this game, she doesn't change the fact that I like that aspect.
You know, she's not wrong.
She's this.
Alright, let's get it guys.
Okay, you go.
Up the side of winning 7-bottles here, Koji Koko versus Bona.
Very quick to close the gap, excellent roll, and this is where you want to be as Beatrix,
be a trick right to try to look yourself into the opposition so the terror does not have
an opportunity to stay out. I suppose I'm searching for a late tech though.
Okay, ooh, the ult's gonna get a shot out immediately.
Besides, a lot of guys throw up the corner.
What about the pop? So annoying to deal with.
I'm not gonna have enough there since I have the ultimate butterfly now.
Hey, I'm in NBC, Koji Koko.
Ooh, that spot.
A little sketch right there.
Almost got called out.
Yeah.
I'm gonna have to try and make some space, but it's not just on the fireball.
Yo, Koji Koko's spinning the last of those bravery points.
Life was low anyway, so why not?
Ooooooh!
Ultimate riding free into a full combo!
There we go, there's that double cost that should see-lit.
Koji Koko!
Taking the first round.
Battle 2, engage.
Alright.
I'm trying to make great use of the low-ranked projectiles, making it super frustrating to
go to go to go to go to gap.
I'm gonna fly out.
It's a load!
Alright, nice.
Get locked in.
Oh, shut down.
Excellent spacing here.
Comfortable on-air.
Watch it.
No star chaser for Koji.
That's butterfly.
It's absolute menacing.
Oh, yeah.
There you go.
Oh yeah, there you go, Mopham.
You see, Dashline, where it late-time to take a little bit of damage this time.
You burp!
Oh!
Nice call off the ultimate.
Yeah, good stuff spending that 50.
What is that gap?
It's a riding freeze!
Now the medium version gonna get the counter hit, full combination.
Oh yeah.
Ultimate for extra damage.
Mopham missed the conversion.
Oh
Wow now by the finish there the second round of this first game
That cat cutie fleet!
Oh, it's a Cocoa!
I'm fired with these callouts!
Oh!
Yeah, way too far.
Fucking down monogamy in this corner right here.
My bees aren't important, though. I'm trying to build up those resources.
That's like...
Tracking, of course.
Oh my gosh, what a challenge!
Oh, that's some knowledge there from Koji Coco.
Easy, easy B&B to take the round at the first gate.
Beautiful stuff.
And identifying the fact that Monarch wanted to get aggressive immediately after that barfly.
Navigation for Koji Koko has been great.
I love the fact that Koji, every time there's been an ultimate butterfly,
he really presses the gas to push forward against Monarch
to give you less room to try to challenge or navigate the round.
It was brilliant to go for that ultimate Thunderbird to avoid the ultimate butterfly as well,
because he saw the shot coming through.
but slows things down, gives Koji time to avoid the giant hurt box that is the ultimate butterfly.
No doubt. Of course, once that's applied, you know your opponent's going to attack at some point.
They're not just going to let it go and do nothing. So Koji Koko identifying that beautifully.
All right. A little bit of thought here before we go into our next game.
It's indeed the most, uh, methodical competitor out here, Monomer.
Yeah. Take the time to study the notes, make sure we understand how we approach this match-up
because sometimes it does take that moment of cool that really helps settle things for Monarch to understand their opponent, matchup that they're going into.
Absolutely, well within the rules here to take, you know, just a little moment to have a think.
Multi-Gang champion, though, is Monarch.
Right, right.
Jump back into it once again as you jump back into the action.
Let's get it.
All right, Monarch is trying to make space all the time, in any moment that Ryder 3 could come out of nowhere.
Okay, it's a version here.
Set's up.
Oh.
Yo!
Double hot from the beat.
That was nice.
Yeah.
Hot from the terror.
Such a layered tool that she has.
Monarch said no to that first map, but I know she did.
Yep.
Well, that one there.
Old scene.
I'll try it again.
I mean, it is an exit tool to get in.
It's kind of a double-edged sword again.
I'm looking for the 5L, come on, so Monarch can really shut things down.
Get that maximum space to quick recovery here.
That's right.
Okay.
Oh, that's beautifully.
It's the EX Riding Free from combo time.
Alright, we are doing it.
Spending 100.
Big life lead, very close looking back, oh wait a second though, wait a minute.
Call out on the throw, SSBA trying to feed the things up, not the full animation.
Yeah, gets one very good point back on that.
Oh, missed input from Monarch will be his demise.
There you go, where'd you go, closing that one out.
Looking like he could be taking two throw leads, just one round off from doing that, nice confirm of the air-to-air.
I'll play now with the star chaser, didn't have to flop off to 2L.
I'm going to burn again, the medium addition just to keep the plus frames.
See? 5L every time, but that was star chaser this time.
Her box does kind of extend down a little bit when you start that up.
5-0, definitely useful in this matchup, like he said, 0.
Okay.
That's the test there with that star chase.
So the timing, Mott, Monarch, and Mitterra just dominate in the zoning game.
Whoa, beautiful stuff, flies right back with 50% as well.
Okay, there's a flying right here.
Koji Koko, you know he's waiting for a moment.
He's arriving for you to jump, and there it is.
Oh no!
Wait a minute, too far, didn't have a follow-up?
Alright, I'm telling you, 5 out, that's enough for the riding pre-
Mm-hmm, and Monok, at that time, keeping it a bit more frame-tight after the ultimate butterfly.
Okay, there it is, sent.
Oh my gosh, the chase!
I'll throw a butterfly at him.
I already have a lifeline.
What are you gonna do? I have a lifeline.
Oh no, this side's a bit heavy.
Oh!
Okay, can you see there? Monok now on a pixel.
Anything right now from Koji Koko.
Should secure it.
16 seconds left, we're still looking for the chip, the spots, my tech is falling away, oh it's still there!
Ryde 3 will take it, the 2-0 lead!
Wow, crazy stuff right there in that last situation.
I thought it was floating shot, that was going to come out on top, but the activation of Ryde 3 just didn't make it time to stop Monarch.
Just shutting it down when I'm not happy with that one to Sierra and go to Coco in such a favorable position now
Just one game away from winners finals of Evo
One game away one game away from returning to the throne as Evo champion
Can we get the back-to-back victory from Kochi? Very possible. It keeps playing like this
Looking super impressive man
See
Taking over the notes once more.
We weren't far off. Again, introducing the 5L was really important throughout the set.
We had a few interactions that interrupted a lot of what Koji was trying to pressure it with.
And I don't think you were too far off from victory. It is just that one awkward interaction.
And unfortunately, Beatrix is a character that can really run away with straight hits
and really optimize a ton of damage off the point.
Absolutely. Interestingly enough, these two have played
before Monarch was the only person to actually get a set on Coach Coco last year.
Yes, but he won it from losers, right? So he's looking a complete other way around this time.
Coach Coco, he's looking dominant.
Nice hop. Ooh, the stack at this time.
Monarch looking really good right now.
That's a flip on the tech.
It's Beatrix. She needs just one reversal to get the sides long.
Oh, chef down the star, Jacer.
Yeah.
The combo. The combo's in reached.
He sets up the buff, flies.
Okay, yeah, he did want to do that.
Tossed.
Heavy. Let's do it again. We can start chaser.
Oh! Not at the door with a five-out.
There's SSBA on the table too.
Yeah, off the delta clock. It's huge now.
Let's see.
Big damage.
Is this right?
I can't believe it, I can't believe it, because that was optimized.
And it is optimized!
What?!
Koji Koko!
I was, I was waiting with Mane and Phelps because like, I'm, this route is not the ordinary route you take,
but this was huge to maximize the damage, because you utilize all those specials to get the back to back fireball.
I look at this momentum, heavily in Koji Koko's court right now, the big jump in to start us off.
Come on, I'm firing back though.
The bang on the DP, big punish!
All the way to the corner.
No, got to refund the 5 hour watch at big jump Emmy.
Okay, send it out.
Not your nose.
And Koji just trying to get that clean hit that he needs.
Potentially to close this one out.
Spending the game on that floating on that flight is there.
Spends 50 for the riding free.
I got the washer.
This is raw.
We get the re-bump.
I don't know if you are killing.
Oh, nice jump.
Wow.
Lost moment situation there.
Great decision for Monarch to stay alive here.
This is fun.
This could be challenged.
Not enough to get to punish.
A fast up at least.
And a 2L Koji Coco clean 3-0 with the dominant performance.
I don't know what Monarch could adjust in this set
because Kody had an answer for Gosthar and you're everything marked around him.
Amazing play right there. Koji Koko says you might have got the win on me last year.
Still ended up winning the tournament. That is going to be different this time around.
Koji Koko looking to take it from winners side. Looking clean.
This top 8 is looking pretty strong. I mean a pretty good case to make a return
to ask the champion of EVO 2026 but we'll see how she'll get through and she'll
was in top form especially against Zandori. Let's check out the replays presented by
PlayStation tournaments. Let's check it out man. That was an exciting set for sure man.
Some back and forth rounds but Koji Koko the decision making was just too good. I mean look
at this. This is the ride free that actually clutched out the victory here with 10 seconds
left on the clock. The spodge and immediately you're free to snipe out because you see the shot
coming out. One monarch there and just barely missing. See the actions from the plays as well.
Yeah, that was definitely the move of the match I feel.
That riding free, just being able to close that gap.
Yeah, it's definitely that show, Stopper, again, like,
riding free is always at the front of your mind in this matchup.
But Mitterer does have that tool in 5L,
which you saw about the Game 2 era,
where we started seeing that shutdown
because it covers the ground, that quick recovery,
but it just was not enough to stop Koji Coco from his game plan.
That's not enough to stop us from any of this action here,
but we are going to take a little bit of a break.
Don't go away, more Grandblue fans
versus Rise and Top 8 action will be back at you
right after this.
I guess it's weird for you to call me daddy.
It's very weird there.
I'm just going to go back and I've got to avenge myself.
God, guys, make me laugh, people.
Oh, jeez.
Oh, that boy who's just breaking Joe and the Looch, look at him go.
How is he beating him?
This guy's a scrub.
There's no way I'm a scrub too.
Use them, Joey.
Use the zeniths.
They're built for blue-eyed blockers.
Incorrect this lens.
Use them Joey. Use the Zeniths. They're built for blue light blockers and corrected lenses.
The next video will be about a new game.
I hope you enjoyed it.
Thanks for watching.
Alright people, welcome back to EVO 2026, Grand Prix Fast and Fast is right in the top, yeah!
Okay, I like that. You guys are getting into it.
As we're checking in with the Airheads air cam, make sure your LED arena wristband is on to be a part of the action.
Let me see those wristbands, shake them up in the sky, folks, if you got them.
Yeah, Airheads air cam, bleed.
I think it's not going to airheads all weekend, alright?
Yeah, man.
I brought my own package of Airhead extremes. I'm hoping to get more.
Let's go, guys.
Is that going to back on Airhead extremes? Should we real quick bring them up? Bring them up? No? No?
Alright, maybe later.
Man, so far, a stellar start to this top eight.
That's for sure. Koji Koko versus Monarch really set the tone.
Again, the top half is really going to set the tone for the ferocity, like I was saying.
Of course. Coming back to that, but I don't think any of us expected Shio to come on top the way that he did.
I mean, excellent performance, especially turning it around for Mibo Japan.
That's right. Yeah, the game plan was just beautiful to see it come to fruition.
You know, really prepared, and yeah, the strategy worked out.
There you have it, man, so we do have our winners final set.
Shio versus Koji Koko.
That's gonna be fire again. Wow. Yeah, absolutely, especially with the consistency that Koji Koko has been showcasing day
That's just strength and dominance, especially how strong he's been
Let's take a look at the bracket so you can see exactly what we've been talking about from this time on the first two matches here
This man Koji Koko heads off to Japan's locks in starts training and comes back a dominant force
But we'll have to rise up to the occasion in shield
We're gonna take you to the loser side of matches first
as between Insurgent Blue Sky guy and me, Raius, versus Paid Actor.
Mmm, here you go.
Let's see who is going to take it here.
But, of course, guys, we're going to have to look how the players got here.
So let's take a look at their victory path, of course, presented by Whiteclaw Surge.
You can see Insurgent right here.
Qualified, of course, for Grand Blue World Tour Finals at Side Games Cup.
You can see the games that he had here losing out to shio in that top 24 fighting out from the loser side here
So it's not going to be easy zero certainly not because you're up against blue sky guy
Don't let the face fool you this individual is quite a force. He's a killer man as well
I mean unfortunately falling short up against the Zen Dory
But still a clutch victory against Iago go raids an excellent run to secure their position here on the loser side of top
There you go man. I'll have to blast this big man.
I've been lovin' the blast list, Pancho.
But man, BSG has had quite the story over the last year.
Really rising to the occasion, just falling shy.
Securing championship status time and time again,
but finally securing that over at Texas Stona.
But now, this is where all the marbles matter here, right?
We are trying to rise up to qualify for Grand Blue versus finals.
Points on the board, but 20 is not enough.
And if we look at the AT&T scoring here, the fantasy pick in the top eight presented by AT&T,
it looks like Blue Sky Guy at 28%.
I mean, I remember jumping up for Insurgent as well.
Folks really picked Insurgent trying to take the whole thing.
There you go.
Insurgent reminded us there with that hoodie is the combo breaker reigning champion here.
Did actually defeat Blue Sky Guy in that top eight.
So definitely going to be a tough one here for Blue Sky Guy
if you want us to overcome this guy.
Absolutely, Blue Sky guy, someone who has been pretty calculated on previous matches
before, has come toe-to-toe against the Surgeon.
Time and time again, we'll see how this play is out, because Benatmasaraga has to walk
a long path to try to close the gap against the U.S.S. Grant, and both of them from society.
Maybe this is going to turn things around here.
Let's hear it for our next batch, folks, the Surgeon vs. Blue Sky guy.
I feel like y'all are waking up right now, I feel like, yeah!
And the further we go through the bracket, the more we want to hear you guys.
Oh my gosh.
This guy's so scary.
I love this fit though. This is like my favorite costume for Voss or Haga.
Very clean.
Alright, but with summer outfit uses, you know?
Ooh, let's go.
Tunch on, squirt on.
I'm telling you, it's time for the season.
Hey, they match.
Exactly, they do match. The clean white, let's go.
Let's get it here. Immediately applying that Soul Forge.
Locked in with that rat race here.
And this is the thing that BSG had to deal with in San Jorge, right?
It was a rope baits on the approach.
Again, immediately. You didn't care about that rat race.
You can press in some buttholes, smell like blue sky guys.
Okay, it's big, I think, though.
Right, it's definitely not going to be as easy.
W here, this guy guy, you know, just by character archetypes.
It's that Eustace has the one up here on Vex.
Walking things down, you're not going to be able to fatally appear your way through the victory here.
We do get a Soul Forge, that's a big step.
Oh my gosh, you did the flood in the screen projectiles.
That's what I'm gonna do with that ultimate.
Oh!
Nice call-out.
Recognizing the spot down.
Yeah, we get the throw.
So, then, let's go with the injectors.
But how long ago he just did it?
Oh, too far away.
I like the idea.
Last-ditch effort.
It's not the first time we see him do that on this path
to get to top 8.
Sometimes you go to do it.
So let it rip.
The whiff punish was clean.
Beautiful, now it's not a lannis from Insurgent.
It's forged, we're still locked in with this full next thunder.
Stomping, Hax is in front of us, Gage.
Got patience here, patience is such an important word I feel to describe when it comes to Insurgent's game.
Yeah, I mean, so good at just staying, waiting for his opponent to make a move in right now.
Because Insurgent has really had to weather the storm with this character has been a character specialist on uses even before his current state
Man like it is really shown the patients is just leveling up through that
The brutal rise of use players trying to come up in this one or sign or even just in top eight positions
Yeah.
They're trying to maintain the space in here.
Blue sky, good eye.
Oh, jeez.
Yeah, the full force saving here for the actual McThunder.
Absolutely.
Purposeful positioning there.
Oh!
Too far, too far.
Not the attempt though.
Good back, search it.
No bravery points.
This is looking rough.
Blue sky, go against the hit.
25 seconds left on the block.
Oh! That was so good.
A big opportunity here for Insurgent with 19 seconds left, it's going to be tough.
ESG is trying to close the gap, and Insurgent goes for the retreat.
He tries to zone out here.
Over here though.
Ultimate grab of course.
G.Sky goes favorite move, doesn't matter.
Insurgent taking the first game.
Opted to take the risk to push things into the corner here.
You have to prove to me you're willing to spend that resource to go for the ultimate command grab.
Yeah.
definitely something you have to think about at all times when playing against
Vassaraga. Any time you see he's got at least 50% you better almost expect it's
coming up. Okay here we go. It's the moment to have a breather here. Yes indeed.
Hop in. Let's believe in victory. Battle one for game number two. Okay.
Watch out for that, he's not going to avoid the grenade.
With a low close combat, push corner.
Sharps to the mech, under, calls out the spot dodge.
Keep it to stop.
Such a difficult one for Basarok.
So much to think about on defense.
Jumps out with the command grab that we were just talking about.
Two, ready for it.
Yep.
Surgeon fully aware.
Blue sky guys, tenancies on defense.
Grappleys is applied, what's the matter?
Nice chase down here, battalion up here.
My question, sergeant.
Yo!
Okay, got to walk up, command grab.
Be careful, we can't sell forge.
We'll be a game changer right now.
Nice confirm.
Okay, touch away on either side here.
Oh!
Oh no, there's no reaction in the world if you can't pass enough to call off that command grab.
What a comeback right there, and Sergent has nothing to back.
This goes to Shodner, never count these guys up.
Certainly not.
Instinction Crusher.
What a five off, that's an insanely brave 5-0.
Yeah.
Fossilago.
Absolutely.
It's like a hit for that.
Traskin the jump out succeeds.
He's gonna walk down with a guy crush. Yep.
Now, this guy guy, the impatient on his own approach.
Okay, no, he locks in that corner.
He's surging, this is not where he wants to be, no where else to walk back.
Okay, wow. Big confirm.
I'm at risk of using it here.
Hey, but who will this real estate to use?
To your advantage.
Locked in here, slow kill.
Turned to build up this chip, just lightly to favor insertion.
Oh, we have this time to spot God.
The rat race combo, the SBA on deck.
Let's see.
Better optimize.
Time's up.
Hey, watch us do it here.
Yes!
That one braver put him on the side of PSG.
Really helping out in Surgeon with that combo.
Taking the ground up here for Insurgent.
Time things up for game two.
Good spot dodge to stop for PSG.
Very staggered in headshot.
Good escape on that.
On the way you're trying to go for it again. Oh try to realize what we have left of that soul port not enough to close the gas
Hey
Those time in gas port though
All right stop pressure
You can't work out. It's a full combo for insurgent now
Why is the bomb
Good for them for me. Yes, you can't fall for it.
Absolutely. Not having that.
Nice. Keep burning there. Counter hit.
Open a piece here.
Press again.
Okay. Once again.
Certain as we will house.
There's nothing we can do.
Oh my gosh, he did it though.
Yes, the big confirmed look at the damage huge and oh, this is a great position to be in if your BSG is one more time
Oh
Chain that's normalize the route
Yo, I just did it so I started walking
Damn, okay one one here
Wow such a back and forth match
This has been this to these two competitors story throughout the Grand
Blu tour throughout online brackets with his Paragon or comedy clash. This has
been the story and even in the back rooms right just getting sets with each
other. These are some tenured competitors out here.
The SG of the great star game, so let's take a start at rounds.
Nice snipe with the light in there.
Dash heavy, not gonna connect.
That's alright.
He's still keeping a surge at the long-term direct position with the life lead.
Yeah, from this, you know, useless comp, get full screen and start running his game.
The great spell.
This SG.
Full command right now.
Oh my gosh trying to get a little bit tricky with it there
Look at those guys there
what a job
Bsg to lay out just to block up the ground. Oh, I said we're up the slow kill. We don't have a full force
You're not even that safe
Such a game changer
Flashbang out, now for work at the BC.
ESG, this massive lifeline decides to spend the soul force and do a command grab.
And here it comes, the second one with PSG taking the lead at game number three.
ESG playing so threatening that round.
I feel like the entire game was just took place in that left side of the screen and
Sergeant couldn't get out.
That's Voss.
That is Voss, a wall of intimidation.
Walking wall man.
Nice, uppercut off close combat.
That's a good attack.
So, whittling away at the health of PSG's.
Smashbang, keep you locked in the corner.
PSG is not going to give you an opening right now.
Not so far, it's very little you can do.
No challenge off that flamet, nice medium.
Yep, there you go.
Challenge though, insertion again.
Not afraid to press buttons in that scenario.
Okay, ESG now.
He's not choosing the other foot, he's a 10.
Hit block.
Oh!
Wow.
Armored up shut down to the slow kill.
Watch that.
You see that.
You have to watch it.
Watch it.
Watch it.
No way.
Also, the conversion to the raging chain.
Off the wall again.
ESG with the common limit not to be seen.
That's a game up.
Wow, the optimization in that route.
Damage calculation on point there for BSG.
He's putting a lead now.
Spending a couple of ultimates, that damage boost is going to be very beneficial.
There you go, searching out, thinking back, how did I beat this guy?
Combat breaker, what do I need to do right now?
I'm telling you, that loss, BSG took that personally, went right back to the lab,
and that's happened time and time again.
in time again whenever it's been a close set. I mean as any 10-year competitor should do BSG
certainly goes back to the lab and tries to figure out solutions. I've seen the streets,
I've seen the crash outs, I understand BSG. I respect it man.
Nice to the JN.
Right, we're gonna keep walking. No you can't do that, you can't do that.
But he's got crazy armor on him.
Okay, he jumps out, punishing, but no full combo.
Side-slot, very beneficial here for a surgeon.
Spodge, and watch love.
Sick of stuff.
Come again, surgeon now.
Just command in this corner.
Mm-hmm.
All right, he's in off that low.
Ooh, wait, hold up, but up.
Look at that, I'm sending him all the way back, so much cool to carry on that.
The back dash is away.
Yeah, that's it.
Next in space, just doing the next approach.
I don't like Steve Buster on that one.
I don't like that.
Scary, man.
Wow, VSG set point just like that.
The surgeon could be on the budge of coming out of his ear.
That is a qualified competitor looking to try to stop some folks from advancing further into complication.
VSG might be the one to stop them.
Right, what a statement that could be. Yes. I'll see you at 5. There you go.
He's dead, right. Okay, trouble now, Insurgent. I found the hit that he needs.
Oh! Back dash, reporting the command grab. Oh, in-file on that back dash. She's out.
All right, reset here, grab a race, oh, good challenge.
Got to let him race away.
Nice, save a rampage.
Once again, I have a resource that I'm
transferring into the screen.
It's now all the grab, beautiful timing there for the Surgeon.
Oh, my god.
The layering calls out the BC, forwarding off the DP.
Wow.
Surgeon.
You're watching real-time adaptations here, people.
Beautiful play that mid-surgent.
Fire in the way, a voice to flimax on there.
Can't surge it, return the favor to tide all up, take a store game five.
More than capable to mid-surgent.
Surgent now.
Oh gosh.
So close, right through.
Oh my man.
Alright, flies it again.
Alright, Sgt here.
Good spot notch timing there.
Yeah, very clean.
I was tricky in that first game.
GGG actually got the tower by it, but we're defiring with the Instinction into the corner.
Sgt through for the combo limit here.
Build up our resources.
That's it.
Gosh.
So, Sgt, is this corner in command grab?
Thank you for your time. It's going to be the beginning of the end here in Surgeon O.
SSBA is available.
Alright, there's your light.
Oh!
The raging chain.
Is this enough?
Oh, it's definitely enough.
Tyrant, we are BSG!
Knocking out in Surgeon from this top eight.
One step closer.
Yeah, you have it.
And the sign of respect for both players, man.
Good stuff to BSG.
Going to be taking that one and going up to top six position here.
Insurgent will bow out with 7th.
Yes, I mean, let's make some noise for BSG folks,
the second further into evil history,
but let's not leave Insurgent alone without any respect.
Let's give it up for Insurgent, folks.
The great performance already qualified.
Come on, guys.
And the versus, but man,
a stellar performance and getting additional points
for another qualifier here.
Absolutely, there you go.
Yeah, a big shout out to Insurgent for pulling up.
You know, already qualified,
but still wants to show up for some GG's.
stay sharp, you know, very very important. Exactly. I mean look at the stellar performance that we had here in this set.
I mean these two have fought time and time again constantly play sets, but look it's a tall mountain climb as Vasarata here.
It is not in your favor, but then BSG make it look like it's an even round set up here. It's a difficult victory, but Kav is still achieved it.
Look at the savage rampage that caught the reduction on the
great points here and off the wall this great combo conversion to guarantee the
kill of the ultimate skill expenditure. Yeah it's really not an easy approach for
a character like Vassar Agra against this. The use of this right bar. Yeah PSG was
really taking the bar on top of every last situation. Any time he got a hit
everything was optimized. Max damage just due to those resources built to its full
potential. Great stuff and you can see how much that victory meant for him in that
It is that sigh of relief that you know that deep breath like oh my goodness
I was the big guy against the zoner and I still took the dub
We can relax for a little bit
You're still a few matches ahead before BSG has to make the return
But let's take a look at the victory path here for our next competitors coming up here in just a moment
As we take a look at the bracket as well cuz man this run with these competitors
We still have a few more steps to go before we run it out here
Let's take a look once more at that bracket. Let's get it man. See right there. This guy guy will be going up against Monarch
In the round two about top eight here
See man, I'm sorry. Yeah, it's so hard to call out this kid
No, it's already shaking up the foundation has fallen apart with the outside of this match up here
But man, this is a top eight tour of member for sure as you get to this next set
It's going to be Miraias versus Paid After stepping up to the loser side out here and Monarch is waiting in the way to go up against BSG who set the tone.
We are still one step closer to losing a side. So I'm looking forward to seeing this power of actually having to have to lose a side or one of these upcoming competitors be able to take down this consistent Kagli Ostra player.
Well, don't forget Koji Koko took it from the losers last year.
So, you know, anything can happen here at Evo.
Everyone here is capable of taking the tournament.
Yeah, everybody.
Everybody.
So it's really, really hard call here, but we're going to be seeing it very, very soon.
Absolutely.
So thank you so much for everyone at home hanging out with us and everyone in the arena hanging
out with us here.
But let's take a look at the victory path for Marius out here.
I love this shirt here.
I love this shirt.
Presented by White Claw Serge, this victory path here.
And man, what a heartbreaker set for the 2-0 victory coming from Uriah,
so for the merit qualify here, but Paid Actor, man, what a run from Paid Actor.
I see this player online brackets time and time again now on the ski boat position.
This is a glorious run.
That is crazy right there.
Taking down Cha Cha as well, who had an impressive victory over Gamera.
Yes.
So that's definitely a big victory right there.
But dropping down to Monarch.
Yes.
And the win is sighted.
Yes, the Vera action a little tricky here.
I believe Paid Actor went to Ilsa in this matchup here.
There's not a big fan of that matchup against Matera,
so we'll see how it goes.
This time around, I believe we're still gonna stick
with that Vera.
Oh yeah.
Ah, man.
But yeah, let's take a look at that evil fantasy pick
by presented by AT&T from the top eight here again.
We voted that Miraias was gonna take it by 67%
We paid actor up at 33%.
I mean, I didn't think it happened, man, but there you go.
The people have said their piece there.
You've got these in Mariahs, but let's see how things unfold here, guys.
And you go main stage, the final game of the first wave of matches for Toppe.
Let's go. Who's going home? Who's advancing through?
It's tough.
Yeah, with Eustace actually coming out here from Mariahs.
interesting here. I thought we were not going to reach each character here, I was just stating.
Okay, see this flavor of use is which uh it's going to be tough. Nice reversal, corn from paid
actor. This is the thing, Vera has a hard time against some of these zoning characters here.
If we close the gap this time around but Vera just has the tool to try to stop the opponent
from starting to projectile. Maria just closes the gap doesn't stop other projectiles from
approach it right but you know that's on here
yes trope I'm not full of position
whoa
said there are not too many solid approaches against the parents of like use
this okay time we're looking for some
good jump scares special out that back special
let's get Luminario set up before the block
Staggered.
Because that transformation will be after.
You have to stop.
I'm not the king of this a little bit, right?
It's an actual momentum, but slow kill is still going to be a showstopper coming from Mariahs.
Definitely.
How is that fair up big time?
See Mariahs here.
Might not matter at this point,
with the low life situation,
so let's just do it.
No, no, no, that's not going to work out.
It's going to get full combo and punish here.
Paid act up takes the first rounds. Yeah, I think the idea there was expecting that paid actors
Go for the jump. Yeah, work right on over that was not the case. Good patient. Hey that
That's very important.
Hey,
That's nothing about me gets the way.
That's what you want to do, man. Just to learn around. Don't need to get started. Yeah. And even if you close the gas, I mean, still use this has tools.
You're honest with dash light
This should know back and on full screen
It's nice a little aggressive this time
I'll give you a lot of breathing room here. It's a paid actor. We did a couple steps fast rat race
Close the gap here and try to catch the approach
Late spot down to a little bit early rather than a paid actor gonna get caught by the rat race with SBA on the field
That's big.
We're going to spend it and take the massive life of these.
Triple A1 bravery point.
Give yourself in a one-touch situation here.
Cool.
All right.
You see.
I got you.
There's Chip City now.
Yeah.
And he hit me with a done it there.
All right.
All right.
Spotted back.
Spotted back.
Spotted back.
Spotted back.
Spotted back.
Spotted back.
Such a cool character.
He's not lost a fight now, I'm a good Sparge.
Anyway, shot.
Nice confirm there.
Alright, two axes.
They're so good with these spot dodges.
Open up those eyes.
Alright.
He's a side smart man.
Yeah, he gets out of the corner. Very important. I want to be locked down there.
Oh, dash heavy!
Did he expect an approach from Niraia's?
He's going to spot dodge nice!
The flurry to ultimate addition, slow down the start up from Niraia's here.
Yeah, going to get a refund on that too, that's a massive one.
Standard throw, doesn't really...
Ah, check, very cautious here with those throws.
Back up in the punish.
Especially with the fatal-ray shot coming from Eustace.
You get that back throw with no break points inside of paid actor Mariahs just seems a sickle, yeah, but so does paid actor!
Oh yeah, we're doing it for sure. We catching out. Paid actor is gonna take the first game here.
The patient fear of play.
Yes indeed, we're going back to that character select eye.
Suspecting, he's swapping those, the seos.
Here we go.
Making that switch.
You find a bit more aggressive here.
Interesting start for the uses. It's kind of taking it back a little bit. I was expecting to see how it starts.
Maybe one to try to take advantage of the zoning here, but it looks like Paid Actor has proven that he can close the gap.
And there's a little afraid of dealing with the zoning characters. Marius gonna go back to the Seops.
Oh my gosh, what a start, man.
BX Bulldog himself.
Far worse. Paid Actor not gonna be dissuaded.
I'm just looking at you, see what you're doing.
to counter attempt did not pay off a paid actor looking impressive here this
Vera is steamroll
okay and you can see if Mariah's gonna daft because right now oh okay I'm pushing the
time in there on the spot dodge that moves so hard to deal with really means
what we do have DP DP's an option will be an option so you can bake them yeah yeah
It's tough on you.
Dashlight, great challenge here, come from Payne.
Dashlight again. See, right there is the exact reason why you don't consistently leave D.P. empty hand because they can't be made it out.
That could have been a big opportunity for Payne after.
I'm gonna hold down on back, try to spot Don.
See, I'd like to ask you to introduce him.
You committed to it first, right?
It's just that he has it far.
That could also mean that the mindgames are in Paybackters' court here. Transformation.
That throw.
Can I still call out here and not be able to throw Bade in?
Oh!
That might as laggers. Enough finish. Yes.
Wow, look at this! Paybackter could be on the way.
So we're running away with this set victory here. 2-0 leads!
Neraas has to make the right adaptations right now, or it could be over.
Yeah, throw Bade off the gate of demons was not unfounded there because we have seen Paybackter attempt to go
for a throw attack. And those approaches come from Marius, so not too far off at that time.
Payback made the adjustment to hold down back once more as we get scooped up. Oh, big opportunity.
Not with the heavy. It just seems like we don't start with the heavies.
I have to go for the bigger damage.
Let's see.
Marius.
Hey.
He sees the wheel turn.
Marius.
Hey.
Ooh.
It's pressuring away.
He must stop.
Oh!
This is a shimmy.
That's gonna be a good one.
Immediately going into that.
Raging strike.
With a minimum scale in the fight to the combo.
Good play there for Marius.
That sigh of relief from six.
Literally.
He was holding his breath the whole time.
Yeah.
Geez.
Nice DP.
Wow.
Interrupt the six crawl.
I respect it.
You know, you got baited in the last round and it's felt disaster, but don't be afraid
to use it.
One of your best tools.
Back against the wall here, Luminarion.
Fifty percent likely in favor of paid actors, but Darius.
Against the wall here, Luminarion.
50% likely in favor of paid actors, but...
Uryus.
Close, close, close for us.
Okay, this time just relying on that BC
to push back.
And that bulldozer.
Thank you, Uryus.
Trying to keep himself at a safe range.
We could potentially punish an EP
with the back dash, shimmy.
It's a full combo.
Let's see if you mind if you go again.
You're just going to do it.
Put yourself in a three to one bravery point advantage.
Just to feel the face and rumble off of that FVX.
Yeah, that was huge, man.
Jeez.
All right, empty hand, nothing to do.
I'm trying to bait.
Uriah is looking for an opportunity
to not try to overextend here.
with a lower health pool, it gets a little scary,
this dash light, Paid Actor.
Looked for a strip away, what's left of Urius,
it's great points.
She gets out, gets the grab.
All right, it's gonna be a shit point though,
wait a minute, whoa, oh my goodness,
that could have been a round for Paid Actor Urius'.
Risky, but it paid off.
Man, puts himself back in the fight here,
gets one game on the board, still Paid Actor,
One away.
Game at the.
Yes.
We're getting right back into it here.
Okay, get some conversion there, crouching combo.
Steak strike here, just to make sense.
And the ultimate six claw to finish, okay.
You're looking a lightly to get four of your hands low.
Very well worth it.
We're gonna be coming out here, made-acta.
Staggering the pressure.
Oh, a challenge right there.
6-6-L.
A combo.
Did we see the SBA?
No, not yet.
Not easier to see if it's going to be a real approach or not.
Right from full screen.
Have that extra time to react.
You see where it's going?
A challenge with the 5-L.
Now, you guys, one step closer to firing it up in games.
Yeah, Marisa looking a lot more comfortable now.
The longer the set goes on, the more comfortable Marisa's feeling.
You definitely see that in a jake pack.
Looking a lot more confident, but the DP coming through.
Let's get 6-4 BC away.
Try it again.
Oh.
One of the interups.
Yeah, nice.
Yo, that was BLEED!
Massive, empty hand, the deep run up to call off the throw attempt.
That's not my game.
That's the whole side that we are going skybound.
Here we go.
I mean, look at his light bleed.
Here, literally a touch away from victory.
And he goes a throw, clutches it, to all of the set.
Okay.
Marius, right back in the fight here.
Two to two.
Anyone's game now is over.
Certainly is, and the fight has taken it to Paid Actor.
Is this the... Hold on a second, we'll see how this settles in.
But I think Paid Actor needs a little bit of energy, folks.
Trying to show some support.
Let's go.
There's some love here.
Love to see it, man.
So careful right now.
The defensive decisions to win one game.
Payback in trouble with the last couple games, but there's the ultimate bust-down.
See, Liminaria.
Oh, not committing though.
Nice pump, paid after, the live lead is absolutely insane right now for Marius.
Hey, not this smash, what a way to go.
Cool, they hit my gosh, what a round right there for Marius.
Jeez, set point ready? What a turnaround.
We're talking about an individual with only 20 points on the board right now,
Looking to rise to do the occasion trying to solidify position at finals as paint actor trying to get their first positioning already
Nice to stop the game it's even don't be a wall plus into the wall we go that so much carry themselves
Oh
That's huge
Yep
No, it doesn't mean hold on.
As far as girl didn't have the additional resources,
we go coast to coast.
And the area is indeed!
OK!
Just wanted to be gosh darn sure you
were going to throw a projectile up there.
The last game, the last round now, people.
All right, here we go.
And he's going to stay in the bracket.
Who's going out?
Oh, man.
Big punish there.
That fate we were talking about.
Here's the gate, staying safe, maximum range of a heavy.
BC, alright, that's the resource gone.
Let me walk away from this.
That's met me.
That's tech.
Right.
BC, that's fine.
This thing paid actors just waiting for that d-hand to come to death.
Oh!
Yes, no heavy this time around.
Niraius, he's back, he's back again, no resources in terms of breakpoints inside of 8 after.
Okay, oh yeah, that time due to challenge, due to whatever escape.
It's just gonna take a single opener, Tyrant.
Yep, it's no disaster.
Don't crack the seams, trying to close the gap, but jump scare.
Oh man, literally anything! Back off, not get the punish!
The first pitch at 6 o'clock,
I don't have to finish the job, one touch away!
Niraias looking to lock in this position to advance on the loser's side.
We've got so close!
And Niraias does take it!
What a comeback there!
Reverse sweep, 3-2!
Niraias 2!
Wow, what a performance right there, man.
The switch over to Seelks.
At first, I was like, okay, I don't know if this is gonna work, but my man locked in.
Really did lock in. Honestly, I feel like it was just proved to me that you are gonna be able to overcome this zoning catch,
that you are gonna be able to overcome Asphira against what is protected to be a pretty tough matchup for yourself.
And once you succeed, it's like, great, you know what? You've proven that you can handle my main.
Let me drop it in with this replay here, because man, oh man, the pressure that you feel when you have no health on the line is absolutely insane.
and anything that happened right there changed.
Boy, that was crazy.
Payback to Grau.
He came in the heat, man.
Yeah, guys, man.
We got to give up for Payback.
Yeah, let's give up for Payback.
Come on, that was a stunning performance.
Hell yeah, that was mad impressive.
But yeah, just slightly falling short.
Took Mariahs down to the wire, but it wasn't enough.
This situation here, look, it was too much to die.
And it was, in fact, dying.
Payback to Mariahs.
He's going to take it.
He stays alive.
Oh, man, absolutely insane performance.
A great way to round out that loser's side
of this glorious top eight.
One step closer as we rise soon,
we'll get additional points for Grand Blue vs. World Tour
qualification.
So those finals are certainly on the horizon.
All the competition stops in November
for qualification here.
But the competition doesn't stop here.
We will take a little bit of a break.
And we'll be back with more Grand Blue fans
versus Rising right after this.
ーSponsored by Kofuki no Yumeー
How dare you come to our company!
I'm quite useful and useful.
Right?
Everything changed on the insert coin.
Yep.
Got it.
Hmm...this is looking really good, I'm not even gonna front like that.
It's a fall knick!
Optimus!
Mr. Serge, Mr. One, take ready!
I've never seen a mix like this before.
That's refreshing!
Hmm, that was a...
a great combination, right?
What? Why does he get a white claw surge?
Did I get zoned out?
It's a break, dude.
Gotta have that championship mentality.
That's the best us this I've seen since Captain America.
I don't see myself waiting for at least maybe 20 more years.
It's much more than just playing, it's being a part of this community.
With Anthros, your next match will fix your sit.
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Anthros.com forward slash evo.
Hey everyone, Damascus here.
Welcome back to Getting a Closer Look, presented by Zeni.
Xenia allows you to mix and match almost any frame with almost any lens,
whether it's blue light blocking, sunglasses, migraine glasses, Xenia got all the options for you.
And this weekend, we want to make sure that you see everything and you get up to speed with what's happening on the EVO floor.
I am right here at the PsyGames booth, plenty of activities as always.
You could play Granblue Fantasy Reeling and Les Ragnarok, or plenty of community tournaments on Granblue Fantasy vs Rising.
And you could also get your hands on a couple extremely limited merch.
There is this beautiful acrylic stand there, along with a very limited edition poster, that
you could get on this booth, so do make sure you make your way towards the side game booth.
Get some more GGs, press more buttons.
We have evil for this, right?
It's my time to press buttons there.
See you soon for more booth action.
Yo, how about that side games booth?
Honestly, like, I'm excited to go back over there, check out that endless rack rocks.
So much has changed since the original release of Relink.
I'm looking forward to seeing some of the upcoming characters to join in and the new features.
You can definitely check out a full conversation that's happening next week at NA Expo with J2
and Fukuhara-san to talk about the upcoming game.
It's fun, man.
Yes, absolutely. And it's coming out on Switch too, so I'm excited to be portable with it as well.
But man, what a top 8 we have ahead of us here at EVO 2026.
How are y'all feeling about top 8 this far, huh?
I thought so.
I'm absolutely nervous right to see how the rest of this goes,
but always be at the ready for the fight.
You can join the fray at home or away
with the FlexStrike wireless fight stick.
The FlexStrike wireless fight stick
will actually be launching August 6th.
And I don't know if you've had a chance to touch it at all.
I'm trying to play them.
We have the mechanical switches on those buttons
and a really cool feature that in the back of this stick here,
you can open it up and it does have easy access to the stick
so you can adjust the gate.
It comes with the gates to adjust.
So if you're a square gate, round gate, or octo,
all of them are applicable.
It's so easy to put into your stick and play to your optimal performance.
So, we have some matches to continue, right?
We got a little bracket to take a look at here.
Indeed we do, guys.
Let's take a little look at where we are at right now for Granby Fantasy vs. Ryzen.
Of course, our winners final is set with Shio Koji Koko.
Can't wait for that one before we get there.
Got a couple matches to decide down here in the loser's side of things.
Monarch vs BSG, of course the sound of the 40, this is a rias.
I can't believe this break out here. This is absolutely terrifying. I mean again we're going
to start things off here with Monarch vs BSG and that is going to be Matera up against Vasuraga.
Another tall mountain of climb for BSG because it is back to back zoners.
Yeah it's going to be a tough one man, uphill battle, but as we've seen in the past BSG definitely
No stranger to overcoming those difficult matchups. Yes. No change overcoming those challenges
What so ever has risen to the occasion before?
And we'll see if we have the gumption that Gus though to do it once more
Let's see it
Such a good game man another USA team kill. Yeah
Another one on there again, and it's one step closer to try to qualify here
Let's see how far how much further mark I can take this to try to get a little bit early access into
qualification again. This is a matchup that can be favorable for Mitterra.
Honestly Mitterra has been the top of the town as of late. I mean we can't forget
Loewe, but of course the onslaught of projectiles that Mitterra can put on the
screen makes it very difficult for the majority of the cast to really handle. We
did see Goji Go-Go really navigate the space very well against Mitterra, but
Buster Arget does not have those tools. Yeah with that big body man, slow moving
character, it's a nightmare for a matchup like Mitterra who can just flood
the screen put that butterfly on you and just you know do whatever it helps you
want to set you. Exactly, obviously Soul Forge is going to be a requirement in this matchup here
we do have some normals that can reach and Savage Rampage is certainly going to be a great tool
once you have your Soul Forge up but that's if Bomber and Amatera gives you the opportunity to set up.
Let's see how it's on quality guys let's go! Alright, six now.
Clashing with the Instinction that butterfly always going to be the threat.
a quick shot to explode it, and of course the block.
There's the swipe, great reach on that from BST.
Also the mental stack, which is always having a butterfly on the screen,
is just an extra layer of scrap for BST to worry about.
Alright, I'll take this wall. Nice jump.
Oh my gosh, the jumps are going to be so pitiful.
I'm going to give it a try.
Okay, get the grab.
And another one!
A little bit early on the medium stings you, that's unfortunate.
Tries to go for BC, not gonna work, Monarch gets the lead.
Yeah, that's an unfortunate right there.
Okay.
There's no bait.
Probably won't see it, but through there.
Alright, I'm trying to go for PX.
Not gonna work out.
Distinction for that grounded challenge.
Low slide, gonna get shut down, Monarch.
Focus to go low shots.
That is it.
Yeah, just stop that approach.
Prevent this big man from walking up on you.
Wow, look at that play for Monarch. Absolutely textbook there.
Exactly. You have to come to me. I have this lifelike feet. It's small, but it's enough to finish the job.
Monarch is definitely a player that will just time out as well. You've seen it at Frost Bosses.
It's really hard to go taking their time.
Good stuff. As we wait, as they prepare that baseline, that we can do.
They have a good body to suffer in.
Build up, another solo form to get, throw bait once more, that's a habit that I've seen throughout this tournament run for BSG.
Right.
Put limits in the butterfly, hop in, ultimate, actually it's just a small stop right now.
Auto, walking it down, still stuck on top of the ultimate butterfly.
That's right, so we can surely jump in there and life is going to be back to right now.
Oh, interrupted the ultimate 50% gone for nothing.
Look up there in a perfect round for Monarch.
First game up.
Perfect. 52 seconds on the clock.
That's crazy.
That means you couldn't do anything.
You could not close that gap.
Out. Monarch is playing quite a book here.
You do have a couple options in terms of characters.
No BSG had entertained playing some Wildness,
but I highly doubt we see Wildness in this bracket here,
Especially for this matchup. I mean, BSG I know has been looking for falls for bad matchups in general.
Off to go for Bossa-Roca still, just getting to try to drill.
We'll see if there's something changing in this couple of games here though.
I'm really not going to head for the big man.
Bossa-Roca just can't seem to get anything going here.
I'm not just playing this to a T.
I have a roach to make in space.
5-0.
It's just a mental experience to try to survive, not only insurgent, but now monarch, one
of the most efficient zoning players you can see.
It hasn't even had much of a chance to even get that soul forge in effect.
Get that there.
It's been very, very difficult to be able to use that buff to his advantage.
No swing from larka 5-0.
Okay.
very safe if you do get to the wall. Dash every do it instead. There we go.
Flies it. Jumps out immediately. Oh, come on up. Just so ready, bro. Wow.
I got the lead. I don't need to worry about taking the trade off. We're trying to jump out here.
I have some resources on my hand and that's health. Shoulder check.
That's a triple from me and stuff.
Obviously, you gotta take it by the punch. You do get the hit on the terror. You have to make it count.
The square things really even out because look at this relentless offense from PSG.
This bit too touches thus far and PSG went up perfect. That's all it takes.
You see that? That is... oh it simply closed the gap. It just went... just went bro.
Close that gap one time, you do not let her out of the corner, go to work.
Alright, there we go.
Install, mask, and line.
The staggered pressure once more to BC out on our little green grill.
Not enough soul force to survive.
Jump out.
The evasion was so good there.
Yes, really important here to maintain that position.
Nice challenge!
Enough to get the soul force, great decision.
Hey, what timing on that charge through? Okay, the back throw though. Oh no, I can't
actually take a hit with the rest of the post backs off eventually.
Oh no, butterfly though. Charges absolutely draining what was up that
thoughtful.
I can't get too close though. I have to just play the zone game.
We see him work out so well for it.
BSG just looking for the one opportunity, 100 meter on your side.
Two break boys down the side of Monarch.
Oh, give a strike.
That's all you need.
Oh, so yep, and then watch out for these jumps.
And yeah, tried to rush to the issue.
I don't blame you like you were so close to victory
as a scramble to not give up any more ground to Monarch.
And unfortunately, Monarch, he is holding north on the stick
and evading the offense from BSG.
So close, but so far.
Very unfortunate there for PSG.
2-0 leading out for Monarch.
What do you do here?
Tough one, right?
Gosh, I feel like I'm wondering, do you got the Siegfried?
I don't think so.
Yeah, it's still sticking with Vassaraga.
There's still a commitment to that.
I feel like once you close that gap, it's been fine.
It's just getting through the onslaught.
And that's not much of an answer right now in this matchup,
Unfortunately.
We did see it against the Surgeon Man on the Ustaz spot.
This is...Materus is such a different board game.
Exactly, exactly.
At least with Ustaz, right, you're only expecting the ultimate slow kill to really cover the screen.
With Monarch of Matera, this doesn't stop.
There's so much you have to worry about.
You must have grabbed it.
We've seen a few battalions appear, right, through this sequence.
Through the time that we're not the heavy.
Let's go for the bar shot. Nice.
Okay.
Oh, just too far.
That's how it's out there.
The far-range line there. Monarch.
Oh my gosh, you don't expect that.
It's a long-range game the whole time,
but it does go for a shimmy. It's almost guaranteed.
Yeah, exactly.
And you're close to the gap, right, to give up,
to not give him too much shot, to put yourself back in the corner.
You're in the mid-screen once more.
The side slot here with the ultimate butterfly.
Look at all Monarch right now.
What do you do here, man? Monarch is putting up an absolute perfect game plan.
Bringing it to table here, BSG.
He's fighting for his life up there. Not over yet, but it's definitely happy about it.
Not the medium, and it's the unfortunate thing, right?
The strike puts you in a position where Monarch wants to be as close to remaining at close proximity.
Now, in the corner, we've seen those opportunities,
but BSG has to really earn their account on Monarch making a mistake,
mistake which is so few and far between.
No, I rode a butterfly, just have to think about all of this so much on the screen right here.
What do you think?
Borderline can't move here.
The Soul Forge is there.
How do you even use this?
See?
I mean we tried, yeah, we got the nine.
Oh!
That's left with Ultimate DP.
This is looking bad here.
DSG gonna go for the Hail Mary with the ultimate instinctions back to the mid-screen
She's good spot. Yeah, that's so good
Monarch, you make space, ultimate bar flight is out there, box it, non-stop arrows
You could improve if you're losing, the most ground to get pushback even further away
That is all we need is one more shot, Monarch
3-0 over DSG
There you go
Just playing the Zona versus the big man game perfectly Monarch takes that. That was so clean
Yeah, absolute masterclass. I'm playing that match up here and just again
It was a tall mountain the claw and for BSE to try to achieve victory, but a valiant effort
None the less let's give it up for BSG's performance folks
Great performance as well. Yeah, absolutely. I mean again having the mental fortitude to go back to back zoners
It's not easy, but I mean BSG has been through the ringer time and time again
Let's take a look at the rest of that match here because man from the moment we locked in it was just that distance game
Monarch just maintaining that control outside of one game
We're really things sort of fall into place for BSG who's off those corner positions those minor mistakes
Still having it because like honestly this what can I do?
But nonetheless though, there is still so much pressure coming from Boss and Rocket.
It's not just any sit back, keep fire, projectiles, because you have to be almost impeccable
because once those close quarters situations happen, it's over.
We saw the two-touch game from Perfect there from BSG.
That makes it all the more terrifying to deal with.
I was about to say that the proof was right there.
The fact that he got in the one time and it was literally two touches into a perfect.
So, you know, if this character can get in, it might be rough.
It might be rough, but the way that Monarch played it, you could not gain.
Yeah, yeah, that was, I mean, I feel like that was the wake-up call.
Once you got the two touches, like, okay, I can't get this guy any more chances.
So I have to be at least calm, cool, and collected, play my game and focus on that.
Don't worry about what my opponent is doing, just keep them locked out.
Absolutely, man. Absolutely.
Wow. So, guys, very exciting times now.
We're going to take a look at that bracket and getting up there on where we are at right now.
Monarch moves into guaranteed top four here.
The new semi-finals, one more match, loses round 2-0, this is a big one.
Oh my goodness, Zandori versus Miraius.
Oh man, what a tear Miraius was on in that setup against Paid Actor.
I mean, a great set to kick things off on the losing side,
but Zandori also opening up the show up against Shio.
This might be the tides turning here for Zandori to start acting as if,
No, no, no, no. I need my qualification. It's nice that I have 400 points on the leaderboard.
There you go. I want my invite.
That's right. You know, you don't want to be leaving any points to chance here.
Zandori at this point, I think, pretty secure in terms of points, but like you said,
definitely wants that guaranteed qualification spot, wants to take first place, can have to do it from loser's side here
because Shio with an amazing performance in that winner's side, sending him down here.
Absolutely. So we'll see how this Kaguya Usher can fare up against Ron,
I'm suspecting to be the Seahawks from Mariahs.
The Mariahs already has a ton of motivation going in this match, right?
Because we're getting a step closer and closer to achieving upwards of two quarter points
for at least finishing second, or you just get that qualification.
Wow.
So that would be a massive jump to shake up what the rest of the bracket looks like.
Absolutely.
All right, let's see how things go.
Who's going to move on to?
That uses a semi-finals.
All right, where are my Mariahs fans out there?
Mariahs anyone?
Yeah. Okay. But what about Zandori, the indomitable?
I know the Top of the High Tuesday folks are out here hanging out,
expecting great things of Zandori.
Absolutely. Dedicated to the craft. You know, always there every Tuesday.
Junior was telling me without fail.
Without fail. I mean, that has been the proof has been in the pudding.
How consistent Zandori is.
You came to one event and said, you know, it's time to lock in.
And every week showed up and showed out to get better and better.
And it has showed.
I mean, that is the pedigree of the pedigree time here.
So we got the emotes from Granblue front and center.
Let's go, guys.
This is what I'm talking about when it comes to Granblue, man.
You guys pull up.
Big shout outs to the crowd here at Evo Vegas.
You guys are awesome.
Let's go, man.
Raise them up.
Hell yeah.
Oh, and great show.
I mean, everyone's just such good friends,
despite the competition, despite how we are playing.
The indomitable.
Look at that.
Tomagachi shirt for the photo for top eight and still wearing Tomagachi out here. Yeah, that's again
Okay, there's the handshake with that we should be getting into the action here
So ready for this one there of magic imagine
If this matchup goes the way that Mariahs is expecting it to go
This is going to be huge a big shake-up because this is again
One of the big competitors to watch out for the expectation all eyes on Zandori for this matchup alongside Koji Coco
But Koji already sitting fine at four winners finals right now. That's right
Definitely good. It's a repeat the victory. We're gonna let the intro rock
I love this outfit. This is my
favorite outfit for the character to match in Weapon 2.
It's a cool color for sex. That is a cool color. I love this outfit for
sex too. This is my favorite outfit for the character to match in Weapon 2.
It's like the Ostril.
Oh, I guess she's still better.
I can't believe it.
If you're an honest warrior and you're trying to fake us out with your kindness, I don't believe you.
Oh my gosh, here we go guys, let's get it.
Wow, immediately teleporting in, okay?
Look, who's gonna keep up on the teleports? It's either Zant Dory or Marius.
And normally, the Seox is quick to push the pedal to the metal when it comes to offense,
but Zant Dory just places those cackle-o-strips into the bottom of the frenetic wave.
Where it's hard to keep up the back dash!
It's not even in the media back there, it's just spiky delays there, it's so clean in Tansori.
Six claw, but okay, I like trying to get rid of that hat to teleport, does that get punished?
Oh, where do we throw in? Hold on!
Alright, combo time.
We right up.
I'm good with it.
Alright, okay.
It means...
Now that Rage of Strike is the sign that he's going to spend his drift weight.
All the brazen points, this is going to be close to death.
Look at that!
No Braves for us to do that to a fellow!
70% or so damage combo right there. Mariah's optimizing the group perfectly.
The powerhouse that is Seahawks.
Strong hair jumper. Reconstitution.
Okay, that's not too much.
It's a little bit further than that 5-year.
Oh, that's like with the heavy snake strike, you gotta jump to the reset here.
6-4, nice.
6-4, that's that one.
Oh my gosh, no spare bodies available here.
Mariahs with the buff.
Mariahs, no!
There's no escape for you, I'm out of dodge, I don't care about the golden throne, I'm gonna catch you with these empty hands.
How do you know? Just knew.
So clean. That right there is a statement game. That shows Zandori, okay, I'm here to play. You better be ready.
Oh my gosh. I'm leading back to after that. I got out of there. What do you mean?
Zandori definitely won. He plays with their heart on their sleeve. You can see what this fella is thinking at any given moment.
And that can actually be a disadvantage sometimes. Okay, the counter.
Gain nice knock at the door to push him forward in position.
Wall splats.
Oh my gosh, the movement from the Royals is amazing.
Look at this, man. Go!
This would be around up here, actually.
That's over. Skybound out on the way.
It's bending.
That's how quick this can end here for Kagnar.
Show up against Seahawks.
Right. He's such a good character.
Closing that gap. Not allowing Kagnar to set up.
Get anything going.
Empty hand.
Offers up a gage dash right now.
Close enough to get the full conversion.
Will challenge with the light.
Oh, and to air! That's a fast 6-0!
The Rage is strong though.
Don't worry, you're going to spend in here.
Alright, let's see what you got.
Yeah, that's it.
Skybound is coming out. Not going to be enough to kill, but still.
Right in an amazing position right here.
Really threatening to throw the back dash, the two, and victory for Miraias to a lead!
With the quickness, that was rapid!
Oh my gosh, Zandori is due or die right now, my friend.
Miraias really wants those points. You've had enough, Zandori. Artists formerly known as Ankydream.
Yes, indeed. But right now, it's time to look in. You know, a lot of people ourselves included
Add Sandoori as the favorite here, but some amazing play has really put him on the ropes.
Yeah, but this is it, right? You start to feel that excitement well up in your body.
Oh, yeah.
One step closer. You see that deep breath, you're like, all right, wait a minute, hold on.
The job's not done.
No, it's not. You can't get too overconfident before the job's finished.
No, not at all. Let's get to this next battle.
Full speed.
I think Sandoori needs a little bit of your energy out here to try to rise to the occasion.
What do you think, guys?
That's it, we love to see it.
Guys coming alive here in the EVO arena.
Okay, let's get to our next game.
Okay, finally a combo from Zanduria.
I feel like it's been a while since we saw one of those.
Which is nuts.
Yes, I have to say that, yeah.
Maybe I'll get to see the setback come out.
No, don't look at the empty hand and the voice of the PC,
but look, we are caught in this corner position.
Heal to the hex immediately, not to range respect from the far handers.
Alright, that's combo here.
All combo time. Strike.
Is it enough here?
I'm gonna shut off.
We got those resources, baby.
Okay, Zandori is back.
You can never count this gentleman out.
In the slightest.
Alright, sorry.
Zandori taking a lot more of an aggressive approach here.
Before it's been Mariahs initiating, we're in takin' a barrage, but now, I feel like things have turned.
Yeah, I mean, again, you put Zandori on a back foot, you're gonna start to walk in.
Mariahs, though, with the ultimate six, go on, resetting the neutral.
A little bit late on the approach there, I feel like.
Yeah, must have been on course.
Oh my gosh.
He's not care about no traps whatsoever.
Full combo for Mariahs.
It's not reset.
Oh my gosh.
He was wasted.
There's blocks here for Marius.
There it is.
The game.
We have FTA.
That's it.
That's it.
Oh my gosh.
It's definitely Marius.
Just like that.
Some people holding onto that super for the longest too.
We weren't going to spend right away, which would have helped in the battle of the matrician
there, but Marius.
But he's... just like that.
Some people holding out for that super for the longest, too.
We weren't gonna spend right away, which would have helped in the battle of the Matrician there, but Marius,
who prompted him to hold onto it even further.
This might be it for Zendori's-
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
RUN!
Spicy there want to try to get the air to air off the empty and it's not gonna work out
Six-quall
Oh
Very nice
That's a story.
Could he drop the BC?
Oh my goodness, the Brave Five Apes.
Wow.
Clutching a victory by the skin of his teeth.
Never count them out.
Certainly not.
Just when it's looking on the chicken.
Yeah.
And then he's covered.
That's the Indomitable Zandori right there.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Why does the doctor go down quiet?
That's what I'm talking about, man.
Let's go.
We'd love to see it.
And I'd love to see him out with the emotes.
Let's see how many emotes we got him.
Let's get it, man.
Certainly no Skrill issue out here.
That's for sure.
Ha ha ha.
Good slide.
Yeah, I would also expect a heavy couple from Zendori.
That's a good bet there with the carry.
Oh, man.
That's such a nice thing.
That's what those can do.
Probably be the answer.
This would be a double A soon.
He's serious, come a little bit of cheese back and on,
empty hand off the BC and chase down the teleport.
He's back in the run, going all the way to the corner.
I'm sure he's gonna shake some shield up here
by positioning ourselves to call off the teleporting possessory.
Okay, nice.
He's gonna be satisfiable, we have to go ultimate.
So, god.
Wow.
I mean, likely, in favor of you,
you may as well turn the match and see what's going on.
Okay, Ryus here. Once again, set point!
One round away here. I'm eliminating Zandori here.
I can offer that to you.
You fuck.
Oh, it's not parried at all!
The traps were just a fake zero.
Yes.
Ration position.
No parry for you. That's a full combo.
It should be a round. Zandori tying it up.
Yeah, that's gonna be big.
Wow, didn't even need any kind of super. Most type are not necessary.
Xandori stays alive again.
I feel like when the chips are down, that's when Xandori really comes alive.
The edge-to-edge zone. The X-bow dive is huge for Marius.
This is a great start. Corner position.
Don't try this.
This is a fat throw. Already 50% lifelift.
Yeah, Xandori has not fallen from the throw bait off the gate. Great throw.
There's that cool villain defense.
We have to respect the trust now.
Great patience.
The sixth block missing a two-ahead.
He tried to move, but...
Wait a second.
It's not looking good, Tyrant.
Hold on a second.
Oh, hold up, hold up.
Oh my gosh.
Is this enough?
I think it might be zero.
Tyrant, it is certainly enough.
Nirae-su will knock out Xandor
in for today's competition.
One step closer to jumping to the ranks
a Grand Blue versus finals qualification. Wow, just like that. Zandori falls at fifth place.
Still though, going to be atop of the points leaderboard. Going to bow out here. We already had 400
coming into today's tournament, but that's an extra 40 for fifth place there. That's a 40,
40 points, but in no direct qualification spot. That's a power break out.
Yeah, let's give it up for him.
Give it up for him.
One of the best performance in honestly quite the show.
Let's take a picture.
How are you?
A hard fought battle for Zandori is still
sitting pretty strong in the rankings.
Four Grand Prix versus two finals.
And what a dove it was for Miraias as well.
That's it.
Indomitable Zandori will bow out for this time around.
It's certainly a strong performance.
A great spot to be.
I mean, again, that is a competitor, a force to be reckoned with here,
but Mariahs, he was having an absolutely insane performance here.
Let's take a look at this replay for this set,
because man, not only was it Gamera, but now Xandori.
Wow.
All eyes on Mariahs right now, like that.
You are on notice if you're still on the stoppage.
Absolutely, man.
Anything can happen.
It's like we said before the practice start,
any one of these players could take it.
Who have Mariahs taken out?
If you at home voted for Mariahs to take this,
You need to go get a lottery ticket or something.
I don't know what you're doing right now because, man, luck is coming up for you.
See, yo, production is sick with that slow-muffin on that back-hatch.
That was nice.
Yeah!
That's high right there.
Man, look at this play right here.
See?
He just had that reach right there.
Absolutely.
It's one of those things, right?
He comes to be one of the best players in the respective region.
You also, yeah, you're the best, but you also put a big tag on your back, everybody is practicing strategies against you specifically.
Exactly, and it's certainly looking like that here.
Yeah, I mean, this is certainly all odds on you, especially with the consistency that Zandori has had.
I don't remember the last time Zandori has placed this position in his career over the last year.
Like it has not been since he first showed up on the scene.
Like we did that one loss and moved all the way through
to top three finishes time and time again.
And there's still more to come.
We're actually gonna take a little bit of a break
and we'll be back with more grand blue fancy
for surprising right after this.
2XKO are back around to use promo code tag team
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Hello?
Whoa.
Mama Gruggen 85 lives here?
Yep.
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Apples with peanut butter?
How is this possible?
With AT&T, wireless and home internet.
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Now available across the nation.
No, she's so nice and real life.
Airheads have more fun.
How would you not to live forever?
I'll deal with what?
This thrash.
This and that.
He came screaming.
Those are just screams of fun to me.
Ready to banish the darkness.
Come on.
Let's live a little.
In the light.
It's your deliverance!
I got something new
I got something brand new
Alright people, welcome back to EVO 2026, Grand Prix Fantasy I is rising top 8 here.
Yeah, you guys are getting into it man.
We've got some amazing games on the way.
We've come off the top 4 now, Zero.
I can't believe this top 4 is not including Xandori.
That's wild man.
Like if we could get the prediction back up and just see what that looked like, cause
like at the very least we have the bracket because look at this run the voting was in favor of either Zandori or Koji Coco taking it and
Koji Coco is the one that remains and there's still plenty of options across board with this top four including monarch and the
Rias
Rounding out to lose a seven so we're gonna get into this winners finals action just a shield versus Koji Coco
Sheo is another competitor here pretty low on the rankings with only 20 points and now
Rise of the occasion to guarantee top three position that's gonna jump
Oh, yeah, no doubt for sure minimum of a hundred fifty points now down to top three that's massive coach Coco
Of course, he's definitely gonna be trying to repeat
victory of
Evo Vegas
Of course last year's reigning champion still in the running in a great position to do it as well winners
Absolutely again, Koji Coco coming hot off of the victory at chain shift
That's right another qualifying event getting plenty of points there to rise up and looking solidify even more
Look, if I get a free invite, then I'm pining for that invite, so I don't have to stress about the rest of the season.
This changes up a little bit because you have to worry about regional leaders as well to also get qualified.
So just because the events are said and done, that doesn't mean that you're resting with just your points alone.
It is going to be going down to the nitty-gritty, depending upon your reach as well.
So it's more opportunity across the globe for folks to qualify for the finals.
No doubt. Yeah, I encourage you to, of course, definitely looking to cement that spot.
you know already like you said some good points from change shift regardless you
know this is Evo man you want that W you want to be able to repeat champion here
and get that qualification spot yeah I mean I know that Koji Coco has set his
eyes on being considered one of the best fighting game competitors rising to the
occasion opting to look and branch out to become one of the household names that
you expect in the fighting game scene and this is certainly a way to start out
right just the dominance that we had over last year's competition and
throughout the entire year of Grand Bleu Tour, being that World Warrior, locking in in Japan,
getting the training. I mean, you're getting first hand. That experience is going to be
essential to rise up and achieve that goal of being somebody who is a household name
in the fighting game community.
Absolutely. No doubt. Yeah, this man, Shio, my goodness. What a performance. Yes. Just
I came with a game plan and that's why I love to see a strategy in effect paying off. Let's
Let's see if you've got that here for Koji Koko because this is going to be a very, very difficult matchup.
That Beatrix is so hard to predict.
Beatrix up against Lawane. I know Koji has not been a fan of Lawane in the past and has certainly tried to experience that character.
He really tried to solve that but has resorted going back to Beatrix.
That consistency, right? It has the heart of a competitor. It has the heart of a winner.
And to win, you want consistent characters, right? Beatrix is certainly one of those.
one of those. That's not to say that LeWayne is not a consistent character because he can look across the globe and
all sorts of competitions where we've seen an increase in LeWayne competitors and Shia was definitely setting that foundation up as well.
A very early adopter of the LeWayne shenanigans out here and still intends to showcase that here tonight.
The glow up from LeWayne over the years has been something, I'll tell you that much.
It really has.
Yeah.
That rise of LeWayne here, we saw that ultimate wheel and then of course it does get touched up a little bit to be
a little more manageable which is understandable considering the landscape
but the game I see this time around coaching has figured out how to put a
headset on that was that was tough to wash during pools.
Yeah for sure. Like you said you know you bring up the ultimate wheel like the way
that Shia used it against Xandari was so impressive and I really feel like now
that could come into play here as well. Yes. You know forcing the opponent to react
to it in some way whether it be you know if you just block it is free pressure.
Right spot dodgers are guaranteed combo in some instances layering. Yeah, exactly
So it's you know, it's a very very versatile tool there for following
So yes, you're really making that one of his aces in the hole. It felt like at least in that win the semis
Yeah, that that was the key factor here to try to overwhelm their opponent with these options that you have on the field and
Koji Coco having Beatrix that ride free is going to be again that quick gap closer to try to challenge your opponent and if you do get
And while Ultimate Wheel is shut down to ride free,
then that's going to help out tremendously
to try to close the gap.
And again, you do have Cat Bot to help you as well.
But Cat Bot has a little risk in this matchup,
especially when it comes out to Ultimate Wheel riding free.
So this matchup can be very explosive and certainly
a favor of Beatrix if all goes well in terms
of resource management here.
But here we go.
It looks like we're finally locked in.
I think we can recognize that color of Beatrix
the intro folks hot
I mean what a story the intro that was to showcase the story a lot of last year's evo top eight and now we're going in
with a different set of characters Kujikoko up against Shigo
Skill button!
Okay.
These kooky characters.
I love it.
The Rose.
Okay.
Ah.
Great start, Emi.
This is how it's played.
Pressure in the way.
Okay.
Where'd you come from, here?
Good push to the wall from early.
Looking good.
That's a blind plane.
Ow!
You know the holy kids in the clutch you overextended and she oh
I know right
She'll look clean with it right there man coach Coco little bit bewildered
Round number two in this winner's final,
the Flashlight is still going to get carried.
But that's a lot of resources off from Shio in terms of abilities.
Okay, let's go.
Push open gets clean, confirm that time.
That's a good deal.
That protec interrupts.
What?
It's unfortunate, drop the end up.
Oh, nice, that's where the close medium,
close to close to go.
Oh, now ultimate doesn't burn.
I'll team down to star chase, no anti-attacks, BC out of the corner.
Soggy, remain front and center.
All right.
I'll go back to the game, BC comes out, and she out.
Big life lead from Koji Koko to get some roundup.
Hey, you just have low loads, man.
Yeah.
At least look, the high squad over for Koji Coco, the two youth at the conversion to finish.
Excellent play right there.
All right.
Hey, now he's down to shia.
What do you think here?
How are you going to adapt to that?
Great question, Tyron.
Actually, here's what I'm going to do.
Oh, man.
Yeah, trying to take a moment here because, man, Koji Coco was not getting caught.
Getting caught unawares by the approach of Samu, which only a quick throw and she'll attempt to roll right through Koji Koko
It's a classic serve that we've seen before. It's a small window of opportunity to turn the tide in the Ju cross-up
Big damage coming from Koji. Yeah, always big damage. Geatrix
Right in the side of this
Okay, actually got this flash up to a full combo
It's a great opportunity to get that set up going here.
It's easy to throw off.
Throw there just to remit the classic throwing.
I think I'll be protected out here.
Wait, do you front up?
Maybe expect a throw or parry attempt?
Missiles out there.
Yeah, very nice timing indeed.
That's a VA.
That's a dead individual right there.
Yeah, that's going to do it.
You are close right now, no further choice to keep you alive.
Ow!
Hoji Koko!
Another round up.
You still have such an excellent job at navigating through those projectiles.
Really is.
Miss Barrage at the perfect doting point.
We called out Sammy Atomi, no problem.
You mean?
The big strings are heavy, like Hoji.
Yeah.
He's in excellent positions to run up 5L.
Yeah, he's in all the different choices.
There's far buttons, you know, that extra range really cover his plate.
You should've got that 6-grain 5L.
It's a swish, it's all gay, I really really like this matchup.
Oh, dash, I'm going to splash and finish.
A little bit of a roll, I don't need to worry about your dash, I mean.
You're not hooked in.
See you, Koji.
Talon, you're up to the mountains.
The training, non-stop.
Okay, some stash, right?
Okay.
Oh, last second there as well.
Try it again. Once again, he turns perhaps.
Joe! What's that? Oh my god!
Oh.
We did the same against Moloch too!
Oh my gosh. You're like into the clock.
Into the full combo.
That's how much of a threat Beatrix commands at that range, right?
That you can just stare at your eye and reflection.
Oh my goodness!
What is this?
Yeah, stuff.
Using that rage and strike.
Part of the potential job, the stroke.
Yeah, it's a good deal.
Okay, let's see.
Let's go, you guys. Hold on.
Let's see. We've got some PDR right now.
Take it on the block.
Yeah, just kill it.
Open up. Very unfortunate.
The lava. Okay.
Alright, see you.
The last-ditch effort.
The King H, right on my dash away, he caught his flash.
Off off the run, that was a down count of medium riding free.
Now if we get the counter hit, it does catch the O-Back dash.
Space in hand, Koji does connect.
That's right in free.
And it's going to be a safe jump off the ultimate from the bird.
It's downslide 2 in.
Oh, full send.
You've not seen that, but that is certainly going to be a punish from Xio.
That's just in case of Xio got antsy in that corner.
Oh, and you can go all the way close to close. Let's see.
Going to be next to Snack Parfait.
Sounded 2 Parfait.
Breeding.
That individual, you've had enough.
Yeah.
Dash way.
Chain.
That corner position is going to be very important to fight.
Or she can hold on to it, we've got a round on her here, then a game.
Coaching with the Delta.
Yeah, the locomotive could be the next hit, but I could seal it once again.
Five hell.
At least get a little reprieve, since Delta's off the team for just a moment.
Back now, any kind of hit.
For either player, potentially.
This is my gosh, on that...
Oh, that's right! Good challenge from Chido.
Tying it up.
Okay, one one here. I'm not gonna go either way right there. Let me tell you man, one one a lot better than 2-0
She was staying alive in that one
All right, anyone's game here
Defending even champ with his fun. He has up against shield here against the side games couples the last time I
called you Coco maybe top 8 appearance in Japan, so
still getting that experience, but
It wasn't an easy path. Oh no. Yeah. She has been, he's been doing that a lot. He uses the traps and he throws just before the missiles or the bro's connects.
Cause you can't go get them, take it out that time.
Okay, this time it's out. Oh no. That's here with...
She does get the trap. Delta clock.
He waited for a while on that one.
Oh, and that splash, Shio taking the lead in the set now, Zero.
That dash, having certainly gonna try to change things up a little bit there.
No doubt.
Game interrupts. I mean, Tommy, not doing much in that situation.
Checkbox is on there.
Game again, immediately challenges with his firing fire.
That tight, Shio gets the confirm.
He's sliding to the DM, so Mr. Barrage away. The lights.
He's up in that corner position.
Oh yeah.
Oh!
Oh, look at that!
At least being able to challenge the bash, right?
Unfortunately, not going to open up with a ride,
but we'll be in another corner carry with the ultimate awesome sauce.
That's it.
On the time, Shio.
She'll be able to get a set-up going as well.
There's the throws, and the catbot, the ultimate DP, pulled out.
Shio!
To one lead now!
You can't stop this guy!
Very hungry for those points. Oh, yeah, amazing place. A free invite would be really nice
Absolutely all the players here are fighting for the end of the day
They want that ticket to the side games couple yes all very hungry for it. I mean
Koji is sitting pretty good 200 points from from change ship, but
meeting a little bit more, we'll certainly solidify their positions and get higher.
You have minimum 150 on the line.
That's right, five star event here.
Oh, the Rock Paper Scissors, the mine game.
Oh, okay.
Maybe for the side swap perhaps.
All right.
All right, let's give it up as we get into this next round, folks, up here.
We need to see how far Koji Koko can go!
Let's see.
And again, Koji Koko would much rather try and do this on the winner's side.
That's a deal.
I mean, last year was the loser's round.
But, you know, it makes your life a lot easier.
Do you want to go up against Marlark on the loser's side right now?
Absolutely not.
2H, great combo starting here, maybe that's a shakeup that we need to psych out with the
Rock, Paper, Scissors.
I hear that.
Just hop on the gains, I'm not even knocking out of the brat, don't worry.
Alright, there's the wheel, spot dodge there from a group range that time, went to the
catch themselves and follow up, that's the 2L, not able to convert that Thunderbird though.
Ooh, I think we did try to go for a light BV right there.
Oh, the bait!
Who got the throw with the catbot?
That's wild.
See, you're thinking on different levels right now.
This character's menace.
Yeah, I'm angry with this.
The characters can seemingly do it all.
Okay.
I'm really dead.
I guess I always go slow.
Pressuring away.
I hope I just didn't find any kind of an approach.
The patch button connects into a full combo here.
Ultimate on source.
I'm gonna let it reset, set up here, throw.
That's not chase and push out.
Right end of the heavies.
Besides, we can see it.
All time, Koji Koko,
front of your point of interest,
face a little bit shorter, Shio.
Could be on the verge of taking this one.
Oh!
The throw goes off the wayside.
Raging change, you just got Delta clock.
Oh yeah.
Uh-oh.
Alright, see, right HPA.
30 seconds left.
Oh!
oh my gosh that delay is everything right there for shio and with that puts
himself at the set point I can't believe you just psyched him out that's set three
overload right there oh my gosh
stage man brings a way to life
flashback for he is a showman after all oh yeah yeah a story teller if you will
And the story is being made right here in front of us for this one in finals.
Oh my gosh, is that cat ball once again?
What a great sequence.
It's just defense over Koji Koko.
Oh, in my back chip.
Oh my gosh, look at this!
Okay, is it enough?
Yes it is!
Gio goes into the grand finals!
Winner's side!
Wow, what a run so far.
Sending the reigning EVO champ into the loser's bracket, guys. Give it up for Sheer!
Oh my gosh. That is not the end of Koji Koko's path. We'll be waiting in that loser's finals.
And it's almost criminal. You have a Uo-Wayne pendant.
Giving a big old smile after the malaki you put Koji Koko through.
Yeah, that's kind of a demonic right there.
I wasn't having fun. I was getting beat up. Okay, but man. Oh man. I'm having fun watching this topic
Oh about all of you in the arena. Yeah, good time. These guys have been great
Thank you so much for hanging out with us wherever you are with your watch get home
You're watching on the Japanese stream
We can't thank you enough for hanging out with us here and grandma fancy versus rising
It's a great time to play the game because man free to play right now and all the characters available in that demo
So definitely check it out. But man these replays
Let's take a look at the action right there.
Man, starting things off where I thought this was Koji Koko's game,
but she was just looking so good.
Able to adapt to every situation at any given time.
I feel like that's really what it takes to separate, you know, like,
a good player from a world-class player.
When you can adapt your opponent back quickly, really is a game changer.
Yeah, I mean, really setting the expectations upside down here.
I mean, calling out that deep, you mean calling out the reactions from opponents?
Especially like we had that one back-nashed off of the cat-bot setup, right?
But that was genius. We tried to do a tuck right there as well, but Koji learning from his former mistakes
They were trying to survive this encounter against Shio, unfortunately, it was all for naught, that 3-1 victory.
Shio just looked so good today. That's a guaranteed top-2 finish. Exactly. That's a ton of points regardless of what happens here.
Yeah, all right. So let's take a look at that bracket here to see what the rest of the run looks like.
Like again, Koji Koko still sitting in Loser's finals, has another shot, trying to go back
up against Sio, but first and foremost, going to get through this Loser's semis with Monarch
versus Mairias and, man, it's going to be a Seahawks up against Mitterra.
That's the one character I would like to see going up against Mitterra.
You do have that empty hand to close the gap here, but Monarch is certainly not going to
make it any easier for you with the amount of projectiles you can see on the screen.
Yeah, absolutely not.
Yeah, like you said, Seahawks definitely with some approaches that you can make against
mid-sera but the way Monarch's been playing man, it's just so crispy, Knie.
It feels like there's almost going to be no matchup if I can put her in a bad spot.
You know Matera, yeah exactly, has just been really such a terror. I mean almost on the same level
as LeWayne for a period there, but Matera has kind of lived under the radar for quite some time
because you know we only got this one individual really rising to the occasion.
Very true.
But we have Raius right here who has been having an absolute blast throughout this top eight run,
had a very emotional match against Gamera and still an emotional match against Zandori.
And here we are in Loser-Semmys, a massive run, and we'll see if we can get a little bit further.
Monarch though, looking to try to make an earlier period, so lock in some scoring.
For the Grand Blue versus World Tour, and that'll be a sigh of relief here.
Not waiting until the last minute, up until November, right to get those points and qualify for the event.
Definitely, man, Maras has been looking so comfortable, so relaxed, so carefree throughout the bracket.
And sometimes that's the scariest opponent. When your opponent's having fun and just playing the game because, hey, if the game's fun,
then, you know, that can be terrifying. And let me tell you, Maras has been having an absolutely blast through this top eight.
You're just getting mixed and your opponent's cackling at you.
He's laughing.
I'm dying, and you're laughing at me.
Oh my gosh.
All right, fist bump.
Yes, the fist bump is locked in. Let's give it up for this Loser Semis.
Let's go, people.
Come on, Mizo, Monarchus, Marius.
Man, time for all of the Vivo, guys.
Big game right here.
Who's gonna go?
Is that the final?
Let's get that game against that reigning champion here.
Defending champion.
It's all about these two right now.
Monarch and Marius.
All about business.
I can't see you right now with this blindfold,
but I know I'm gonna fight.
I'm gonna do it.
I'm so sorry.
Show no mercy.
Oh my god.
See, it looks like a good one.
It's so cool.
And this one is so valuable.
Do you chill?
If you like not.
All right, let's go.
Engage.
Let's get it.
Come on, Rocky.
It's a little something.
All right, all right, you see?
See you guys later.
OK.
He's setting the situation like that.
Very small.
I like that.
See, that might get a little scared of Mariah.
So you know how to navigate every hand?
Wait a minute.
Back off against the wall.
Life-leaving in favor of Monarch.
I'll be proceeding to try to fake it.
She's running up against you.
Yeah.
OK.
Wow.
I'll take a few late attacks.
I've got a life.
I'm not even worried about it.
Just watch.
Build resources.
and the barfly is out there.
Not tough here to say it, but it does point the hit.
That's going to be that empty hand if you try to put you in a position
or have to deal with projectiles.
I'm going to empty hand this little gap, it's going to get skipped around.
Very, very tough situation.
The chip is a huge factor right now, 0-0.
This doesn't matter.
Empty jump for Rho.
Urius is going to take that first round.
Damn.
I need to put respect on Marius's name right now, Nidai, let's remind us.
He's been able to make pop-up.
Comebacks under higher pressure.
Yeah, but you have to punish there. That will die from Monarch.
Cool. Yeah, we caught that.
What's with the right? I'm not sure, but still gonna get that forward special arm.
Back special arm.
Stuff right there. This, pepper in the way with these arrows.
Look at that, look at how some of your life has just gone!
Marias!
Damn, look at that!
This is a tough situation to be in, Zero.
Yes indeed.
Hello?
I don't have something here off the wall.
SBA once again is on deck.
We don't spend it.
We're going to be killed.
Oh, but so is Monarch!
Beautiful timing on that spot though, right there.
So critical at the moment for Monarch.
Get that back for W3.
Here we go.
All right, good roll. Once again, do that empty hand, slide it to you.
Again. So good. Oh, the bait on the parry was so gross.
You see the hop, your brain goes to the media. Okay, coming in for the hit.
No way. Monarch mixing things up.
You locked it to your blockable scenario.
Now shit it.
Yo, Monarch looking nasty with it. My gosh.
The moment you took to the skies you sealed your fate with monarch taking that
first game of the Lucid Sevens. Beautiful play. Again, it's that textbook style.
Lazy by the book, you know? He wrote it himself. There you go. We saw it in the
intro. Man had to book out. No pass.
Again, every time it's the roll on the empty hand.
Very clean.
Of course, you're still trying to bait that out.
And indeed, that time opted for a BC.
Mixed up his options, not pulling into one same decision every time.
5,000 here, shoulda found.
Ooh, flash with the projectiles.
Yeah.
Right.
Training on that one, but get full combo on that one from Mariahs.
the game. Ultimate six claw.
Okay, something out there for the
shit in there. Yeah. Why not
changing the bottom of the
situation? And the five oh stop
in your tracks. That's right.
Right now. Okay. Is there any
time to punish?
Straight in. Yeah. Good stuff.
That should be just enough. It isn't being Marius around up here in the second game.
You're capable of more.
Battle 2 in game.
Let's get it, man.
Oh, oh!
Yeah, it's not a consistent on-stop.
You might throw your punch off here and then.
I guess at the end of the day, one position, great spot.
Marius with that lead.
And a block of PC, empty hand once more.
Trying to avoid the ultimate butterfly.
But too well, that was game for Monarch.
Marius will take this game.
Beautiful stuff, look at that.
Such a rapid dang rocket.
Marius, can't count them out.
One kind of PC, I think.
I'm sorry, he doesn't even mention the Kraus.
Is it a Skrill issue?
Was it a Skrill issue?
Who can say?
Kraus, what's your take on it?
Is it a Skrill issue?
Alright.
Simply avoid the projectiles over there.
Just get in again.
Just get in?
It's really hard!
Just...
Alright, there's like somebody in the reset gets to grab.
100% lead. Oh, we have the spot to auto.
Hold the time. Hold the time.
Comfort. Sir.
Oh, nice.
Pretty every time.
Looks like grab is about to once again.
Bumps it.
Look, there's a player who plays a character that uses geometry on the regular basis.
I feel like you should have an understanding of the spatial awareness of N6.
Oh yeah.
You have to know those angles.
You've got to know exactly where the screen is going to be.
Now, who times?
Oh, Snipe out of the sky.
It's no game for you.
Wow, this is so hilarious.
Everything is happening right now on that screen.
Oh, the big jump though.
You guys are heavy.
Oh my goodness, actual turret.
That's an easy confirm.
That's a BNB.
That is a round off from Marius.
Yes, indeed.
That's a B and B. That is a round off from Marius.
As it is, always finding the answer here.
But that is the cost, the defensive options that are on our chooses.
As opposed to using resources for the universal,
generally Mark joins the BCs, which means four damage opportunity here.
For a character that's supposed to have Seattle, it's only a boom.
So they're leading.
Oh, we're gonna go for the super here.
Oh, yeah, that's gonna be that.
That's gonna be another game.
Bryce, look at this guy down here for the kill.
And it's a 2-1 lead.
A much faster game than that first one.
Yeah, just comes to show, man.
Yeah, Metera's got some incredible zone to keep you out so easily,
but your opponent gets in.
It could be curtain super.
Exactly, exactly.
And those defensive options become more and more important,
more and more important, whether it's the resources you spend for all six wars, for those braid points.
And Monarch doing this darkness by spending braid points, just not enough to dissuade Mariahs from closing the gap already in this corner with the sixth one.
Okay, we've got a challenge though from Monarch at that time.
That's up and it's taking a bit more of an aggressive approach here, but that counts a coming through.
Alright, nice. We'll take these late decks, that's fine, there's plenty of damage for me.
Wow, a lot of Monarch tracks good copies in that situation.
It's an up ultimate.
Let's see that time though.
Alright, Raging Chain here.
Monarch, let's get a barf myself. There it is.
Oh, he just hit it.
Just out of dodge.
I mean, it worked out, essentially. You're out in the corner, but never mind. Monarch!
Finds the hit.
She was a bit too high up. I understand. Maybe he thought it was just a 5-view interaction.
Yes.
It's a short half and you try to cap it. Super.
I didn't see it, it's brought Monarch back into this match.
Fire again.
Power fire.
I think Monarch is really good at trying to find that timing on the empty hand dodge.
Yeah.
It's so consistent with it, obviously.
Once again, just ready for about late death.
Front of the rise.
Alright, the counter throw.
Stop the fire now.
Come on, we're going for it here.
It's the end challenge.
Just trying to take it right for me as early as possible.
The hot, the challenge, though.
Fires not afraid to press the buttons.
The rage will just swing.
Hey, I'll catch up on him.
And again, the challenge with buttons
has really been the deciding factor here.
But no meter to convert or raging chains.
So all you need is one more shot.
And Monarch going to succeed with a 5L.
tying it up with this loser semis, two on.
Now five out, such a good space control tool.
You know, it controls that ground in front of Mitterra.
And Monarch's been using that.
It's a great effect.
Let's get out of the bracket so far.
All right, here we go.
And the final game for loser semis.
Oh, my gosh.
Anyone's angle in this league.
Oh, she's worth sniping out of this guy.
Perfect angle.
Absolutely.
What a four.
Four roll there.
Four, no, that's big.
Oh, that was a good one.
Now let's see if Jeff Bell is flying.
Marius.
Okay.
He just spends 70% of the ultimate trying to close the gap.
He's not paid off, and Monarch is going to take full advantage.
Now sets up the butterfly to grab tech.
Gets the hit!
Oh my gosh, that's so round right there.
Indeed, a round. Monarch answering back in kind.
It was so consistent for Marius.
He's now starting to crumble a little bit.
Here we go. Monarch now. Set point here.
Looking to eliminate Marius, one round away.
Okay, here we go.
Wanna position once again, Monarch is looking absolutely comfortable right now, look at this.
The six-quall are backing off.
Oh!
Heartbreak into the gate, that's ultimate six-quall, bring it right back down.
That's unfortunate.
Dodge, quick break, twice in a row.
We're gonna fly here, nice for SBA on deck, full round as well, and here's a round up.
That is it for sure, because there's no very good points, more than enough damage there
for Mariahs to get that kill, and we are going to it guys, final game, final round.
Wow, what a nail by R.
5L starts you for momentum.
Okay, anyone's game right here.
She's gonna take a big shot.
What a huge advantage this is gonna be.
Counter hit, big combo.
Couple limit here is so close.
All right, we're not trying to keep that composure.
Can't let this crumble away now, we've come so far.
Rolls out, so important.
Absolutely.
Oh, 6-4.
Oh my goodness!
Go!
Tried to secure victory instantaneously by hitting that raging strike, not in the connect.
And 200, born up with one step ahead.
And he's not showcasing yet, but monarch still has reactions.
Yes.
And that is our fortune that the jump heavy will secure Mariah's kitchen simple.
One at the end here, but of course she got the standing heavy instead.
And that means it's victory for Mariahs!
Wow, there you go. Moving into the final guaranteed top-free finish now. Monarch is going to fall
out of the fourth place, but that was an incredible run, guys. Give it up for Monarch, seriously.
So good.
Miraiasud ran an ear-to-ear for that victory, but it's now in it for the long haul.
No doubt. Wow, what a run.
That is an insane run. Absolutely insane run. Only at 20 points coming into today's event.
and now rising to the occasion, top three guaranteed 150 points online and then some the coveted position but also guarantees that you get that in game badge for Grand Blue fans versus rising for qualifying in a top three position and a five star event.
Hey man, there's not many people to get those.
many at all can definitely flex that one. Yes, it is very, very cool stuff, man. So wow,
what a set right there. That's because we were so in control and yet something fell into place
for Mariahs here, where we actually just walked into the expulsivity of Seox is very important
to match up here. Yeah, for sure. Despite navigating through empty hand time and time again,
Mariahs still fell back to it, was trying to test the actual reactions that one our cap.
And I feel like that's why towards the end we got that raging strike attack.
Because surely at this point you're so worn out mentally that you cannot lack this fight.
Yeah, so conditioned, but it didn't work out that way, you know, you can smell the victory,
but that's a big two hungry for it. We're not well aware of that.
But yeah, it was just such a powerful game right there. You can see it right here.
It's just the patience to walk up, you know, kind of deal with the barrage,
but eventually at the end comes through and the clutch is choked.
That was supposed to be the anti-air special.
That's what he was looking for and just did not get it.
That's the end point and that is mistakes like that
will really cost you, especially at this level, right?
You're taking an inch. It's going to turn into a mile
at this caliber of play.
There you go, man. One mistake that can be all it takes
for you to be bowing out of the tournament here at EVO
and that was the case there.
So it's going to be a fourth place finish there
from one of our still amazing runs.
Man, absolutely stellar performance,
but that is going to take us to our next break here.
We're still going to get to the losers finals,
of course, the grand finals, and definitely stay tuned,
because I heard there's something special
coming from Fukuha, so I'm self-edited there,
so we'll see you a little bit later until then.
We'll be back with more EVO 2026 right after this.
MUSIC
SHATTERS
LAUGHING
Wait, wait, wait.
LAUGHING
Nerd?
Commentary is about even people engaged.
Yes.
This guy lied to me for 15 years.
I didn't know his age.
That was like my first couple of months in a year.
I guess it's weird for you to call me daddy.
That's very weird, Jay.
I need to do a little bit.
I gotta avenge myself.
Top guys make me laugh too much.
Oh, jeez.
No two competitors are the same.
Some run on routine for the chance to win big.
Some make time to rise through the brackets.
Some lock in with confidence.
However you prepare, there's a place
for every kind of competitor.
PlayStation Tournaments, sign up today on PS5.
Maybe you'll get on stage.
Hey, maybe you'll even get famous.
But that's not really what this is about, is it?
It's about competition.
It's about friendship.
It's about our love of our games.
That's what it's about for us at least.
Since 2011, our broadcasts, events, and merchandise
have been top quality and grassroots at the same time.
10-0, forever we fight.
I
your body knows a sense of victory sees when mind movement and gear ignite as
won. Victory is within reach. Feel it, right?
Now, step into your zone. Designed to win.
Welcome back, EVO 2026.
Airhead's springing the fun to Las Vegas during the event.
You can power up your candy game with airheads as we take a look at the airheads.
Aircam, let's see those wristbands.
We got a one of C flashing lights.
Yeah, here we go.
Out there, and I see y'all picking them up.
One mouth there, that's huge.
I see a couple of you guys out there with the airheads.
wristbands, there you go man.
Big shout out to Airheads for sponsoring the event man.
I know.
I've been chewing on a couple.
Exactly, exactly.
Like it's just so easily accessible in the back room of course, we're gonna pick up
a couple of snacks as we lead in to our next stint of top eight.
And before I get to this bracket look here, guys, how is this top eight?
How let the folks at home know how we feel about this top eight, right?
I think crazy.
I think shout out to you guys, man.
You've been a crazy crowd.
Granby Fancy versus crowd always pulls up, man.
You know, you'd love to see it, guys.
Something electric as we see the players pass during this bracket here.
But we're down to the final three-zero.
What is happening in this bracket?
hold on. Gio is still waiting in the works on the winner side of grand finals and we're about to
get them to his final set. It is Koji Koko versus Me Rias and man oh man this path that
Marias has been putting on today since yesterday. I don't, man I want to take a double check on
what the voting was for this. How many of you have picked for this run here because Koji Koko
still in it of course is one of the favorites to take the whole thing. You know Raining Champ of
of course, wants to run back, takes W here, but there are a couple obstacles in your path
and Marius has been in the hot seat today.
Tell you what, man, Marius went up against our defending Ibo champion here, Koji Koko,
but it's not going to be the first Ibo champion they've had to take down in this tournament.
They did send Gamera home, actually, before top eight.
So yeah, definitely going to be a big match here for both players.
Koji Coco, of course, wants to defend the title,
wants to bring it back home once again with Mariahs.
Looking to make a statement here.
Yeah, I mean, that just goes to show the landscape,
how it's changed drastically in the state of Granblue
Fancy versus Mariahsing.
Seats rising to the occasion on the side of Mariahs.
Here we did see the uses for a little bit,
but has stuck with tried and true
throughout the rest of this bracket here,
but Koji Coco stepped him up to the plate with his Beatrix,
not faltering away from the champion character pick,
and finish this out strong trying to secure yet another Evo trophy as we step
into this glorious stage of battle. All right here we go guys, it's time to get into the
action, it's Loser's Final, let's hear it one last time before we get into the action people.
Yeah that's what I'm talking about guys. Here we go.
He's so edgy, jeez, seriously.
She has no idea.
She literally just pulled on his back.
I don't know what I'm doing here
That's so cool, man. Oh my gosh
Start things off break little navigation through the airspace
Okay, goji great start this time
Thunderbird and asking me their mincemeat safe jump goes low just in case that counts up
This movie liked that decision there from Coach Coco.
Oh, we got a round on our hands! Let's launch it!
One, two, three, not even necessary!
The perfect round to a man's tear for the first opening of the Lose Fine.
Wow, that was a dominant start.
This is a statement round to kick us off here, the Lose Fine.
Coach Coco, showing...
He's serious.
It's fine.
I mean, you already did a little bit of work on that character's loss.
Lower health character on the Sanctioc Beatrix.
The Damage Bealer Powerhouse.
Exactly.
Again, here we go.
Ah, and again, you see he tried it.
That time it was empty throw.
Oh, and a such a bird.
Let me give you a little taste of what you've been doing.
Double.
All the buster off this bracket.
Double, perfect.
Wow.
Coach Coco with a flawless first game there.
Rinse and repeat.
Got that set play going in the corner.
The second he gets that 50%,
it's the ultimate Thunderbird into the safe jump setup.
Really taking advantage of that.
The save needs to rely on that counter to get out of those situations.
Indeed, pulled it out twice!
We'll see how this plays for a-
Oh no, this is not looking good!
I heard the squeak on the court, the sneakers are left out!
Here we go, once again, guess who's coming!
Ultimate Thunderbird!
Back time of delay!
Oh my gosh, the frame kill into the needy Koji Coco on fire right here!
Alright, I got two new!
He's a high up there, one more touch, so we can keep the stagger to heavy.
Big counter hit, Marius looking to try to make a quick catch-up, and strip away two brave points from Koji.
That's right.
That's huge.
Oh! Okay, Koji.
Kind of dashed for an Asuna here.
Oh, nice.
This damage boost, because of the loss of Brave Points, certainly going to help out the side of Marius.
Yep. Big.
Koji's in a chip situation right now.
Oh my gosh!
Oh no way!
Double KO the projectiles clash!
This is the loosest one of the ages!
My gosh!
No one saw that coming.
Okay.
I make this round even more important.
Oh my gosh.
I can't make a single mistake right here.
I should try to fish with that 5-0.
Oh, actually, we got a full combo here.
Like a sequence.
Can I pull here? I use full combo.
Okay, BC is blocked.
And Daphlight, the right way to get out of that corner here.
Oh yeah.
And the bird keeps chasing for the east coast.
Okay, heavy swing, BC.
Okay, ready for three BC on those as well.
I cannot fail to fade away trying to bake something out from Koji perhaps.
There he is.
Trying to call out potential DP reversal.
Very cautious, the 5-0.
That calls something to him with the fast flight with Delta Park.
The bonus is out.
Set it with SSB and it's from the final two brave points on the side of Marius.
That's it.
Giving himself a massive advantage right there.
Marius cannot get in.
I see time right now.
Oh my goodness.
It is not going to go for the ball, but it's going to get the top end.
You know, like, you do it once, maybe it's off of a workout.
Oh my gosh, brother.
Mariah's not playing around.
Uh-uh, no, I'm not afraid of you.
That's crazy.
Alright, I'm going to PC that double KO.
It actually makes the job a little bit easier for Mariah to practice.
You big jump and try to connect with a J.M.
Okay, I'm back to lay on that.
Back away, J.M. once more.
Woo! 5L also won a Koji setting up her super.
Okay, nice job.
Alright, we're gonna spend it.
And now for the big win right there.
Koji, Koko, another round up.
Again, he did some of the work for me, a character select, he chose seal, the last help.
That's it, gonna make it a bit easier. Like you said man, Beatrix is such a powerhouse, every hit has a hitman.
Watch an empty hand, big commitment on the run from Koji.
Oh, the clash into immediate throw with the JQ.
Gonna do the full conversion though, and expect an empty hand to commit.
Mariahs, for putting reset off the ball.
Nice bit, the counter pays off,
dashing up on him immediately, gets a full combo as well.
He bounce, goes, and comes straight for it.
I don't think it's enough to kill that Mariahs.
Still in a great position here.
Oh, over.
1, 2, 3, super.
Wow, very little scaling on this combo.
Let's see if we can see if we can see up to that fuckhouse at any more breaking point, this is going to hurt.
Nice back dash away from Mariahs.
Wow, look at that little movement.
Rare fire if you can go from closing this racket.
Hey, that's the same text you get punished right now.
Where'd you go, go?
to carry their their counter was cooled out
oh no no
six bar, close that gap
yo
I told you it wasn't going to go
really well close these things are going to be flying
next turn
alright we might even see
yeah that's not super high, yeah we're going to see it
we're setting that for you
not quite the kill
I'll threaten and chip
Oh, trying to go for deep here and things.
That's why he's just challenged with that butt-hell.
Okay, Coach Coco taking the lead now.
Such a back and forth match.
Really is so hot and cool.
I mean, both characters are pretty explosive in their own right.
It's just 1S, a little less health.
Whereas Beatrix, right, does have that standard reach, the Shodos style.
Life-free is always going to be a game of existence.
Oh, yeah.
Such a good option if you go to Mariahs.
Yes, that king jump.
Punch in the corner. Sixth floor.
40.
Back right there.
Oh, gee, what is that?
That far range.
Oh, the anarchy.
Ultimate right in three.
That means a refund as well.
So much more resource on that.
Safe jump coming.
The counter.
This is why you did that.
Just press the button.
Anyway, the J.O. trying to call in.
Not a terrible call.
We're blocking. Let's get the five-tooth finish.
There you go.
Getting the head up.
Okay, we're going to set point for Koji Koko, guys, to make it to the Grand Finals.
Right up here.
Blocked air-to-air, good IVs.
Time to set back Nash.
Oh, no! I was baiting you the whole time!
The whip punish was so clean, man. Love to see that.
Cause the ultimate thunderbird saved jump. This time it's fuzzy match for Marius!
6-4.
The delay dp!
All trying to go fast on the 1-4. B-C out.
Oh yeah.
And it's close to super.
Oh, co.
Oh my gosh, he punished it!
And there you have it!
Koji Koko's steps is taking it to the Grand Finals!
Wow! What a set, man.
Insane set.
These two fighting tooth and nail to rise up back into Grand Finals.
But an insane run.
Koji Koko putting his heart out there just to get back to that fight against Shio.
But also, Marius, let's give it up for Marius,
this third place finish, rising up in the rank,
hitting average options for the Grand Balloon
versus Rock Tour Finals.
That's 150 points for our next row, that's a lot.
Sitting at 170 total, so just underneath
where Koji Coco currently sits on the rankings,
which of course changes today.
No doubt.
Wow, regardless, Koji Coco has absolutely
leapt up that leadable, it's here.
It's gonna be a minimum of 400 points
for direct qualification.
So it's, you know, that's huge regardless.
Either way, I'm probably going to be there at the finals
is what Koji is saying here today.
Oh man, but man, looking back at just the path
that Koji has taken over the last year,
just really going to lock you in and studying,
you're starting to see some of those tendencies
who will catch it in this replay
of just the fundamental understanding of playing other games.
Not only here, this was absolutely the double kill.
Highlight moment of the bracket.
So far.
That's crazy, but I didn't expect that.
No one expected it.
No one was ready for it.
But, honestly, just the change of Koji Koko's temper make as far as his fundamental spacings
and neutral, right?
You're starting to see those shades of playing other fighters starting to trickle into this game.
That is such a key factor, right?
And when you become such a high level competitor, exploring other games and taking those tools
to your main game becomes such a boon for yourself.
You're seeing that here, especially the spacing with that whip on it, off the 2U for the heavy, that was huge for Koji.
Absolutely man, you want to be sharp if you want to be ready, just for any situation that comes up, and you can see it right there man.
Koji Koko just looking super prepared man. Don't forget last year as well, did take this tournament from the loser's side, so more than capable to do so here.
But Shiyo, what an opponent waiting in the Grand Final Winner's side.
Yeah, this has been an extraordinary run, and I feel like that win over Zendori was all the motivation that Shiyo needed to go up.
I hear that. I can do this. Yeah, absolutely.
Surely there was no doubt once you made top 8, but then that confidence boost that you're getting from taking down such a threat in the bracket.
That'll make your run high pretty far in the bracket, so Shiyo on the winter side of the course with Hoji Coco trying to challenge once more.
once more. How do we win two sets to try to take the W?
Definitely. Perhaps. I mean, I think it's like to say not the top eight outcome that we expected when you look at that right path right there.
But let's go. The Grand Lufam has pulled up to Las Vegas here. We've got those emotes in effect.
And bro, it's going to be a crazy Grand Finals here. Zero. I can't wait for this.
All right, crowd. I got to know this last time I get to ask you,
Who's got it for Koji Koko taking it back once more?
But what if you want to see something new?
Who's feel like a change-up in champions?
Who's got it for Shido?
Wow, yeah, you guys are.
That is a split crowd right there, man.
Everybody's excited.
Regardless of what happens,
I know this is going to be an electric grand final.
I'm ready for this one.
Lowane.
That's...
Hell is all the size.
No context, Lowane.
Yeah, so you guys say more.
Yes, that's all you had to say, bro.
But then Beatrix.
Oh, my gosh, yeah.
So killer as well.
It's going to be a tough one.
It's going to be that set play coming from Lowane here,
Ken Koji-Koko, correct the mistakes from a previous set,
and overcome Shio, who clearly has a calm, calculated game
plan against Beatrix.
Oh, absolutely, yeah.
Honestly, for Shio, the most impressive part about how
he's been playing today is the obvious preparation.
Yeah, that's going into his, yeah, he has just been so ready for every situation and every opponent it feels like, yeah, almost switching up his style, according to who he's playing against.
Yeah, as he starts to lock in, let's see if we get the headset on as we proceed into this final set of the night. It's been a long road out of us here, but it's been an enjoyable one to see this happen over the last two days at EVO 2026 is a great way to start off a Saturday.
It's a great way to kick off a glorious weekend as you get one more five-star qualified champion out here.
We will be getting a new qualified player here guys.
Let's see, oh my gosh, they're getting ready.
Yeah.
We got a private sassy legs song reporting for duty, okay.
Alright people, let's get ready for this one.
This is your grand final of Grand Prix Fantasy I's Rising.
Let's get it! It's Evo!
Something special is in the air. Let's check this out.
Donning the colors that we have in the intro once more.
Koji Koko, make the repeat. It's quite the story.
We're unfolding in front of us here as we get the homies out.
Malayne.
And I suppose you're gonna have to work overtime. Let me tell you.
Up against Beatrix.
We need him, right?
Oh, do they count as extra characters in 3v1? Is this a tag fighter now? What are we doing?
What are you gonna press?
Skill buttons.
Skill buttons.
It's all skill.
No skill, you should see it, buddy. Grand finals time.
Jeez, that's alright. You give us a start. Stop running right there.
Right, literally. All combat time.
Oh no.
You just gotta go for that pressure sequence there.
Hit your cocoa.
Fucking them down in that corner.
It's gonna be super difficult for Shio to get going from there.
There you go, that's a line, he's sitting up at the bar.
Okay.
Oh, wow.
Oh, we all have a decision.
Yeah.
It's eruptive though, we'll stop.
Is that Thunderbird to close that gap?
Throwing out here.
Okay, that's a grab.
Oh, yo!
Mr. Puzzler is trying to go for the midi $5 didn't connect whatsoever.
Oh yeah. 50% in spent. Left and right.
Sure is, Jeff.
Oh!
Not the punish.
Kicking south here, Shiyo trying to catch him off guard. There it is, the throw.
He's in.
DC on that one and the challenge, Delta Club.
Coming in clutch there for Koji Koko.
Huge.
Alright, the last round there goes to Koji.
She- Rob start, ride free, I don't care about Sammy and Sophie, it's about being new right
now.
Absolutely.
She though, just not opening up.
Oh, not biting at all.
That was tech success from that time though.
This, the patience in the corner now, the Thunderbird that goes to Gatch challenge gets caught.
Okay, what's the source?
Ultimate edition.
Right back for here.
It's about to be a nice lead for Koji.
Oh nice.
All about the pairing.
Yeah.
Thank you so much.
Yeah, with it off the table,
you can go buck wild with the pressure.
That's the first game up for Koji Koko.
Alright, classic start there.
Ain't no way.
And again, ooh, we might see a switch up here.
Ain't no way.
Alright, just kind of count it.
That's where he said that's all.
Because we did see the Ustis.
But Shio sticks with Loane, right?
I mean, there's nothing that's just always with the low end.
Yeah, nice to see you.
He has, you know, took down Koji Koko in the winter side.
Definitely very doable here.
I think Koji Koko took the advantage in their winter back as well.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
And then she pulled that one back.
So, you know, just maybe you need a little moment to take a breather.
Exactly, exactly.
Think about the strategy of it.
Waiting for Mariah to set up.
You're going up on the board.
It's like, oh, it's that board.
I'll get the one.
Wait a minute.
Shield back in it.
Oh my gosh, once again, oh man, don't press anything.
If we were quicker to react, I'm afraid that could have been the air throw, a better opportunity for a shield.
Not wrong, here's the SDA, pick a clutch for Koji Koko here, gets the count, and hit the combo!
Into the W, my gosh, Koji Koko's on a roll right now, but there might be some motivation out here.
To right.
Evo trophy as well with Insight now.
We're gonna do the 2P.
I'm not gonna care about your cannon, killer.
Taking a breath there.
The challenge though, that was a very high up jump.
Challenged.
And the third, the ADBC and howl.
No further advice for you.
will deny the right free if you decide to get a little frisky on the approach.
The dash button for them missiles, you see like that coaching
Free full combo time
Knock at the door with the flash frames, up the light
The spawn chaser is very fortunate that we go for the off the fireball there to use the
non-nepro view
Yep, took it out, we need to apply it
Yeah, the ultimate orgy source gets punished in that scenario, Shio may be getting a bit desperate there.
It's going to lead right now, looking very strong on this event of his coverage of Kuroko.
Yeah, that's right. Don't forget, Koji Koko does need to reset the bracket first.
It's beautiful inside, but still, a massive lead here.
Shio still has to win three games if he wants that evolution trophy.
It's a flight.
The whole night that was coming.
Yeah, huge five out of the box, the dash steady.
A little pervert to push back to the corner.
Alright, you're off.
No carry.
Yeah, they're out in fact.
Now you're gonna have to defend here.
Right.
Again.
Coach Goji gets confirmed.
Big damage.
Oh, the Thunderbird here.
Safe jump time.
Goes low.
Ultimate baiting out.
And that is gonna be huge.
Goji, go go.
Gonna be able to close this one out with the greatest of these.
There you go.
Skype bounce off.
Oh
He wants this reset back. Oh, yeah, you can see
Yeah
Hell yeah
Attack
To you
Here goes your cocoa
Kouji, you felt the disturbance, able to get that throw.
He's preparing for their ultimate star chaser.
I thought it was something that could have lost, a close loss second there.
That's still your corner.
You're not allowed to go to midfield.
Oh!
Oh, man!
Zero!
Is that going to be it?
That is the never-sweep 3-0 victory for Kouji Kouko.
We got ourselves a reset to the top of the bat, Kouji wants that go.
Oh, yeah, we all got a reset indeed.
Here we go.
It's going to be a fresh set now, the first two, three.
Grand Finals of Evolution, we've got a reset zero.
It's already a story in the making here.
Do we get the back to back championship from Koji Coco,
or do we get a new appearance of a champion
and Grand Blue rising?
I mean, this is nothing new for Koji Coco.
He's been in this situation before.
Resetting the bracket at EVO top eight, Grand Finals.
Looking to do the same here.
Let's see.
I mean that training has been showing a payoff thus far for Koji Koko, really locked in,
has got a ton of games over in Japan which is some of the finest competition you can find across the globe for this game.
So, this is really starting to show out. I mean, Shio gave that extra motivation, right, to be on the loser's side
and that makes you play a little more confident, a little more aggressive in a lot of interactions, especially against the Loane.
Absolutely. Yeah, this more aggressive style Beatrix has been paying off so well in this run back from the winner's side. Winner's final.
Here we go, people. This is it. Let's see who is going to be your EVO champion.
Who 5L interrupts coming from the front six here. RDS in corner. Koji is giving Shiro no corner.
Let's recall at the ferry with that heavy counter hit!
That's so clutched!
That's gonna be so much damage from all here.
We are gonna do this.
Skyfall not hit.
Big damage.
Oh, and that was killed by the scenario against the hit.
Oh my gosh!
No way!
That's your fault!
That's my view!
You got hit!
That is your fault!
Wow.
Koji Coco.
Save it.
Yo, you can't bring that telephone cover to this round.
Alright, there's the ferry.
I mean, Koji Koji was sending shield reeling that last round.
Nice, immediate, if you're in the back dash when you're going to close the gap quickly.
Let's flash.
Oh, bust it out.
Watch it.
Shortening with Star Chaser.
That's a run-up throw.
Alright, there again.
Star Chaser's coming in heavy.
Oh, no!
Don't try and challenge this guy.
Back to the corner here with the awesome source, once in the side-slot.
Yep, here we go.
Oh, look, reset tiles!
No one's arounding there, this little...
full sketch and code, you're gonna certainly take advantage of it here by spending super.
Oh yeah, that's big.
See.
I need 100 spent.
Really looking out through, I mean, the dash late.
Take that, Sammy. Tell me the 2-1 trade.
Koji Ko-ko on four game straight.
Four games straight here, Grand Finals.
Shio cannot get his footing.
Look at all casual culture being about this.
Like, nah, there's none there.
Didn't want to set in.
Got to stay calm and collected, man.
It's like you said earlier.
Can't get overconfident before the job is done.
Oh, man, that was unfortunate.
That was a tough one to show it up.
True, true, true.
That DP, you hit screen, not what you want there.
Awesome source.
The blocks, yeah, just has to hold the ultimate, too low, too late to challenge the ultimate of her own.
Back, back, crap.
Oji here, safe jump.
And Shiyo.
Stand back.
Oji, really taking Shiyo to pass, right now's a BC, last second low splot there.
Uh-huh.
All of the low!
Awesome, awesome, awesome, should be big here.
Should be enough to kill, yeah.
Shiyo!
Finally getting around on the floor, jeez.
Oh jeez, he's been looking so oppressive these last couple of days.
Certainly not making this easy.
Alright, she might have been what he needed.
A confidence boost around by the way.
Okay, he comes into the strike.
Yeah, just shy here.
One, two, three for this corner position.
Off the wall we go, with the drive three.
Alright, next thing you know what this means.
Blocks it out, uses that PC to push Koji away.
Get him, star chase, just to throw a wheel against the core.
Eliminate from play immediately.
Slightly fell for Koji.
Actually, if we get this next touch, we gotta kill, don't...
One great point left on the side of Shio.
2L, she's gonna fight tooth and nail for this round, okay?
Let's see if you can make something come out of this one
Right, reset here, missiles
Careful with the helpers, grab the back throw, taught a damage, corner position, is advantage 4, oh jeez what's up, Harry comes out
Nice finish off that ultimate special
Yeah man, that was a do or die moment. I feel like if that parry would've baited, it would've been a horrible
Met with Godbreak perhaps for Shio, but in this situation does fire back. Okay, it's one one
That's one of those scenarios that it's kind of scary to go for the the bait on the reversal because you're so close to
Earning that victory your opponent knows it your opponent knows to expect that you're thinking about the reversal anyways
So taking the caution to just let it rip anyways. Let's see what happens
What if I got foods?
Just with that my Shio has put himself right back in this fight
Stopping the bleeding
Oh, okay, realized he was going to try and check the throws and using that parry to play
that shield.
Nice, still looking to get that risk of the forward special ultimate.
Nice play.
Those mushrooms off the star chase here, just kind of bounce white, nice spotch, 2L, opening
Open it up for this court position, SBA is going to be in play.
Absolutely, it's going to be coming out for sure.
It's going to be a huge advantageous situation now for Koji.
Here we go.
Reads upon the braving points, massive life.
He gets that grab, and it's going to be enough.
Wow.
It's missing break points.
We're going to set the pace.
Oh, yeah, it really does.
Got to be so careful how you manage that.
Flash, flash, and immediately get the special with the spot guard.
That was Gio ready for it!
She's been still coming at you with a medium-ride free.
Yeah, a medium-ride free coming through strong.
Missed time, but Sammy told me the interruption of that 5-0.
That goes loads twice here.
Pro-G just trying to find that hit.
Here we go!
That's what's on the bird for the safe chuck setup.
And again, Gio just couple of them just chilling.
The block to lose the barrage.
Watch here, he's got not the timing, he's actually come to the front earlier.
Oh!
He's devoured by the ultimate wheel.
Yo, that beautifully, so good from Shio.
The awareness.
Oh!
Look at him, Delta, walk on her side.
He's big. He's got enough zero.
I think we're bumbling here.
I think it's going to be the basketball.
One more strike and it should be enough!
Wow.
Koji Goku taking the lead here.
Through one now.
One game away.
From your second
Evo trophy
Were it not for Delta clock that would have been different just reset the neutral
We're back to the mid-screen and a dicey situation a high stress scenario
But that raging strike the chain combo guaranteed that victory Koji Cocoa step away dash like the Paris shield trying to protect
Sammy told me now, but look how expensive in terms of abilities that was yeah, she's gonna have to keep it simple
Oh, there we go, the cat drill, paying off there, and again, now Harry!
Shio just stepping into a second gear here!
I'm trying to call out the BC attempt at that spot now, somehow, but the heavy!
An off-wall, a single microstat forward to get that conversion with the heavy!
Beautiful play.
Koji, block it in here.
He's not this one, I mean, from his rounds.
Block.
Okay, dribble, bust out!
Shio with full of right decisions!
Really calling out those safe jabs. Not calling coachy get away with it.
Oh!
Back to the red.
Yeah.
Nice attach, nice spot.
Oh!
That coverage we saw earlier to get Sandori, the dash, like right on top of the ultimate
wheel.
Yeah, let him know.
Okay, here we go.
Shio might be back.
This is such a nail-pattern of a set, honestly, what a grand final, what a treat this is.
Yeah, it's that back throw.
Okay.
Okay, stagger here, late tech from Shio, and again, and it, okay, that's fine, a bit more
on foot with it.
DC, Kochi Koko coming through, he grabs this game, he hits the grapple, oh man, I'll get
flashback for that first hit.
One, if you watch it, yeah, that's the G-SPA, that's going to be a round.
And just like that, Koji Koko is on either point here.
One round away for being your back-to-back champ.
She'll stem the bleeding here.
Oh, wow, coming out of the precipice.
It's heavy. I mean, look, we're so close to victory.
Oh!
That's a great start.
We're going to maximize the damage, cycle through our abilities.
Oh, no way you can run my man.
Five hours after we start late tech, that's damage built up.
Also, if we have blocked right to challenge the dash,
the shield can shut it down.
You're going to take yourselves out, gets caught.
This is a bad spot to be in. One touch is all that coaching needs.
This corner position shield has got to get out.
Absolutely. Do one dice, he's question.
And we're going to call it the classic B&B, of course, the Rage of Change, one for KOTI KOKO,
securing some EVO Championship, and guarantees the Graffler vs. Tuber in fights.
Wow, back to back, EVO champion KOTI KOKO got it from the loser side again.
You can't keep this man down. Another EVO trophy in the bag, which what a run this guy had.
He was lit along the favourite up until the very last moment,
but Koji Coco proven too strong here guys!
He is your EVO Champion!
Unbelievable! I have no idea what click to the place for Koji Coco.
I have to have a winner's final.
But I'm sure Koji is glad that it did because, man, that guaranteed his position,
that guaranteed that he's going to rise to the ranks
It shows exactly why he's one of the best in Granblue Fancy vs Rising.
Just so many times throughout that bracket where he just
rose to the occasion when that chips was down and things were looking bad.
He just found a solution and just made the game go his way.
Forced it to almost. Look at this play right here in the Grand Finals.
Just relentless, immediate right free. The moment we get pushed out by the brave counter.
The distance that we sit in this corner every single time. Finding the optimal position.
Wow man, Koji Koko is the reset in the bracket, making it happen there.
Just the decision maker from both players was honestly super super good.
Yes, so Koji Koko, for no man, just one step ahead of the time.
That is certainly an individual who has been traveled, who has been locked in training,
experiencing so many other competitive competitions, experiencing other games,
and also rising in kids, bringing back those skills here where it matters the most to secure
that championship victory, and I look forward to seeing what the rest of the year continues
to look like for Koji Koko.
Yeah, that dealt a good firm there. That was everything, honestly. That really did, I feel
like that skewed the momentum in his favor, and from then on, I feel like Shio just could
not find the answers. The solution to the puzzle, that was Koji Koko. And look at that,
the skybound art, to close it out, and the sigh of relief. You love to see it.
We did it once more, locking in that victory, locking in the trophy, a big smile, but also
Shio excellent performance as well.
This has been a glorious top eight to look forward to.
Amazing.
Definitely not in the way that I thought it would turn out, but at the very least it seems
like some folks at home were voting correctly in terms of their bracket predictions.
Too right, man.
Wow.
Well, there you have it, guys.
That was the top eight for Grammys Vs Rising, but with that, we do have our award ceremony
coming up soon. So yeah, it's gonna be crazy man already ready to see this on the stage.
I'm ready to see the board ceremony as well. Yeah, absolutely.
And of course I'm looking forward to seeing what else is after this.
So let's take it away over to RobTV on the stage in just a moment
because I think I'm primed up and ready.
And then I'm more concerned about what Fukuhara had edited earlier.
We saw that tweet from Grandblue proper.
And of course there's still gonna be community tournaments as well.
Happening throughout the weekend. You can tune in for the 5v5 exhibition.
It's going to be happening at the side can stage or actually the booth rather and of course tomorrow
We do have exhibitions across the board some matchups
I did not get to see throughout the pools run and throughout this top eight no doubt man
Well, that was so much fun
But with that we are ready to throw over to our host mr. Hollywood round TV take it away. Oh
My goodness ladies and gentlemen, how do we feel about that top eight?
Oh, put on the absolute show from top to bottom, and it is time for us to receive the rewards.
In seventh place, ladies and gentlemen, Insurgent!
Also in seventh place, Paid Actor!
And fifth place, Blue Sky B.S.G.
Also in fifth place, Zandori.
And fourth place, Monarch.
I'm gonna put on the show.
Okay.
In third place, put your hands together for Mariahs!
And second place, unbelievable winner now,
Winner's side, put your hands together for Sheehy!
And last but not least,
You're back to back EVO champion, Koji Koko!
And we do have something very special
for our top three competitors.
We have sticks for every competitor from Vermeelo.
Can we please get that up here?
Oh my goodness.
Let's show the people real quick.
Congratulations, fellas.
That bronze is beautiful to silver and of course to gold.
Ladies and gentlemen, one more time for your talk.
Hey!
Hey!
Hey!
Hey!
Koji Koko.
OK, I need to talk to you real quick, brother.
Come on.
Come on, man.
I mean, my goodness, only 19 years of age
and you're able to win back to back EVO championships.
The definition of a prodigy.
Of course, this interview is connected by AT&T.
I have to ask you, brother,
did you believe that you would be able to win it again
after doing it last year?
Yes.
What gives you that level of confidence?
I would say that I think like recently at the level of competition in North America has gotten really high
and I've also traveled to like Europe, I've traveled to Japan in this game, I've competed in tournaments all over the world
and I feel like I have a very good like grasp of I guess how like where everything is
and I think that's an advantage that is pretty much exclusive to me so it's
like a great privilege in that sense I'm just I'm happy
and I have to ask if you have any words for the Grand Blue community and just all
of your fans watching right here in front of you and at home I suppose um well
Thank you. Thank you all.
Only 19 years old back to back EVO champion. You cannot make it up. And we do have more
than just a medal for you. Of course, you know how this thing goes. Where is Koji Cocoa
Strollfield? Let me go ahead and back up. Ladies and gentlemen, please give it up one
One more time. We are back to back champion, Koji Koko.
Let's go ahead and kill these over-fart commentators before we get to listen to anything.
Oh my goodness. You see the shimmer on that trophy Koji?
I need you to lift that up one more time.
I want to see the camera cast that light.
My goodness.
Check that out.
Congratulations to Koji Koko, the champion.
Wow.
That Evo 2026.
What a sparkle on that thing.
That is a clean trophy right there.
And the second one for Koji Koko.
A spectacular show.
A spectacular top eight.
And this is only the tip of the iceberg
in terms of Grand Blue versus World Tour action.
So plenty of tournaments across the board
leading up to November, and then finally taking place at the finals at PsyGames,
actually in January, I believe. It's not official, not official, but you know if history
would repeat itself, it's probably January to see that. But man, so much to look forward to
if you're interested in the game. They have a free version with basically the entire
cast is actually locked right now for the entire week. You're not wrong. Basically, I feel like
there's no excuse now to not be like, okay, you know, I gave Granblue a shot. Give the
game a go. It's a lot of fun. And yeah, you know, you never know. You might find your
favorite game and like you said you know the free version with every character
available give it a go. Absolutely the rotating characters you can actually
pick up the DLC characters with the in-game currency it's a ton of fun really
easy to pick up and play and you can just see the excitement across the board
here I mean this is the one opportunity that we get to enjoy and celebrate the
entire community and I do believe we want to continue that celebration. Rob what
else have you got for us on the main stage? Oh hold on hold on zero you are
Assuming that we have something else for you. I see everybody seem to be evil veterans here because no one is leaving
Do you guys want maybe an announcement?
Okay, I might as well just leave because that energy ain't gonna show me nothing. Do you want an announcement?
Let's go ahead and throw it to the video
Across these boundless, turbulent skies,
Strife without end, we spiral into chaos,
Into its churning depths we fall.
Is this our destiny?
And even in our moments of doubt,
When we lie beaten, bruised and sore,
We'll carry on, looking to the blue skies,
that will restoke the inferno in our hearts.
A new path.
Queue with every step.
They walk toward a future sky.
Get your voyage eliminated by limitless possibilities.
Thus, 40 fates were zoned as one.
Carrelling Rat Rock's descent from on high.
The result is...
Udada!
Shounsaku!
Wawaru!
Beneath this beautiful world, both Azure and Phantasmal.
For Jorglord in the flames of battle!
Grand Blue Fantasy Versus, rising!
Alright, baby, how are we pulling about that announcement?
The energy in here is absolutely amazing and with good reason.
Of course that was our first game of day two of EVO and after this we have top eight for
Guilty Gear Strive.
We'll see you guys after this break.
Chipotle Honey Chicken is back.
Step into summer with fresh grilled chicken, spicy chipotle peppers and the perfect touch
of pure honey.
Open the summer with Chipotle Honey Chicken.
taking heat and sweet to a whole new level.
No two competitors are to say.
Some run on routine for the chance to win big.
Some make time to rise through the brackets.
Some lock in with confidence.
However you prepare,
there's a place for every kind of competitor.
PlayStation tournaments. Sign up today on PS5.
I don't see myself waiting for at least maybe 20 more years.
It was a great experience for me.
Oh, yeah, this is the reset. This is the one. This is the one. I've got you right now, brother.
I'm gonna highlight this fire.
Right here, look, look, look, look, look.
Come on, come on, that was good.
["Evo 2007"]
Evo 2007, I mean, it was a, a Tony Oda year
where the pot was nice, right?
I won the last room, it was $5,000.
I really don't remember the, the lead up.
Like, I remember, like, going to Evo
And I was just kind of greedy trying to win every game, right?
Placing every game because Top A got paid and everything.
But I think it was kind of the usual, like, I'll go to ECC,
I'm going to find a round mid-west,
and I mean, like the tour.
The only time we really get to play
is during the East Coast tournaments,
because I don't think you've been to, like,
find a round of mid-west during the Marble 2 days.
No, it was mid-west championships
and find a round Marble 2 heavy, no.
Yeah, right.
Last time we played was around that 2005, 2006 era.
I think that was NEC.
Yeah, NEC.
NEC, the end of 2005 was the last Grand Finals we had.
Yeah, so it's been a while since we played against each other
in Marvel 2.
Yeah, good memories, wow.
Look at that, I forgot about results.
It's like unlocking new memories and stuff like that
as we go, but yes, that was NEC.
So the thing about Justin, I could feel him now.
I really think it about a years later.
kind of stuff going up against me at the beginning of the match.
Was that annoying?
You know, the first attack glitch, it's pretty bad, it's kind of broken, right?
So if you guys don't know what the first attack glitch is, you pick your characters,
so obviously Yipe's wants Magneto first,
but he'll pick Storm, Magneto, Psylocke, and that Warder in the character select screen.
Once you're in this like magical tunnel, you hold assist one to bring Magneto back on point,
and now all you have to do is just hold the button,
and it'll come out as the fastest frame possible,
because the game will just do it automatically for you.
So because Manio has a one frame short guys,
one frame short, think about this,
one frame, not two frames.
Now we have modern games, three frame buttons,
four frame buttons, one frame.
So I gotta take this mix, high, low, cross up.
Yes, yes, so I felt, you know,
years later really thinking about it,
I was like, man, that was kind of scummy,
but it always was, if I don't hit Justin
at the beginning of the match,
he's going to make sure that I don't hit him again.
I'm gonna run.
He's gonna run.
Back in the day, you know what,
we got here with some Todd at three moments.
Let me see.
The beginning of the match will take off.
I got it.
I got it.
I got it.
I got it.
You going to cross light kick?
Ooh, I went over that.
I thought you was dunking.
Okay, okay.
I'm out.
I'm running away.
Literally the first day I do.
But I realize I should never use the lighting attack like that.
Come on.
Thing about now, I told you so when you air dash.
Oh, at first, right?
So you still have some actions now.
That's true.
I mean, your hit timing was good though.
So I can see why you was just giving it away for space.
Yeah, but look, see.
Oh yeah.
You start to hold up, just be honest.
You know, he's scary.
I don't want to be playing block.
Look, I'm getting mixed.
Oh, mixed up, everybody just looking for attention.
This is why I thrive, see?
When I hit it proud.
Now, this was one of those moments I was talking about
earlier, like, I'm doing unnecessary resets.
I could have just killed you a long time ago.
But you were known to do more like fancy resets
at the time, though.
I was.
You know, it looks kind of dry, though, compared to the stuff
I do now, it's what I know.
Well, the Hypergraft Tempest.
But you see, this is the hard part, like, Oz.
But now, people, like, even though you didn't tech that,
people, like, do combos instead of going for throw.
Oh, yeah, yeah, absolutely.
I just wanted to get it over with.
I'm that type of guy, like, chunks of damage going.
That was kind of optimal, though.
It was.
That's when I got to be wary, right?
They see the rainbow storm, but almost rainbow storm.
Oh, there's a jab pressure?
I'm scared.
Look at that.
Sign hot.
Can't press buttons.
One, yeah.
I mean, one roundhouse throw, you Gucci.
This is in a good way guys. Oh
Yeah, oh
Yeah, this is looking great. Man. This guy's good job guard break. Oh, no get the little flow lightning ball
So that I can't come back here
It's night. I wish I had set no though
Right, right?
Even a little pixels and I could have won the whole match after that
So I mean I'm sent being a little more aggressive when I can guys cuz Sentinel is dead
What come on? I didn't I didn't I was there way before you J. You get those too many times. It's okay
We can get one can I get one bro? Your body teleports through those hellstorms sometimes
Okay
Well, that was kind of good for me. Yeah, we both I use my sister ready to yeah
Okay, ha ha ha ha now we got to oh this looks familiar. That's the one. That's the one. Oh, no, not the bra
I'm not the reset. Oh
Oh, I hit a button. That was the that was the wise choice to do though. Yeah
At that time I was heavy. I just like pecking your legs and overheads, right?
So there's always a gap in between my research where you can actually press a button
So as the game like the game went on I actually got strong right there. I missed the dash right here
I think I missed the dash here
Things should be right here. Boom. Look at that. You sure that was a dash though. Why am I doing this fear? Cuz you won
No, I saw come on
And I fixed it. I've had to fix the air dash if I if I was running I would go up, right?
It wasn't trying to use the dash that early Jacob. I
It could be a fifty-fifty. It's a it's fair. Oh
No, you were you were actually too good at these guard face at the time. Yeah, they was like impossible
Yeah, I said no incoming guard break
I got to hold all this especially and you specifically you Desmond and same for the reason why upgraded my uh my guard breaks
Damn this solution. This looks really good though. I'm not even gonna promise credit to the first to that
All right, so at this point
You know in my head. I'm like I can't make it come back. Okay. I'm done
The reason why I was kept fighting is because when you fight against sandthrax
people just like let go the stick or reset the game and I was like no I don't
like that I really like if you're gonna win the game you might as well try to
like beat my randomness and just go for it because at this point I'm just gonna
go random there was no plans to start this Jean Spice you know come back
thing I was just Jean Spice happy I was just mashing like guy go like just doing
DPs I mean I'm gonna be honest with you Jay I was just blocking with my face at
at this point.
Yeah, because you talk the same thing.
Because in my mind, I'm thinking of myself,
yo, if I land a couple of more hits,
I'm just going to hit you with the most spiciest reset I can.
I got one.
I'm not going to lie to you, man.
I was trying to hit you with something fly, but you know what?
And then you're right here.
You got to go for the reset here.
Yes.
That should have worked.
You should have.
I bought.
What do you mean?
Damn.
I tried again.
Damn, this is kind of embarrassing looking at it now.
That was smart for me to push block.
That was nice to stay up there.
Damn, I should have done it later, huh?
I think you still get a punish, no?
All right, now see, all right, now come on.
Now that was random.
That is not supposed to come.
That was Jean Spice though.
This is terrible.
It's Marvel, baby.
Have an over-tilted shovel!
It's Marvel, baby!
Yo, it's funny.
So when this, I check this out, right?
This is one of the people that didn't really know
who I was, but they kinda had an idea, right?
This is funny.
They was watching this match one time.
I knew somebody was watching this,
and they thought I was commenting this.
Oh, they thought you were the one on the mic.
But I'm literally the guy that's in the match,
Which is crazy. Shout out to Lawrence, my man, Lawman.
He was the guy that was on the microphone.
You know what's funny about it?
Because Lawrence and Chris were both on the mic.
But Chris Matrix was like so flabbergasted.
There you go.
He did not talk at all.
He's just had to mic and like, while Lawrence is the one.
Yes.
Yo, that's all he was.
But there was two commentators actually.
But he was just so invested in the match.
He did not say a word.
See now, this is genius right here.
Look at that.
That was gone.
Come on, right?
That was good. That was good. That was good. Let me see. Let me see.
Just so you guys understand here, he's just with and by, so he could lure me in, right?
And he empties, you know, did you empty it? No, I double jumped. And then you did. Okay,
you double jumped empty though. Yeah, because I double jumped thinking like, oh, he used his,
he used his air resources. So that means I get a free mix. So I landed, I was like,
you know what, I'm not trying to take this mix. DDP. I just DP. Nice. I didn't even have super
to protect myself. No, that was all in. Yeah, that was definitely all in.
Kassavas was definitely on the table today all right now let's put this to
rest okay okay this wasn't even supposed to happen regardless yeah let me see
let me see I just want to trade though oh good with the size of dough I punish
nice what my super add though no super that's that's that's that's that's that
Henry say no that's Laurie said no super
No soup on this is terrible, bro. This isn't even supposed to happen
But the bay here though
Yo, why'd you throw the fireball?
It's an input error for me. Why'd you do a fireball? I might have tried to dashed out
No, that was that's not a fit but why the fears came up because you were poking with the fears
No, wasn't you just right above my head look? Why would I even press it?
I'm gonna be honest you talk about the pushbox. Yeah
I'm saying white the fireball. Maybe I'll try to dash got the inputs incorrect the song. I don't know
You got it man
Now, okay, well this moment happened right here.
That's crazy.
This is a two out of three.
This is a two out of three.
Yeah, I wonder why is it two out of three?
There was plenty of time I remember one game grand finals,
two out of threes, you know?
No, that was CVS2's fault.
Cause you know how you talked about how like,
games just take long back in the day.
CVS2 was a long, long game.
So Marvel 2 was always the end.
And then if there's no time, they're gonna shorten it.
So, in this case, right here, everybody thought it was over, even though I'm up 1.
Everybody.
Yeah, I mean, that was, yeah, because usually you think about, like, if someone makes a crate come back,
you get hit by the classic.
You pretty much are still thinking about the previous game,
and your opponent is just smoking you the third game while you're still thinking about the previous game.
And that's what I thought was gonna happen here, man.
I mean, it should have happened.
Let's see, let me look, is it something I missed?
Oh, yeah, you'll see.
Okay.
I remember this.
Okay, good.
Oh, are you lucky I get that that you know you didn't believe in it
That's all I just want to see what an error was that I'll show you it's gonna happen. You can see it
I didn't watch it recently, but I remember it
Come on
Come on you cross yourself up you want to you want to right to the left
I was very mindful of it though. Okay. Nice throw
Yeah, you're cooking. You're aggressive right now.
What did you do? Let me see. Wait, hold on.
You're having on your dog ass right now.
He is.
Oh!
What did you do?
I'm not on your bed. Oh, you missed a bit.
I remember that. I actually don't feel bad for you here.
You know how many times we drop combos and you drop some?
I'm just saying that I hit D8C.
You did. You did. But I feel no remorse behind this, actually.
Actually, there's a lot of things that could have happened should have could have wouldn't yeah, but it didn't happen
But that was very important. I was an important punish. It's a very important very important punish. Yes
I still didn't get it
Nice see I didn't even need to do that, but just for positioning say I needed one to get the hyper go tempers in the corner
Look at this
Look at this. Mmm. Yeah, you know, I wanted to keep it short and sweet. I was doing the normal jump infinite
I don't even like doing that variation. Oh
Oh, you have a bait, huh?
He want it, he want it.
Look at Jesse.
He want it.
I'm trying to see how.
I'm trying to see how.
I'm trying to get out.
Look at this.
No guard break.
Pressing the super.
How did you see there?
Did you?
I think your sister was still cooling down.
Let me see.
You call a psych fox, you know?
No, but he's left.
He's left.
I think he's left.
Hold on.
Let me see.
Now look.
Right here.
He's going.
He's gone.
Is it set?
Is it set okay?
Hey, he's gone.
You just said Jay.
Yeah, you're rushing me now.
Damn, that killed?
You know I had a boner pick with this guy.
You're a Lord of the Rings 3 levels!
Oh, no.
Cyclops have to tie there?
Oh.
Oh, hold on.
You had your movement there for a second, Jay.
Yeah, I was working.
So let me tell you something. It was an exciting time. I'm not gonna lie. That puts me in the Grand Finals.
That was a good match though. That was a good match. Couple of errors there.
But I ain't gonna lie, it's like this guy was so clutch at the time that it wasn't even guaranteed that I would win this regardless.
Cause I come in the Grand Finals, okay, I gotta win one set, whatever the case may be.
But I've seen him in so many moments where he gets hotter and hotter as the set goes.
That's kind of tough to beat him so. Even now, there's like lots of players that just play better when they're in the losers side of Grand Finals.
You see that a couple of times in a lot of tournaments nowadays, man, you know
If that's you see hit man, you know, it'd been dead. So you think my storm was what I it would have been harder
Because you couldn't you you know, you couldn't kill said no one hit like that. That's me, right?
Listen, it's a break man. You snap. Oh my god. You were so dead day. I just want you to know
Okay, okay, I forgot about that
Well, I feel like you crossed yourself up.
I feel like you crossed yourself up in that scenario.
But I see what you're trying to get at here was supposed to happen.
Getting launched buddy.
But still I'm bad because I still have my new old silo.
I still don't think it's a bad thing here.
I mean you landed some hits there did I get up?
No.
Oh yes.
Come on baby you had the gloves on.
You got the badge?
Come on be.
Oh you blocked that.
Oh you're so sharp right there.
That was good.
I'll give you that.
Yeah.
leave I hit you.
You've committed to it already, yeah.
Oh, yeah.
Oh, yeah.
This is bad.
I mean, it looked ferocious, but I kind of ended sloppy.
It was a bit of a scramble.
That's one thing about MSP at the highest level, when both players are aware about how they
call an assist, it becomes like a rock paper scissors, because it's about dashing and blocking,
waiting for the player to call their sideline.
And then you choose what you want to do there, overhead or like a crossover, etc, etc.
Damn, you just didn't want to die, J-Yo.
You still run so much.
I had no choice.
You got side.
You did it.
You did it.
But I would say watching this, you're really good at punishing the assist at this time.
Yeah.
Because not a lot of people are doing that yet.
Oh, you know that was my favorite reset I hit you with, Justin?
Oh, yeah, that's too hard to get.
You would have blocked that.
You would have blocked that, though.
2-0?
Yeah, mate.
And Justin is at the mercy of, yeah, he's trying to be all e-sporty and stuff at the
time.
Hell yeah, I'm doing it.
Yeah, this is over.
Oh yeah, this is the reset.
This is the one.
This is the one.
I got you right now, brother.
I'm gonna highlight this fire.
You're gonna like it.
I promise you.
Here we go.
Here we go.
Here we go.
Right here.
Ooh, look, look, look.
Come on.
Come on.
That was good.
That was good.
And that was on me, son.
I'm pretty sure you can agree with this. I feel like you conditioned me for this moment the whole time
I was supposed to get hit with that one the first time on the with fears. Yeah
But this whole time I'm running with storm just to get positioning the color state in the structure the way Justin is jumping he can like
Avoid the industry of the like Mount offense at the same time
So you're gonna see what I'm talking about right here when I land right here. I think it's not here
Lawrence said it in the footage you could have killed you say why you ain't super I
I don't know dog. I feel like something like magical would have happened if I didn't do that
Like affairs look at my life, though
Oh, that was good. That was good. I go from a street fighter
Do I do it?
That's a championship. That's a championship mentality right there. What you just did that was so sick
I actually thought you would a combo that I
Think I was scared of salad. Oh
You got scared of my solid bro. I mean, this is just kind of a more
My who's this?
Come on
I'm cooking
How did you lose this? Yeah, my son a kind of cooking. Maybe I gave too much confidence in Scylla
I don't know, but I ain't blocking nothing. Oh, I ain't sure what don't get old street fighter
That's that good old street fighter right there. See that
Scylla roll
Mm-hmm string
Like see I could have just cooper like why I would know I would have been I was still not
But that's what I had a nice lead though. Yeah, but I think at this point
It's like you just want to get one more reset you wait and just get it out the way. Yeah
This is intense right here, this is a pretty good grand finals it is
Mr. Try John, but who knows if you block or not
Oh, that was for the reset too by the way, okay. So here it is. This is the size of the whole time
I'm actually surprised I blocked that in time. This would be the short see you see you see how I did the lighting attack again
That was good. That was good. You blocked every time and that's what led me to the chip, baby
baby.
That was a great moment for me, obviously, but you know what's so cool about that, like
Jay wasn't even salty, he lost.
Remember that he literally like gave me a hug right away, especially picking me up from
the floor.
There was a lot of West Coast vs. East Coast rivalry.
And the fact that we ended up on that.
And, you know, like there was like beef back in the day.
I was not a fan where people like a lot of all the West Coast players like yeah East Coast is just
long coast yeah right so the fact that like you know I always tell them like now Yax and Sanford
like Desmond, Smooth Viper they're really good players and like they ain't seen us West Coast
people though so then when they finally when East Coast started finally going to more evils
everything because because East Coast players will go to like a final round they'll go to ECC
But West Coast will never come to our tournaments, the East Coast tournaments.
They're too good for it or whatever.
So they only show for even.
And then the fact that a lot of East Coast players started going as years progress
and that I just won Sanford won, like even though I lost,
I'm just happy that we can prove the West Coast wrong.
That like, okay, it's not just me.
There's other really good players that's also in the East Coast.
And then he broke his leg.
Yep. That was a beautiful moment for me because I was happy of course
because it settled then after the paint killers.
But it was more so when I looked behind me
and seen how many people were so happy for me.
So guys like Damian, Smooth Viper,
even Triforce at the time, Triforce,
just all the East Coast heads I was there.
It was pretty cool, it was monumental.
Again, it was not an East Coast, West Coast final,
so it kind of ended on a national.
For everybody to celebrate, no matter who won.
I'm glad I kicked their ass, though, yeah.
The Crouching Medium kick from Pumko and Pumko feeling like he exercises one of his demons
you're able to defeat smog and take it with staff.
I remember that I had a straight up fighter.
I think I was born in 1996, when I became a serious fighter.
When I said I had a serious fighter, I thought I was a good fighter.
When I was in D6, I was in the 3rd place.
I was like, I got to play for the fun.
That was when I was serious.
In the arcade I used to go to,
I honestly don't know much about fighting games.
I didn't really know much about it.
I didn't really know much about it.
Until high school, there weren't many friends in the arcade.
Not at all, but...
So, of course, everyone was in a different mood.
I was the only one who was playing games by myself.
I was the only one who was playing games by myself.
So, I think I had to make friends with the people I saw.
When I was young, I saw the people I was good at,
so I had to share information with them.
So it's all a take and get one.
The name of the character is called Pungimha-san.
In Korea, the name of the character in Street Fighter 2 is called Pungimha-san.
People who use that character use Pungimha-san.
I think I was in 3rd grade in middle school.
I was a student and all the others were siblings.
And then, I said,
Punglim, Hwaseong, Yulis is a kid.
So, I said, Punglim, Punglim,
and I said, Punggol,
and that's what I said.
It's a secret.
It's that it's a guarantee.
Oh, what a follow-up!
One kick out of there!
It's like Old School Chun-Li from Seth Gopo
with some great stuff.
You think you've explored the limits of his character?
Absolutely not.
It's great new stuff there from Punggol.
The first time I went out to Punggol
It was the official big game, the King of Fighters 99.
Of course, at that time, I thought I was actually good at games in the neighborhood.
I thought I was good at games.
So I was wondering if I could win this game.
At that time, I remember, I was in the first grade of middle school.
So I participated.
I was going to lose right away.
So it was a very slumpy time.
I don't know, but I think it's important to win the game.
At that time, I was the first to fall from the big stage.
That's what I remember.
Street Fighter 4
I was focusing on the people who went to the arcade and the game center.
I think it's a foul if you look at it in Korea.
I had a game in advance, so I knew a little more information than others.
So, it was actually a lot easier to play games.
I started playing games a little earlier than others.
Ohhhh!
Ladies and gentlemen, your champion,
Voket Pop Pro to Asia finals,
Sexy Poco!
I used it once in a tournament where I was able to use it.
I didn't really use it because I was much better,
but it became a whole, so I thought I should try this character in earnest.
If you don't know what other people think,
it's very my style, so it's more effective, so I used it more and more.
Not worth it for the reset?
Oh, he died.
I don't know if Error just stopped holding the mistake.
I don't think, like, look at the expression on Pumko's face.
That was not on purpose.
He was just going for raw damage and style.
At that time, the characters were very strong.
They had a very good performance,
but they had the most difficult defense.
So, in general, the concept of thinking at that time
was that the character shouldn't be too good,
so I thought I should run away and do it in a hit style.
Rather, the character
has many characters and many techniques.
It's a concept that helps you fight.
I think it's better to use this character as an example.
It's hard to explain, but I think it's better to attack the enemy.
It's more fun to gather together.
It was fun. It was fun to do that.
I think I did that because I won.
I think it's a bit different now.
I think it's a bit different now.
I think he's a bit different now, but I have to hurry up and give him the chance.
He's a fast character, and he's got a lot of good and aggressive characters.
So I prefer to be defensive.
I don't really like defensive characters, and I prefer to be aggressive.
The crouching medium kick from Pungko and Pungko feeling like he exercises one of his demons here.
I've won, so I'm going to play in a direction that I have to play from now on.
I was wondering if I would be able to do it at the time of the first match.
I don't know if I would be able to do it at the time of the first match, but I was able to do it at the time of the first match.
Before I got into the game, I was the first player to play in the game.
I was the first player to play in the world champion matchup for the first time.
Before that, I was a very famous player, so I knew about it.
I don't remember how many years it was, but it was probably because I was a middle school student.
It was the most famous player in the world since then.
In fact, I was the second player to play in 2011, and I was also very famous.
I know that I'm good at everything.
I'm not very confident.
I know that my opponent is good at everything.
I might have to give up, but I have to believe in myself.
That's all I have.
This is unprecedented.
No, I did it!
He doesn't get a man!
A crowd back!
Oh, boy!
With a perfect!
Nothing!
Deigo is the losers!
But it's going up the beast!
We have never seen a beating like that
in Deigo history.
Wow, people picking him up his crew.
Sharing him up.
It seems as though the tournament is already over.
Judged by the reaction from this crowd.
And the crowd is a kind of group just like that too.
I had to say it, but I had no idea what to do.
I was so nervous.
I liked the showmanship in the foreign countries.
So, I tried to be a good performer.
I thought, I should make a good performance
even if I had to do this.
That's why I did that performance.
But now, of course,
I didn't have to do that.
At that time, I thought that there was a chance like this.
I don't think I would have done it now, but at that time, I was sure.
I did that kind of performance before, but if I lose, it's nothing.
It was a really embarrassing situation, but I'm glad I won.
But actually, I didn't win that moment.
I'm thankful that he gave me a lot of anger, but I don't think I was satisfied with that.
I thought I had to beat him a little more than I was satisfied with.
Hey Jay, let's keep the shockwaves. They keep coming up that stage.
The Avalanche stage is just shitting out shockers one after another.
I had my favorite character, Gato. I thought I should try him out.
It was fun, so I decided to try him out.
I didn't think I'd be able to do a tournament like this until then.
Gato and I are good friends.
I've had a chance to do a tournament, so I've been doing it.
Get Bunko with the most masterful play, moving on over Japan, Koji, K-O-G.
Fighting games have been going on for a long time,
and we've had a lot of competition.
It's been a long time since we've had a lot of experience,
and we've been doing it now.
These days, the government is faster than before.
Back then, there was no internet.
Now, through the internet,
many people are getting more and more information.
And there's no way to meet the O-R-R-C.
You can play online.
In fact, fighting games are, in a way,
It's simply a game.
The way I fight is...
I used to watch cartoons or animations
or Hong Kong action movies.
I have a sense of respect for them.
I want to play these scenes
in the game or in the Hong Kong movie.
That's the one thing I play in the game.
Come on, daddy!
Oh, boy, dude!
What is this?
Oh, my Lord!
Oh, my Lord!
I'm a pro gamer and I'm currently playing as a server.
I'm currently playing as a server and I'm currently playing as a server.
That's why I'm playing as a server.
I'm playing as a server.
I'm playing as a server.
It's the EVO Prize Launcher!
This year, we see the return of some familiar faces.
RobTV, Yikes, and Justin Wong.
Hey, guys.
Your FTC favorites are about to take to the stage
and fire prizes into the crowd.
Who will be our lucky winners?
You've been alert today.
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome back to EVO.
2026!
That animation was absolutely hilarious.
I gotta say, everyone's looking very beautiful.
I'm loving the energy that we have, so I have to ask,
how do you guys feel about some free prizes for the craft?
Yeah!
OK, of course, that means I cannot do that alone.
There's a lot of y'all out here, so I need to bring out my peoples.
Can I please have some of my friends pull up to the stage
right now to help big Hollywood out right now for the people.
For the people.
Make some noise for Justin Wong, man.
Tyrant and Valentine Zero, come on.
Come on.
OK, everyone, this is the EVO Prize Launcher
presented by AT&T.
Now, before hold up the RHS, don't shoot yet now.
I got to make sure you all know.
If you do get a t-shirt, do not open it yet, OK?
Don't open it yet.
Y'all ready?
Let's do it.
Come on.
Oh, yo.
Oh, yo.
Let's go, Justin.
Let's go, Justin.
OK.
It's a scrum.
It's a scrum.
He just thought of the box again.
Don't open it yet if you get it, sir.
Oh yeah, let's see.
Let me see that arm, man.
Okay, Valentine.
Oh!
Where we going, Zero?
First, Roma.
Good tower.
Power is strong as hell.
Yeah.
Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha.
Oh, we going deep?
Mahomes?
Zero Mahomes?
Nice.
I see you with the tank, nice catch, brother.
We need you on the ground.
Okay, where we going, Justin?
Let it go.
You out?
Okay.
We still got a couple more up here.
Yeah, load that up.
Load that up.
Might just be some special with these Sheriffs, y'all.
That's what it might be.
Somebody catch that!
Oh, okay, put some sauce on that one.
Okay.
Okay.
If you caught a shirt
that was shot out under candy,
Go ahead and open it up because you all just won a free smartwatch given to us
by our friends at AT&T. So go ahead take those winners' cards over to the AT&T
booth on the Evo Show floor show it to one of their lovedest dad and claim their
item to make sure you visit today or this weekend before they close.
Love that I got my t-shirts killed by two.
That was our last one, okay thanks y'all, of course we'll see y'all later on today,
shout out to all my peoples.
Now, for everyone watching at home on Twitch, you also can win an awesome prize.
Just type in chat, exclamation point prize for a chance to win one of 50 available Invincible
versus Standard Edition Steam Colors.
the brutal, bone-shattering 3v3 tag team combat and Invisible Versus, where fan-favorite characters
from the Invisible Universe collide in explosive, blood-soaked battles. The fight intensifies
on June 30th with the launch of Season 1, introducing formidable newcomers, Universal,
and the immortal as the game's first two DLC fighters. Winners will receive a Twitch DM
with the game code directly, so keep one eye out.
Again, Eximation Point prize.
That said, ladies and gentlemen,
are we ready for some Guilty Gear Top 8?
Yeah!
Yeah!
Please welcome to the stage, Guilty Gear producer,
Ken Miaochi.
Hello, everyone. I'm Guilty Gear Strike producer, Ken Miyachi. I'm very happy to be here.
This is the fifth appearance.
I'd like to say thank you to everyone else, players, fans, viewers, and staffs,
everyone else supporting Guilty Gear Shroud.
You are expecting for Robokai trailer today.
All right, let's roll it then.
So, Robokai is releasing in July 2nd.
Today, I don't have much more to announce, but just a little bit of another slide.
Let's show it. So, Arc Ward Tour finals will be held in New York City, and today's top
A is the path to New York. Now, thank you again, everyone. Please enjoy
and the winner is the
Gildtigea Stride Top 8.
Ladies and gentlemen, it is about that time.
Of course, we only have eight competitors left and only one can walk away as the EVO
Champion.
Let's get things started with our Gildtigea Stride Top 8 introduction video.
Woo!
The fire of infernal truth
I surrender to the storm and it is inside of you
I'm brought in from the heart and I dare to do
Will I be there for you?
At the end, at the end
Yeah.
Come on, I hear all the sound.
I'm not a fucking failure now.
I'm gonna tear off the crown.
Go down into the fire.
Come and burn the truth.
I surrender to the storm.
And it's inside of you.
I'm running from the horrors that I had
I'm running from the horrors that I had
I can't, I can't, I can't
I can't
Oh, my goodness, you can feel it, you can feel the tension in the air, and it's time
for our top eight player introductions presented by Visa.
to start things off. Please put your hands together for Kermit!
Nitro Iguana!
Cheryl Rediddo!
They choose what the rules.
Jiro.
Verix.
And last but not least, T.Ward.
Ladies and gentlemen, all of these players have fought through one of the hardest tournaments possible.
at the most elite tournament that is EVO Vegas
for your fighting entertainment and of course for the glory that comes with being
the EVO champion. Are you ready? We're talking a 50 years round!
Let's not delay it any further. Let's send things over to our commentators.
of the previous EVO's coming through to try and take another trophy. Multiple champions
of Arc World Tours coming through to try and add another one to the cabinet here. Eight
incredible competitors, but only one can be the champion. I mean, Rob, it's a perfect
intro. So good to see everyone. Welcome back to EVO 2026, and welcome to Guilty Gear Strive.
My name is proxy honor to be joined by C4.
It's great to see you, my man.
So excited to be getting us started here
with this guilty gear strive.
Well, I don't even know if to start,
but I think the best place for everyone at home, everyone here
is to look at the bracket to get ready for these insane matches
that we're about to embark on.
Look at this top eight, bro.
We was in the back watching, commenting some early matches.
These names fully deserve to be here.
Genuinely unreal.
Kermit versus Nitro, the lead off hitters here. Faith in on the opposite side,
Chereo and Red Ditto set to clash. And then heading down into the losers,
Keishu attempting the repeat here, having to face off against Jiro.
And then Variks and Ty, top to bottom killers.
Unbelievable situations we're going to be in.
This is going to be an unreal top eight.
I cannot wait to see how the story plays out.
100% like the journey to this point was amazing as well. If you haven't seen those definitely get the both lay up
But right now we can get to the main feast which is to stop a right and one important thing
No repeat characters dude a super exciting thing to see it's time though to get into our top eight predictions presented by
PlayStation tournaments here, you know here in the FTC. We'd love to have our opinion
So if you want to have your opinion heard this is your chance
You can go with exclamation mark with the number corresponding to your favorite player who you think can step up to be the champion here for yourself
See far. I hate to put you on the spot, but I absolutely am going to where would you be voted? I have to go Verix
Second though nitro he's the Leo player DVFC heads have this entry but yet Verix has come a long way
And he's been here before disease no stranger to top player. He both definitely agree for me personally
I mean coming through the winner's side a bracket with a couple tough matchups to potentially deal with here
I'm super excited to potentially see
Chariot come through the winners side. I'm really really hoping to see him come through as you can see right now
Currently the lead is actually coming up for Chariot right for Nitro excuse me 24%
A lot of people are believing in the man from New York here a player who has already pruned himself on the stage
It's looking like he is locked in. He is y'all's favorite at home
not a surprise to see though considering the pedigree of nitro. Yeah, 100% like we all know
that location in America, you know, New York. That is a great school location for champions.
Absolutely, definitely agreed. As far as you know being able to have your training partners and being able to level yourself up within your own region,
New York about as good as it possibly can get here.
But we are going to be moving now into our players and seeing a little bit more about them as we're going to see our victory path
presented by White Claw Surge as we can check out Kermit here who had a fantastic
run all the way through coming through the winners side and has just been
blasting players top to bottom hardly four games dropped the entirety of his
run here even with the victory over Kshu to actually make it into the winner
side. That is such an insane power-up to have run. Being last year's champion but
This is a champion in mobile games night throw fly quest is finest taking out
The Nios in the Leo mirror. I'm glad I didn't see it. I would have broken my heart
What's up other big names Kazan as well taking it out so no stranger like I said night throw nose ways like to beat at the top
Seeing the victory paths here presented by white claw sir
I'm super excited to see if they can continue this type of performance keep that same type of momentum here a winner's side
a victory here to guarantee yourself up into the winners final.
A massive, massive potential victory.
Guaranteed podium, one step away.
It is... I mean, how do you stay focused in a moment like this, man?
Couldn't be me. Couldn't be me. Sorry.
To let anyone down. This is so stressful.
And as well as the prestigious EVO Championship,
we've got Arch World Tour points on the line. Platinum plus event.
Nitro already qualifying right? Winning combo breaker. So he's you know got a comfortable position in the artboard tour
But it doesn't mean he has to
Rest on his laurels. He's still got points to go and Kermit
You've got 17 a combo breaker now top eight win the side with the biker
Away, Kermit! Immediately applying that good pressure and trying to find that victory position
would have the perfect sense of need to be able to utilize that in the airdown.
Watch out for the air game, Kastro's got down low.
Bumped, Kermit! We have dominance over ground ice!
You have to take that nice little ice!
It's your turn now, it's my turn! Hold this tower real quick!
But I'm thinking he'll feel so that's all! But I need to be in back turn!
I think the user needs to see here, the pressure, H2R looks at something there, does get the buzz for the great flash,
you can establish that early, you can talk about it all during the earlier run,
You have to establish early if you're willing to go for it.
Let him know playing with you.
You're willing to go for these referentials and nitros.
You cast the rest of the bar off to guarantee the break.
You get that cost of bonus.
Hopefully that doesn't come back to fire
because now coming with a hundred tension
could get something started.
This is why our season makes it pressure Kabare.
Our seed will be going high low.
We go for the floor.
And that's great to do that on the top.
And it's up with a flash kick like Jussell.
And now we're in a devastating position here.
Both of the meter, yeah.
We're nearly in.
And he has an E, but we find the air to air.
An opportunity now for some offense.
And they use to the BRC to try and jump there, the JP finds the mark, that's the first run!
It is the first run, dude installs with the Rc try-nash.
Oh my gosh, County is 6 feet in the downtown and he confirmed it with the 2K.
Up back, Conn asked that he didn't have to be up, there's a new air-rise, a new track, mid and county hit.
Ten more?
That's a good worry, not the story you want to see.
Max distance is so great, going to the record and good confirmation of the confirmed.
Bolly jump pass, they will guarantee us the break.
So now the boss get the good resources right
Wow the phrase into hate out of the west lands mats over here mind your doggy
Put this open the corner
I don't know if coming one of that unless I was really advanced makes oh my god
He's dancing on the road the route to try and avoid the burst so smart an opportunity now
I much like to play with here
You can see those each kibari with the one over commit as kibari this time with the trade
Nitro's timing on these challenges unbelievable
Zero hesitation from Nitro. Zero hesitation. And again, I have to stress, it's a charred character.
Then the muscle in me to hold down back against a character that I have to use on, which is like an instant overhead.
It's paramount in his hand.
There, H bar and no follow-up. I like that here, that's what I've already shown.
Garret represented the quick answer.
Tommy on the ground seemed to be something more than he needs to have a lot of extra.
On the placement, unfortunately, let's straight to the headbanger's ball, double the body!
Great back loss, Leo Wightback, quick ground from Nitro, and some of you point it out, he is literally tied with it.
I'm lying in the dump, he's stalking the ground, then come and take the game over, but when you land, you conflict.
And there, close to the distance he's hit by the mid, was trying to be a little more aggressive, trying to beat him to the spot, but Nitro is the hard man to keep sleeping, it's now...
Let's line us up here for potentially one more mix, but a big throw! Potentially we'll change the times!
Oh, here we go, Proceed. We may begin.
A fast forward incident, but as a first hit from Lago, they didn't want to take the charge just back in.
5k, 6k, didn't want to knock down from the slacksie.
Kermit, Joe, Max, and Nishul, neither on both sides.
Lago's gonna block the RC, and maybe, just maybe, in this round.
Slash through absolute perfection guaranteed in on the shatter helping out to a game straight
Nitro looking in prime form right now.
I mean coolcom collected, what else could it be for a Leo player man?
You've got to have your head about you to play a character that makes you a little bit wild.
You need to be very zen yourself to the balance.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Light doesn't stand in circles, you know.
Just don't be...
Ooh, reversal.
What, he and the father pro?
Oh no, he's in flow state.
Keep it close, they won't see. Can anyone stop him?
Oh, ripping the super, but it's putting us in a terrible position once again.
Not a lot of life to play with here, the dash up to a stance, one stance!
Oh, man, he's in the mid-screen, but here we go!
A knockdown for Kermit.
Right.
Chasing down, flanking, splatting.
This time, it's not gonna burst again.
He goes for a leg one.
Go a little bit, that'll be a plus, he killed a new crew.
Gives the cross-off, hold on, my child.
Oh, pow!
If they will close this top of the two, finds the connection left again, it has neither, and is able to break through!
An opportunity now as we're going to slice it off the guaranteed shadow of the Overdrivers.
Certainly there's going to be enough Kermit on the board. This is how that momentum can begin.
You have to stop me. You have to stop Nigel.
Otherwise it's going to be a very long play.
I didn't think you'd be fighting. Don't be.
You just turned over Nigel's defensive.
You see him? You know he's capable?
But you can't let that...
dictate your office.
Definitely agreed.
You know the master of your own destiny here.
Tommy, once again.
Little step back, I'd like him to dash back super aggressively
as soon as he gets into that Eskibari.
Trying to best up the timing of the Kermit step play stuff.
Very, very smart.
What's up, Redcar? Okay. Welcome to the jungle.
We're showing... Oh my god!
Oh come on! It's going on!
Fully deserved. Bro, see that was so deserved.
Ooh, that's not good.
Oh, fuck!
Only one through the flash, it's though.
Based out well, an opportunity now with H. Cabare still has the meter,
but it's gonna get caught out once again!
Not enough to kill, but the situation is dire,
it's a hard knockdown to dream here in Nitro,
an opportunity to slice back.
Oh, Harry, you've got tension.
I'm tense.
You can't just back off, I can't even move through there,
but I'll see to make that safe.
Ooh, beat the floor, look for the stone with us.
Oh, okay.
Are you gonna step on? Don't give me my dumb head again.
Micro is scheming. This bar. This bar.
Oh, he saw the hesitation for the first one.
What the test was like? Uh-oh. Uh-oh, this is not happening. What's he gonna do?
Look at the spot like that, and I thought your opponent had been so successful challenging.
Oh, and the 6P, a little too close for the end of the capari.
Ticktoe, dealt with Weldo.
Back down to the ground.
You see the ID there. Flash me.
Just in range. S-Burse would be a visibility. We're going in.
Nice ID, FB. There.
Oh, we got the trade!
Let's get much off of it here for still tempo.
More than 10 you can have at moments like this.
And he's on fireball, ran on the second one.
An opportunity! Finally on Sheath Leo's on soon!
That'll make anyone burst.
We'll be f***ing f***ing f***ing over here.
Oh, hold on a minute.
Not gonna be enough.
It'll be close. 100 meter from my truck. Do not count them out.
Oh!
Still alive somehow. Each keyboard doesn't work out.
Try for the try jump, get some mercy, nothing confirmed!
Okay, Kermit, open space, Kabare, R.C., getting pressure on both lows.
He's barely, barely taking, he's trying to take the U.S.U.U.S.A.C.
Now where are you going?
Get over here!
Neater situation was starting to look dire.
You could tell that Naito was trying hard to be aggressive
and not get put in positions where he was going to need to FD.
He needed to earn an R.C. at some point there
to be able to really have a chance to get back into it.
Good recognition from Kermit.
In fact, I just pollute there every time, so sorry.
Detonate, that's for 2k.
Okay.
Good for all the seats.
Identifying the guard when you're going to see the air-touching, is it not gonna work?
And, the barring, you know, it's what we got for the seats.
Haha!
Absolutely.
Anime, good seat.
Good block.
And, you see how much I just said, oh yeah, you can't be one, they look good with the captain on my seat.
You may get one.
What, nice to be, though, with this purple rucka!
Opportunity after the Terminator runs past and flies it again, Nitro for the second time.
That's Kermit looking down the barrel of a potential vindict here, but we've seen him bounce back before.
Wow!
Not scared to press buttons.
Oh my gosh, heavy move. Oh no.
Oh no, and look at the time.
We did see Kermit in the IEP's slash, the punch, the fireball.
And look at it! Nitro does not concern himself.
The line is not scared of the frog here.
Oh my god!
Force of the burst.
Chance and air throw!
A reaction!
Behind your wildest dream, Nitro!
And then the spiteful, the Incinerna!
It takes the victory one step closer
to another trophy in the case.
He gets stronger with more humans.
The further he gets a lead in a set,
the more brazen you see his violence becomes, right?
dash jump jump D no reason to do that he just wanted to let you know once he
starts to build momentum things get absolutely devastating I could not agree
more and we saw it in the early stage of that one and we could see it here again
with our replay presented by PlayStation tournaments there is a so many
ridiculous situations they ends up putting them in you can see here at the
start it was a lot of Nitro just kind of playing it very standard but like you
said as the tech goes on starts to create a little more friction as he goes
I mean, it's just insane things to watch, right?
And to be fair, usually what we're going to do is go about the Nitro's tendency to fact-match that we saw,
Birmingham identified that, so I'm catching up with Fares, and then committing the hard use of Ka'Bari, right?
It's just that the ball isn't super great, that's the hard thing to think about, Michael.
And then they tell the reality, you have to deal with the against the character of Black Aleo,
who is able to just kind of snowball things out of control, with a player who is able to snowball so hard himself,
He's just like, honestly and truly, having watched him
play other characters for so long and seen him be successful,
you know, the Jack or the Geo, other things.
I feel like he's found his soulmate, man.
Leo is definitely the one.
And it's just a shame that it took him so long
to get to this place where he's feeling comfortable enough
to be able to get there.
It is insane.
It's like, could you imagine if he
spiraled that character from the beginning?
But yes.
I mean, you know, the people who did vote for him,
I can understand why.
He is a showman for sure, for sure,
and a champion in the proxy.
Absolutely.
So moving back to the bracket here to see what we've got
Coming next obviously still in the Winner side chariot and red ditto waiting to battle it out in Nitro waiting in the path
K shoe and Jiro
Varix and T why still waiting in the wings a multitude of potential
Bracket path to be able to come up here. It's so interesting to because the characters
The types of matchups for characters will be so volatile depending on who wins and who loses here that losers bracket
I feel like
Loser side finals loser semi's types of runs are going to be decided in this type of match here because Bramethal versus gold
Louis going into the loser side
drastically changes your potential pair. It's insane, right?
It's really hard to call in the moment as we saw matches obviously in pools and right here on the stage the lights a lot harder
But the victory far presented by white-close search may gives a little bit more clarity in what to expect
It's Kirio, seeing this classic.
I mean, what can you say, man?
This guy is an absolute terror.
Definitely, I know.
I said to myself during our predictions
of my personal pick, he's a player
who consistently can get to those positions,
but a lot of times has had a bit of trouble
being able to block in in those final moments.
We saw a combo breaker, winner's finals,
and then unfortunately dropped two sets in a row.
He's more than capable.
He's been to the dance so many times,
he's very capable of being able to take the victory here.
He had a nail-biter with Perik's last hit, last decision, it was crazy.
It was intense, especially for me watching that match.
But, I was looking at Nifor, another champion.
I was watching Red Dio coming in.
In a match, I saw the Dio versus GZ Yoshi.
The crowd was torn, but Rammiful prevails.
They're kind of like the lone Rammiful, right?
That character kind of fell from grace,
RedDo, sticking to two sort guns, making this path here be an either with all three O's.
Very consistent, what can you say about RedDo?
I mean he's just a player who is absolutely at the top of the game.
When it comes to North America, a lot of players, I know this guy for different online tournament stuff.
But the EVO Fancy Pick, the Top 8 presented by AT&T actually is heavily in favor of RedDo right now.
Nearly 91% they're not believing in the big man. They're not believing in the cherry. Y'all think can't golders can't do it
That's tough
That's tough. I question if people see the gold newsmatch with you
But with that said, I mean red ditto obviously both these two players top in the American in the North American scene
Do incredibly well online and there are a multitude of terrors with both these characters on the scene
So a matchup. They are both
Intimately familiar with here. So, you know, it's gonna come down to the nitty-gritty
Can it rip it or rise to the occasion play the way that we know he can or can cherry oh
Finding keep that consistency that has brought him to this position a winter side birth already a big victory
But I know it's a job not done type of situation. It's not it's not and I think the job of both players
It's gonna be pretty simple. Can I give you to the corner? I make you block
There's so much mix between the two characters right with BT
which is Behemoth Typhoon with Goldilocks, how it works with the lords, with the overheads.
He's got insane jumping buttons as well. Pretty scary to Ani air.
Even with Red Ditto's phenomenal Ani air game with Ram.
We've seen him do six pieces into Reckors.
Air-to-air game, he's really seen from Red Ditto, which I noticed as well.
But I don't know if you want to meet Goldilocks here.
When he's doing jump D and you've only got like a little catch scratch with jump P,
I don't have to, that's the game.
But Red Ditto's control of the neutral is going to be key here
We've Goldloose been, you know, a bit of a big buddy.
He does have a run, but it's not very fast.
Yeah, I was gonna say, he's got a little bit of a get-up at the start,
but he doesn't quite have that speed.
Another winners-of-bracket matchup coming through.
Geryl, Red Ditto, North American classic here is in.
The air-to-air is already hiding, like you said,
doing such a good job of kind of retreating away,
and then on the opposite side of the coin,
Geryl, the retreating JD, beautiful choice.
Big jump in H&M, don't wanna mess with that one.
Got some herdsmen here.
There we go, there, right there, oh, and the security's back away.
There's no calculating type of like, only 2D ones.
And I've got 99 enemy sections to do that.
I'd be a few on the last base there, very nice build, deal with Falner here, jump away, but...
He's gonna be grounded.
French Characters, double jump, actually get sniped!
I guess that was jump S. Oh no, maybe we're jumping.
It's one of the second times we've worked out.
So normally, looks to be overhead, the beat is coming, and the dash, look.
You can see that the O is like, no, you're not coming.
H-Wayne near me, he's a 5k, he's a problem.
Uh-oh, uh-oh.
Ooh, yeah, I was gonna say, nobody that BRC has watched this thing go slow.
It's so unpredictable, man.
But!
A little bit of life left again, as long as Goldilocks has some life left in him.
Oh, not this time.
Yeah, as long as Goldilocks has some life left in him to match, okay?
He knows how to even, he can get there.
Watch out, Barth.
So you'll be able to make that space by his breath.
She's capable of making it back.
In a quick fraction count of him, sweetly 2D there, is the first, oh big JD.
Just having to look like the other 2D there.
It actually doesn't go for cancel or the ton of respect there.
RZ is definitely the standard play in a spot like that.
So we're kind of playing off of that.
If we go for the BRC mix-up one more time, the rising JK finds the home.
Oh, quicksand throw. Yeah, the corner.
the corner? Indeed. Oh, cool, the padmatch is airborne! This is that much, yo, yeah, I understand that first.
Maybe he's gonna be burning down instead! It's the air to air! So has the meter, he goes to the hop over!
That is a crazy play! No one is expecting you to do so aggressively corner yourself in a spot like that!
But Chereo takes the bet! That is a tough one!
Gonna pray, Cheerio. Dashing, waiting, dashing, waiting.
Looking for a leap to hit with a clubweap.
Ooh, safety firm though.
Pitching by first.
There's a knockdown, it's slowly coming up.
Throws right before timing.
Perfection from Red Ditto.
Uh-oh, Pissed.
There's a jump in.
Now the pie is gonna stop.
Jirya owns the space.
He's gonna do the fucking thing with the Scythe.
Oh, but yeah, your burst doesn't come back nearly in time.
Here comes the super.
Send him to the wall, he's trying to hit him.
Oh my god, it's just a pixel of life left.
Here's Mia. Here's the goal first.
He's flushing. Again, going.
Red Dino's got sectioned.
Rc, no high low.
Going to mid and going to pressure.
There's the pro.
Look at me dead.
Goal first.
Don't have IRC if you want to go for it here.
You've got to be careful though.
Oh, what a tech!
BRC forwards!
Seize the back dash!
It gets the punish!
Red Dino played so much of that offense so well,
but that was an incredibly...
reason, PRC forward, that was so sick! So many people have fallen into that pressure, the whole sequence, right?
And yes, it was just two sequences. Most people don't even get to see the second part of that. It's the explosion and then you die, right?
But the patience, the control of the momentum on Terri there looks phenomenal.
I will say personally though, I think that Terri on able to pick the game there, I think Red did a good set of your pace.
It's a little bit more on his terms for sure currently.
As I say that, low slash into the attempted behemoth,
an opportunity as we find the touch, force of the burst.
Yeah.
I think that's a really good thing to play now.
Even though Jira's winning, it's kind of a reaction.
It's a reaction to what he's been up on there.
We're playing Red Nino's game right now.
Yeah.
Richard Biper's, RCE fakes the cross up,
is going to delay a little bit.
Great tech, but it's still in a bit of pressure.
Oh, that's another thing.
Oh my gosh, the Muay Thai elbow.
That's why he's caribinal.
Oh, what a crazy piece of-
WELL, CRAP DASH!
Reddub even LOOVED!
The Gash is not quite more enough!
And with this much meter, this is really being given!
Full security!
Doesn't even need to spend it!
A hundred-tent on Dekeset!
Say that for Leia, we don't need that.
That's...
...Gro.
...LUIS.
Mr. Dekeset!
I can work!
Heh heh heh, so I'm gonna get this.
They're taking action with Mitchell Vipers once again.
I can't know Redditor still setting the tempo here.
I'm trying to find this game a great whip,
I should have kinda greatly confirmed that it was about 40% life.
Not too dare.
Round that as well.
Fair open arms.
Oh, welcome to my red nail.
That was so sick of the tiny taps.
Ultra toes.
No first to cheer you on.
I mean, this is so incredible.
Oh, I'm still...
How did I say that?
Oh, full security here too.
Recognized.
Yeah, that took a bunch of weird things.
You feel like you normally would be able to get over it, but you can't!
2P stopped it, but Grape BRC's on both sides.
The Predator takes back control in the corner.
Great fate, this is Jirio, we do the Bios, in fact we go up front to find, so, it looks so passive, why he takes all my sense, like I said, identifying that Red Niddle is so good at any area.
It's a perfect break though, we are able to secure ourselves even behind, around that hell of a whiff punish!
Rampant Queen of the Aquinas Mid-Range for a reason here, and Red Niddle shown why he
did the conquer when he came to these spots, but step back again, set up a sword, and a
hot pass that makes him so devastating.
Okay, but that one doesn't get much, right in the trade with 16, we have to take that,
we can't complain about it.
There's one BC, and again, stop in the flow, the aggressive Lady Jarrah with just a single
5k.
A bit of a weird spot, half meter, half resources, not going to get to access not a one of them.
Red Ditto, you know the classic Guilty Gear combo, JP, PPP all the way down, completely
cleans it up and brings it to one to one.
Yeah, this is extremely hard to cool.
Extremely hard to cool.
Red Ditto just so calculated in every decision and it kind of shows in the plays like there's
nothing surprising Red Ditto.
If you go get him, I just want you to wait in front of my house, maybe he's finding you.
Stop him ever looking like you.
You can't expect him to be this person's son.
I definitely agree.
Stand back, hold the fort for a minute here, one more fort, he's still to go.
Mine's so low.
If you're not going with that, again the one side elbow, one sword in the hand,
you're gonna force the burst, that makes a difference up at least.
Just watch your way back, oh, the fire's being filled.
And the accident with Dostin is going to be a positive synchrony to get the buff.
Both Dastin and Dostin's buff.
Oh my, okay, guys, he has a working out.
Dastin and the JK still holding full momentum here.
Recognizing that some time before the drone actually makes its mark.
A chance now.
What a perfect challenge!
Perfection to stop the behemoth!
Not a chance to swing there for Tario.
Red Deo plays like a big player.
Yeah, this is what happens when you're on a health pack, a health pack, don't do stuff, have a few bugs, see what we do, and what it's worth.
I try to get a normal site on that door, and the PolyJP is working on wonders, which break a line, set the wreck up, and the diaries to which material.
They'll still have full burst, full security as well.
Oh, this is all the confirmed to 15 airball that time.
Now, I can't wait to try and play Red Deo.
This is three of the sources of my great winning CDS.
Wait, just go and show it out.
And that's why that verse is so good, because you see that.
Grab his weapon.
There's no answer, and I'm just going to swap it.
Oh, I was going to say, there's no martial weapons.
You still got these hands, dog.
That 5k is paying our rent right now.
The FUZIS are incredible for Red Deo.
We're doing such a good job of always beating Chariot at the spot.
We're not getting any of these big gold, those committal normals that actually even get to swing.
Yeah, yeah, it's so frustrating because like I said, you identify the wickedness.
You're just like, oh, you've got no sword.
I've got like five seconds for me to get in.
But if Riddell's just okay to be like, yep.
That's a good 5k for me.
Thank you.
I've received a lot back in the day.
Thank you, Xando.
So it's back to character select for a little bit of a mental slowdown.
I'm not expecting a character swap.
But you know, sometimes we were talking about this in the earlier stages.
Sometimes you just need a moment for yourself.
You need to kind of re-cook your game plan here.
Have an opportunity to go within for just a moment.
And hopefully that will be able to help out for Chariot here.
But if Redditor can keep the same type of momentum,
I don't know what type of adjustment you could possibly make.
Redditor is so far ahead of the game right now, it feels as if you do move in to our game four.
Can you say that? The discord is too much. The day is a wait, day at the time of a turner's defeat.
And I think what he said is so true, but at the time, let's be one occasion. Let me speak how I'm not lost.
The whole charity was still trapped in the corner, and the lady there fell back.
Again, he's comacodin' into where these jumping seeds at the perfect range were feels like that 60 is the right move,
and he just perfectly leaves back out of the gears we do find in the third throw.
Oh, the Duff's been waved. It looks like Cherry was ready to look at the second one though.
That is gonna find this spot.
His detention after the wall break, but Gasselin dies in the way to show he sees the 2K.
And I'm totally...
5K in the sword, though. Once again, the Dominating mid-range, the Dominating round.
It's a perfect for Red Dead Oaks, and it's set point.
It finds the jump in right away. Doesn't really confirm a still!
Check for cherry on the top lane.
So hot and hitting it against the top lane.
And now the tank is so difficult to beat.
So what?
Hold the corner.
You check on this fight.
You're close enough to hit the battleground.
It's easy to get you with one attack.
And you get also smart to keep it up the weaponry.
Go for earth bending.
Bro, far slash the booby.
Absolutely.
Handling business right now.
Has the leader to be able to keep it safe.
Knock down once again.
In fact, the team's on safety.
It has to burst to make some space.
I love the retreating offense there, from stereo gear to second D, starting in the fight.
It's finally gone to the mid, I think. I still think she got the boost.
What in the hell is that? Big chance! Tries to go for the jump over, a faster jump to escape.
The late behemoth doesn't work out, still has burst!
With your C4, it's gonna guarantee the kill!
Wow!
Playin' with the R feed, but he said burst, you went, you're right.
My god, not a care in the world.
You go hop forward and opportunities.
You set the closer wall.
Intentionally doesn't extend.
That's one more chance.
Cobanos doesn't kill.
It does.
Absolutely enough.
It does! Absolutely enough!
The spending of the meter perfectly caps it off.
Red did a ball behind in the early stage,
but answers back and never once takes his foot off the gas pedal once he gets rolling.
I think this... We were talking about this earlier about mental damage,
but I think Goldblues is a pioneer of causing someone to crack.
It just doesn't look like it or it does. In the game, it just doesn't look like it.
definitely agreed. He has an unbelievable amount of composure coming into moments like that.
So, so good. And being able to reassess and simplify game plans too,
it's a lot of spots like, again, you just all you just get to the point where he's just like,
I'm just gonna far. Actually, I haven't seen you doing anything about Far Slash yet.
I'm just gonna see how far I can, see how far this can go.
But we'll see if we can see that here in our replay presented by PlayStation tournaments.
And then the later stage of this, truly, if you think about fighting games like a Conversation,
I feel like the last three games of this set was just red-dead with a megaphone.
the shouting flashes the whole time.
Chereo couldn't get a word of it.
I think that's so true, yeah.
Just look at Interrupting, just like, yeah, there's no gap.
There's no gap for me to reply to what you're saying.
I'm just here to listen to your rhetoric.
And it does all that sometimes against Rammus.
Like we said, once you establish the spacing,
even at the last bit you were talking about,
with the bar presses, Red Deer was like,
I know this isn't hitting, but I know you can't move.
Yes.
So just stay here.
Unless you're going to do something really, really risky
to beat this, you're just gonna have to stay in the corner.
It's like, I call it sneak paralysis.
Yeah.
Because nothing's stopping you, you just can't get up.
Yeah, just being in a position where you have to,
at some point you're going to have to take a risk
and forcing your opponent to make one of those
committal decisions is just as good as being able to,
you know, you're just preemptively stacking the deck
in your favor.
It is such a powerful potential tool for you to be able
to run on your opponent in spots like that.
And Red did the master of being able to control those spaces
and handle that, which is going to put him in a spot
He is intimately familiar with it, it's going to be winners, finals, with an opponent he's very used to in Nitro,
that is going to be a banger when we get there.
Yeah, that's a matchup we've seen day in, day out, offline, offline, online.
Maybe with different characters, because we was talking about Nitro, right, having the progression through the cast,
and I would say like back in the day with the Jacko, with the Geo, mixing it up,
Jacko's a pretty difficult character to master.
So seeing him do this potentially with Leo, like you said,
Leo versus Ram, it's going to be hard to call.
They've both got really good range.
We're just talking about the with punished potential from both.
But we are going to see that a little bit soon before that, though.
I think we both need a break.
We've been going a hundred miles an hour from the first game,
so we need a reaver to show you guys to and we'll catch you in a little while.
Chipotle and 2xco are back for round 2. Use promo code TAGTEAM and checkout to unlock the Chipotle fresh stick backpack and bucket hat for your avatar.
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Ready to banish the darkness.
Come on!
Let's live a little.
In the light
is your deliverance!
Hello?
Whoa.
Mama Gruggin 85 lives here?
Yep.
That's my mom.
The absolute legend who knows how to do it?
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Absolute legend who went from gaming on her phone
to ruthless online shrooming slayer
with no mercy for any living thing.
Is your mom?
Hey, guys.
Apple's with Peanut Butter?
How is this possible?
With AT&T Wireless and Home Internet.
Hey, text me if you need anything.
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Internet, now available across the nation.
No, she's so nice in real life.
I got something new, I got something brand new
Welcome back to EVO 2026, as we're checking in here with the Airheads Aircam.
Make sure you're in the arena, have those LED Arena wristbands up, you guys, join in
the fun, glad to see all the beautiful colors, beautiful people out in the crowd.
It's a wonderful time to see everyone.
Thank you very much for joining us here in the arena.
Make sure everybody again, reach out to the Airheads, appreciate them a ton.
Power up a candy game with Airheads, and thank you again to everyone joining us in the arena
as well as at home Proxy and C4 to continue to take you through Guilty Gear Strive here for this top eight.
And so far, you know, Vasya, we're feeling good, Kraub, we're feeling good.
That's what I like to do. I love you guys.
To make it worth it, right? Make it worth it. Yeah, super good. Yeah. And obviously, if you couldn't
make it, we're here for you guys at home. Like we said, Proxy, you stream chavs. We know you're there.
And we will hopefully get these games very shortly and we can jump back on this trade this high-speed trade with these players
There's just something as you can see in the bracket Nitro Red Ditto, so it's sitting in winners finals
century both players have shown how good they are who is going to try them today
We'll see that a little bit later because we'll be getting right now
Now, Crofton.
Right now, I do believe we are going to be moving into KSU, what's move versus Zero.
Varix and TY still waiting below, with Charyo and Kermit still alive in this thing.
The beauty of the double elimination bracket, the beauty of the spirit of the FGC is us
being able to have these tournaments.
This many people involved to be able to potentially take home the crown, and we have to see how
these players were able to make their path to here with the victory path presented by
white claw surge as you can see case you coming up the back of a couple tough
matchups here did take that loss to Kermit but was able to best MJ in a
nail-biter of a mirror match to just make it in an opportunity to have a back-to-back
part something that I mean what we single digit people are able to really be
able to claim for themselves and evil it could happen back to back that would be
so cool and it would be with two different characters. That would be so cool doing it with
you know, two different characters, someone we don't see too often is the Angi-Mito-Giro,
I would probably say, Helen asked me this but I want to tell you, probably one of the
best photos. That is such a sick photo to have.
It's the perfect energy to bring to the table here because Ambit will and I've all fallen
in that top 24. It was a tough competition across the board for them, you know, being
and they'll make it to this spot.
And honestly, I think the most impressive thing
about Jiro's run, a loss to Kermit that early in the bracket
has been battling through losers for such a long time
in a tournament like this, where a lot of it
comes down to gas mileage, an early loss in round one,
round two pools, being able to push to this position.
I mean, the mental fortitude you have to have
to stay present and stay playing well,
getting all the way to this spot is genuinely unbelievable.
On top of that, the traveling, having the jet lag,
you can just use, like,
and you've got some more pressure on you, right?
It's not like you can just, like,
walk down the road and enter a tournament.
This is enough of a local word.
So, let's get it, we're gonna get our next match.
This is not a cake, what the move with the Johnny,
patented in the wild, Mr. Jiro.
The action, you know, taking some kids,
but said no, not today, go to the first,
but still under, it's a bit of pressure.
Stumble step back, stop the attack, great!
Here's the Puget nose, and clone distance, and find the touch again.
An opportunity with plenty of meter in our pocket.
TRIES TO STACK WITH THE 2H AGAIN!
But a perfect swing back from Keisha with a challenge!
Seeing those peices in the earlier matches,
Keisha is not hesitant to stop his fake pressure.
Okay, we have fun playing.
It's kind of like damage to your gauge, but I can take no damage, you know, get you see from it.
I think there's a lot of work, and it's about...
Behind you is a little train at the start, up the train you want to see, though.
Nothing we got to close this distance here.
It's a long-reaching normal!
A bright option, wrong spacing.
I like the idea of the throw of the squirrel, it cuts too far, and now it's time to watch the movie
The movie is reduced out of a hard knockdown and a full burst restored for Tiro.
That was a costly guess.
He's losing more than 50% of his health, are you ready to do it again, KJ?
Is this the difference?
Is this the champ difference? Is this the way Tate's defeated by a champ?
Will that be all skin and decals?
Ooh, there he is.
Blah, there, but who's that TK misfinder?
But again, that's kind of the Archie for way of lighting, though.
That 50%, that's the lightworks for this guy.
He's looking for a dance party, trying to taunt you around, finding the hit again.
Okay, a little bit blown on the bar on the confirm!
Socials going on there, I'm off the playoff.
Ooh, jumps out!
And then the VRC don't even try to add ESP!
Overhead.
That's why the overhead will actually, uh...
That's not quick.
I'm pushing on the way.
I love the idea, as we guess that clean connection wins the 99.
But you know, Johnny, one of those guys...
Man, I can sleep.
Gonna hold this bit, Spindle.
Gonna hold this bit, Spindle real quick.
Ooh, just the other side.
Uh, minus 100, but I'm over here.
Ha ha ha!
Double 2P, scooping the leg.
That's the card, if I say it again!
A hundred meter!
A jerk is the jump out!
And actually, punish from the PRC!
Oh, no.
Animal venom is clearly in hero side.
I love this bag of sorts.
You can try to throw it out of fire.
From K, you see him so much here.
But the fans are putting in a lot of work.
Wow!
Skid damage is getting new to work.
Back into the neutral.
Got most of the screener set.
And I went straight back in there.
Oh, watch what I was gonna do to get in here when it hits into the open drive!
But the best of situation there was we go for that same 2H reset that we saw before
and it looks like K-Shoe identified it just a split second too late.
We take a counter hit, we wanted that same answer, but it wasn't quite ready, wasn't quite quick enough.
It's hard to stay on the ball in a moment like this, but I mean, that's what it takes to be a champion.
K-Shoe, intimately familiar with the concepts here, and unfortunately, he's really a disturbance.
And the 100%
Oh, the badness of the baron to get the gun
Like it's G-Ray into the face of Casey Dunne
But like, actually, that's not bad
Concerning a little bit, like the CEO's head of PRC in movies
I'm just fine, oh, now you're going to close that?
Okay, cool, now we can play the game, oh my gosh
Just the race, the gorilla
Spinning on it
But today, we're going to kill those, the glasses
Shut up, the positive bonus is there
But can't get real close out
But don't skip the long
The lag still works out, chip damage is enough, round of heaths, ASHU.
The BITTER SPOT! But that is a good statement!
He gets some momentum back into this to deflect your good idea, but unfortunately it hits the card, she gets an immediate re-entry.
Show em a card, Jackson's club.
Gonna need a cup to beat this country, all law in terms of the defense for the flies and GUS.
The five key, be confirmed.
He's gonna get some set play here, oh shoo shoo!
The choice is, but he gives a five.
And he even needs to do more.
There he goes.
Oh my god, he likes this world once again.
An opportunity, looking for the throw.
No punish, wasn't able to land twice.
Ah!
He landed some parries!
What is this guy doing?
It's unbelievable, the wall is broken.
Now we have a knockout.
An opportunity for Jero to pull even farther ahead.
And the reversal is easily won.
Had the first one there,
That's why he came out there from the kitchen.
He's not going to get me out.
There's the YC protection.
He's taking me to the kitchen.
No!
We're going to jump in there.
That's a little composure.
He's in there.
The car's on the ground.
There's a lane.
Looking for the skates.
Oh, this is a clever play there from the kitchen.
Perfect confirm.
Everything going just as planned.
Little tempted sweet like Najero with a good spacing back.
He's near that white hide.
You can see the buffer too, waiting for something.
Blackheath confirmed!
Okay, thank you.
Yes, this is a hero champion.
Hero champion.
We'll see you in April display.
Oh!
I thought that was...
A hero jump!
Yes!
He's answering from the card again.
World waits it out!
Perfect spacing!
New!
We're completely safe from there!
And the Mutties again!
We'll be going final mode.
Going for the toes.
Even Crouchy doesn't take the pro.
Oh, and the counter gets thrown.
There's even no case you understand the assignment.
Madcow, Madcow will walk out of the tower.
He knew.
Only one stay on the...
Oh my god, absolutely no luck at all against me.
The music was 5K in perfectly space, and kicked the headman off.
Hehehehe.
He was gonna burn even there.
Stay firm. Whoa! Whoa, whoa, whoa!
Yeah, in case you know something, I don't mind how long to defy it.
Like, on this time of winter, it's definitely a blast.
Spacing's the timing, and looking much better with the jump back.
Beating up pro attempt, tries to chase down the back dash there,
case you again, perfectly placed 5K.
Joker's trick, the sentence rule, still not enough though!
Zero, full resources!
The fix of the final pixel, I mean this is Andy's for the meal!
When I'm throwing the washi, hold on to him, look for the washi to set you know, I don't think it's gonna have to be good.
Can't you see it's the last time?
More birdie, watch the birdie, mind your head, still the busted!
It's a win or a loss to him! The PRC! That is the best!
He dropped it!
KSU stays in the moment and takes the victory! Unbelievable presence of mind!
It's the evil challenge, leaving room to think every other time on zero, there's a place that goes over the CRCO there.
No moment! It's just these are the moments that make or break people.
When there's something happy for you, can you just regain your position?
Let's find out. Oh my god!
Yeah, this is easy.
Oh, see, tangible momentum coming from K-1's side right now.
Incident accident, lays the card, I'm gonna flood-kill.
Continuous jump, trying to fly the pressure, no punish there!
Yeah, it happens.
It happens when I'm a tremendous musketeer in G-1.
He's gonna praise and love.
And you gotta praise the defense from K-shoots, James,
because in a moment like that, in so many different games,
we kind of heard this phrase,
and that was the perfect way to show it in Guilty Gear's drive.
he could take those throws. He had plenty of life. He knew he was going to be able to have an opportunity to fight him out of the chain.
You don't have to take an aggressive action until a 1 or 2 post throw situation is after.
He's going into the corner. Okay, so the misfinders, cards out. It's an out.
Let's try to punish the proper tend to the goal first. Okay.
We're going to get a frisky aggressive VRI, the lead card detected.
On deck, see for Jiro, get the... Oh, that was nice. That was like the little tiny micro walk back into the line.
Jiro looked just about that round for about 20 seconds. We're back.
I guess full mentality back in the wayside here.
Okay, we're leaving. We're empty.
So far though, no cap and no YC, but we have to keep looking the overhead.
There's a card.
Oh, Jiro's up for the five, and it's with a line from the left of his head.
Oh, and he's won the edge of the first!
That was so unfortunate timing on the rules, Cap!
Needs it down to what could be the final round, Jiro.
Continuing to try and take the aggressive angles here,
Dash back roads off to this possible trying to choke this space away.
KG, well, he can!
But a perfect anti-air to keep him contained!
Ooh, where are you going? Turn up and not be half?
Oh!
Yups! Yups!
They squeezed me!
He did a little more of that though.
He did a little more of that to make this comeback.
Okay, small send to B as well.
Opportunity is looking good.
Not much life to play with left.
Tap the FD, it was good for something here.
We've already seen a reversal before for KQ.
He's dead though.
There's a little one right there.
Holding the...
Stomp, the Bispond of Predator.
Oh, there's one.
Oh, town again!
I...
I'm gonna get the burst at the top, I'm gonna get the burst at the top, yep, yep, yep.
Zero.
Down, buddy, go out.
Bro, the name of the game is right now.
Zero.
I got a bit ahead on it, dropped the fish on him, and now he's gonna go straight into the butterfly.
The bird is all the way in the corner off that too.
That's what we're gonna fucking see.
Why should we?
Woo!
I'm gonna get blown back!
Nice give birth!
uses the dust to get the pop-up here from the extra extension,
does get the wall stick, so positive notice.
On the way, no meter penalty, there's a lot of resources
that we're going to spend right away.
Instantly gets the hit, instantly cuts the super.
What's his name?
I believe it's Jason Johnny,
by the hero of CineLine, that's Abe of Epipho.
Oh my god!
It's Jay for Johnny's, but it's me for victory.
Kshu, an incredible sequence that ended out.
You see the parry, you know you have the resources to fade it.
Unbelievable play to stifle the run from Jiro, Kshu, man.
I think he knows what he's doing in this game.
I think she has a good idea of what needs to be done.
Like I said, the mental damage mitigation in terms of,
oh, what can I fall to take?
And what can I not?
Yeah, keep throwing, keep throwing, keep throwing.
I'll take these single overheads.
That's fine.
And yeah, paid off.
And the nerves are still from both players there.
And I do think that that match didn't really
turn Jiro's mind off.
He was still like, engaged in the match and not thinking,
oh my gosh, I should have had that round.
Definitely agreed.
We have to show the love, though.
Jiro with an incredible run to make it into this top eight.
Definitely well deserved.
Honestly, the path to victory for him was unreal.
But, you know, we gotta take a look at this match once again.
So we are gonna go back to our replay here,
presented by PlayStation Tournaments.
You can see early, I mean,
it was the Giro show in those early spots, right?
It was 100% that.
This is the situation.
The fix of the final is Giro's strategy.
Look at the birdie.
He's the overheads.
Dust, and he was like, it's the end.
That.
Oh, and even that's the thing too, I think is what happened is we did make the burst,
we did get the jump, but we put ourselves just a touch too far.
I think that how delayed the burst from Kei-Shu was, ending up putting us in a spacing we
weren't ready for.
That's so, oh, I've seen it again, that's rough.
Kei-Shu with the composure of a champion, only a player who has been there before is
able to, you know, have mastery of situations like that is so hard.
you get into the scramble to return back to restore your humanity, you know?
Yeah, that's the best way to put it. It's not easy to do, especially in these obviously high state situations.
Yeah, there you can see in the bracket, Jiro going out after the free one, the feet to KG as he moves forward,
going to be looking at my interior a little bit later on.
But next we are going to be getting Berex versus TY.
I'm interested to see who TY is going to pick it.
We saw Slayer pick earlier on.
But then when, you know, when it came down to...
Oh, this is looking a bit too close.
Went to the Geo.
Absolutely.
And that's one of the things that we talk about with this game
is that, especially with the amount of accessibility,
you can go as deep or shallow as you want
when it comes to picking your characters.
So a lot of people do have the opportunity and the potential to be able to be multi-character threats
Which I think if you're not playing like a top five top seven type of character
It's definitely the optimal choice to have so I'm glad to see some of those players being able to come through
I'm expecting the Gio, but we'll definitely you know, but we'll see what comes up when it does come through
Yeah, indeed and we're gonna see something right now the victory path presented by white Claw surge
the match that you alluded to
earlier with Cheerio. That was
the first one I've been having
and it's crazy back and forth
with Calibur. He's in the
unicom. That was a mad match.
Derrick was looking a little bit
shaky, but pulled it out when it
matters. And unfortunately did
take that dive against Kazam a
bit earlier in the day yesterday,
but had a three straight great
runs. Okies and LK, two
Okis and LK two matchups heavily in Ty's favor and then the GC Yoshi set was
Unreal they really got into the weeds for sure and we'll see who you know the players are the people at home
Excuse me. I am the players but people at home have actually decided to put themselves on for the evil fantasy pick
The top eight presented by AT&T and it looks like we're leaning toward the people agree with C4
They said this guy's got some pretty good opinions. We are leaning towards Varix right now
Yeah, he's a he's a pretty safe pick most of the time
He's got such a unique way of playing now go and I was saying this in earlier matches when you see Varix get down to the
Nail by magic with that last game last round he
Compenses which is up and he's like he loves you into a sensitive security where I'm a very passive now go
I don't really take big risks and then when you get comfortable with that
That's when he gets a little bit of unhinged.
And I think you need to be able to switch between calm and chaotic with a character like Mega
to make your opponent fearful of your options.
I actually agree, and I think the key word you said there was switch.
I think it needs to be on a switch, not a slider.
I think a lot of times people are like, you know, will start to lean into one direction.
Varix goes into a round, goes into a decision, goes into a moment,
deciding what type of aggression he's going to bring,
and it is full send in that direction.
No hesitation for the moment is so good, like you said,
of being able to dial into those spots.
And I really do think that how quickly he's able to flip that switch
is one of the deciding factors and how he's made himself
the Titan that he is right now in guilty care.
Yeah, it's not a easy trait to have at this level.
And again, from a location that doesn't have that many top players from Senegal,
Shats to give the striker the rollback, making him able to play so many good players
in the EMEA region.
But TY has picked the Geo for the button check.
That doesn't mean anything.
The button checks are alive.
They could be.
Could be false information.
Like you said, I kind of think the Geo is coming.
I don't think TY's going to go for the Slayer.
That is a character that got him somewhere in terms
of the dance for the top eight.
Verix does play a little bit with Slayer.
So I think you should go for the Geo here.
Don't give your opponent any advantage if you don't have to.
We're back into the move again, though.
The Eagle flies and it's a 1-4 chance here in the loser's side.
Our final round 1 match, the top 8, Variks and T.Y.
An opportunity to continue your rise to greatness here at EVO 2026.
It's a scary one too, I mean the Goryuki 99 seconds.
If he's able to find some kind of early victory,
convert to like Beyblade, something very aggressive,
I mean you can blink and the round could just be over.
You have to have a short memory when you're playing against Naga for sure.
You do, you have to be kind of bow-hard, you know.
Yeah, it happened. Go next.
That's gonna happen.
Just keep next. Yeah, don't worry about it.
He is visual, like you say, to one of those
players where you got to live in the mindset,
but you have to forget how you lost.
Yes, for sure.
He is visual.
Master of the game, we train our fight.
All of us with the magnifying glass, to be able to see the world.
I'm gonna knock you around, start.
Ignore everything.
TY, straight in with the DO.
Find the 2D.
Find the bar slash.
Everything opening up here is a positive bonus.
I'm gonna do a little bit quick on the tribes up!
We're talking about people with beater and aggression,
TY, unbelievable pressure and tempo right now!
Barrett hasn't made a choice yet!
Well that was uh...
I'm not gonna take it with you.
You're not gonna take it with me.
I don't know what these conversations are talking about.
Okay, big fall up there.
Saw the shizu.
We're gonna go for the burst.
Start stop.
The matter went straight back to my side.
Mercy is in space, his passive plays a lot like it's going to be working out very, there we go.
A little bit more explosive power, I think it's needed in here.
Because I don't think T.Y. is going to let you do that whole my side of the loading game.
The back dash, the big body back dash does. We're safe on that one.
Quick RC, making pressure, building a lot of the blood gauge back.
Can you just chip away at the life with a knife and chop the 6B? It's perfect!
As the season follows through, a great answer from Beryx to stay in this.
Okay, okay, true. Now we're getting to level 2, very great, so we're going to do 3S to 6B.
This is not the approach it's from, Geo, which makes a lot of sense, right? A lot of those 5 or
mid-ish types can use the 6B, but you can see it's a great way to see why we're setting the 2S,
lovely and easy to confirm it. But because you can't be active Geo's that, you have to do 3S to bust.
I don't believe the Bootsies with the Hedge working well.
Walk up a tap with the Goss,
handle the hole and control here,
it's gonna go from the air super,
but guaranteed you've knocked out a little bit of burst
from the plane,
going hard knocked out a single choice left for Varys.
By the way,
you see I'm not a scapegoat.
Gio will find you,
calm down.
You have to be able to hold your ground,
and I think Varys was doing that a little bit earlier
that we saw the 316,
because like I said,
most characters kind of escape Geo, let alone a big body like Mago.
That just feels like, I mean, TY's just beating Barracks to a lot of the time in here.
I think you're right, I think a lot of the normals, a lot of the choices aren't, you know, out of the ordinary here by some circumstances.
They're playing with two TY's on the ground here, and that's part of the game, right?
That's the alarm, right? That monster in and out plays out, that quick movement speed.
It will be used to the fact that more of the, a lot of times, it is like a stationary pistol turret, but it comes to the truck, and it's not.
The player is approaching them.
We even had the PRC there to reposition like, but that's not a thing a normal character has to do!
Yep. 100 days of new secrets, so only fools on the use of a lot of damage.
Oh boy!
No two bloods of pain, eight normals, the fight for the speed to match him, as he's trying to find the way in regardless.
Because even there, the 1-5-8 lift,
DY steps exactly outside the range of 5-8,
and then the next interaction, he's completely on top of you,
preparing for the great callback, and a great clutch up.
Jizu has the follow-up, the flood gets high,
but it's not going to matter.
We get the stick just in time.
That was close to wall as well.
Yes.
That's some screen carry.
So I hopped into the combo, I was like,
he's thinking about what route to do.
But I get to hit the coast, and he fragged it.
I didn't get the wall hit.
Jay, she do follow up, doesn't get much more in here, I love the burst of momentum, keep
that space and keep that pressure, the power spiral arrow, yes they hit again with the
heavy!
Great, no one would have thought both players save up any tension from one of those E5s
with the positive, so straight in, dash up, dust, now it's going to be a special, you
die for it.
I do like to call those save your burst and have the resources for the next one here.
Oh my god, again that 2D!
Ooh, the back-backing again!
The bar is going to follow up.
Trait.
I mean, you don't need that thing. You go take Traits like that.
A little more of the vibe here.
What a re-position. It's a decent little mixup.
It's mostly about getting back to mid-screen.
As we saw in the previous game, it doesn't matter if you make it to the screen, every
touch takes you to the corner.
We're casting in!
We have maximum line!
If you quit, flip!
Nothing needed to be spent!
We'll flip in the wrist, and the round goes in, letting Derek's one to one move.
There's the switch.
It's it.
There's no sliding scale, it's this mode, that mode.
And you've got to keep up.
Got T.Y.
Showing.
It doesn't matter what mode you're on.
If I'm so aggressive, you can't even think about it.
Oh my!
Yeah, he's got nothing. Yeah, okay.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Get the light, win the fight. That's why I got it back in the day.
Oh, what's he fighting for?
Destroy Scrips up.
And rewrite history.
Oh, that's a safe jump lock. That makes us fun of space.
Opportunities to get the ball stick here.
Awesome.
Put your swing.
Ah!
Set them home!
That was a crazy one for Barracks.
What a swing and out of the park!
Up into the nose weasel.
And I saw what I like about this, it's a fight with the fight, like, I don't know if, I don't think T1's gonna let that happen again.
I think we're gonna get a more active T1 right now.
There we go, straight away, go for the jab.
Not letting a repeat of the last round happen.
Oh?
Oh, there, to the asexual, that's my mark, T1.
Long GFD.
Great back dash!
This was so aware of the potential of the bite there, like you said.
Getting that blood back, it's going to be a little more aggressive.
He's back, you know, he's being changed up here.
For TY, he's recognizing and you're crafting our defensive plan around that.
Super smart, you know, I mean, just a great adjustment.
Oh, big one over the 2S and a massive reward here.
I think it's actually there for very good.
He's the first, now first on the table for both players.
Stay here, great.
He's going to get the first one.
I think, now, where are you going?
Release yourself from the skies and get splat there, center.
Brown, Bering, turning it around and peeking.
Peek!
Green, you're on it.
A lot of smoke.
And that's he wide.
Is it Slade time?
That's such an uncomfortable place to burst into,
because the potential parameter is OGG, 6-h afterwards.
But it looks like a little bit of a switch to the end of it
might just be the vampire's ball here in this top 8.
Loser side action, TY, are you willing to risk it
If you play Slayer and you win, you are locked, and can you take two in a row?
Like the button is the hop or safety you have to have with yourself.
G.Y. says, damn right I can't.
Well, well, well.
Gonna bet on the Slayer.
The aggressive nature for both camps is very different.
Slayers are a lot more in terms of like mixed left, right, high low.
We did see that a little bit with the Geo, with the Blitzfire.
It was like you said, more for repositioning.
Nuka tries that hat.
He wasn't ready for this beat.
Alakazim, Varix plays a little bit of Slayer.
He's a backbite on a serve.
But can he, can he deal with the dashes?
That's the question.
So far, the pothos have been immaculate here.
The perfect space around everything.
Again, 5H every single time, even with blocks.
Such a huge win!
And we double up on the Shizu, Blood Pox,
and one more time with feeling.
He's a dust, but it's okay.
Varix, I did not know so well.
Come on.
He knew me, there's 5B there to guarantee.
Even for 5k, what now?
Oh look at the range!
Layup. No one on this layer, right?
There we go. It's layered under the blue ring.
Oh, with that, you know!
Fuck me. If I could go first, no small bangle would do.
Without doing your body, all with that knee.
Perfectly, you went the way, Banzan is on the same side,
2H after Convert, 1Dax and waits.
Did he wait long enough? He did!
Absolutely a great ball for T.Y. Gage that's on point.
It is able to even it up. It is still set point for Barrick, but T.Y. is not out of it yet.
It's a make-and-see. The make-and-see.
When Slayer's over, he's a doctor for Barrick.
Oh, what a sleek connection of things.
Oh, it's a little bit messy here. I love how Barrick's sitting around trying to turn up the tempo.
The step back is huge!
Oh, yeah, I'll end up the Aussie. Don't mess it back.
You know what it is, you go to Slayer and give the treatment to Frodo's hunches.
They slide as a punish, same side.
Want some barracks?
So we are blocking on approach.
There's the first, and straight into the sword, you go, barracks!
Dispatching.
These kinfolk vampires, only one can stay alive.
Oh, dude, it is a masterclass of the double 5-H incredible performance of Rubb Variks,
but with that, unfortunately, that is going to be the exit.
Please give it up!
The loser's run, incredible TY, everybody!
A hell of a run, an incredible performance.
Such a good story to see once again, but with that, Variks' story continues.
chance to put another title in the you know the trophy case for himself and
we'll see if he can keep that same energy that we see here in the replay
presented by PlayStation tournaments as in the early stages was just kind of
thrown off the game a little bit it seems maybe that passive play doesn't
quite working out realized he needed to be a little bit more in the driver's seat
everything changed
that various lines to do with the sort of first game and it just wouldn't work again here right
T1, Identified, oh just don't even let me do this, I'm just gonna go crazy and that was the moment
that you played that proxies in terms of being that high in the sky, those are the versus like yeah
first ability through the ability to hit you from full screen right, never used to be that case
and you've got the idea of well I can't see you because you're on screen right, Greg is on the
front it's like but I don't think you're gonna let me land for free, you're gonna do something,
maybe jump, get ready for a 6p, and that's kind of the risk you take to be like, it's like a blind mix.
I don't know what you're doing, but I think you pressed something, so I'm going to burst it.
Yeah, so he's probably crouching down there, but anything could be happening.
If we do anything.
That was a good answer back, though, as we are going to move into the bracket here,
seeing it once again, Nitro and Red Ditto still sitting pretty in the winners' side,
with a couple losers' matches still to catch up.
Chariot and K-Shoot, what the move was, Kermit and Varix.
Some incredibly ridiculous matchups to come here.
It's going to be super, super sick to see it pop up.
I cannot wait to see these players, you know,
be able to battle it out in this loser side of the action here.
With that though, coming up next is going to be the Chipotle Burrito Meter.
So spam those custom Chipotle emotes in the chat
to fill up the burrito meter to unlock Chipotle rewards.
And you know, you got to get ready for it.
So get ready by unlocking those custom emotes,
which is Evo chip plush and the Evo burrito.
Not a manga after that.
Yeah.
But with that, though, make sure you sparen it up.
Make sure we get that thing filled.
We are going to take a quick break and straight after that
is going to be even more guilty of your strive action.
So don't go anywhere guilty of your strive.
But we're back in just a moment.
I guess it's weird for you to call me daddy.
That's very weird, Jay.
I need to go back.
I gotta avenge myself.
I gotta avenge myself.
Stop, guys.
Make me laugh, people.
Oh, jeez.
Oh, man.
That boy causes breakage all in the mood.
Let them go!
How is he beating them?
This guy's a scrup!
There's no way I'm a scrup, too.
Use them, Joey.
Use the Xenis.
They're built for unrighted blockers and corrections.
I'm sorry, but I can't do anything about it.
I'm sorry, but I can't do anything about it.
We are back here at EVO 2026.
We're going to go straight to the action.
Down in the basement proxy, we've got some losers' matches to start commenting.
Absolutely.
Cannot wait to see how the matches are going to go.
As you know, we do have our bracket here to take a look before we do get ourselves into these next ones.
As you said, heading to losers' bracket first.
as you said, heading to Loser's bracket first.
Super excited to see who can battle through as now.
It is going to be Chereo and Keishu, what the move,
as well as Kermit and Varix still alive in this loser's side.
Our two players in the winners, Nitro and Red Ditto,
again, two players familiar with the spot,
but willing to continue to try and keep that momentum
and continue the greatness on both sides.
It's going to be extremely hard to pull.
I'm sure we're going to have a lot of people disagreeing.
And who's going to be a victor in that one?
But like you said, that's a little bit later on in the side right here.
Some dreams are going to be shared, unfortunately,
but that is the nature of the beast when it comes to tournaments, right?
Cheerio, you know, we have the gold, Lewis, me, Fossus, like,
as long as you can get close, he can win, right?
But we've seen the determination to not be overwhelmed on K-Fuse side
with the Johnny in these risky points where you're like,
wow, you really two people, it's like, yeah, but if I didn't,
I don't get to play the game.
So I have to challenge.
And we've seen other sort of escape options that K-Shoes adopted.
And it is quite hard to space yourself with Johnny.
He's a very small than nothing, what we're saying earlier.
It's kind of like a McCoy.
I just stand here, all the way over there, but there's no middle ground.
Oh, definitely great.
It's got to be a medium punch range.
We've got to be deep.
I definitely got right there with your brother.
Hopefully we'll see some of that action now.
We're going to be leading straight into the action here.
As you can see, all the beautiful people in the crowd as well as, you know,
the Red Bull, the best to seats in the house.
good to see everyone here. Evo again, please make some noise for Guilty Gear!
That's what we're doing here, baby. Straight into the action of this level.
Chariot takes you to the loser's side.
That's a great need to send off the Golden Luzes. Don't worry about that.
That won't harm the team to get in. That's how the Luzes hate to be.
And there we go. Chariot with a patented orange.
Make it as the pressure stops, or be quick, and that makes you gonna be up, or by the speed you know when you're fucking beating.
Oh, just about security too, the guys who don't have potential to defeat you, so choose instead to just continue to rain it down with pressure.
That's security, I'm spending.
Now, I'm trying to build a speed meter, and the RC available now finds a 2P and closes the distance.
The two P's? Me no scants, the cage you know the scants for!
You can't do anything! Like, at least the next level we've had, champion starts to look, but it's a P and T, the two P's.
And the nothing mix gave me an insight, you know, just so you know.
My fighter point! He's the last that's nothing! Twice in a row!
SDF finds the hit, though! It's max resources for Gold Lewis!
The absolute defense continues with the offense!
Full security spent! But that's not the end!
Oh, this move, he's gonna get a wall?
No, this Six-Head never mind, this shoulder man.
He shoulder-ticked, he shoulder-ticked him.
I mean, the Six-H can't work, I think it was a little bit too low, unfortunately, on the duggle.
I think it was a lot of calculate people's R.C. slowdown, like, when should I be doing this for you?
Oh, get out of my sky, Johnny says, and we're gonna have to say his name?
Would it be Proxy?
And Jay is in the chat, and we'll be able to let you know about a 50% life still left here on Chereo.
Oh, and top Jephy, helps to sell the mix up there, same sidecrows, you can pressure the wall.
Dash it off, 2k, yeah, I would first of all.
The cheek, the cheek of it, you know who knows who I am?
Perfect counter first two, that would be the side-swap, then you're gonna be tired.
So if the card went at G, you know what, I can't wait for that to hit the card.
Oh, and that's happening, and you don't, it's flying that into the card, it equals, God,
a simple out-of-the-box.
I just sent a full jump forward there and it felt like we knew that if something delayed came out we were gonna be all the tracks to the Terms JD.
That's just a good idea.
If you find the 2D, the size of what comes through takes you.
Sniping control, a lot of this is gonna heave trouble now!
And the Crypton 16 completely sucked into the air deck!
Oh I never knew that Mooshie that had hit that high!
That was so crap!
What was this?
Oh back to the main.
Oh my god!
Hold the back of my hand, go through this end.
He's got Mooshie in it!
Oh my god!
Oh my god, as once I can, he's able to stop it, but now...
I have to chase down the run forwards! No hesitation!
Kei Shu, it felt like once the burst came out, it felt like he had a breath of blue light.
I thought he went back in.
Yeah, you know what it looked like when the burst happened, it was like...
You can be scared. You can be scared. Okay!
You go a little bit at a time, so you're not supposed to break.
chasing down the far rest the back of the whole shoe to the face everyone is
going to take too long to stand in from that and that's something really important
so I identify it's like what makes you nervous and I think Geryl's getting my
beard
close
I don't even feel like I'm going to check the throw, the part set up, jump over, nice punish
but no follow-up too far, try to behave and decide to move
Oh my god, any other gold news, press and JD there.
Kherion, I've said it before, the paces on Kherion is actually for no reason.
Oh my god, no one knows what's up.
Kherion's smart.
And the orange now, with the choice of being made soon, Kukie!
That's a hell of a choice!
And you know what I think that is from?
The empty dump from last time.
Yeah, Kherion's like, nah, nah, nah, okay.
We're understanding the plan, but can't you have a piece of that form for one right now?
was K-Shoots. What do you do?
They do.
They're the first round of this education.
They just don't delay that trying little stackers enough to make anybody, you know, kind of
reel back a little bit that moment of hesitation, catching you flat-footed for just a split second.
There's always an up-and-a-moment like this, but a great tech between the two.
And we continue to battle for the mid-screen position.
Oh! Run up with a B now.
Okay, she's being a mid-screen.
I'm just stifing him, looking at him.
Wonderful.
Look at that finish that you give him.
He's sending that security.
So...
Okay.
Whip!
A little bit of drop confirm.
Oh, an optimization fix in weird spot now.
There you go.
Let's stop and try a little bit of rotation.
Perfect answer back.
I'd love to swing more back to the screen.
Oh!
What the fuck?
Charms up on your back bro!
Oh stay here!
What the hell bro?!
Oh my God, here I can smell it!
He's like, look at the hell Bart has done about it!
I'm in the 2, hits away, we're winning!
There's a headbutt!
Oh the old man's ganky, look at that rooster!
Stop, jump in, can't use the rain now but he evens fear
Doesn't matter if it's on hands or blocked!
Look at the life total!
Starting to dwindle, still has 1st!
But the chance of starting to get away from here, it's still overhead again!
Keep going, keep going, into the game!
Let's see, oh my God, what's the worst they've through as well?
He was dancing on him, and it doesn't matter how the hell...
...but we said this is gold, Lewis!
As long as he's got one, hey, me!
It's even Steven!
Oh my God, he reacts to the shimmy with the jump forward now.
We're starting to play some extra layers here.
The J.D. lights the mark.
Make space, back to the green.
The check.
A little bit uncomfortable, we get to the wall!
Looks like he's getting close!
Badass showed a check and I was gonna see a lot of reds on KG platform
Oh my god, it's gonna break. Why is it not gonna kill?
The reposition was genius here. Max securities, we do find the throw. You can take a couple more of those.
So don't let me be too risky here.
The objective is to win this green position to P.
Don't worry about what I'm saying, we'll boy tie action with the big man.
What'd he say?
I hope there's a staggered first player in this game.
In the audience, I approve.
Yes.
Oh, that's been a fame of many players and characters.
The two P's, the elbows from Gold Lewis.
It seems to just out-prioritize things like,
I'm at least getting the trade here.
Two games off.
Cation.
You have to turn it up right now.
That card did give an opening, and on the first alert,
JerryO got the taking, and he always gets it on the misfire.
Now, he's dead.
He'll send some pressure to the key again.
They'll try to take even more risks, and he'll fly like this.
You can't believe you're doing that.
It's an important point to remember, especially when Goldo is involved.
He helps his resources, does that, and it's still zero.
You've got to spend it, and Goldo's like,
to take the risk, but case two, risks up in the moment.
Continue to apply the pressure!
I'm not even sure why I'm being all of my thoughts.
Say hello to my little friends.
Oh!
He's dead, puppy!
He's turning to the bar. Holy, holy.
Legs swept through those pillars.
It is going to be an opportunity to just barely get to the wall.
Nice optimization, in case you're still alive in this one.
I think there's a flat number in case you're playing any...
These are so clean.
He does two feet like it's reverse.
Oh my!
The button's not spacing, it's just an off down here.
Oh!
Well clean back!
With...
Oh, what the?
I'm out of here!
I'm out of here, you just gotta say what's going on.
I'm just out of here.
I'm just controlling space.
Oh, but again, fearless.
Man, never lose this.
Keep that same momentum, just keep that monitor in his way,
get to the hit, get to the break.
Misfinder's the one to do it.
50% life, but the resources are stacked for Terrier right now.
Oh, what a...
What a...
What a nice design, and the Caitlyn just like,
I'm gonna wait for the double, I'm gonna get insane ammo!
Behind the eve of camp...
Oh, how are they always gonna spend the ult for late?
It's all freaking Lewis!
Jaffa, don't be too far!
Why are you seeing perfect timing?
Caitlyn with the optimal decision!
Not great.
Oh, he's paying the same.
Oh, he's staying half side of forest, right?
What a Caitlyn!
Caitlyn!
I was about to say, Chirio can bypass this range that you're standing at.
He's got the Arsenal, going to get confirmed with 2-4. Stay down!
Okay, he's true. With the chip.
And that was something I saw earlier in the match with Chirio, and there it is.
The YRC on the laser. That timing is pretty tough.
It is. And it varies based on the amount of security to it.
There's so much that goes on. It's a lot to have to deal with there.
there again being in a position like this you don't accidentally make it onto the stage here at Evo well
calculated in the mix up there we get 2S through the fall of a given that of course is going to be a first
I'm sorry whoa the BJK didn't find his parking lot close but the 2K does
Oh my god the little break from KJ gets the damn top behind the secretary of the fed
They didn't know.
Thanks for the momentum.
If you come up proud like that, you might want to just not try to score all in.
Yeah.
Oh, wow.
How is that?
How do you get so good?
Oh, shit.
Ah, shit.
Oh, shit.
Oh, shit.
Oh, shit.
Oh, shit.
Oh, shit.
Oh, shit.
Oh, shit.
Oh, shit.
Oh, shit.
Oh, shit.
Oh, shit.
Oh, shit.
Oh, shit.
Oh, shit.
Oh, shit.
for the high-low game, great deflect shield!
Terrier reacted instantly with open source!
Oh my, what a sick game.
Another one.
Woohoo!
It makes one more time next block.
Oh, what a 2B as well!
Make some space for yourself, it has to be there,
lay the card, an opportunity,
and then find the chest as we land.
Let's move up!
Win the card, down.
Oh yeah, it doesn't want to go in any 4 cards,
just use those.
Zero's okay, jumping in and running forward.
There you go, went for hitbox,
Okay, looks like a wall, trying to get a frame trap.
Chereo, pick up the key.
He's gonna get the serve.
Run it up, he's up with the coffee.
Oh, and again, just bumpers the 2P and finds the mark.
Oh my God, he's in so uncomfortable care for Keshu,
you're trying to stay in a spacing
where he can't access the gun, he can't access the drone,
but you forgot about these hands, baby.
2P finds the mark, and unfortunately here,
Keshu is going to be eliminated,
but Chereo continues a run and moves into the top four.
Unreal performance here.
Chereo obviously moving forward,
but please, we have to give it up
a previous champion and one of the best to do it.
Kei Shu, everyone, please.
A master's class here is going to take a little bit
of a review of a year with this replay presented
by PlayStation Tournaments.
Phenomenal decision making here. Phenomenal when it comes to the trades, keeping the corner, when the press, like I was saying, facing. Phenomenal at doing peace to check carry.
This time, going to the retreat and it kind of gave Cherry the momentum like, oh, like I said earlier, now you're nervous. Now you're nervous.
Yeah, I just don't know how you beat the Moody's Iowabode.
Like, Chereo's just so sensationally sick at picking up those moments
and always making it equal into big momentum shifts.
Yeah, sometimes that momentum can be a bit too much here
and it seems to be that way in case you as Chereo moves forward,
which doesn't leave us now with one more match appearing the losers of the side
before we get into those semis and winners finals.
Kermit and Varix coming up the bat here.
It's going to be that Viking who's just been jump-staring everyone time and time again
We'll be facing off see if barracks can keep that same momentum keep that same energy
I'm in that first set when we watch him against T. Y. It felt like the first
I hate to use the the age old adage, but like it was kind of like first round is data type of energy
You know I'm saying that first game he really dialed up his next game plan. It is is that case
I know you know not to go back. I was gonna describe this on his bike
Yeah, he kind of got mowed down didn't look like he interacted much with T. Why was like but after that game
It was like he understood everything. No, even for 60 white to swap characters
That's how much of a man is that and he got some to and he got all of that and getting punched in the face
Mobile times sometimes that's all you need you need a little bit of space for yourself
You know a bit of time to be able to adjust and barracks with prep time is about as deadly as you possibly could be
But we'll see if he can utilize that and be able to keep that same type of energy coming into matchup here against Kermit again
A player who has had a hell of a run has been one. I would say for a lot of people
I mean, I don't I don't think a lot of people expect biking to be able to do it at this level
But with a pilot like Kermit
I mean what can you say that the guy has just been an absolute killer time and time again
Cycling through all of the different mix-up options utilizing both versions of Kabari incredibly well
And it's one thing you pointed out earlier about his playing.
He's been using grounded tatami mats so effectively into like every matchup.
I know especially for me when I was playing with that character,
I feel so good to do like box dash, IAD, tatami mat.
You feel like you're controlling little more space,
but you need to control the space that's important to you.
I don't know if it's going to be super important in this matchup
just because of the range that Berix has on the Nagori Yuuki.
But both of these players, I think because I've done a lot of TNS review,
So online scene the progression of Kermit again on the count you said like I could not see
We're gonna get a
Bangler of a game something we probably have never seen I have to go check it up
We're gonna give very expresses Kermit here and lose the side
What a place to find your first meeting here. Super excited to see how about it out of samurais
Comparable warfare here coming up. We're gonna find the grossing rate
Oh my goodness, Eric's gonna work in front so early if we do all of this.
You gotta slow-take game until you get hit on the back, get naked like you've got to.
You know, the spot where, as soon as you get that range, as soon as you get that hit, you'll fly.
Type of situation to Tommy into the follow-up.
In Dust, we trust as we double up.
Not much life left to play with the Barats here.
WOOOOOO!
If they take the OTP and have my same scenario,
2, 5, bearing some of me up, you see how the second you defeat it?
Oh, you're tempted. Now, you belong to me.
The one on Samurai, no, nothing to do with it.
Oh, there you go. That is a prison bomb.
It's a determined big challenge. I do respect that though, it's like we talked about it again and again.
I hate to be broken record, but if you're gonna go for a version like that, do it early.
That's a no. In advance, I will send it. Every time I have that 50 meter, keep it in your mind.
I couldn't agree more.
Doing a reversal like that, but there's no numbers on the floor, but it's just like insane.
It's just like shit, it's just like a...
Yeah.
There's a porto, so flashball is off, I do like the first time in here.
And you can see a little bit of momentum to yourself,
but that momentum is stifled instantaneously.
The whole ceremonial stab into the earth.
You don't see a deal of three.
The sword in the sky is strong.
But, it's very pretty.
It's fantastic.
Excellent.
So, let's see if he can take the 15th, grab the fervor, take the closer, sit a 5th.
If I don't, he'll be covered for the making it easy.
So, OGB all, you know, the cool Calvating, and Airborne!
Look at the dummy, don't place too damn on!
You know, now that's so good here, 5H, 5H!
At this point, that's the barracks.
He has been dominating people all weekend long, getting to 2 Blood in that like 25% life range.
It starts to look for it knowing that just about every character in the game will fall to that one Twizy's win.
She asked for the Ka-Bare, so brave.
And also, Kuzusha never managed to go up to the top straight off of her.
So, never meant to put that 6p away.
Not gonna work against fighting Double Keddy Slash.
And here though, the 5-feet sub.
The big chip, it's a bit of a plus-back.
I love the idea of doing my best to hurry now and get fixing in both versions so aggressively.
You have an up-down dream.
Save it up. What way is it going? What's up? How did he block that?
Oh, he didn't block that. He got downed indeed.
That did serve me.
This is the proper way to tell what you're mentally going.
Okay, so I blocked the mix up. Is it not my turn? Can I not respawn?
Oh, what's wrong with respawn?
We try to win in this fight. It's looking like it right now very on a sliver
There you go the puzzle bonus. Take it over to the 10th of the 15th.
Cork the clone on the other side.
Oh my god.
Most of the jumping gear know what to work with but does have max resources.
The feeder is looking tasty.
So what can we do with this?
Basically no access to special moves.
Drop the pool.
Set bar.
Mug connected.
Ooh, cool, you've heard me. Taking their time.
Mocking keys.
Maybe Slash is what you said earlier.
The money they got.
What?
I think those are pro tech.
Well, I don't think we take those yet.
We take them yet.
Yeah, you don't approach me at all.
You don't approach me at all.
Yeah.
Oh, take me again.
Don't push me the way that I do.
Why would you push?
Why would you not pull down those bars?
They're so good.
Having dialed in there,
close slash, not quite what it was.
Still, about like that, you have time to go press the jab, and he's 60 and 3 position once again!
Verix with his signature move, the double 5H, and it's a perfect...
Trademark. Trademark, Verix heavy slash.
He makes me disavowate him.
Oh, he's not the start you want to see.
Flash, sees me with the follow-up, finds the low, that pressure.
A little bit too much of the bullets here, and you think he's already cooked and finally carrying his chest to answer back.
That's funny.
We're gonna follow up in the corner.
No, Mary doesn't want to go there.
Fucking with 2K, oh.
This is helping him a little strategy.
Oh god.
So nasty.
So nasty.
Easy class face.
That's a good one.
Awake up over here from right in his face, right?
That's what he means.
Oh, the straight thing!
In fact, Tommy wanted to get you pulled in just in time to stick to me in the 2S follow-up.
There it is. You momentum. We haven't seen you in a while.
Thinkin' about it.
What the fuck was that?
Wow.
Keep your face real quick.
Get over and throw punish for the outside hit of the 2S.
My eyes!
My eyes!
Oh my god, that was not the best opportunity.
Now it's a close distance and throw it again!
6-H and an exclamation point here for Variks.
What a finish.
Ables to take the victory here, sending Kermit unfortunately out with a bracket.
Come, please, you know you're gonna go hungry, come, please.
It's close.
Now, Corey, you're good.
It's getting way closer. I believe last time we got a big...
I thought we'd get the player.
I believe that is correct. Big shout out to Variks.
A fantastic performance.
Everybody please, Kermit, an unbelievable run.
100%. See him biking at this level, that Evo, absolute pressure.
Sha asked the Kermit, and another person to show like,
just brandon him like, hangy to this point, man.
Absolutely, you know, has had those offline results as well.
But like you said, being in this position,
being able to get to the point where you're able to break through
and get to these Evo top eights is an incredible, incredible honor
and incredible, like, you know, well-earned situation for him.
As you know, we'll take another look at how Varix was able to break through on that one with this replay presented by PlayStation Tournaments.
So, I mean, it's kind of like we said, the use of the Carries was working out very, very well, but in the end, Varix just was able to dial up so effectively.
Just the end game, what's he is, the guy just transforms into the final boss. Second phase, Varix is not really dealing, it's so awkward as well.
I think a lot of Vikings strong tools are in the air.
They cover different angles, like J.S.
that we're saying, they're not heavy.
We saw that just demolish a six feet.
But like you said, and we've been putting out,
it's the spacing on the ground that various occupiers
makes it hard for you to pick what move to do.
And he didn't present one to H, I don't believe,
in that whole set.
He was just standing in our range like,
you sure you want to press that right now?
And then when you could see Kermit was trying to go back
to space and play the grounded game,
that's when the H came out, the mid.
Yeah, definitely agreed.
But with that, though, we are going to throw it over to a quick break.
In this break, though, just a reminder,
make sure you keep those custom Chipotle emotes rolling to try and fill that meter
and get yourself some free Chipotle rewards.
But with that, we are going to move over to a break once again.
After that, we're going to move up to the winners' side of the action.
Do not go anywhere!
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This is looking really good, I might even be going to front like that, it's a fall hit, off the board.
It's the surge. It's the one. Are you ready?
I've never seen a mix like this before.
That's refreshing.
That was a great combination.
Right?
What? Why does he get a white claw surge?
Did I zone out?
Tough break, dude.
Gotta have that championship mentality.
That's the best assist I've seen since Captain Kuro.
I've been playing in the 100th game for a long time.
I remember that the first time I saw him was when I first met him.
I don't see myself waiting for at least maybe 20 more years.
My life was a journey for me.
It was much more than just playing. It was being a part of this community.
With Anthros, your next match will fix your sit.
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Anthros.com forward slash evil.
I got something new. I got something brand new.
get those lights in the sky.
There we go, there we go.
Power up your candy game with airheads.
I need to try.
You can't give us a chance, but.
Oh, really?
Oh, dude, listen.
Coming through with the airheads,
Eric, I am glad to see it.
And we got to get you hooked.
Right after this block.
Thank you.
I know where we're headed, brother.
With that, though, we were able to fill up the meter here.
So you have earned it.
We will give it Tech VDA 279 to 888222
for a chance to receive a free entry.
Again, VDA 279 to 888222.
Good job.
That's good work from you all being able to fill that up
for yourself.
Hopefully we can fill you up a little bit Chipotle.
Big shoutouts to Chipotle for being able to provide,
continue to keep the FGC fueled and rolling.
Big shoutouts to them.
appreciate a pun as it's time to take a look at this bracket and see where the
patch has brought us now C4. It's been a long journey, start from yesterday, and only for
Remain. Cheerio Verix having to do some crazy pals here in the basement bracket.
R-Fix also, which is...
You are strong, no. And it's a run back! It's a run back! And it's a run back!
You couldn't write this any better, you could not write this any better, but that's something
We're going to get a little treat, but now we're going to move up to the penthouse where we've got
Nitro versus Red Ditto, who's going to make it into that grand final seat so they can wait for the person to challenge them.
An opportunity at Greatness to move into it here.
Taking a look, though, at the Evo fantasy pick the top eight presented by AT&T.
We'll check the percentages here and it looks like it's a close one, but it is actually in Red Ditto's favor.
But I would like to ask our crowd here,
listen, if you would like to see Nitro
move forward in the winner's bracket, let me hear it!
Pretty good, pretty good.
Yeah, that's pretty solid, that's pretty solid.
But what about the Red Dio fans?
You think he's gonna make it?
They're looking about as close as our percentages
on ScreamCore, it's pretty close.
There's only one or two percent in there.
You know what, we can't ask for anything better.
Split that in the middle.
I can't call it personally.
These two, like we've been talking,
champions in the on-right and different avenues, right?
Absolutely. I mean, world class,
both of them having some of the most prestigious titles possible
in their possession.
An opportunity to add to an already storied legacy here.
It is time to go back to the winner's bracket.
It is Winners Finals!
Here we go, the year's drive at Evo 2026.
The Eagles landed, the matches are here,
And we've got it made! The dashpotting is ready for nitro heat once they get in, and it's cracking!
Red Deo or Earthbending, dubbing away from the pro and nitro knows us up, and is the first early.
Oh my gosh, don't you try and grab me!
I think I'm so glad that it started like this, but if I was going to highlight my keys to the match, that would have been it.
Movement and dashpotting is so important for Leo in this matchup 100%, because Red Deo a lot of times has these ranges!
You can build the pressure a little bit greater.
The Nitro has to use that quick dash speed to build close distance,
but dash walking on those movements is so important.
Ooooooooh! Back throwing to them!
Oh, that is Brown's breads.
Uh...
Get em outta here!
And Nitro, explosive star.
And I don't even need to do that in the video,
because you've seen red dino get harder and harder to beat,
so I'm loving the set-up.
He's also a player who plays with, like, uh...
You know, uh, I say in the New Yorks that
He gets that momentum, he starts to feel himself, he's able to build on his own momentum, as you can see there!
Seize the guard point! He says, I'll see you one better! Moroboto straight to the wall!
I've got an answer for that!
And Redko's trapped back in the back, way to get it though!
The king of the jungle is still alive.
Dashboard is in the jumpback, Nitro trying to scheme for something there, perfect spacing.
Unfortunately straight afterwards the loser out of the booties that Redgedo confirms with
the 5k extensions.
I like my number one to go play with. I remember the last time I went to the end of the go play, but I'll just come out in this song real quick.
Turn out to be such an important piece of puzzle in here. It's so difficult to navigate 5k, because it needs to be a MENTUS of the flash kick.
that well.
He's really quick on his 2S, that has like, zero recovery points.
But he is, he is just friendly O.
Flash, follow up the storm throw once again.
Last low, flash kick, this time it's dash throw, unreal.
Let's be a bandit of our swords to try and reposition with a great mash on the side
plop.
Friendly O's is not going to be another statistic to the back turn stuff.
And it's the problem of my business, don't you think?
I was gonna say that, but the other driver at the end...
Oh my...
Oh no, but he's much too high in the air, we are going to recover in time!
Christ is XP, literally as a stacker, and we burst just for a momentum!
Oh, we got some landmills on him, long body!
His mother's trade sold both carrots as dual wielded, but one comforter Jack told him,
at you so there's no safe point on the screen. Red B.O.
I think the first the moment is actually the right time.
You had much of a coming at you.
With the Leo and B.O. and somehow the first the enemy is coming back.
Five Jays in a good close-in distance.
All the long-range aura will protrude and continue to utilize.
These are five K's of what they stop at, what they wall break, cause the boat's dead.
Oh my gosh, he's coming to K.
Okay, look at this guy, this guy's looking elite.
Oh my, where's my throw?
Sword is barely able to clip.
She never had off over the whip.
Ghosts run past it to hit again.
Reversal timing!
The jab looks good.
save okay simple
regular and back to me
barf doesn't change into the H this time
the S's get crazy making it hard to H1 work in this range
oh my god spiky splashing the king of the jungle out of the sky
and I go down backing, getting him down here.
Oh, a trust in explosion, okay, no source.
Oh, he's gonna put a bit of a shimmy that dash back
with a try and beat up, Mark points,
stands follow up, 5k, he dances a jump away, attempt.
Is not able to kill,
spinning both her both swords a little less damage.
FD has a knee to do it.
Look at the dash, what proxy.
But what doesn't matter when you get cornered by Ram,
The 5K once again claiming a victory.
There's only so much to do, right?
You can do so many dash blocks in life.
You're gonna change it up, right?
And then be able to go, okay, here.
You're gonna dash block him down and go for it.
And throw all of that, all of that kind
that you've identified.
And then on the same side,
what a chunk out of 5K is.
Even in spite of the momentum that he needs.
Make some room for yourself now,
but the bar's not perfect distance.
And again, 2K beaten to the spots of movement from Red Dead or the Stifle Out Nitro movement,
which normally I think a highlighter for playing is so good at being in the right place, right kind of positioning.
A lot of times we think it's safe the most.
As he plays with the man's parking station aside that one, he's in the position and it's just full waves on the plane.
Nobody needs to be, and the BRC tried that.
Cross up his block, goes for the low and then comes third.
There we go, Overdrive!
Nice.
Okay, this is more wise, making sure he blister in speed in his aim.
And that small step forward into the 60, you can see even a ground star is trying to be an aggressor, trying to be one asking the questions here.
What a flash kick, recognizing the spacing with the lock!
I have to let him know.
It's a micro, take that, wait up, first we'll, the only one who's on the right will be the, the 10-2-3, which side is he?
I didn't even see him, I'm starting, oh my gosh, we are watching, an anime and one mix take, those angles are absolutely in shambles right now dude.
But after what the king of the jungle does, and that is, I'm glad he pointed that out too, cause that's the sign of good video,
and spots like that when they're moving that quick.
Not even seeing him flip out of the stands,
being so fluent in it a lot of the time.
The players want to see the game
with their new deals to guarantee
a lot of the time they'll see Leo's play.
I don't know, the stance characters
look so fluent how they're able to get in and out.
I don't know.
What does it say?
We do a barris, it connects,
moving the combo,
he's going to come to the floor,
and move hard to keep space up.
I don't know, I don't know,
it's cost $100,000,
and if you're frozen it right now,
my channel's like, we're gone.
Oh my god, but we do get the breakthrough still.
Oh my gosh, he is still getting brave.
I think he's in red now as I can see him right now.
Oh, but hold on there, he's crashing away.
We're gonna break the rule.
Oh, of course we are.
What?
Cause a bonus versus me, I have to tend to.
Look at that for a quick up.
He's riding, I think he's trying to, trying to try that PRC.
I think you're absolutely right.
Still, not enough to kill though.
At first, kind of max meter.
You're C4 and it's a start! Deflate call! It's nothing off it though! 2K stifles the momentum!
Just not a chance to get rolling afterwards again! It's set point!
That 2K was a tough and challenging situation. It might have something to do with the dunes, maybe like
if you could charge and crash in, maybe you could slow it down or maybe over drive to get the lead out
but it's really a good situation. You can see that Red Dome had no speed to put that out there initially
But now the town needs our Florian and Red Vimo, who's in the first down and 9th throw.
On the defense, there's a throw.
First, doesn't want the guard to gloss the break, doesn't want to get ripped out of the bullet box.
Ooh, in the tap of the dust, it's such a dangerous game to have to play with your charge character,
knowing that the overhead should come any time the system mechanic to beat you out of it gets to throw,
chooses not to spend the meter.
Oh, we're the town dust again!
As we said, trying to charge, trying to access are offered at some point, but Red Ditto able to expose it with the dust, a flash of orange, and the guy is gone.
Winner's side for Red Ditto.
And he makes it look so easy. He makes it look so easy. Even in that last exchange ride, Nitro did a neutral jump, and he pressed the button way down.
There's so much, I feel like, grandfathered information when you watch the other players, but oh yeah, I can't press the button way down.
He's just always done something, wherever it be.
JP, like we were saying, he would just jump up and meet you,
you were air-fro, you were 6-0, you were going to Wreckers.
There's so much longevity in his play
that helps him win matches in the future.
It's a ton to have to contend with here,
and it's going to be a nightmare
for whoever is able to climb to win two sets in a row.
But let's take a look back and see what our players
are going to have to contend with,
with this replay presented by PlayStation Tournaments here.
Super excited to see.
Again, I feel like 5K and 2K, truly, truly, were the most decisive options that we were able to win these spots with again and again today.
Wait, he won this?
Oh no, sure, 1-1.
Oh, he did! That's the goal!
Baby, actually, that's a good idea. They probably did that all the time. Lost the music RPS and lost the E-Gate RPS.
Oh, well then all this stuff on there, it doesn't matter,
isn't that's how that's where you lost right there?
The four characters, like...
But now, again, just being able to get some momentum rolling,
being able to get into that offense a little bit more aggressively,
things started to look up for Nitro,
and it's kind of like you mentioned,
his ability to be able to challenge all the right places,
the 2K and the 5K, everything in between,
Brett Ditto, it's just...
I mean, it's so hard to be able to get any kind of offense started
because the threat of Ram Normals at two character lengths,
While he is beating you to the spot at that one character length to CQC type of range,
it just feels like, unless you're completely full screened,
there's never a comfortable position to potentially even try to get anything started.
Yeah, I think there's like a... Not a misconception, but everyone's so scared of the swords,
you forget about the normals and...
Red Deo tapes, full advantage of those.
But before that, we're gonna have a look at the bracket, I believe.
You know, we gotta... I think before we get into the bracket here,
we got one more thing to be able to talk to you all about,
Because as a reminder to you all at home, Marvel Tocan fighting the souls is coming out soon.
And pre-orders are actually available right now.
You know me, I'm a big fan of my Marvel games here, so, so, you know, we got,
you've got a time to have the two verses coming in.
I'm up for it, too.
If you all want to get involved with it, make sure you get your pre-order,
and it is going to be an incredible time.
Cannot wait to see Marvel Tocan actually get panned out, man.
It's going to be a wonderful time.
I'm going to be there, hopefully, in the bracket.
Maybe something like this, who knows, I might get good, I doubt it.
But here we go, with the Cheerio versus Verix run back.
This happened earlier today.
Yes.
Dostro and King Globes-Chasin, those two, they commented on that match.
It was phenomenal.
Spoilers, I guess.
Verix went two games down and brought back the last round.
It was very, very close.
A final scramble decision ended up securing it for Jereo,
which is extra crazy to see between these two,
I think that both of these players are extremely capable when it comes to those scramble situations and they play characters that
Can go to the mud if they would like they don't necessarily always play that style
But they're more than capable of getting down and dirty if that if the time comes
I think if it's anything like the match I showed earlier
I think you're gonna see the progression of that like this the evolution the stages where the first game they played
It was super slow both cats
There was hardly anyone in, so I am super excited.
Sounded a crowd of kids a little bit excited too.
As we get big buddies on screen right now,
Gold Lewis, Nacko, Veric versus Chereo.
Like you said, the run back from it today.
A lot of the line here, Brown starts a hell of a bet.
Chereo tries to play a little bit more passive
while still proving a piece.
Fortunately there, Veric's able to take the victory
in the early stage, but the early stage matters
and not for the damages.
This damn hide! Clash between the two!
Beryx comes out on top!
The normal's coming out, like I said.
You can't down.
You can see, and this isn't sherry or being at sea.
He's trying to get up high.
He's saying, how often can I correctly jump when you're quite big?
That's so enduous, because those JVs need to at least be blind.
Woo!
Punch that!
Where are the recovery crates for safety?
Even with the slowdown still, if they would bring that buff back in, isn't that...
He's a big fan, but he's an agile man.
Now, still have meter, full security as well.
We get full screen again, we might burn it down!
I like this call!
You can see the wild sea tanks.
Oh, it's too early!
It's a knockdown!
It's a jump over!
No GG though!
Ugh, fresh off.
I think if I get chipped out, it's just, it doesn't stop.
It's a heavy coffin.
It's a heavy coffin.
I didn't want to be a heavy weight because a deadlock
was said to have happened to the lost tank.
We tried to while see it, but we saw it happen early on when someone did do it.
Great jump by the nose, jump if you pointed out.
Trying to bet on these five inches a little bit.
Number two, that's one real fast.
There you go, look cool.
Get extra extra on a little bit back there.
Big more than a double.
Wow, so of course, she was at back of the hand.
And now, Cheerios gets spell blood.
Whoa, but this is a foul file!
Into the take-offs, overdrive!
And I think he's gonna get it!
It's looking like it's gonna be very, very close, not close!
Oh, it is! Just enough!
Flops up in the end! It is exactly what the doctor ordered, or maybe not!
Good trade there at the start, though.
Momentum is the American's favorite.
Gets to hit with the bay blade.
Delays things a little bit. It's a great time in the 5-H.
Oh, get down!
He was close.
First of both sides, Mike.
Look how much Latteria is lost!
He's having a lot of fun.
There we go!
Shizu definitely had time. Chance now is a security agent. He's building 2H5H.
The coin flips you're having to deal with...
GEARTS!
Are devastating!
Chereo tries to make a read with the skyfish. It's not gonna work!
You better get into a sword fight and settle down!
Who brings the sword to a gunfight? The pirate be buried!
When he wins somehow.
Shizu, the quickest sword in the west!
Oh my god, but honestly, the kind of matchup interaction that you identified is really panning out hard here.
These 5 inches, the jumps versus going into 2H, it's very committal on both sides, but there's just so far at what in terms of guesses in that matchup on aspects of R.
It's like very some workers to lose against.
Because you just pump win the same way, he's doing the same, he's striking.
Oh, he's flexed though, and I'm shooting now, but he's way too high to break my head.
Oh, he gets to fight? Oh my, what kind of fight? And certainly, at least, I'm with his lower back, that's all he's got.
Gonna get YLC, I don't think he's gonna break it. Yeah, it's not worth that, don't pass out in his favor.
There's an overhead block, but it's too rapidly shuffled.
Oh, yo, Venson! Yeah, actually, I was gonna say, they get pieces from the fallen bows here,
Look at those spend and now plenty of blood is to work with now
Limits open as we continue to get aggressive
Not much time to do it here though
Here comes the drone as the push is a bit farther away and chance down for Kerrio
Quadrabe on the six-speed
OH MY GOSH
That was insane, and I could see very much. Oh, you like to see him block. Okay. Okay
He was getting the master of staff very much
Yeah, he's getting the master
Oh my god, 6H, nice big normal buddy, straight away, swings the behavior, plenty of security
for the back dash, very effectively escapes the situation.
Wow, Terry went in, three hugs, but like I said last time, I guess we're going to see
Chico really passively defending, waiting to defend, so in the middle of the panel, there
There you go. Retailbo goes low.
It's broken by Marek.
Kneeling into the backmatch there would have been neat.
He gets hit on the mug in the overhead.
And the direction turns. Nugget is in that office.
Okay.
Oh, I like the timing of the first there.
It's going to go Skyfish straight afterwards.
Blood in a comfortable position now.
The lane a little bit against Steve.
And now, choosing to close distance.
It's clean hit in the knockdown here.
We look for the cross-up and find some low.
A big chance now for Chariot.
I don't think it's... Oh, Skyfish actually.
First
What a stop the night edge job
Flows it up back to care for select for a little bit of a slowdown once again the chair. Yo
just a step behind in the mix-up here in that second game he saw him he was so
displayed it from jumping all those successful full sense he was able to get
over five H's as soon as Barrett was able to tune in and get active with that
two H's to stop it it feels like Chariot has just kind of moved away from that
and is now is trying to keep it much more grounded but she can win in but
you just couldn't do it it's possible but it's hard man yeah that's the thing
It's possible but it's hard, but what other options are there, right?
You've seen Beric being so solid, and I remember packing a day scene and sometimes I accidentally pop like,
I just don't see those mistakes happen to him.
He's so calculated on his toilet, and he fuddles him, and he rounds up, and he's insane for it,
because he's the game, the switch.
He starts off just aggressive, he's allowed to go, now I'll play like, I'm the best at this game.
Yeah, I mean Zagori, he's already a character who's fantastic in the opening game,
You put a player like Marek who has been so cerebral with his openings, I mean, just so by the book, I mean, he's the one writing the book at this point.
By the rules and the count, Gereo outlockes it. He's been perversed from the previous set that they had.
Gereo went two games on me, and then Marek won two on the bounce.
I mean, I fully believe that Gereo could do the same thing now, but only go one more month and do it.
Marek's getting out of that round, the full first fill-in match is a night for every Gereo here.
The first, she's new for the connection wall, certainly shattered, no instead it's a reset on the wall.
Okay, with the grabbing of the back throw in return, Cheerio's time to jump in big BTs and big systems.
We're going down the gloss breakage in the glosses on the gloss, one smack for the bonus.
Pretty good lively here with both of Cheerio.
There you go, go forward, and a weird spot, max security, immediately drones, I like that.
Take all the screenspace back down, Varix, back against the wall.
This is what we've been doing before, and we're comfortable to fight out of!
Oh, the relentless jungle.
I'm not the first to hate you, Ed. Okay.
You're not just gonna spam that, so I think I'm gonna love a kill me now.
I see.
I see the window.
I see the window.
Okay, follow up your max gear again, go to the hop over 6p on the landing.
Barrex takes advantage, gets away from the drone here to push back.
Now, fight back to the screen.
Now, it's such a brisky swipe, because if Kiria blocked that,
Bunderburn may end up in a very long save for Barrex.
Try to clock out early, 5h, hit again.
Two meter two.
Oh, it's a little fix.
As it was the first but good make-up,
Verix off the heat,
in not seems to lose, it's by Chereo.
Gets the 3-0 victory.
Verix gets his vindication.
I was gonna say, a master class in the match-up here,
a crazy performance to move on to face Nitro,
but we have to give our flowers top four,
one of the best to do it.
Please, everyone, give it up for Chereo.
TNS is very on, I'm so, dude, I tried to hold it so bad, I'm so proud of that, you guys are ridiculous, man.
Let's look!
Let's look!
TNS is very on, love that guy, so glad he was able to do this fall, we get into the replay here, presented by PlayStation Tournaments.
This was the pressure on him, so many people at school here.
Or, Bonk on Main, oh yeah, he was demonstrate.
We had to do visual representation of people here in the streets.
I can't help it.
I mean it's needed. You know what beats are very hard to explain to someone. You have to show the motion, right?
Yeah, if you give me a standing desk, I'm gonna do the animation part.
I'm sorry, there's a...
Could it do it? We'll see it down.
That's what I'm saying! 5H is working out though. It was so, so good.
And even there, being able to get into the position,
sometime the threat of using that move and opening up the idea of being able to use that extra blood is enough.
Barracks did nothing with the potential credit that he opened up in that spot.
with just enough to make Jerry feel like he needed to make a move
and you're able to capitalize off of that.
Eric has the reaction time and has the game sense
to punish you in a spot like that.
Just honestly and truly a perfect performance.
What a choice and what a set from one of the best
to ever do it here in Guilty Gear Strive.
And it's only gonna get better.
These matches are gonna get super, super intense,
but I don't know how you're feeling about her.
I feel like I need to pray for her.
Listen man, it has been a top-to-bottom incredible performance from all these players and it is going to lead us now.
I think you're right. We're gonna take a little bit of rest.
I'm gonna get some water. You guys get some water for yourselves as well.
Guilty Gear Strive, we will conclude our bracket here in just a moment.
Do not go anywhere. We'll be right back with even more Evo 2026.
Chipotle and 2xHail are back for round two.
Use promo code TAGTEAM at checkout to unlock the Chipotle Fresh Fit backpack and bucket hat for your avatar.
Visit Chipotle.com slash 2XKO for details.
Ha!
Ah!
Ha!
Ha ha ha!
Wow!
Ha!
Ha!
Hello?
Whoa.
Mama Griggin 85 lives here?
Yep.
That's my mom.
The absolute legend who went from gaming on her phone to ruthless online streaming slayer
with no mercy for any living thing is your mom?
Hey guys.
Apple's a peanut butter?
How is this possible?
With AT&T, wireless and home internet.
Hey, text me if you need anything.
Level up your connection with AT&T Wireless and Home Internet, now available across the nation.
No, she's so nice and real life.
I
Airheads have more fun
This is fresh.
This is not contained screaming.
Those are just screams of wonderment.
Ready to banish the darkness.
Come on, let's live a little.
In the light is your deliverance.
Welcome back to the action here. Guilty Gear Strive. It is top three as Evo 2026 continues to roll.
Thank you very much for everyone for joining us here, that we are getting into the nitty gritty to the absolute finale.
A ton of players that we've had in this bracket. Only one champion can be crowned, but before we crown that champion,
we've got something important for the fans at home as well as potentially here, a little bit Chipotle to bless you here.
It is going to be NRZ 552 that you can text to 888222
to be able to have a chance to receive a free entree from Chipotle.
Again, NRZ 552 to 888222 for a chance to be able to get a little bit of, you know,
a little bit of free protein for yourself, a big shout out to Chipotle
for continuing to keep us fueled, continuing to support the FGC.
We love you guys.
Much appreciate.
that we didn't get production to give us the code first.
That's what I would use it for, you know, it's all there to you guys.
You guys fully deserved it.
But now, we deserve to see the journey of this top eight as we get clear and
crisp on screen.
You can see our losers final match is going to be Nitro versus
Verix and the winner of that is gonna climb up to see if they can take down Redd Litter.
A tough duel between the two are the best to do it with their characters.
They have highly volatile losers inside matchup
to see who is going to go up to face off against the controlled style
that Red Ditto has continued to bring to the table.
Who is going to be able to weather the storm of the 5Ks, 2Ks, 5Ss,
everything that he's been laying down.
One of these two players is going to have a chance,
a guaranteed spot on the podium, but you do not travel to Vegas.
You do not compete at this level.
You do not make it to a place like this to make the podium.
The podium is not good enough.
If it's not gold, I don't want it.
That's gotta be the mindset.
That is false.
That is false.
I think for that, we're going to get into this game.
Insane intro from Proxy.
Can I get some noise?
But this loses finals.
Absolutely.
Thank you very much.
Love the crowd here.
The action has been so, so nice.
Unfortunately, a touch too short on that one there, level 1 blood doesn't quite reach.
And the cross-up, gonna be our netted victory off of it here.
Nitro looking for the win punish for the back throw!
He's gonna put us in a little bit of an up-clot compromise spot.
Look at the IV, his friends are gonna be pretty close to me, you're in for a range.
Oh, S-Boom, win level 2 blood.
That's risky.
And what did Nitro do?
Oh, he did the bottom line, 1-8-2-2.
Now for the win punish with that trick up.
Do it again. Adage, y'all.
Yeah, doing it just enough to try and set him up for it, I love that, playing it from exactly the right spacings now,
as the headbutts follow through that little stagger, just barely standing on the knife's edge and is able to find the punish.
So the I-League still commends to the Flasky, there's the RC, but hold on a minute, side-up and also, there's a suit here,
I think that brown thread is time for us to swing!
Bada bada bada bada!
That's not a matter there.
Not quite what you need, Nitro.
A terrible spot to find yourself in, but it's just around.
And the back throw is able to secure himself a huge advantage now.
It's a wall breath, a positive bonus, and a ton of resources to sit on.
Oh, I'm the empty, and I identify the immediately-beat by Nitro, and win.
Oh, this is game!
You know, that's something that comes through in every single game, but specifically as a versus-game player in the previous Life of Nitro there, push block, whiff one, if that is the stuff.
You know he's ready for those. He's always ready.
Esprachik is not going to be able to get you whatever no one wants, but he puts out there.
Don't be misled with the lifeblood. First character to re-danger right now.
Oh no, danger. He's nice as I am the danger.
This little cancel lands to the ground and is able to convert with the Flashkick again.
It's around a piece that with full burst across the board.
Here's a little free piece there.
Here's the throw, which puts Leo into the back turn.
Kind of what you want as well.
Oh no, he's sent him.
He's taking for a ride.
Finally going for the strike.
They can make Jason down and pray once again.
Nice little basically look out.
Burst of the two E's from Beryx.
It's not so new a health check.
Yeah, no blood work with either is gonna have to get aggressive here at some point to build up the damage build up the normals
Now contending with the fireball trades cannot go you must play perfect
Oh my god, there's no way around how do you use the burst if you can't use the defense of me?
Maybe offensively I can, maybe you don't need it. Maybe you'll just feel different. He is jumping at you
He's got the last needle almost and I don't know how you deal with 2-8-3
Perfection is asked for. Perfection is demanded! And perfection is delivered!
Varix, the double six-eight! Straight through with the shizu! What a finish!
And it's Nitro! I mean, where do you go from here? It's in your hand! You've got to win!
Varix, with one of the most unbelievable rounds we've seen!
My mind would be MIA right now.
How? How did he do it?
He had first, and...
Yeah, alright.
Something's changed, something's changed.
What am I supposed to do with the game?
He gave me game to compose, like I said, the first game player.
He's been in a really bad situation.
Going one game down, you're Leo.
You can make it happen.
Right now, I'm very excited to hear it.
I've looked up the fireballs, just enough.
5H finally shows me that enough.
Stop with these, bro. Help me!
He's got a lot of mucus in here, he's getting out.
And crazy.
Oh, so you guys have lost right away.
He was there to harass him through the wall.
A good situation for Nitro once again to mix up on the way.
Well, that's not enough.
Time to go for the walk through the wire.
See to make some space.
The chance to bait Blakelips!
Oh, he was charging from yesterday.
And you guys can come in.
In and out.
I heard that's a good place to be.
I'm not gonna take out a lot of in there.
Obviously an archer doing with the back turns.
The second Q if they're able to close this, it's a beautiful choice once again.
All of THROUGH! It doesn't cancel!
The far slash follow up goes to the Shizu!
Finds the secondary hit and keeps the pressure up.
There's a task.
Oh yeah, punish that red with a little bit too close.
Overcommitted, back to the S-Boom game.
Yet, unburied, I wanna-
OHH! It's still win for it! And it's been punished!
Oh, we went for 6-8!
It's so rare to see from a Leo!
And again, very close.
Here's a crystal ball.
Toad for a 10.
YRT forward!
Jesus, it just follows through!
You don't care? You don't care?
Full send, follows up with a normal, around a piece of barracks.
A game in around half a minute of victory.
Oh!
Let that sink into the ground. That was like crazy in and out.
Once again, show that.
I don't have a why can't you buy a new Wii talking about.
Oh, I can't. We've managed.
And reversed from Verich, he's stuck in the top, using the FB was so crucial, making a fine win!
But what was they all for? It doesn't matter!
Cause Verich finds another hit, send in Nager through the glass,
and a little bit of help does have burst.
There is the gold one, don't get punished!
Blank it!
Are we gonna proceed to reverse? Come back!
Hasn't been chancey here, still has a meter, you cannot block situations like that though, you have to play again!
Perfection DEMANDED!
The step back!
There's barely a boy, boy pops, Feriks over presses, he passes twice and now to the big stuff, but he wakes up with a throw!
How in the world do you have the composure to be ready for a situation like that, Feriks? It's not human!
He is too chill. He is too chill.
Most people find it a bit too early, right?
Yes.
Doesn't mean he's going last once.
It's fine, he'll be cracked in post there.
And they have him, and he's still identified.
Okay, I know my, my youth mission.
Closing me up. I'm gonna throw up.
Now, took up Fireball to get him again. Blood not quite at level 2. She still have chance to fully upbid.
ERC sees the normal that Headbutt likes to mark.
Beasts some damage here.
Nitro, two ganks down.
Bustle has a firm grasp on the matchup. We've seen him win situations and showed that he's gradually working with the S2.
He doesn't seem to be awesome and he's dashing.
It's incredible right now.
Thanks, he's a turbulence to a knockdown.
Big chance, positive bonus. A lot of people are being built up here.
So, Varix under Barba's own as well as on the stage up.
Great confirmed.
Yep, he tried to get on the last map. He was a smith here out, and now he's turning around.
And to make him from that land, from that far, is actually really hard.
Fireball game, 5-8, Schwanz.
Full screen flip to the game.
Oh, he's playing Flasky. He's playing Flasky without the bombs we're doing, and he knows.
No cancel there.
Me neither!
P.R.C. is down! P.R.C. have both balls to climb!
Back to neutral.
Uh, obviously he's in neutral.
Uh-oh.
Chance.
Ah! It's Flasky!
It's Flasky!
Nitro!
Has a chance to get on the board here, too, as fine as the mark.
Very exciting questions for now.
She's tapping something very, very animalistic.
FDW's laughing.
How do you understand this?
Very maybe when there's no walkthrough.
I'm just gonna leave her alone, but then I don't have to worry about any of that.
Oh, but wait!
Chill out, man.
Still getting the far slices work out.
Oh, no!
I go to the well one too many times!
Catches out and has access to the full catalog of blood!
Quick draw the 2H and it's set point for Variks!
Now he's gonna get another 3...
We must get another Prius from Variks!
He did it earlier!
The Cheerio! He's trying to beat the Nitro!
Nitro!
It's hard! I'm leading the beast!
You're the king of the jungle! Never forget!
Cross up! No! It was the same side!
And I can't! Variks identified that!
One for the fun! It's the first Nitro!
Over the 2S is a masterclass, a full follow up, the blood plop, sticks to the wall, and
a 6H to do it!
Variks in full control of the blood of his own destiny, top 2 guaranteed!
One more player stands in his way.
Someone who looked underfeared for a long time, but before we go into that, let's give it
for Nitro! One of the best to ever do it. I say all the time, I mean Nitro is one of those players where
you know even though he's been putting out a lot of great content, highlighting a lot of players,
a lot of legends, we are currently living in what is going to be a future video of a legend of
Nitro. Big shout out to him and congratulations on the placement, but then there were two. Before we
get into those two though obviously, we have to you know recap ourselves, bring ourselves back into
The replay presented by PlayStation Tournament as again, it's another situation where the second gas pedal hits the floor.
He just never lets up.
Verix doesn't tap the brakes, he just knows when to let off the gas to take these turns, right?
It's not about slowing down, it's more about keeping control in that same tempo.
And it's very hard for us at Bobby.
We've got charns on our side, we don't have the sneaks or pads or anything.
I was a little bit high, but you can tell.
But, yeah, it's really easy for us to identify.
But in the moment, it's such a shock to the system when he does that kind of thing, right?
But with that, though, it's so incredible.
This was the craziest moment here.
When that blood pop goes through, being able to keep control, the double back hat,
you even saw on Nitro, he was like, man, I had it.
The situations like that are so difficult to have to deal with.
And just being in the moment, seeing it come again is so hard to actually keep yourself in the moment here.
Barrick somehow manages to do it again, and it's as you pointed out, I mean just straight games right now coming into this match up against Red Dead O.
Yeah, I don't know what Red Dead O is thinking, what should that happen, but I know what I'm thinking.
If I wanted to get into this, if you're looking to get into the action yourself at home,
PlayStation 2.0 let's you compete right from your console.
From your PS5 is so easy. Look down here. Get involved.
It could be you next time here. Absolutely.
It was so cool to get to see the players that were able to, you know, attend Evo because of those PlayStation tournaments.
Big shots to, you know, PlayStation 4 supporting the FTC
and bringing even more of these players to be able to bring into the spot and be able to, you know,
to compete at the highest level in these types of moments here.
And it's so, so sick to get to see, again,
I mean, PlayStation, a big shout out to what you've said, man.
Yes, much lovely.
You can send in players from mind naked with an EU over here.
But right now, you mentioned it, we've done two more players.
One of these players is gonna be our champions.
Get in the prestigious EVO Grand Final.
Champion trophy.
And some off or 12 points as well.
being able to put yourself in a spot to go back to the Arc World Tour,
have a chance to head to New York and be able to take the victory here.
Two players who have already experienced that victory.
Two players who have already won the big one on that side.
But here at Evo have a chance to try and do it for themselves now.
Two of the players who have the most prestigious rap sheets in the game,
in the business when it comes to Guilty Gear.
It's brought us to this moment, Red Ditto and Variks.
down to the wire. Evo, I need it from you one more time. Are you ready for the Grand Finals?
That's what I like to hear.
Right away! There's this person who's defeated, undisputed at round start. Red Ditto, cleans out of his feet.
Yeah, none of that. I'll see what you mean to him, to how the plays. I'll love it.
Oh, listen, I'm up in my pants, being on the reckless flood, I follow up, bro, I'm crazy!
Oh, you have to be... Nila's been seeing me, he's coming out, who's he?
He's the new people to see me, maybe I'm the face of gangsta play, is that right?
Why, he wasn't even feeling very serious about it.
Maybe he's so hilarious to all the people and I'm not gonna give you time to do that.
Oh, try to force out, maybe part of that there, because various situations have been a key portion of the game,
and they're stopping a lot of these approaches, the PR should have made sure to get there in time
is so brutal that the round ends up on red dead away a clean conversion and a clean win to take round one.
Back to the way, slow zest, the kill, escapes, ooh, mind the foes, the state to be trapped,
five-tables chest, slow zest, ooh, and again, red dead, ooh, wait, flying the gas.
You got the cancel, I love to get us there.
You can turn while we can.
You can switch your reverses there, do it while you can.
In the early stage let it go, we'll let it get a little crazy.
O-50, what?
Oh, okay.
He's actually 6 feet, 2 blocks, trying to hit the 2k again.
But, we're at the attack to the sky though.
Oh my gosh, you're not going to see.
You can extend that.
Very spectacular.
Oh, the last four throw ends up opening it up.
Tap, dust, a quick motovotto, and a quick game one in red.
Ditto's in favor. All of that momentum that Varys was building, that snowball that was continuing to roll,
starting to waver a little bit, starting to lose some of that steam, potentially.
I'm gonna play a long game to get to this point by being inlucid.
The port of A is not easy, so moving into the hole, I'm warm, I'm ready, and we still got the fatigue that last hit us.
I'm ready to take an advance from that, day to first, only one sword is good, but that doesn't mean rapidly we can't fight Jin and A.
The lead to fight is very important to remember.
Please help us with the mackdash there, maybe we're getting a little bit squirrely in the moment.
Another mackdash of Eric, who has run out of space and has traced himself out of 5k in the top of stone, the hell the kids can't save you here!
So it goes to slow down.
Very fun.
Oh jeez, you hear that, Mia?
There is the Texas PRC for the Chasen!
Yo, besides the guy that pulled off the mackdash, he's on the road!
Ripping slip for the first.
Chasing down the slash.
Yes, I love that.
He gets wasted, explosion of the Chasen.
I don't wanna do something like that, that's a pro-team!
By mode, I was leading for Barrick to get that round.
The self-control to not try to go over the Arizona spot like that
and take the reposition against the Jumble Ramp.
His world clash unreal.
Being behind in losing practice and having the presence of mind to say,
don't get greedy, reposition. So sick for Barrick.
He's out of here. He's out of here.
Let's just be real.
He's out of here.
He's out of here.
Man, works out beautifully.
Wind Shield Wipers and nothing attached.
Still good to go.
This meter in the pocket for Barrett, and it would punch the fake blade.
Oh, the Lossy connects!
Oh, he's that much.
Oh, within a block!
I'm within a punish!
The speed swiped!
Look for Rammelkinder.
He's got the right.
It's a big choice there.
He pulls out the game, and no hesitation from either player.
We are straight back into the accident here.
Right away, Sink here and follow him.
She's new!
Sink in her head off at the great first timing.
Oh god, they have a final break at purple beat.
The Darken eggs and the Eiffel Tower is the first to roll.
Just a tip, just barely connected in the back of the jacket here, this is closed, it's
6 feet to the sword!
Incredible 6 feet, the addition up goes into the ability break for the high attacks and
the explosion.
That's the exact life.
Step on the toes, to serve and again, work into the position, more than anything else.
This is so good for him.
Back away, what a take!
Wait, what a take!
Oh, but on this side is on the receiving end.
Gets us a throw, and opportunity now is about closer to this corner here.
It's a low this time, but the secondary score pops!
We just throw, and still has meter!
Okay!
Okay, sweet!
And that's going to be it!
Better eight!
I'll give it a answer back, momentum's starting to build.
Listen, don't mind me when it comes to that snowball.
Snowball's blowing, it's absolutely not.
You know, it was just hitting the, uh, hit it in the flat,
so we can get into the next hill.
The next downhill is fully starting now.
It's going to be rented a closing distance and getting the throw on the punish.
He's going to back to the corner, but he corners himself on the movement.
Oh, he's right in the end.
Just dashing.
Oh, my gosh, he did it again.
Serving out that six sheet.
Whatever normal throw that away, that would be a moment.
And he might be dealing with that.
Oh, my gosh, he can bet that hit.
He knew that person was on route and said,
Get an animi today!
And I made it out to the perfection once again.
He looked at the battle out, it's a round.
He used his soul to support.
He knew he'd put himself in position to meet it too in a row.
Get down, down to wall.
Consistently for 60 years.
Let it open, doesn't care though.
Keep pressure on the 2k.
He is unconditioned right now.
You go against 9 and stick it to me anyway.
You're gonna have to attack to me.
Good blocks.
You can get a 3-2.
Get forward, if you can catch a block.
Twice in a row, nice block.
Get a 2-1, get a 2-1, get a 2-1, get a 2-1.
All the 1-1 sword, though.
Ha!
6P to stop!
It's a bit up forward.
Ooh!
But the modi's a little shit.
Whoa, whoa, whoa, bad dash.
Now great.
They try to step on a pose a lot more time.
And Reddeo's at these toes.
They're not that moneymaker.
It's not Step on Me.
That's an unbelievable situation that Barrick has found himself in.
Six straight games to make it to this spot.
An opportunity to find the reset and move even farther forward.
It's back to characters like for a touch of a slowdown, Red Ditto firmly in the driver's
seat.
Because we take a big thing before game four.
Now, Dory, what do we need here?
How can we potentially keep the momentum going?
What can we do to stop the type of pressure that Red Dino's able to put up?
I mean, so far, I mean, 6B getting out of the sword explosion has been a very good follow-up,
a good way to deal with some of this, but otherwise, it feels like Red Dino has just
been one step ahead on every single adaptation.
Yes, man.
Yeah.
I'm glad I'm a very smart bug, tracking my shoulders like, I don't know, wait, let me
get that round that you wanted, and then I can push track hit them.
Don't give me that.
There they are, those 6Bs in the right direction, loving the ideas.
So...
Oh, 5-6 again!
The fact that he's away from the bridge, that's a good start!
That's a very good start, more of that!
Come on, crowd, we're shooting the open.
We're getting the 5-1 here.
Some stage, some stage show for it.
There's great fact that's another 5-6 key!
There's a little bit of...
Oh my god, again on the match, little by the head!
Gents.
Oh, explosion, just the way you hate me.
There's the goal, you said.
Why'd he see we've been working?
And two Red Guido's stars in his squint.
The legs.
Jump there with nothing to go.
Yes, in!
Top of the dome!
Again!
Faric in dire straits.
Red Guido, one away from another trophy in the cabinet.
I'm out of ammo.
Back to wave.
We'll poke.
A little bit of a benefit.
Close them.
Gonna let them jump out.
All of the 5 people need to do the 5k gold.
We'll soon breath it out to the least burst.
We've got to double over there.
We can flash right now.
We're all 1-8 dash forward.
Is he taking speed back?
He's not.
He's not.
He's not.
He's lost.
Burst on the door frog.
Meaning, yeah, he's gonna be weaponless for a hot minute.
Very friendly and funny. There's a reversal.
A little bit less coming.
Once hold on and then the 16.
Once again, finding his way and landing on the ground.
Roundup moves again.
Pukio forward doesn't get much of a short explosion.
Space out in the half forward.
Binding the head for nothing for it.
Maybe late pass and a Pukio forward.
Double jumps and comes down with the normal.
I love the ideas here from Redkidow.
He's cramming it out now.
Why not?
The whole spam must come to an end.
This is soon a very spotless space, used by the regular skin program.
Chance equalize here, does Mothermark roll, he already committed to double jump though, safe for now.
That crossbar.
Ooh, it was in the air, that mouse went that little bit better.
Oh no, look at him!
Oh, the chance.
He's slowly slipping away a little bit at a time, blood gaits, dwindling a little bit,
strike throw, working out in Red Ditto's favor, it's a break, but it's not enough.
There's both.
Rosie, will you get half the burst?
I don't know.
It's okay, Pink.
There he is.
What's the next exchange?
This chance.
One more opportunity, and the button for Red Ditto is what seals the deal!
And unbelievable performance, and another trophy to Red for Red Ditto!
North America's finest continuous dominance!
Unbelievable performance!
He says I'm gone, I'm good!
I don't even want to throw, I'm leaving!
I'm out of here!
That's the internal life work.
We do this.
An unbelievable performance from Red Ditto.
A huge victory.
We have to give the flowers obviously an incredible showing
from Varix, Reddy, though, you know, celebrating with the crowd, celebrating with the homies,
live in the moment as you should. This is your championship moment.
What he deserves. I knew it kind of fitting to see, like you mentioned, I didn't realize until you
said it, an Art World Tour champion and an Art World Tour champion getting here to the finals of EVO.
Champions, like you said, in their own right, in the different fields coming in to
The other players had not made this to final out.
Barrett, he moved the side of the trophy out into, you know,
gruelingly get through other matches and get in a couple of pre-o's and
I can mention that Marvin Petite, Marvin came high.
But there was a scene there, with his rounds saying, can you stop me?
I'm a covering of the tournament.
Yeah, we're the past.
Okay, listen to the player who has saved his playing again and again.
Even through moments like that where he's able to get sliced up,
was still able to keep his composure,
still able to bounce back,
and keep the momentum in his favor all day long.
It has been Reddow asking questions in the footsees,
and everybody getting confused by the pop quiz
as he continued to put up, I mean, just a fitting win.
Playing Ramathal, I feel just like the way she's intended.
At every single turn, this guy has just perfectly
shown off the strength of the character here.
We've got one last look there with that replay
presented by PlayStation tournaments.
Amazing.
Thank you, PlayStation, for that.
We needed to relive it.
And the celebration is so humble, so awesome.
Like you said, shine on the people that go here.
Honestly, truly, just happy to be in a position
to be able to take the victory here.
So glad to see everybody supporting their champ.
So, so incredible.
Red Ditto.
I mean, all the congrats in the world.
so much more to still give it to our champion here.
But all of our players throughout the entirety of the bracket
here at EVO 2026, EVO and the things that are able to happen here,
the stories we're able to write, the situations
and the moments that we're able to live only happen
because of every single person in this venue,
every single player that comes through.
And especially these top eight competitors
that we saw top to bottom and Red Ditto.
I mean, consistently through this bracket
winters side he's only needs one game field to get tuned up and ready to go it seems everybody gets one
he's a very giving champion he loves to give to the community like you see giving to the players
three one you could say you know everyone gets an opportunity to take a shot at a time he takes
one in a turn and he's going okay now it's my turn to hit you back and we are going to be hitting
the main state in a second to see those medals so I think we're gonna throw it over to Mr. Hollywood
himself, Rob TV as he gives these top eight finalists what they deserve here
with their members. Speaking of giving them what they deserve, I need this
audience to do exactly that. How did you enjoy top eight? Fire! Fire! Top the bottom.
Let's get to this top eight awards ceremony starting with in seventh place
place, T. Y. Also, in seventh place, put your hands together for Jiro. In fifth place,
K shoot what the moon.
Also in fifth place, put your hands together for Kermit.
In fourth place with the phenomenal 360 wave game, make some noise for Cheerio.
And third place, repping that fly quest, Nitro in 1.
And second place, amazing run, blow the roof off for Varix.
And now for your champion, the man himself, Red Ditto.
Now, Vermillo does have something very special for our top three competitors.
Put it in the background for your stream setup and all of that.
As you can see, customized sticks with the guilty gear on the front, bronze, silver and
one more time. Clap it up for
your talk. Hey! Red Ditto. I
need you, brother. I need
somebody to grab this stick for
you real quick because I got to
talk to you. I've got amazing
performance. Okay, there we go.
We got to make sure we handle
that goal with care. Pull up on
me, brother. Come on. Okay. Red
Red Ditto, congratulations on an amazing performance.
We know that she was someone who literally went at the Arc World Tour Finals,
LCQ, won through LCQ and then won the entire tournament.
How does this compare, not to sure, in the EVO champion?
I think Arc World Tour fell more meaningful to me because this is my first one.
But this is my second one now, like a major win.
So it feels pretty good.
Okay, now, as far as, of course,
stopping up for my man's,
Biddle!
A tournament like this, a lot of us
will never know what it's like
to be on a stage this grand with that much pressure.
How do you perform so strongly?
Do you feel the pressure?
No, I think...
I always come to tournaments and like,
if I didn't prep well enough, I deserved to lose, right?
So, when I play, I make my decisions with like,
oh, I'm gonna make it no matter what.
I don't care if I'm wrong.
So like, why should I be scared or like nervous?
Man, inspire me, I'm gonna inspire and be calling you
up there, man, I don't know.
Last but not least, of course, I have to ask
if you have any message for the beautiful people here
and any of your fans watching from home.
I like to shout out John Nteney.
He helped coach a lot of sets for me.
So I went over a lot of matchups I would run into, like Deadman and Leo, which came up today, so shout out to him.
I give shout outs to Bossbox and Seijian. They invited me to do slam events this past month. It was very fun and I hope to relieve my mental pretty well.
I was into two stress on grinding, so I give a shout out to them too.
Ladies and gentlemen,
now can we please bring Red Biddo his hard fought well earned trophy?
Let me step back and give my man his moment.
Ladies and gentlemen, one more time for your Guilty Gear Strobe Champion, Red Biddo!
And we're going to send these over to our commentators for our last comments.
And I mean, what can you say?
It is just a stellar performance from one of the best I've ever do it.
I know, super humble, super well prepared, good mental, honestly and truly, I mean, as
far as seeing some of these younger players like Redd, they don't be able to do well.
My heart is very full knowing that the FTC is in such good hands with players like him
at the helm, especially in games like Guilty Gear.
I mean, it's just an incredible feeling to get to see someone like that who has grinded
so hard and gotten to this point, continue to be successful, Red Ditto, a well-deserving
champion as well as, I mean, everybody in this top eight.
It was just stellar top to bottom.
100%.
I think just to talk in what you were talking about, Red Ditto's answer, it sent me through
a loop at first when he was like, yeah, I don't get nervous.
Because if I didn't prepare, I'd deserve to lose.
It's like, that's a very good point.
I think that should give everyone the drive to be like,
it is possible to get to his level.
You just have to be prepared to be like,
I was wrong and prepare better the next time.
Remember, getting better at getting better.
It is a hard thing to keep with you,
but it's one of the most important things to keep with you.
Fighting games and life in general, I could not agree more.
And I do want to say again, big thanks to you,
You know all the TOs that made this work, the entirety of the production staff, everybody involved here in the arena.
Thank you so much for helping us write such a beautiful story this weekend for Guilty Gear Strive.
You know, it was a pleasure as well, an honor to get to stand with you as always my man. Seriously incredible.
You are one of the best contenders and it was my pleasure to do with you. Finally,
offline. We've done it so much online, but here doing it again from last EVO,
you know, do the little hundred hundred stuff to here. It's been an actual dream come true to do
this review on Get We Gets Drive. And again, like you said, those players made it even for the
Hypers matches with the sickest comments ever, man. Oh, dude, I appreciate that a lot. But let's
move it back up to the stage. One more time to keep this show rolling because we've got even more
EVO action rolling through. All right, ladies and gentlemen, of course, that top eight was
absolutely phenomenal. We are here day two of EVO 2026 and the action is going to keep on coming
Next up, we have Rivals of Aether II.
Top eight, you do not wanna miss it.
See you soon.
Hmm.
Yeah!
["Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy"]
["Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy"]
["Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy"]
Oh wait, wait, wait.
Wait.
Wait.
No.
Nerd?
Nerd.
The commentary is about even people engaged.
Yes.
This guy likes me for 15 years.
I didn't know he's a...
That was like my first couple of months
in the 20th of the year.
I guess it's weird for you to call me daddy.
That's very weird, yeah.
I need to do a little better.
I gotta avenge myself.
Stop, guys.
It makes me laugh, people.
Oh, jeez.
No two competitors are the same.
Some run on routine for the chance to win big.
Some make time to rise through the brackets.
Some lock in with confidence.
However you prepare, there's a place for every kind of competitor.
PlayStation Tournaments, sign up today on PS5.
Maybe you'll get on stage, hey, maybe you'll even get famous, but that's not really what
this is about, is it?
It's about competition, it's about friendship, it's about our love of our games.
That's what it's about for us at least.
Since 2011, our broadcasts, events, and merchandise have been top quality and grassroots at the
same time.
10-0, forever we fight.
your body knows, a sense of victory sees when mind, movement and gear ignite is one.
mind, movement, and gear ignite as one.
Victory is within reach.
Feel it, right?
Now, step into your zone.
Designed to win.
The Five Gods of Fighting Games.
It's a moniker given to five Japanese players whose skill
in multiple fighting games became the stuff of legends,
Haitani, Saku, Tokido, Nuki, and Daigo.
These names have become synonymous with the genre,
but that wasn't always the case.
["Fighting Game Chains"]
In today's FGC, we're spoiled for choice,
with thousands of hours of fighting game chains
and other content available at the touch of a finger.
And learning about the best of the best
is a simple search away.
In the late 90s, with the internet still in its infancy,
one of the only ways to learn more about the scene
its key players was in game centers and arcades like this one. Where did this moniker originate
and how did the exploits of these five players become the foundation of the Japanese fighting
community and how do they continue to help shape what fighting games are in Japan almost 30 years later?
It was the last time I was like, 5 people, good for me.
Well, it was interesting for Nuki-san.
He said that during the tournament.
The biggest tournament in the country at that time.
If you think about it now, the person who won 5 people,
or the person who named it,
I think he knew about the fighting game.
At that time, I've been playing in Tokyo for a long time, but I didn't know anything about Sako and Haita at that time.
I was walking from Tokyo to Osaka to the game center.
I think I went all over the country at that time.
So I don't know why, but I'm sure there was a person who probably had a fight with everyone.
At the time, I didn't have a chance to watch any of the games.
So, I started playing like a legend.
So, you started playing as a strong player.
At that time, I didn't have much experience in the tournament.
I wanted to step up a bit, but I was told that I couldn't.
So I stopped playing.
I still don't feel that way, but I'm still doing it.
I'm glad you chose that, but I don't think you're a god, either.
I'm embarrassed.
I was shocked at the match against Sako.
I had a chance to show him a video of Sako's past.
At that time, Sako didn't play the main game.
I didn't think he was that good at it, so I had to think about it.
And then, I got to work with him, and at that time, I was quite confident, but I was defeated.
And the way I was defeated was...
I felt a skill that I had never felt before.
I felt a skill of operation.
And I thought, wow, he's amazing.
I was really impressed by the amount of people who were there for me.
The name of the game is called Tegoshi.
I was aware of that around me,
so I had to work hard to play well.
and that's how it was.
It was my level-up scene,
and it was a whole new level-up scene.
I think that's how it was.
I think it was because everyone had their own sense of responsibility.
Of course, it was called that.
But after that, everyone was active.
Even now, the direction has changed.
But if we think about the existence of the glasses,
I don't know which one, but I don't know which one.
I was originally in the middle of the battle,
so I was able to fight back and I was able to fight back.
And then I was conscious of that battle.
I don't know if I could continue fighting back.
But maybe by fighting back,
I could have been able to maintain a motivation.
That's possible.
to support competitors and productions as they fight for glory on larger and larger stages.
But in the era of the Five Gods, the game center was the battleground where you cut your teeth.
I was thinking about playing games in my childhood,
and I wanted to play games for the kids.
I wanted to play games for the kids who didn't want to go home.
I had a lot of kids who loved games,
but I had to go to places where I didn't have a place to go.
They were all in the same place.
I had a lot of that in mind, so I think it was a really good game.
How do you choose the order?
You put the coins on top of the game's structure.
So I had to play for 30 minutes or an hour to get there.
I had to get there.
The game was so good that I was so excited.
It was different from now. I had to pay for the gameplay while I was doing it.
I think it was more important for me to win the game than for me to win the game.
I know the name of Sako-san and Miyawara-san.
I know that it took a lot of time to talk to them, but I didn't have time to meet them directly at the game center or have an internet contact.
I was able to interact with the students and play various games, and I was able to learn about various games.
I think they were cute.
But I really had a rivalry with them.
And they were very close.
I had a big group with Umehara.
In Tokyo, there were Umehara and Tokido,
and Kansai and Sako.
But we couldn't see how strong they were.
We didn't know how strong they were.
I was in a big group.
I couldn't beat them without a reason.
I was thinking about the strategy.
The players in Tokyo were from Tokyo.
I thought there were players like that in Tokyo.
It was really fun.
But if I had never met them before,
I didn't know how to play.
Despite being separated by region,
the rumors of the Five Gods' individual strength
in multiple fighting games spread throughout Japan.
And it was only a matter of time
before they decided to test themselves against one another.
Mehara was the first game center in Akihabara.
It was a very old game center, and I think it was the first time in 30 years
that I had the chance to play a game like this.
I was able to play the game in my own way.
I didn't really like the style of my game.
I've always been in the town with Gile.
So I thought it was really impressive.
The first time I met him was with Onuki-san.
I had a third strike.
When I was playing the game called Cup Humber and SNK,
I got really close to him and we practiced together.
I think that's the best part of the game.
I thought it was going to be a great sign.
I invited them to play together.
That's when I started playing with them.
I went to Kanto to play.
We were all in Kansai.
We played in Kanto.
We were female players.
We were in a very long group.
We were told to stay at home.
At that time, Nuki was a member of the Kanto team.
We were playing together in a house in Yodoshii, and we got along very well.
I think Tokido had a lot of games in the last three years, but I think there was a tournament in the game center.
So, it's the first time we've had a fight together.
The best thing about this game is that it was a hit.
I think it was about 20 years ago, 20 years ago.
I played both of those games.
I was playing a computer game, but it was a great move.
So I thought I'd try it out and try it out.
I think it's really strong.
In Kansai, I used a character called Satsukachi, which is rare.
I didn't really lose to him.
But I got to know him through Montecarlo.
When I heard about him, I thought he was a hater.
I recently got to know him because he was a very strong man.
I was a student at the time of the school year, and I had a chance to go to Osaka.
At that time, I was playing with the Haitani and the third strike,
and I was copied and copied.
I was just told by my teacher that I was going to be there.
It felt like a park.
There were so many strong players,
and I was told that I was going to be there.
What do you expect from the fans?
I think there are people who expect me to be named by the fans.
If I meet other fans, I think I'll be conscious of them.
I think there are many people who expect me to be the best.
I thought I'd give it a try.
The long-term drawback is to keep going.
Of course, there's a title I like the most,
but it's not fun to play the game without a competition.
It's more fun to gather in places where there are a lot of people.
The number of cases has really increased, and everyone is saying that they have taken the castle.
If you say that it is a unique thing, it is not like that at all.
At the time, people were not paying attention to it.
In that era, people were not recognized by people.
I'm not saying that I'm going to keep going.
But I'm saying that I'm going to be able to communicate with all the players
who have been in the team for a long time.
I think that's the reason why we're going to be able to live together
in different games for a long time.
I think that's the reason why we're going to be able to live together
I think that's a big thing.
To be honest, I'm the only rival in the team that only has Umehara.
I'm the only one who has a brother.
I've played a lot of games that don't have much to do with Sakohaita.
I've been playing with Umehara for a long time.
I played in the final match of Vampire Savers 2.
and then the final match of the 0-3,
and then the VSSNK2, which is the final match.
Umehara was there, so he kept playing the game
to beat him.
If Umehara wasn't there,
I think he wouldn't have played the game at all.
I think it's thanks to Umehara that the game got stronger.
We won't lose to each other.
Of course, there are players who are aware of the situation and are aware of the situation.
But that doesn't mean that the goal-play is special.
About 20 years ago, my wife's mother was sick.
I was told that I was going to Kagawa.
I was going to go with him because I was there.
I had a lot of games in Osaka.
I didn't have many players.
To be honest, I couldn't play in Kagawa.
I was a little tired.
At that time,
The Saber friends, the Haita friends, and the seven Saber girls, came to Kagawa to play.
They did nothing but play games all day long.
At that time, the fighting community was really cool, so I'm still grateful to the Haitanin.
If that hadn't happened, I might not have played fighting games.
Becoming a professional fighting game player during the era of the Five Gods was seen as impractical for many,
but the efforts and legacy of these players helped build the scene to a point where that dream became a reality.
I can do it, but I've been preparing for it for a long time.
Someday, when this day comes, I'll appeal to the world as a player,
and I'll appeal to the world to do this.
I think it's very expensive for those people who have continued to chase their dreams.
I was originally a fan of fighting games.
I was in a relationship where I came to the tournament with only the people I was playing with.
When I went to see Street Fighter 6 Cup,
I felt like a woman was supporting me, like an idol.
I've met a lot of people who became Street Fighter 6.
I'm very happy to have the experience of a different genre and the title of the game that I haven't heard of before.
I'm happy to have the opportunity to work with young people,
and that's the most wonderful thing about it.
I'm really happy that I can work with them even further.
Yes, it's more than I expected.
The new series, The Sixth Game,
is particularly popular in Japan.
It's been over 15 years since I started playing for the team.
I think I've been playing for a long time.
I'm not sure what's going to happen next.
But I think I'm getting better at this stage.
The winner is...
The winner is...
The winner is...
It was really a dream.
It's a generation of us, but we really had no choice.
We were the players, so we worked hard on the players' league.
We worked hard on the company, the company that opened up the competition.
Everyone worked really hard on it, and we finally made it here.
I can say it in a traditional way, but I'm really happy to be able to say it.
Well, yeah, but I've been playing for a long time.
I'm an old man who likes fighting games.
I started playing Super Famicom from the 2nd generation.
From then on, fighting games continued.
Now, it's getting more and more difficult.
This is why it's amazing.
That's why we've been evaluated for various achievements in the past,
and we've been asked to do interviews like this.
I didn't choose the story because it was too much of a story.
I chose the story because it was too much of a story.
I'm a writer, so I'm like a teacher.
I've been doing this for my own sake.
And that's why we're helping the people of the later generations.
And I'm very happy to hear from them.
I'm very happy to hear that the community and industry of the fighting game community is so long.
I think more and more people like that are still in the game,
so I think the people who come to see this dream,
for those people, they are still moving as a player,
and they continue to be strong.
I think I will continue to move forward.
Even if I am not a pro gamer until I am not able to move,
I've always liked fighting games, so I want to be able to express myself in a way that I can play.
I've always liked fighting games, so I want to keep doing this for my whole life.
I want to keep fighting games for my whole life, until I die.
I think Mai is a character who represents the female characters of SNK, but more than that, she is a character who is a big asset to the entire fighting game.
First of all, the thing I remember is that I was a heroine who was going to play the SMK.
As a fighting game, I was able to quickly move and use fire to fight against the enemy.
I think this was the feature.
In the past, I used to be a character called Ninja Master.
There were a lot of changes in the flow of the era,
and we created a female character, Garou Densetsu.
We created a new character in the world of music, Mai.
Mai is a bright and straight character.
I think K.O.F. is already a big change in the art history of Garou.
I think it's a woman who has passed through one of those.
Until Garou 2, we used to be strong women,
but gradually we became more and more gentle,
and we became more and more friendly characters.
If I win, I'm sorry.
There are a lot of things, but what about proposing to me after the tournament?
When I tried to draw the front, I think I was wearing a very unique outfit,
but I think it's one of the basic designs of the red and white,
so I think it's one of the basic designs of the red and white.
I think so too.
When I joined Oglam, I was already able to do it before, but when I heard it from my seniors later on,
the ninja master who talked about it earlier used to make a long scarf.
It seemed to be a character that would light the scarf and turn it around and attack.
And when it comes to the front,
you need to be able to light up the fire.
So you have to make it look like a tail and put out the fire from the back.
The front is a very strong image that has been created as I explained earlier.
It's very difficult to think of other costumes.
But in the case of the New Year's The Blues,
the era is in its rightful place.
The old age is also being passed down.
If we keep the same old style,
we'll be able to think of a new style
from the point of view of the current world.
Want a little taste of...
...sheet under the fire?
As a developer, I think the front is attractive and I design it,
but this is a character with a different history.
For example, even if there is no rain or something,
I knew it wasn't the front.
But this time, I wanted to make a new gallery,
and I wanted to make a new front as well.
I'd like you to continue to look forward to it.
While Mai's design stands out from the crowd,
so does her arsenal of attacks.
How did the team at SNK represent Mai's personality
and ninja background during combat?
I think it's the biggest thing that you can hear when you listen to the voice of the winner,
or the voice of the winner.
I think that's the most important thing.
One thing is that the people who have been playing the game recently
I remember playing in the children's school when I was just a kid.
I remember playing in the children's school when I was a kid.
I remember watching the anime.
I'm really happy to win again.
I think it's really important to play in the children's school when you're little.
Of course, it's also very attractive.
At the time, there was a lot of female characters in the fighting game.
Of course, there was a lot of preparation for Street Fighter,
but other than that, it was rare for female characters to have such a solid design.
The fighting game had a big character and a lot of movement,
I think that's the reason why women with thin lines wear ninja costumes
and use ninja skills.
I think the character setting was probably the new one at the time.
At the time, there were four development rooms in SNK.
One room and four rooms.
Each room had their own samurai, KOF, etc.
I think we were doing it on our own, so if Mai was popular, we'd be trying to make something that wasn't Mai.
So I think there were a lot of things like Nakoruru, Athena, and other heroes.
I think we were trying to make a good character out of it, rather than a template.
Yo, we shooting right now.
When you hit that dougie, bruh?
Was that 2019?
I'm not asking about your damn dougie.
I'm Raw TV, and this is teaching me how to dougie.
All right, so Pete.
So we're at EVO.
EVO 2019, OK?
We had an after party.
There was an EVO after party at Esports Arena.
So after the tournament, Need, Shine, Dude,
you know, the whole Street Bar League team,
Gail, the homies, and Puck.
I think Puck was with us as well.
We all like to go about to head out to the after party.
So we get there to the East War arena.
Soon as we head in there, the lights is lowest,
the vibe, you know, they got the purple and blue,
like club, lights, everything.
There's a whole lot of handshakes, hugs,
and all that, and greetings.
Immediately, I'm in my mode, I'm in my zone.
So now at some time throughout the night,
eventually somehow we all just ended up over at the bar.
Next thing you know, I hear a voice
and it was a very distinct voice.
I rather yank this to do the impersonation of me,
but it was punk the guy.
Mind you, this is $50 million Echo Fox contract,
punk the guy, no less.
You know, this is back during that time in the scene,
if I'm not mistaken, I know he's getting that bad.
So then you just hear punk say,
Yo, uh, drinks on me.
He said drinks on me.
Now, I'm low.
I'm taking it back.
First thing I'm thinking, damn, that's not funny.
Second thing I'm thinking, because at this time,
me and punk, we wasn't even friends or like that yet,
like, so how we are now.
We were, you know, like, there'd be a little back
and forth sometimes with us.
So I'm like, hold up.
This much decent human being, completely surprised
that he actually was doing something like that.
So I was kind of perplexed to be honest with you.
So I had to face that dude, that black ball dude from Dexter.
That's like, you know, he, I know something's up right here,
but I can't prove it.
That was the energy that I had,
but still as perplexed as I was, I accepted the dream.
So now we kicking back when we're jarring ourselves,
we having our drinks,
and they're playing a whole lot of old school music.
You know, sometimes the DJ get in that bag.
They even play like crank that soldier boy
and stuff like that.
You know, they're not playing that stuff all night,
but occasionally they go to the throwback joints.
Now, we had no idea that something legendary
that we never would forget was about to go down.
Now, I have to preference this with this under,
I have to preference this comment with this.
You have to understand who Shine is, $3.
You know what I'm saying?
Shine NYC from NLBC and all that.
He is the most reserved and relaxed guy
in our entire friend group.
He's like the antithesis of Big Hollywood Rock TV.
So Shah somehow just disappears.
I don't know where he went.
So me, Punk and Dua Chilling, they start playing the song,
teach me how to, teach me how to, teach me how to,
teach, teach, you know what I mean?
They play the old teach my doggy song.
We turn, like, I was like,
simultaneously, I don't know how this happened.
So there's this whole big group and it's like the crowd
of the evil after party just party.
And you like the red seat and you just see Shah
standing here and all his glory got the boots that you know
what he like to wear the maroon pants his jacket the long
hair and everything and when I tell you that shine started
hitting the meanest f***ing Dougie that you've ever seen in
your life shine of all people is dancing and he's doing it
extremely well and this is the crazy part. He's not smiling
bruh he's not smiling because he's serious you know when somebody so good at
dancing that it's not a good time but he's not playing there's nothing biting
his lip while he hit in the doggy like just because he know he hit in that shit
like it's serious business right now and apparently earlier he had an energy
drink he has so his uh I don't know that caffeine was in the system and then
and punk must have gave him the strongest shot of all time.
And that was the last time Shine ever danced in front of us
because we have been trolling him about that
for years ever since.
And in case you don't know,
there's a gift that punk used on his stream.
I think it's either his subscriber gift
or his follower gift.
He says that street fighter league,
like, I'm hit the dance move,
we saw what they're laughing,
and Shine is uncomfortable.
That is exactly what we're laughing at.
Trolling him about that all the way to this day.
And I just happen to have a bang, I don't know, are you dead?
Yeah.
Hold up, so you had a bang in the shot?
Yeah, I was just drinking and I had the bang, so that's why I like, damn, that advertisement
was real.
I forgot this is off to bang energy drink too, and that's crazy.
I was a high school student at Toriyama Akira University, and I had been aiming to become a cartoonist.
I had been aiming to become a cartoonist, but I didn't succeed.
I started drawing when I was 8 years old, and then I joined the design department.
I studied design and advertising.
I was 29 years old, and I wanted to be independent.
I wanted to be independent, so I decided to speak Japanese.
I liked drawing since I was little.
My grandfather was interested in drawing.
I learned a lot from that experience.
And from there, I started to go abroad,
and I started to see a lot of things,
and I think I was able to do it.
And the biggest reason I was able to do it was
when I was a company,
there was a contest,
and it was called Jamilokwai,
a UK artist.
There was Jamilokwai,
And that person will release a new album called Dynamite.
In Japan, there's a lot of things like Beems, Sony, and other things like that.
And I worked on it myself.
And then I took the semi-glamp, and the whole country,
not the whole country, but the Beems' tempo,
I wanted to work on this,
and I decided to work on it,
and I decided to do it.
It was a big opportunity for me.
I haven't really studied art in my life,
so I haven't done proper research,
I haven't studied that much, and I've seen a lot of things like T-shirts and graphics,
like the album jacket of the musician, the manga, and the one-scene of the movie.
I've collected a lot of things, and I've been producing them since then.
Of course, there are a lot of things that have been shocked,
such as Dragon Ball and Akira.
I'm the type of person who has been able to squeeze out
things that I can't even speak to myself.
At the time of independence,
I was able to put my personality into the world
I was able to put my personality into it, and I drew a strong personality.
I thought that there are few people who can draw like this in Japan.
And I did a live performance, and I did something amazing, and I was moved by it.
I started working on it and it became more and more official.
I started to collect things that are sold now,
and things that are strong in America,
and I collected a lot of things.
I collected them little by little,
and it became boring,
and I tried to make it new.
and I repeat it again and again, and now I'm working on it.
Now, I'm using digital.
Basically, including drawing, I'm using all digital,
I'm using software called Illustrator, Adobe Illustrator.
I'm not drawing separately,
When I draw in this sketchbook, and when I draw in this sketchbook,
the basics are the same.
I don't rely on the tools to draw digital art.
So I draw in the same way.
Of course, I want to draw something that I haven't drawn before.
That's the priority.
But what I like doesn't really change.
I like my own paintings, so I pursue them and draw them.
That's what I care about the most.
Otherwise, I might end up giving up on the way.
That's why I draw them first, so that I get motivated.
I'm not a curious person,
Of course, playing games, playing darts,
or going to a restaurant...
It's the best thing to do when you're painting.
So, working on that time is not an effort.
I'm just working on it, so I'm not trying at all.
Yes.
I'm sorry. I should have said something cooler.
Really? I wish I could talk about something more like an artist, but I really don't know what to do.
About Tekken, this is a story from a long time ago.
There was a producer named Nakatsu, who is now a producer.
I was a friend from a long time ago, and from then on, I wanted to push myself to write and work for Tekken.
But after 4 or 5 years, I was told that I was from Harada-san, and from then on, I tried my best to approach them.
And finally, we were able to draw the character panel from Tekken 7.
So, since I was told that I had the ability at first, I thought I'd do my best to keep drawing.
I thought, this is cool, this is cool, this is cool.
and the way we work together.
I think that's why we have this collaboration
and we have a lot of good things going on.
We are working together on a collaboration
and we have a lot of good things going on.
Ever was a game magazine
and an internet show.
Ever was an event that I've been watching.
I want to go someday.
I was a little bit too far away from my goal, so I got a call from Markman and asked him if he could come.
At first, I thought that I was going to do a meet-up at my own signing event.
I thought that no one would come, but there were a lot of people coming.
I was able to get a lot of energy and go back to Japan.
There was an inspiration from Markman.
He wrote me an illustration that symbolizes Evo.
But the first thing I thought about was whether or not
I was the person who was playing the fighting game,
whether or not I was in it,
I wanted to start with a place where you can easily understand the fighting game.
I wanted to start with a place where you can easily understand the game and play it.
First, I wanted to start with a person.
Then, I decided on the title and the parts of the game.
But I tried to make it look like a V, and I tried to make it look like a V.
I came up with an idea from that point on.
I started to think about what to do with the background.
At that point, I started to draw the outline first.
From there, I started to think about what to do with the monitor,
what to do with the controller, what to do with the snack chip, the snack.
and manga, books, and so on.
First, I imagine this room,
and then I write a little bit of the story to the storytellers,
and some of the different motifs.
I want people to know about it,
and I want them to know about it.
I put in some of the secrets,
and I want them to see the picture for as long as possible.
I put in a lot of effort into the details.
I'm basically drawing with my heart,
so I'm happy if you can enjoy it.
That's how I finished it.
I don't really match my style to Japanese.
I think it's hard to draw in Japan.
So when I went overseas, I thought it would be better to work overseas.
But it's more expensive to get a job overseas.
But in Japan, there are things that fans want to see.
I feel that this style is also good.
I gradually feel that there are more and more people.
I don't have many followers in Japan now,
but I'd be happy if this was the same.
But I think it's my own power, and I don't think I'll ever be able to do anything about it.
First, if I wanted to become an artist,
First of all, of course, we have to make a lot of works with a lot of work.
We have to make a lot of works with a lot of time.
First of all, it's important to make a lot of works with a lot of work.
But I think it's difficult to get a job there,
for example, with SNS.
That's what I'm drawing.
I want to do this kind of work.
I want to collaborate with these teams.
I want to make it available in various places.
If there is a place where you can directly interact with that person,
or if there is a place where you can communicate with them,
I want to contact them from there.
I'm happy to be able to get in touch with that person in real life.
So, I think it's important to keep on doing it, even if there's no reply.
Yes. If we keep doing that, we'll have a chance somewhere.
If we don't raise our hands, no one will notice.
Of course, writing is important, but I think it's important to find out how to do that.
So Arsang, we have a special gift for you.
One of our featured artists that we had at EVO in Las Vegas this year, JB Style.
We asked him to do a sketch of a player, and he decided to do a sketch of you.
So one of the Tekken artists, JB Style, wanted to present you with this.
That's so nice.
So this is for you. This is a gift from JB Style.
Thank you so much, JB Style. That's so cute.
It's five time, right?
So maybe this time I can give him seven times.
We'll see. We'll see. This is right before our top eight.
So good luck.
Yep.
I don't want to say that I want to be independent for five years.
I want to.
I think we can't eat the same kind of food, even if we're independent.
That was the time when I was a little old.
So I think it would be a good idea to regret that time.
If I say that, I think I should quit the independent company 5 years earlier.
I mean, I should quit the company 5 years ago.
I should quit the company 5 years earlier.
Believe it or not, there are a lot of arcade legacy titles that still have active communities
and even some with growing numbers.
Vampire Savior, Blaze Blue, Third Strike, and many others still have impressive entry
numbers showing up at events like Combo Breaker and Evo.
One game that has seen exponential community growth is Multi-Blood Actress Again current
code.
With an over 20-year-old game breaking entry numbers at Climax of Night, we went to investigate
how this game with 93 car
an unofficial net play la
so large so fast. We set
organizer NPC to learn ho
helping this game find a
ever before. First of all,
are still unique, right?
die because there's never
exactly the same, right?
new iterations of guilty
like similar characters,
systems and just those differences are enough, right?
For an LT blood current code, we have Type Lumina,
and you still have, you preserve all your movement.
The games are both still known for their movement.
They're really fast.
There's a lot of options.
But, you know, and a lot of boys are also very different
beyond just the character cast,
like the whole six of mechanics make them very different.
I'm always saying that one of the biggest differences
is the screen aspect ratio of 4-3 versus the 16-9
that we have in modern games.
And I think those quirks that make current code unique
are a large part of why it's still so alive today is you can't find anything
that
plays exactly the same or is very much like that game. Even in the fact that it's a
4-3 aspect ratio game with unique air movement, you get to take way more
advantage of that
vertical ratio, increased vertical space relative to your screen
that you have in that game compared to other games. But I think
multi-current code
is still alive today because it's really unique as a game,
has a lot of those old game quirks,
things that don't work quite right,
and you find new interactions every set,
but also because it's something that's fun to be a part of.
There's a lot of other old games
that have really small communities,
and sometimes there's a large barrier to entry,
like you've got to learn a lot of tech to get into it.
People have been playing the game for a long time,
so it's really hard to kind of cut into it, right?
But I think multiplayer has this unique blend
where the system mechanics empower you defensively,
such that even if you're on the back foot,
even if you haven't played the game before,
but you have a strong fighting game background,
you can into it around the game and make decisions.
It's not a very offensively focused game.
So from a fighting game perspective,
it's easy to start navigating,
or it's possible to start navigating
without a lot of that prior experience and knowledge.
Like I'm only a few years into fighting games myself,
in the genre as a whole, and I'm playing this game.
So I think it's pretty simple to pick up.
It's right there.
Todd needs one more hit.
Koki just running away as much as he can.
Ty have two triangles up.
They almost have one hit.
To the punnest, the fireball, but just...
Nice, that's it!
And Ty is a champion!
The champion!
The losers is Ty and a flin!
The way I feel about it is I think that kind of,
that level of rawness and that feeling of,
yeah, these are all people who are really
about this game like that.
I think that's a part of the appeal.
I think that's part of what drives the unique feeling that you can get from being a part
of scenes like this one.
Just as a natural people, watch your paying attention to how people grow together and
interact with each other.
So what it means to me to grow a community is there needs to be enjoyment and co-existing
together, right?
So I really like having a regular cadence of running events, making midweek first a monthly
series and now a twice a month series with a bit of an awkward cadence because it gives
something repeated for people to look forward to.
If you come in and you want to partake in a bracket,
you already know that there's something to look forward to,
something to get excited about.
And people who are entering the brackets regularly
can always have the next one to look forward to.
So you create the shared basis for something
for people to get excited for.
And to me, that's like the start of something, right?
It's not just that we're all here
and we happen to play the same thing,
but there is something to look forward to,
things for people to talk about.
There's some shared basis beyond,
this is just the game that we play
for people to get excited about.
And from there, I think a lot of growing our communities
getting people more excited for playing the game, right?
Rewarding people for being invested,
rewarding people for being interested.
So things like starting the FeltiBlood series,
where I really wanted to have some sort of a unique prize.
I don't like doing cash prizes for my brackets
because, you know, as a free game,
a lot of people will struggle also to make it to events.
So if you've got money to throw out a bracket,
put that towards getting to an event, right?
So I started with the FeltiBlood beginner bracket series,
which I made a little felt puppet prizes for.
FeltiBlood kind of started as a cute name,
But I'm like, you know, if I'm going to call it that,
I should make a prize and give people something to play for.
So people could partake in a series and work towards this prize
where you get to take home some memento of your participation
in the game, some mark of your growth from starting as a beginner
and now finishing at the end of this series.
Because I feel like with building a community,
it's really important to reward people for that involvement.
So I really have focused a lot on trying to get people excited around
playing the game and incentivize, you know, being a part of things,
looking towards the positive aspects of growth.
One more round of applause for Mel T. Glyde.
So I kind of came up into fighting games knowing that I wanted to get into organizing.
I've done event organization in other contexts for most of my life,
whether it's amongst family friends or amongst communities that my parents and family were a part of.
Started in 2024 with Frosty coming up thinking, you know, there hasn't really been a regularly occurring net play event in a while.
So I should just start running something,
give something for people to play for,
give myself something to watch or be involved in.
And I'm only free during the week,
so let's start mid week mashers
and just started running a mid week series,
mid week melting that was first just one time a month
and expanded to twice a month as Climax of Night 2024 came up.
People got anything and everything to talk about
but the truth of the matter is
how many other games are putting up their own events
in lieu of first party corporate sponsorship?
You know, there are some games and communities
that would kill for this kind of setup
that some of those games have, right?
You're no stranger to it on this channel, obviously,
as I could think of two off the top of my head,
but there's something about going to an event
where you know everyone else at that event
has some kind of appeal or competitive draw
towards what you're talking about, not just the game,
but of course, just community stages like this one as well.
A lot of it too is a community making it feel
like a fun thing to be a part of.
Gotta shout out to Poke,
always posting the memes on Twitter before big events,
there was a whole hashtag enter responsibly
before Frosty last year that got really big numbers
for the last couple years.
We had about 100 people in our last year
inside game in 2024.
And I think just those little social media things
and even just seeing that an old game
still gets a lot of entrance are things that
kind of turn your eye to an old game like this
and think, you know, maybe there's more to this
than just being the bathroom game or whatever, right?
Just being the game that has the funny cat character in it.
You kind of get to take a look for yourself,
get to know what this thing that has been talked about vaguely
for so many years has had so many side jokes thrown about
for so long.
You get to know for yourself what that's like
and find that there's a really young emergent scene
for this game that invites you to be a part of it.
So I think the combination of the game being unique
and the community being something that you can become a part
of and get to know kind of what keeps people there.
I think it's a lot, a lot of it's on the backs
of the Western community who along with these changes
in the digital and like you said, improved accessibility
in terms of being able to get access
to some of these games, information.
It's the EVO Prize Launcher.
This year we see the return of some familiar faces.
DomTV, Yikes, and Justin Wall.
Hey guys.
Your FGC favorites are about to take to the stage
and fire prizes into the crowd.
Who will be our lucky winners?
You're going to learn today.
Welcome back to the EVO Arena.
It's time for the EVO Prize Launcher presented by AT&T.
Who's ready for some prizes?
That's the kind of energy that I am looking for please. Can you welcome on stage my good friend none other than
Hollywood
Rob TV
Oh, and he's got that ting on him
I know yet Rob not yet. No yet. Not yet. Hold on now
Slow down
How's it going, brother? You good?
I'm pretty excited to be honest.
Have you done the safety instructions and all that backstage?
No.
Oh, it's going to be good.
All right. You aiming for the upper deck?
You know what? Someone in the first row said they won it.
So maybe...
Yeah, everyone say no, don't, please.
All right, we're ready to load this thing up, all right.
Who's ready?
Who needs this?
Yeah, that's right.
Come on, Rob.
I'm backing the heck up.
Come on Rob. I'm backing the heck up.
Say hello to my little friend.
Alright we got one. Make sure you do not open that yet.
You gotta hold that. Do not open that yet.
We're gonna open these all like it's Christmas day.
Together.
Over on this side.
You get that t-shirt. Hold on. Do not open that t-shirt yet.
Robbie got two more. Slow down, Maddox. Don't blow your whole load too fast.
Oh, he got the vehicle.
He cleared the whole crowd, Rob. He cleared the whole crowd.
Is this the last one? Wait, wait, wait, wait. The last one?
Where are you aiming for? Who wants the last one?
No, who won it the most, yeah.
Over here, you want it over here?
No, no, no, that's not enough noise.
No, no, no, no.
In the middle, do you want it here?
Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait.
All right, how about this side?
No, no, no, no, you guys are wrapping.
Front row, you did it wrong.
You got the front row and no one died.
Finally, finally brother.
That was good, bro.
I wish we wouldn't have been that home.
Oh, good.
Right.
If you were one of the four people that caught one of Rob's launch prizes,
I would need to stand up.
If you caught one launched by Rob, stand up.
There's four of you.
Because we're going to open these all together.
Because I've got some good news.
Not only did you get that awesome t-shirt,
You might notice there's a card in there, right?
You all just want a free tablet given to us by our friends at AT&T!
Alright, lovely. All you gotta do is take those winter cards.
Yeah, if you want to go off the road, that's fine. I mean, you know, I've got you not wanting to hang out on the intro for a bit.
If you've got one of those cards, one of those four winners, if you take that to the AT&T booth,
you can go and claim your tablet provided to us by our good friends at AT&T you
don't have to go now because we got some action to watch but make sure you go
before they close tomorrow thank you very much and of course if you're
watching at home and not leaving you out if you're watching live right now on
On Twitch, then you could win one of 50 codes for Invincible Versus.
All you gotta do is type in that stream chat, exclamation mark prize, and you could be one
of 50 winners of a standard edition steam code for Invincible Versus.
Thank you very much to our friends over there, Invincible Versus.
brutal bone-shattering 3v3 tag-team combat in Invincible Verses where fan
favorite characters from the Invincible Universe collide. Bloody combat. Look out
for season one it's launching June 30th but I'll be adding the formidable
characters of Universal and the immortal. If you win one of those prizes you will
get a DM in Twitch with that Steam code so keep your eyes open. Alright then. That's
the prizes out the way. Who's ready for some rivals of Ether 2? Alright, it's nearly time
for the historic Top 8. But before we get into that, I would like to welcome onto the
stage, studio lead and creator of Rivals of Aether, Dan Fornesi!
I
We did it! We did it! EVO 2026, the main stage!
Now, before we get started, I want to make one thing very, very clear.
that platform fighters are fighting games.
And Evo has always been the biggest stage
that a fighting game can reach.
And I learned about making fighting games
by working on another game that graced this stage
called Killer Instinct 2013.
And then one year later,
I worked on a little game called Rivals of Aether with just a two-person team.
But now, over 10 years later, Rivals of Aether 2 has made the main stage,
and I couldn't be more grateful to all our fans that made this possible.
Now Rivals 2, Rivals 2 has always been an ambitious game, right?
All of our character updates are free updates.
There's no paid DLC, there's no grinding.
Our 20 person team, we are punching well above
our rate class, trying to expand a game that now has items,
casual stages, tons of skins, and even workshop support.
Now this last year, it has been challenging for our studio,
Now, this last year, it has been challenging for our studio, but all the people watching
tonight, you're what makes it possible.
See, the fighting game community is not just our core audience.
It is the lifeblood of our company, and we wouldn't be here without you.
So, as a special thank you to all our fans, I'd like to show you the next original character
coming to Rival to be continued.
They made it!
Come on, Slay with us!
So, yeah, Goody is pretty cool, right?
It's about time that we had an annoying slime ball jumping around the stage and rivals.
That's what I say.
But, but because this is Evo and because I've always wanted to do this, here's one more
thing.
Thank you so much, Danny.
Kind of on news.
How do you feel about those two announcements?
Alright, with all that being said, it's time now for your rivals at Ether2 Top 8.
8. Let's run the intro video presented by Visa.
I only live by God
To say it's bad advice
Trust me, I know the type
I find my people with my people
They'll too cash this time
That head can't cash you up
You're like an overlord
To hold the boat, I'm falling off
And I see the legends of the coast
I know that I got the stage
But I'm the edge of the stage
I only live in the day
The only thing that I can say, is that I'm the best of us, hey
I've seen a lot of stars to a different extent, and I'm more crushed out
Hit the torch and stop and get tied down, don't just fucking eat your health and die down
I'm the one that's on my mind, I'm the edge
I'm such a sugar that I can't sit and play in the air, and I'm doing it again
I'm fine, but I'm just a piece of shit, dead
All, all, all, all, there's a flood of waves, we all roll
It's just when you hold it, I'm here in the moment
That's what I'm holding
in 2017 rivals have made its debut at Evo as an extended game.
In 2025 you had your biggest year yet, a huge number of entrants and of course that community
funded prize support meant that this year you the community have earned your
place here on the e-ball main stage make some noise
now it's time for your rivals of ether 2 player introductions presented by
First up, Hailing from Philadelphia, USA, representing Boykult, it's Stagno!
Fighting out of New Jersey, the United States, representing Parry Gigi, can you make some
noise for Beebeck?
from Florida, United States, representing 8th of, you're reigning, defending, EVO 20-25
champion, it's Plop!
Fighting out Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, let's hear it, for Kate Assault!
from Roseville, California in the USA representing Strug Club. It's Sofilo!
Heading from Lancaster, Pennsylvania representing LG. Can you make some noise
for Sandstorm and Hayley from Dallas, Texas representing Gappy B please
Make some noise for Beastly!
That is your rival to me for two.
Top eight!
Now let's hand it over to your commentators.
Dan Formasi.
Wow!
I feel apologised. Hailing from Holland, Pennsylvania. Let's make some even louder noise.
FIONA KING!
My apologies, come here.
We are here at EVO 2026 the first time that rivals has made the main stage
I am wisely you guys already heard from dad for an AC though
Those announcements weren't saying we're gonna chop it up about that later, but I am so so excited to get through this action
We've got a crazy bracket
Is is going to be nuts
Well, I can understand why he got confused because you know technically because I was commentating
I did never get eliminated, so I could see why he thought I was in top eight.
But unfortunately, that's Yota Cage, who is about a million times better than me
if I had to put a number down on it.
Just a little bit, but we do say, but we do have the bracket here.
We're going to see Stango against Feebats, Pup against Cape Assault,
Yota Cage against Sofie Lowe, Sandstorm against Eastley.
Yes, and first up, I believe we will be starting in losers and going to the form of Sandstorm.
There's BC, which I as a match, I am very excited to see.
Yeah, that will be you.
Yeah, so this match, the reason I'm excited is because, so Sandstorm, for those of you
who don't know, is a top player from another game called Brawlhalla, also a platform fighter,
which, as I said on stage, are fighting games.
There has been some discussion in the past,
some arguments online, people like to discuss,
but I have always considered them fighting games.
That's how we built Rivals of Aether.
So having representatives in Rivals of Aether 2
from other platform fighters is kind of like
a backbone of it, and Sandstorm has been
one of the best players in Rivals 2,
but especially the best player coming from Brahalla.
Not only that, we have obviously Sandstorm
coming from Brahalla, but there are gamers in this topic
from the seven different platform fighters and fighting games.
We will explain all of it a bit later,
but we gotta make some predictions here.
We gotta talk about the top eight predictions
presented by PlayStation tournaments.
Chat, if you are at home, pull up the stream,
type exclamation with one through eight
for who you are voting to win the entire thing.
But Dan, I wanna hear, I wanna hear, who do you think?
We've got eight folks all the way here,
Four winners, four losers.
Who are you voting for?
All right, so even though I don't think
we're gonna see the Maple,
I am still gonna have to go with Plub for a couple reasons,
but the most obvious one is honestly
that he's always just so nice to me at events.
That's, anytime I see him, he's so happy
and he always gives me compliments no matter what state
the meta is in, he's always so happy,
so I gotta fool for Plub.
Yeah, what's really interesting to me right now,
you're looking at the results coming through
The current number one seed of the bracket is Spango
with the fewest percent by 6% compared to, you know,
you see six, seven, five.
We do get the five now that is there.
But I think it is very, very hard to vote against cake
assault.
I know my heart's saying cake, my brain is saying
Spango, let's go for a cake assault victory here.
That's a solid choice of various options.
In rivals of ether, you can never go wrong.
I voted for cake assault, that's for sure.
got like 70% shot. Just say cake, it'll work. It'll work.
Alright, yes. I can't wait for, yeah, that's to get in to see how this, how this one plays
out. I mean, we already have that. We are getting at
Sandstorm versus Beasley, sitting up here right now. Both of them have made some crazy, crazy
bracket runs in order to get here. We will be seeing their victory pats in a minute.
I want to hear from the crowd. We've done our votes. We've done what we're saying here.
I want to hear some noise. I want you to tell me if you're going for Sandstorm on this one.
Sandstorm? You got Sandstorm fans?
Alright, alright. Now, now, let's hear it for Beastly, the person who just came clean off of Winning Genesis.
Okay, but like I said, they both have battled through plenty of opponents in order to get here.
Let's see the victory path presented by White Claw Surge.
Alright, so Sandstorm here has, you know, a very clean way all the way through pools.
Top 48, the first time we see him bleed against another top 8 competitor here, Yota Kichu.
Has really had, I would call, a breakout tournament. I know Yota...
Oh, for sure, because like I've met Yota at many events now.
events now. We've talked a previous Maple player who is near and dear to my heart as
the character I play in Rivals 2, now on Abso. Definitely a great event shown here. And then
after bleeding a little bit, going down O2 to Plup, which no one is going to fault you
for that. And then a huge win over Keeb, kind of the keyboard battle there.
Honestly, yeah. But let's talk about the opponent here. We've got Beastly, sponsored by GappyV
himself. Al the folks in the crowd and what that means has gone through the bracket. We've
gotten, we've gotten some of the early pools, but then we have YBM, the king of, took a
lost mystery soul and then beat Maya, Fulstri, who used to be the previous king of rivals,
and then Mango himself, the legend in order to get you in the mirror nonetheless.
Yeah, that was a huge matchup that I got to see. Also on stream earlier today was that
the Zetterburn Ditto between Mango and Beasley.
Very impressive showing from both of them,
but Beasley able to clutch it out
and make his name and get into this top eight
after already, like you mentioned,
winning our Genesis, the R2CS finals earlier this year.
Now Dan, we know that there's a lot of people,
there's a lot of people who they just put up every event.
They watch Evo and they're like,
I'm just gonna have all the top eights going on here.
If you were gonna talk to someone who's never seen rivals
but has watched other platform fighters
or has watched while they're fighting games.
What is one thing you tell them to do?
Well, there is the meme thing to know, which is that
if you're playing against Heterberg,
you're gonna wanna be aware that his special moves
let you on fire, and his strong attacks consume that.
But not the meme is that every single character
in Rivals has an element that's sort of down.
I still don't know what to do with this, by the way.
We're gonna figure that one out later.
But, now we have Fire versus Earth.
This is the Fire versus Magnet.
He said if you're on fire you're going to take the damage added knockback, but Galvan has the power of Magnus.
Yeah, it's Galvan. One of our new characters added to Rivals 2.
He's announced last either.
Yeah, kind of meant to be a heavy. In my mind he was like a frag 2.0, a sequel to frag, also his futuristic design.
The way he plays you'll see with Sanswom is very much not necessarily respected.
He's an off-stage, terrible P.E.S. recovery and getting back off-stage.
And Sandsaw is one of the best at pushing an advantage.
And Sandsaw actually was playing a different character,
like you have for most of the season,
he switched to Galvan more recently,
and it's hobbit-offly that asks me to say that it looks like
EC is going to carry that stock through your fax,
even if it's 2 to 11%.
Yeah, huge combo there by EC.
And closing it out, like that's what's better,
is really good at these strong attacks,
because you're going to have no fire,
just these entire knocks.
Actually, if you can change the combo,
you're going to have a vicious chaos.
Yeah, you can pull those bombers to try to get that
Really, huh? Just to get them on fire right before that strong attack.
Who gets the drill? Gets the back air?
What's these things for Dalvin?
He's made it into an off-stage edge-guarding situation.
So in terms of, definitely trying to up-floor.
Here, let's come through.
Ooh, there he's there!
Wait, wait, wait!
The upper strings, we got one, we got two.
Drops down, misses the back air!
And, oh, and a little bit of the opposite we see.
Yeah, Galvan didn't even lose any stock off-stage.
And just the backer that stayed for it with his life, because Beastly is no stranger to being on this big stage.
Sanshrub spent on it for both Crysis and for Brawlhalla, but no one's ever been on the stage quite like this.
This is the largest stage you can get in quite a bit.
Yeah, the biggest stage yet for Brawlhalla is not for sure, and I think they're all excited to show that they have the nerves of what it takes to play on a stage like this.
You say yes, they literally don't make larger stages.
Uh, you know, you can take the extra other one, you can take the bigger one for the others.
Wait, this is the largest screen you can rent in Las Vegas?
It's a great state, it's a great state.
Ooh, get some tech, Chase. You can re-grab the forward air.
It hasn't died yet, and you're looking at 105.
Okay, heat it up! Get back to the stage, what are you gonna do with it?
Yeah, I'm just kind of running away with this, but the way every platform has to work,
I think she was trying to come up into the drill with a set up earlier, but instead,
Beastie takes that before there, we've got game one.
Is that down to a sweet spot?
Is that up to a slow life?
There's a lot of options for a better mark.
Alright, and we have to look at the stages.
We've got the starter stages on the left, the counter picks on the right.
Only allowed to choose from the left ones for that first match, and now we're going everywhere.
There we go! You're on rock wall!
Yeah, pretty interesting. Where's the other one? I think the floor there.
Can I get on Galvan? You want to come back to the beginning earlier, right?
Dettaburn is explosive no matter what stage you're on, just kind of always finding Q, so...
Yeah, but the close blasts that you're making are extra scary.
Yeah, for sure.
This team would grab...
So we talked about Dettaburn's kind of a passive, but Galvan also has a lot of his...
He's pretty good on his armor when he's red, he's kind of a...
not powered up, and then like a shoulder like this is galvanized, we call it.
Hey, you're never going to guess with an ingallant.
Yeah.
Yeah.
And when he's galvanized, he has more options.
His special moves have more properties, and some of his attacks will be the rule of the
states that he's going to use.
He's not going to use that.
You just get that power up when you land a hit.
If you get hit, it goes away.
So it really is this option that forwards aggression, that forwards maintaining the
shoulders, just winning it once.
If you're on the defensive, you're not going to be able to use those extra, like,
like the strawberry tats, even that
I can't let me see them today, but I'm making this up special
That really works if he's the one who got the hit
Yeah, it's interesting that these two are the first to receive
If you try to make Galax a little more similar
it doesn't hang out too flexibly, but the idea is simple
If you were inspired by Zedarin, they are trying to get some more
make them better, straightforward
It's one of those like, David, you just gotta hit it
if you works, you're not gonna be able to research anything
quite as much
If you're playing well, it's gonna power you up
Oh, get some of these, get the first one, but just find the second down there.
We're doing this to recover, but that, yeah, that gorge there was going to take it very strong.
Any other stage I've worked on without being on target, I'm not going to kill, but here I'm off all the blossoms.
It's so close.
Drops down, it's a crab.
Scaled, he's right, he's the next that he's hoping for.
They're scrapping, they're just beating up each other's shields, but Beasley just isn't
swinging around.
All these other chokes, you see the chokes, you see the hits, but Beasley's the only
able to keep the next one step further.
Alright, we go low, and now, I would say you're going to get back.
You're going to have to keep it up.
Yeah, that's nice.
I think it's awesome to thank you two for getting up on the chokes.
It's a very fast off-hatch.
That was a great shoot off-hatch in there.
It's fine if we get on the board and throw that aside.
He's soft back there, he's got a re-graph, we love reversions here, we don't want the crowd to leave.
Thank you, Trevor.
I love you, thank you, Trevor, I love you.
Oh no, oh no!
Everyone here, if you were an experienced rivals player, you know what seemed the soft hit of that for where there means.
It means you're about to see another one. Your stock is going to be deleting.
Basely is up 2-0. Now because we are in top 8, we are in best of 5 territory.
Yeah, I was wondering, as Sans Storm, like you mentioned, kind of playing Galvan now and has been playing Galvan for a couple months.
Basically, he released six months ago now, a little bit longer, last fall.
But he had in the end, it looked like a very explosive character as well.
I'm not sure if we would be able to see a swap in a situation like this.
From talking about earlier, we think the Galvan is strong and the Galvan is more consistent.
He feels like he's able to play just a little bit more consistent than the Olympian.
High risk, high reward, but like if you're thinking that you came off a little bit,
you should say, I have a little bit of this game mode on.
Ooh, finds the route right into the strong, shine strong works any day of the week.
When you're playing against BC, he's everywhere, I don't think everyone's left.
I mean, yeah. That's be real. That's be real.
Yeah, BC kind of is showing that kind of what he was able to do all through this bracket
of just that unrelenting pressure that he puts on, especially if you find yourself in the shield.
That seems like one of the worst places to be against BC.
Okay, grab, refresh, drop down with the next backer, but this is the forward air. Does not matter.
Cleans it up. We are back to even the thing is seems to be playing in the back foot most of this set
Really been able to get a stock leader even a strong percent lead if he's able to get one on the board here
I can see the momentum start to shift. That's where he needs
Doesn't find the lion offstage quite yet. Yeah, but I like this. I like this pressure
He's doing in keeping center stage here. It really feels like he's playing his game right now
Set the drill up if you want to see that coming to play later.
It's always nice to set your tools down.
Oh, I thought he was going to go for it.
Here, he's so patient.
Into the drill, doesn't hit the floor here.
There's a couple of those near misses.
Promise if you have a near miss.
Beastly is going to take you for a ride.
Wait, wait.
Get one more drill down.
Those are scary.
They only work if you're in hits on those.
so that Galvan has to hit you into them, they are not just passive items, passive traps,
there they go. There's one, there's two, are we gonna get the third? Not quite yet.
He usually spews out the third one and then closes the stock, so...
shuts down that drill game.
That is his game, I was trying to get him on fire, and trying to use that fire with the
a dominant performance and what genuinely what else do you expect from the man who won Genesis.
Yeah, yeah, just really showing. I think like last year we had a lot of different names kind of coming in at the end of the season.
Beastly putting you know really putting a stake down by winning the biggest the finals, but I think a lot of people kind of still downplaying.
You know, especially especially fans who are watching at tournament players. We saw like the voting as well.
Beastly's like, hey, I'm not the player that you want to downplay, because I will beat your favorite player, and then I'll keep going through brackets.
Yep. I will not mind.
Alright, the replay presented by PlayStation Tournaments.
You can explode toss, you can be up special, but then it gets reversed, and at that point, it's all beastly.
Yeah, beastly just, yeah, so, so good, especially, I feel like any platform fighter, any fighting
game, right, once you get that advantage and you're in the lead, right, it's, it is really,
really hard to steal momentum back, but some players just feel like they have an extra
engine that goes, it's just tricky, yeah, exactly, yeah, it's like, it feels like it's suffocating,
even just to watch, so I imagine playing it is extremely stressful.
Yes, I can only imagine being on this stage.
Like we said, six of these players have all one majors.
There's two that are trying to fight for their life to get the first one,
but six of them have one majors,
and even then there is nothing like being on the stage.
Yeah. You mentioned just how big of a stage it is.
But yeah, especially coming from rivals of either,
we started from as grassroots as a grassroots can get, right?
Kind of joining the other events.
I remember the very first tournament we went to was
at GDC in 2016 and we were at like a small bar,
just fine, even just getting a stream was a huge deal
because we were freaking out about our first tournament.
And now they go all the way here all these years later.
It's like a dream come true,
not just from our perspective as developers,
but I'm sure all these players
be able to play on such this big stage.
They had to clutch it out to get here.
Speaking of the players playing on the big stage,
let's take a look at the bracket once more.
We just had Sam Swarm vs. Beastly, and I'm looking over there, and we're going to get
Yota Cage vs. Sofila.
Yeah, so we talked a little bit about Yota Cage, you know, kind of, kind of like we said,
a breakout tournament, Absame now was previously a Maple.
I don't know, pretty recently, right?
I would say like a dual main going into the end of last year, now more so definitely an Absame.
But then Sofila, Sofie is no slouch herself.
And she has, yeah, she took a combo breaker last year
and that has been basically in every top eight I've watched,
right?
At least it feels so.
So she's been not only a tournament threat,
but like one of those choices people would pick
even before a tournament to come away with the win.
So you do not want to sleep.
We talked about this being a breakout performance
for Yota Cage.
In fact, let's take a look at the victory path itself.
Let's lay it out for you.
We are starting with killers, basically, from the get-go.
But let's point out Aubrey Clo in the mirror.
Get-kingo with the phenomenal OXANOTS.
We took a loss to Mystery Soul, but then we have Maya,
Fullstream, and Mango.
Yeah, Aubrey Clo should have been on Maple, right?
Am I crazy?
I want to double check something there.
I want to double check something there.
But we do have Sophie, Sophie who also put on a show.
You can right-wering in Dominik, lost to Mando,
but then beat Sian, Hampholo, and Misfree-Sull on her way here.
That is a lot of Zettperd did it was to get to.
I think it's a lot.
I don't even think about that.
Hampholo, another player who was definitely
trying to make a name for themselves.
I saw some crazy sass that he was able to pull off.
So Sophie, able to get through that Zett or Ditto
and make it here is a big challenge.
Now, I did save you four.
We were calling out some of the predictions.
We were asking you guys, and don't worry.
I'll ask for some yelling in a sec.
But make sure we have the EVO fantasy presented by AT&T
and follow along at upsets.ggs-evo-2026.
And votes, are you looking for Yodakage,
who frankly is making it an enormous upset,
a huge run in order to get here, or Sophie?
Right now, Sophie is sitting with a 74% prediction.
Yeah, I think that feels pretty good, because if I was bending, I think I would want to take that as off as well.
But, you know, Yota Cage had to make a lot of upsets to get here, so it's not unknown territory right now.
Frankly, Sophie is one of the people who has one major and wants CEO as one of the big breakouts.
Yota Cage is a phenomenal player. Most of the people are very aware of who they are, but doesn't have that major victory, doesn't have that major win.
Yeah, like yeah, I think we mentioned like I think for us it depends on how far in the tournament that you're
You're looking at in terms of a breakout, but like it there is no instant breakout and anybody gave me
Everyone is had at least heard of I think like a lot of a lot of players think back to like Armada way way back
When he first arrived in the melee scene and that did kind of feel like an instant break out because so many people
they're unaware of this player who just comes in and gets all the way to like top three.
But with online now, I think it's much harder.
That was literally before tournaments were being uploaded to YouTube consistently,
like we are, we live in this era, it is much harder. We've been talking about
breakout performance, but Yota also is a phenomenal player from Ultimate.
Like this is not Yota's first Rodeo, this is not their first game that they've been a top player.
Yeah, for sure, and we mentioned that even the absolute right like I was following and watching Yoda because I was trying to learn from his maple
And then he stopped playing maple and dance like shoot. I need to find someone new to watch
He has a set versus Pikman from
From poor priority which maybe is one of the fastest rivals to set period and how quickly this game
I think it was even a 3-0. I think it was a 3-1
But the both of them just chaotic really so fast and I still go back to see what am I supposed to do against Atlas
So I was trying to learn Yodakage, and then immediately after that, I feel like Yodakage was on absent.
I was like, okay, I guess there's one most person for making a learning run.
Very funny that you're like, I'd like to look at the Yodakage versus Pikmon to learn.
April versus Adelaus.
When neither plays those characters anymore.
Man, that's a good point.
I can still learn from the past.
Pikmon's not on Adelaus.
They can't delete the bots.
I mean, they could delete the bots, but they hope that they know.
Guys, we should delete the bots.
This could be really funny.
Oh, no, don't delete the bots.
But yeah, it is hard, like we said, to kind of, in this era, be just a complete unknown.
But when you do make that breakout, I feel like a lot of the, you know, not just us
as commentators, but other competitors, you know, they, it probably feels different, right?
Because now it's like, now you're, they're cheering for you, you're up and coming, and
now you're next to them, and you're a threat in the bracket.
Now the unknown usually isn't like we've never heard of this person at all, but it's we've heard of them only on ranked
We're a part of them only online and it's can they keep that performance up in person
I know last year one of the big stories of the tournament was Zeus
Zeus who was perennial top player on the ladder
Is also now top 15 player in the world
But last you know when we are on the extended lineup
They're very first-time in all form and you do have those kind of stories
You have the people who come out of the woodworks and we're like well, can they keep it can they yeah
And yeah, I think one of the games
I remember following when killer instinct when I had been working on that a lot of players did come from that online warrior
Mindset come to tournaments and I feel like as a player who goes to locals you might downplay
But sometimes they come in and they just they can just work
We've had that happen in rivals before all right
We're seeing the headset to get on looks like we are ready to get going here
Alright crowd. I want to hear some noise. I want to hear who's looking forward to yoda cage right now. Who's going for yoda cage?
All right, that was pretty loud that was pretty loud who's here going for Sophie
All right, we're kicking it off immediately game number one that will be so below on this
that urban yoda cage on the app says we've been talking about oh
Mrs. The Grapes platform movement
Yeah, right away we see abses move in a big part of any apps nowadays, but you know, especially
Yoda cage coming from my evil very fast character. I think he's used absent of the fastest one.
I mean Yoda, even the co-alters, like the outer junior, like very weird, mechanically different characters.
There's no slouch, it's no...
It's hard to figure out how to make them...
Okay, I'm going to go there, we get the cloud, we are down very deep.
Are you able to make it back? Yes, you're being grabbed, you're going to rip, repeat,
You get the pop, but it's so much to some back on stage.
Yeah, Yoda, you'd be able to sneak a little bit of a pull in there on that grab, too.
Oh, look at that.
If he's moving through that strong already, he's talked about Zediver.
Oh, it's a double.
Wow! Wow!
Pretty big pull.
To me, if we talk about how Zediver was killed there from much earlier with their outfire,
if you want more damage, you're not bad.
Asus is one of the lightest characters in the game, so that matters even more.
They die extremely early in this matchup, this is very bad.
Especially in the last round.
Yeah, they're all in the game.
At the same time, F says a combo, monster, and has those lightning kicks that will demolish him.
This is high risk, high reward.
This is followed by their base slamming into this, right?
Elixir Thunderline, Bunt's off stage.
We get the parry, but we get back to the legendary.
I'm not gonna have to deal with that anymore.
Yeah, Sofi was ready. If you get...
Wow! There we go! There we go!
No one did stability on that ledge. Sofi was ready to sit down here to put his down.
You're not a parry son anymore, but you don't have the ledge and no stability either.
Okay.
He's zipping around.
He says to start grounded. That's what we're about to do.
And tap afterwards.
Okay.
This is the tech chase.
We're trying to go for the five-point tech chase.
Instead, Sofi reverses it.
Yeah, this last combo, they just went for the center stage.
really hard
really hard
so this is the only character that we have here twice in this top 8
everyone else plays a unique character
you know it's a couple clubs and we can see 0.9435
but most of those are still unique
this is the only one we're seeing double
very super deep
yeah that's a good one
we hit it and we are going to a game
2
Gage is down, Zero to launch.
Yeah, the first stock looked very, very good.
Oh, it did.
It did.
I thought Yota was going to take the first stock first.
And I knew that just a little bit after, right?
Like, not too far.
But then the rest of the match, Sophie
was able to really push her advantage
and kind of run away with it there.
All right, Dan.
I do have an important question for you.
While we were waiting while they were doing their stage pick.
What element is goo?
It's gooey.
What element is just goo?
on the select screen?
Yeah.
He's water.
That's not what water is.
Well, it's viscous.
And therefore, it fits into my personal definition
of the water element.
You're just making up biology now?
All right.
I get to decide at any time where the character is
called to the elements that I put Goody under water.
If this keep reminding me of Ronald,
they seem like they would be friends.
I don't think Goody's any good for the elements.
I do think they look cool, so...
Alright, so we're getting here into game 2, where there is no goop, instead we have a low-poly stage background.
We have the alternative version of the stage, the same layout, different art.
And here we have Sophie kind of picking up where she left off at the second half of the game actually.
Really pushing to lead, although Yodakir is just saying, no, now it's my turn.
One of the big things because that is fast-fall, or perhaps that is a bit more, a little bit more easily,
but the big weak conditions for Absence matches to be able to get aligned offstage,
be able to keep their edge parking going, that's where we're going to see exactly if the other team's different attacks.
Yeah, even on a big stage like this, so the stage is not only big, but the blasts are pretty far out,
But we did mention how light-ass it is on anything that's like a strong attack, like a sweet talker there, like, you're getting a ton of sound back on the light character.
It is one of the reasons why Nancy would take it here. One is they're gonna get a lot of space to play a little bit more of a silver game type.
The other is because I can use that card anywhere on your stage, but you've got to kill me a little bit higher than your side.
Yeah, exactly. I put that cloud tonight that we see there. Sometimes if it's not quite enough, you can still finish off this dock, especially when it's really bad to do like that.
Big reason that I just got out of the woods, you know, whenever you're on a stage like this.
I remember being so trained to get that started, get some building, get the light, and then you can just go down.
Get up, get that, pop, air dodge in, and you get parried!
I'm unable to get more than one hit off of it, but I think this small lead here.
If I out again, it's on the ground.
Two tips. I really backed out of it.
Very important that she got this children's health ever since, I think, on fire.
That will be good.
I think we get one more chance at it, though.
I said I thought it was going to kill, and I definitely did when you went to beat that one.
The Thunderlight Hike in the stage at that point.
It's so hard to be either when you're off stage or when you're at it, so it's so many different options.
Okay, but...
I'm answering right back. We're turning the stage red. We're down to last stock.
We are flying all over a little bit of the rushdown cut.
If you miss, that is perhaps a good thing to do for a ride.
Okay?
Super good mixture, I know, they're trying to stay right outside of Supercrane.
Double-dump cancel, that is so true.
Look at this carriage.
That is a big start.
We're trying to find a lead Shining Order to be able to confirm they're running on fire.
I'll pull it in.
Big stage.
And they're on fire now too, they're on fire now.
I second left the kids. Grab!
Are you able to clean it up?
No!
Whoa, we are just staring at each other, okay!
Oh my god, definitely the most tense part of this set so far.
Oh, the techies into the Nair! No way!
There's one more forward air, but we are so deeply in the walls of the cloud!
Reverse this, Piyota Cage can't finish!
Okay, one more forward air would have done it, that was a mess!
No!
Okay...
Honestly, there's no effect that you can afford to get this, get there, put it off stage, you're over tilt!
Over tilt! Killed on fire, capital!
Over tilt!
I mean, at that percent, I'm getting it, but on that stage, I still was surprised.
164, but that's not a kill move!
Oh my gosh, and you're at the- they were at the end, and you hit with it, and you hit, and you hit-
And you're probably holding that because you're trying to dash away, you're holding out, like...
Oh my god, that was so stressful, and you know, Yoda really needed that moment.
He needed that momentum.
Yeah, and she, you know...
She really ran by Soki, able to kind of clutch that out of the limbo.
And really, there was like a good 30 seconds of prepare and where to hit.
Not only was it anyone's game, but it really felt like there were hits landed, right?
It wasn't just like everything was shielded or everything was docked.
There were some hits landed, but just not enough to close out the stock.
When you saw Soki's up 2-0, she was taking a time to breathe.
Just like, I need to close my eyes, I need to reset, I need to make sure I'm playing my game
game in my way that I'm not overthinking the crowd, that I'm not overthinking my heroine.
We are back to the low-poly fire capital.
I see this is so close to being a Yodakage game.
I get it. I get it. I don't think the stages would make a difference.
I think it's all about the two games. Yodakage is the food.
Yeah, I think going back to the stages is more like the Yodakage and Saber.
No way!
Put some extra sauce on that charge, oh my god!
That huge call out and like we said, honestly, you didn't even knew that much charge because I probably like this character at N on fire, but just put it in the game.
I mean, you'll take it, you'll take it. If you gotta pull out that hard, I'll forget it.
Yeah, it has so many quick buttons that, like, coming back is super hard, you have to
You're going to get shot, you're going to get one of these.
Any different fast options they have there.
This is the last game, so back and forth.
Ready this view, like Soki is slowly moving this from the energy to the grass.
We've only had that one stop, we are not getting relapsed, we are unbalanced.
You are going to be able to get back, but you've got to make your choice.
forward through offstage.
Togglecloth, but...
...you're missing these monkeys,
choosing so many phenomenal options on recovery
and reverses a few.
Not only am I getting back,
but you're eating a board strong for your problems.
Yeah, that Mary was like a good...
Hold on, let's not...
Sophie, don't look for the forge on a slower option.
You're looking for a kind of welcome.
There we go.
Oh, yes, I...
...we need to see over here,
getting some of these edge guards.
I'm making a difference.
Back on stage.
Okay, diggy with a pressure against trap, then you call out from Sophie.
Alright.
Okay, we're just throwing her projectiles at each other.
One person's gonna win out, the downstruck descend, all stage doesn't do the clap-off right away.
I think we just keep the phenomenal job on Jesus, texting the edge guards, but that means that he'll just do everything they can.
Everything he can do to try to send her off stage and it does not matter. He finds her way back.
Hey, oh there he goes, there he goes.
The last guy, I'm a sock and a 80%. I don't care that we're on fire, Captain.
If you are on fire, you are liable to die.
Oh! Okay, that could have been some terrible CI for a second.
We're just starting to go through the air dock and trying to get away from Karrion.
He's gonna pull one of them out that could lead to death.
We get the party started. Are you able to pull the combo through?
We're still strapped and we're still moving.
Big up air, second up air. Not gonna do it.
Do it, the counter but you can't even guess to you.
Okay, right, gets to throw.
Sips up to the extra speed.
Huge tech chase, we're going off to the right.
Oblates the cloud, but you can't get through the second one.
Yota puts one on the board, says I'm still here.
Let's go Yota, take a huge massive comeback there.
They're able to stay, you know, stay toys
and bring that all the way back.
How did that fuck it 80%? As we said, if Epsom's on fire, they're the lightest characters.
They genuinely could have died with any opening. The crowd is popping off.
I know. A lot of these folks proceeded to make this top 8. Yoda wasn't one of them.
Yoda's made some massive upsets to get here and says,
My run's not done. We're gonna party first.
Yeah, and you mentioned that one point the up there, not killing you,
said maybe the counterfeit coming back. But right before that, not dying on that DL.
Oh, yeah, managing to step by when we thought, uh-oh, that was almost like over before it started
and instead Yota came able to stay alive and then bring the entire stock back to take that.
Ah, the crowd is loving this set though. I don't even want to see you getting five.
Yota is already looking like they're playing with some fire under some momentum.
Okay, so I'm sure I'm going to get this combo going.
So that's the kill that we've even seen along, and a 30% chance that there's a start, but it drops down and gets the socket.
A weird trade there. Dude, these downstrokes are coming in clutch!
Yeah, we're seeing a lot more success.
I think, what, there's also an attempt, but definitely...
That's not it.
But we are now making this much more difficult.
It's right down there! Into the down there!
Oh Yoda, you can hear the crowd popping off!
How does Nairn have to be able to keep his side right now?
I had to fight with the food a little bit, but it still cleans it up!
Yeah, only 4% of Nairn can run that much at all.
Oh, straight, you didn't think he's Nairn, that's how many punch.
That's just Nairn.
It's a great combo breaker, it's got a lot of shooting spots.
Oh my god. Oh my god. We almost made it off the top. Super early.
Yeah, that happens when you come in and you can't see the 94% after the combo, but that's fire.
That was 94% after a hit.
Yeah, I just find anything like Sophie's
I'm not starting to put on this pressure.
It is swapping and dealing with some of the faster free data.
So you shine the aerial, Sophie's fixed it up, and I need them to do that.
Because you came out to get me, you came shielding me with some airy.
But you gotta choose the one.
Oh, the spot that's called out and down strong, Sophie takes it 3-1.
Everyone's popping off right now.
I know they were cheering for Yota before,
but we just want to see it get sad.
We want to see some hype play.
Yeah, and I think Yota had a good showing as well,
like really impressive people to bring back that game three,
and just making it all the way, like we said.
Oh, yeah, 100%.
And you can always do this top eight,
this huge stage, super impressive run.
And I really liked, I mean, I think
Apsa is very fun to watch in Rattles too,
but the top players, the player, Ant, Yota,
everyone who's kind of pushing her forward.
They all play so different. They all play so different.
We are about to see some of these replays, though, presented by play station tournaments.
Thank you so much.
Say that was that.
Edgeguard. I wouldn't be shocked if we're not seeing that fang popping there down there later, but...
Yeah, Yoda cake had some ping pong combos, too.
Managed to get one in that game, 3-wear hit.
So if you were the off-stage cloud and was able to get the sweet spot cake, but that's still...
Because on the big stage, it still wasn't enough.
Still needed to keep Eckhart in that situation.
You'd love to see just the emotion on their faces,
whether it is joy, whether it is pain,
or even hope to come back.
Oh, there it is.
Yeah, there it is, Ron.
That downshot with the PI out is really what it's got.
It's a sire for a leaf afterward.
Right.
Ha ha ha.
Here's how so we can close it out.
Hey baby!
Hey Pop, I've jumped out of the chair.
We will be seeing more for later, but
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Before we see them though, we've got the Chipotle Burrito Meter
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Yeah, and with that, we will be going to a quick break, but we got weird sight of Top
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This is convenient, isn't it?
Everything changed from the insert coin.
It's been a long time since I played the story fight 4.
At that time, I remembered that I had met the one who I was going to fly to.
I don't see myself waiting for at least maybe 20 more years.
Oh, the joy, the joy, ladies and gentlemen!
It's much more than just playing. It's being a part of this community.
Welcome back, everyone.
checking in with the airheads air cam make sure your LED arena wristband is on to be part of the fun
because you can power up your candy game. I know those guys with their heads. I know those people
I know those folks in the Red Bull seats. I've seen some wisely warriors there in the back row.
Oh wait that's my own face. I don't I don't I don't know if I like that one. I don't know if I like
I knew he was wearing that. I totally forgot as the camera was taking over.
You just have such a presence at rivals tournaments that you're everywhere all at once.
It's crazy when out of the two of us you're the one who actually works on the game.
I think I have seen my face in a crowd though before.
not a detachment. So I think I hope it's detached from you.
Welcome to the rival. Well, I could be in the crowd, but welcome to the rival's face
sign club. It's very small, less, honestly. It might just be the two of us right now.
And that's why we're here. They do maybe Trevor too. Let's see. I think Trevor deserves it
for sure. So I could see Trevor. I could see George. But now we are going to be getting
in to the winner side, which I am very excited for these matches because my choice and your
Your choice, both, happened to be up next.
There we go, there we go.
Take a look at this bracket.
So, like I said, both of our votes, but this match is going to very heavily affect how the rest of the top 8 plays out,
because I don't think anyone wants to play either of these players and losers.
I don't want to fight any of these guys anytime, but if you got it, I mean, yeah, I don't, you're looking at like, ooh, do I have to fight Plup, or do I have to fight Kekosal?
That's not an easy choice.
That's not an easy choice.
And with Kekosal, though, you know what character you're going to play against.
You do know what character Kekosal is going to be playing.
So that's pretty fun.
With Plup, you have some ideas based on what character you play, but you're not entirely sure until he sits down and picks a character or character.
character. Not only are you not sure about the character, but cake the salt, putting
clean off of the number one spot on the R2CS rankings. Plup was not ranked, but the reason
for that was inactivity because Plup showed up to Genesis, won that, showed up to Evo
last year, won that, and then just disappeared for a year. We're going to talk about that
later because this man is not a stranger to rivals despite that his like 600 sets on ranked in the
last time four of the current top ten ranks character or profiles are his but we've got the victory
path presented by white claw surge yeah so this bracket I actually got to watch there were his last
round one pools match when you went up against quattro quattro and that was a surprise right
So watch our took a game off of them. Yeah, we were I was on the mic for that and that was last year at either
Plup didn't drop a game until top eight and no one made him bleed before that
Watch our literally in round one pools was doing it, but we also have
Cake the rivals go has been ranked number one in the world in multiple seasons
They're eight number one in the world this season
But isn't the number one seed in this bracket has beaten a ton of good players, but including Cuban,
Strobe, Zeus and Angle right before getting here.
Yeah, and again look at the end of round one pools of 2-1. So a little bit of both players kind of a
little bit more blood than last year before they made their way to the top eight.
Everyone's getting so good. It's just that everyone's getting so good. Our mid-level is getting good, our new players are getting good.
But also, there's just this mistake.
It's when you're fighting a top level player,
there's a lot of people that say,
I got a couple stocks, or I got a game.
And then they get demolished afterwards.
They get three stocks, they get two whites.
Yeah, I've had that feeling.
We're playing a player a good bit better than me.
Somehow managed to take you into it,
and then it all goes away.
We felt being a good player,
a part of that to be hit with that fast,
We're looking at the stages right now
We're going to go to I dealt a plop
Raining on the or can we got the plushie here and he said that we knew what character cake was going to play
This wasn't that character. All right. I'm I did lock. He thought we're gonna see Forsberg. This is a fleet
This is a callback to the beginning of rivals, too
Yeah, so yes early days cake and we have seen the feet for certain matchups, but I think you know we're getting one of them
Yeah, I was not exactly for sure, so it might...
Depending on how this game one goes, we might see the character counter-counter-courses happening in this set.
I mean, we've...
Huck has played 3 different characters just during this branch, and we've seen an able to see the arcade.
We saw a surprise in Montana.
It's actually probably used to be Quatro after dropping that game.
Kake is hugely the force burn tried to true.
Hasn't played it as much, since dropping the character a bit, but uses it for a couple of times.
Yeah, and he had these Lincoln and Doubles as well, so it was easily formed for tournaments if he thought he needed it for certain matches, but at Evo, you know, it's just a single defendant.
I'm surprised I've received a fleet of this late, especially to be practical.
That side special tornado doesn't need it, but it does get back to the left because of that.
I can't believe how close they are to the enemy, they're all over a hundred and they are able to pull it out the first time.
There we go.
Pretty cool use of that get-of-a-fact there to kill.
Honestly, yeah.
I still have time, like surprisingly still have time to get the shield apple to where I can't, they're real funny today.
I see a lot of these little bubbles coming out from the game.
They're able to get that off.
I don't know what other throws, but also like that.
like that. The problem is if you do it in the wrong spot, you're going to get Harry to
take him for a ride. Not to be smart, because this is a huge trap. You put out a bunch of
little tiny projectiles on stage that you are able to use to close back the shooting.
You're in the wrong spot. You got it.
I know I've been playing a lot because I didn't just hit the top of the Harry at the same time.
So, there are a lot of situations in Rival where you've seen it in the time that you
were anticipating and adapting at the same time.
Now, we've explained the Waternog a little bit, but we've also got Khalid, the Archer.
Power of Wind, one of the things she's going to use, empowers her next Hero attacks.
As I say that, she's getting blown up off the top.
But if you see that trend going, if you see her glowing,
the next one will put down the Wind Chime and that will pop the First and Powerful
a couple of seconds later.
Being said, you can transfer it back to the opponent I can give you.
Just go up super high with that up there, just to find it.
Yeah, these arrows, where are they about to make sense?
Such a notorious character, and here with the edge guard as well.
It's like having that float, having that dish joint, having like all our arrows have uses.
So, here we see that in the air, you're going to throw that best knock.
That's a guaranteed kill, that's why it's purple.
I did that, I'm just saying, I just realized, you never explained the purple screen.
Yeah.
He said there's a guarantee that the game has decided there's no way for you to win.
Yeah, no matter what your DI, there can be something in the way.
If you have like a bubble, you've got a practical error.
There can be something that locks you, but if no DI will save you, it's going to be terrible.
Any control will be called directional conferencing.
Choose a little bit of direction you get sent when you get hit to your strongest defense options.
It's going to get you out of combos earlier, but it's also going to perfect you from the start.
The thing is, that's the big sum.
The wrong way for one, you actually die.
And you get ledge.
Trace there.
And that down strong came out with the confirm from the down air.
The down air was tricky because he didn't hit fall on the first one
and he waited for like two and then fell
and I was also very startled at when they were going to hit the ground.
So really, yeah, little tricky play.
That's the point. We're trying to make it tricky. If you know, then they're able to defend against it.
Yeah, and able to close out that stock. I saw a lot of the backers come out, and, you know, Pog was kind of just happy to get the damage.
Obviously, the sweet spot would have been great to close the stock, but you're keeping your advantage, and then he was able to set up the down here, and then we shot him to close it out.
So we are supposed to...
Ooh.
Yeah, I was just very...
Did we go down to take the first one?
Well, I mentioned the counter pickers, and I said, depending on how this set plays out, we might see it.
In my head, I was thinking if, um, cake isn't how I should have the board to go.
I would charge and then we would see Plup there off of the port can.
Exactly.
If he was working, I think we would see.
Okay, so off the port can.
Yeah, and then you start getting the rotation there.
Yeah, in this matchup, I wanted to ensure, um, what we would see if Plup won.
I think Plup at that point would say port can, so we could see him of course off, right?
Oh, the vet tornadoes suffer so much range, those that plop has to go low because of it.
How does that get monster down there?
There we go.
Get the backer up, obviously if you get to the ledge.
Kind of great, it's putting off of it. There we go now.
Oh, and we landed right on the pot, which means you're able to continue it.
Yeah, these bubbles take a minute to ever think those were fair to catch it before bubbles set up something else.
Now if it's a track that you're putting on stage, you can either pull it to make some bubbles,
or it makes a strong skill bigger and farther.
They also can be a little bit more, and it's pretty nasty, but that back air covers it instead.
That's exactly the same.
I thought the downfall was the wrong choice because I felt like you couldn't have a stronger grip option,
especially against your play character.
But that's not exactly the case with the music game, because it was.
The back air closed it out.
Every once in a while, Dan has a new reason to bow.
They are really good at this.
They know what they're doing.
It is funny when you're like, yeah, we've been coaching from this person, or like,
just teaching me the Attila Smash up.
You didn't make the bear.
But I get it, I get it.
I made the game last all my life.
Okay, the down tilt, hop up into the up tilt.
Sometimes you feel like you're in that 14-4 attack, the double there, we're attacking on so much damage, the backers should clean it up, but it doesn't!
And still that puddle that you can tell. Whoa, never mind, I was explaining something about the mechanics, and we got on stage real fast, we cleaned it up, went back to even.
I can't be able to rack up the first damage on this stack, but it went way closer than I think they wanted with some of the leads that he's had.
And then we find that up here.
He's out super deep.
He's trying to clean himself against Eggdog's zone.
Hit him there.
He's stuffing every single time he's trying to get back.
He's on up a puddle out.
That is a big resource that you're waiting for the drop with the hit so that you know that you can get that recovery.
That's not to an instinctive acing by every single hit of the tornado.
Somehow it's there.
How much I've seen the damage that bad gripping do.
It could die during this interaction.
Oh my god, no way!
The way the get up hits the pop on!
The win try doesn't hit the parry!
Oh my gosh, I'm not dead yet.
Not dead yet.
One more.
Oh my god!
He's gonna do it!
And they're up a down throw to close that start.
What a crazy last thought.
Can't get the sweet spot on the ledge and that's all defeated.
That was a lot of interaction that happened really fast, so difficult to keep up with both
these players.
Yeah, kind of.
It was an interesting game because it really did feel like, you know, Kake had the momentum.
Like I said, has solid gap.
Yeah, kind of it was an interesting game because it really did feel like, you know,
Kake had the momentum. Like I said, has solid, yeah, some big leaves.
Pluck always able to bring it back even as we got into last stock.
It still felt like Kake's game and like Pluck was still kind of just trying to get it even.
Pluck was trying to peek it out and suddenly he was like, no, I can't just have the one opening I needed.
You know, we've mentioned how great this character is and how it's not aerial,
but like that weakness that absolutely runs in how light people in character can be a disadvantage.
Some of these aerial that other characters might not be dying from like the air out on the situation
It's just so like so far
Hey drop down there the reverse back air
Still doing some damage, but you have the puddles always stay back to it
That's the question of trying to go up to the edge or maybe trying to couple puddles
Very tricky trying to figure out exactly what's new about it
Harry's the droplet and immediately sets the next one down.
Yeah, you need to actually need that for an all-in-one.
Yes!
Okay.
Here are the standards of each other with these different boxes.
Got the techs.
Jump down here.
That!
Drop-up!
Yeah, that might do it!
That might do it!
And it does indeed!
The answer right back though...
I think on stage, what would they start this punish off of?
They're covered.
Hey, Casakot, back on stage.
Alright, you crap, Ledge.
But that's exactly what happened at the end of the last game, the throw into the nair.
Yeah, again, like a heavier character, like, you definitely die on that.
You not die there, at least start an interesting situation at the point of death.
But, with me, that's an interest.
That's a stop.
I love that take was just floating right over the bubble.
And you know what? I'm gonna hit the piece to go with.
I don't need a land shaker in here.
Okay, that's chill.
I feel like Fluff has a really good usage of that.
He uses that down the point of the tunnel for the recovery,
but he also, he's not afraid of these bubbles, but he's not holding it.
Jump into it, there he is, don't go and say.
Jake knew that Fluff had to go back and see if Furnish double jumped right before that.
So the recovery still makes it back.
Really good call there hitting that 4 there.
I'm going to try these.
I'm going to take that 4 there, try to use the bubble block, try to get back in.
But right now, this is basically the same shape as the last game.
Hey, you've got to take this.
Leave this momentum.
It gets transferred back and that's what I was saying.
And now it's club's combo.
Thank you for your Wrenching, I will use it to make my combo cooler.
It's always cool to ease your opponents and eliminate your opponents resources against them.
Yeah, that's something we try to do in our design, but I have an opportunity because it is fun to be able to have combos that only exist for such targets because you can kind of use their tools against them.
Both in the ghetto, in the near and in this kind of thing. Oh my god. Oh my god!
Okay, there. There's there. It's out. We have to go to the funnel now, Deb.
Yeah, that was a lot of time to get probably...
Oh, Puddle on stage yet!
No Puddle on stage yet we go to!
Oh!
What just really missed on some high-level...
We get on the...
Yeah, I take Abel to get on the board, huge, in terms of that kind of confidence and momentum going into.
Not just as the rest of the set, but, you know, kind of the rest of Top 8.
And I'm very interested to see where...
Where Plup is going to want to go?
It's the first time it's been Plup's pick.
First time Plup needs to go, and we are going to the classic.
So did you, Lail!
Top andus, they don't know.
That's crazy.
How's they just so neutral?
That's something about it.
Got a banon.
Take assault, he does not, and then why is he right here?
Okay.
Just like, hey, you're trying to get out of these bubbles.
You're holding off. You're gonna be able to get back forward, so...
I like yes
Not this
Okay, you're the one at high-percent
But you know what oh my god
But, no one goes for that.
I like, yes, seeing as I'm kind of going for a couple more kill-ups here and there.
Even though they haven't hit yet, it really didn't spread out perfectly, I suppose.
And I always think those things finish here.
That tech was huge, I think.
I thought they'd be able to get a very burbly percentage that hit out.
But instead, the pop's gonna do one more misses that does have a hitbox there that would've killed.
As it landed, and we are dead.
Take, takes it, I need a two on socks right now, trying to fight to bring this to a game five.
And, you know, doesn't tank that up, air.
They're just dancing around each other.
And I mean at 157? 157, that's a shot.
Wait, I love that. You saw that the attempted detection is real, I can't get there fast enough.
So I'm just gonna float out right before him and see what option you're going for next.
See if I can, uh, hit you out of it.
Yeah, the first back throw wouldn't close it out, but the second one, uh, was able to do it.
So back to Eden, there's a lot of stuff playing the backflips in the 81%, but I am terrified for Kage.
Whoa, no! We do have the puddle, we do have the puddle, which means that Kage had to figure out
I think he wasn't sure about the double jump, so he went for the right to the puddle.
Because Bup still had so much vertical, the height to be able to cover it when you had that double jump.
Yeah, we've been using that flip kick to try to get back to the stage, and Bup is now starting to fall out a little bit earlier.
Oh, just snipes the ledge right from under him!
8% though, this creep, I thought this creep would be brought back very quick.
Take in, save nats is exactly what I'm talking about.
Yeah, the carry came out, looking for that falling area, but uh, yeah.
What with the drink back, I think the post back here is, it's probably the speechback connected with the anger it hit.
Yeah, for meantime, we know it's gonna pop.
It's gonna be punished, but Pup still isn't landed. Still has not landed.
We do have the puddle, you have to go for it now,
we get the full charge, but it doesn't kill yet.
Oh my God, he was holding that one.
Hey, ooh, and that's gonna do it.
Proud, we are going to a game five.
The two legends duking it out.
This is who a lot of people have called out
being the victors, it's either gonna be Plump,
or it's either gonna be K-Cult,
that's what people have been saying to Proud.
I am so excited to see this final game. Game 5, it will bring it back, so very impressive.
And a different stage choice. So sticking to this hack, we're going to see all five games.
We mentioned that if we could see the character counter pick, instead we're going to see three or three, or sorry, five or three games.
Getting good, not either what we were expecting, but we got this game 5 between the titans.
Okay, kill for that.
Leaves the back air out, the soft back air, another soft back air.
There, he just cannot push his way back on stage.
Took so much damage, still hasn't landed, that's not going to kill yet.
One of the strongest, the strong attack that I think is our game.
Strong attack, it's pretty light, that's scarier.
not quite enough for sex. Oh just wait! I don't know if there's anything scarier in this game than cup just waiting.
Yeah, that is terrifying. And there we see, so yes, when certain characters land,
three and other characters do have a lot of recovery on their own specials,
so would you do force them on the stage? If you have a fast enough, uh, strong attack on the ground,
a lot of characters have a down strong, and there we see it there.
There's a great way to close up the stock. Let's get that down strong.
Just wait for this! He might have right next to me too, there's second flip trap.
At the top. I mean, I take those, we're gonna be able to get something from here the DOUBLE TIME!
I'm lucky, he wouldn't survive most of it, but they did get a good amount of damage in that one.
Okay, we drop down, we keep it there, I can't believe that.
No puddle on stage, that means we're too low!
We can set up 45%.
It does mean we're getting close to some of those rangers where they see your voracar
and fight some backfowl.
It's raining bottles down that's how we do it.
Yeah.
They're able to use their float to be dodgy, but it's a lot of work.
A lot of extra stack.
Just to get back on stage with them.
Help us just slowly tacking on a more, more, more damage.
That's Rowe, not gonna do it.
There's one more droplet out for good measure.
Big stall just trying to do everything they can to throw
Klokov.
It's like, hey, I got a bunch of mixups.
I need to find my way back to the stage.
Oh, it just grabbed Sledge!
Jose, you gotta get a little bit low here.
And then I reset there.
We saw how destructive it can be.
forcefully on the stage so a lot of players are much rather cool to edge if you think you can speak in there.
You can't just go on, eats the shield stun, but said no, I'm good, I'm good, I'm good.
Okay, the back air! Oh my god, that almost killed.
Oh my god, that almost killed already, we're in 94%, I think the nice one might...
That was a big parry, but I think it was pretty going for hold, so it's a stronger option.
Well, it was just a jab, right, so...
Yeah, it was the jab track, yep.
Yeah, make sure that it just got ape on it.
Oh we go cross country still living
man
I was surprised it didn't purple I'll be honest. That's going to do it. Plop finds
himself in winners fight. Now that that's strong as one of those situations
where there may have been a DI but it was probably in between it was some kind
a microdi to kind of get you to not go off the left, not go off the top, and Clump is
able to close it out.
That's huge, that's huge!
Especially like you said, no one wants to be the person fighting cake, you felt the losers
right now?
And if you're a cake, you're like, oh I have to claw my way back through a tier of killers
in order to just get a shot at Clump again.
Yeah, we mentioned either of these players would you want, but in Rival's lore, a loser's
Side cake is gonna bring it up if you didn't maybe the strongest demon that you can run into in a bracket
I think people mentioned that they have their own bracket deal
But if the community had a seasonal crack at the end losers cake losers cake for sure
I'm kind of excited. We're getting a losers cake in either. Do you want to say what this sitting in winners finals?
What is the person that people
I'm not sure about it.
Well, one Genesis, one Evo, and then disappeared to the mountains for a year.
But we know that those mountains got some internet, because he's been putting on a clinic online.
And so, and I put on these four alt accounts in the ranks top 10 right now.
Every rival's top player has the story of like running into Ploypoth 3 in the morning.
It's like the dean in the boogeyman of like, oh no, I've never been beaten harder in my life.
You're a top five player.
What do you mean?
Yeah, what do you mean?
It turns out there's levels to it, first of all.
Because, yeah, you hop online and you'll say,
hey, I just got this game.
I hopped in, I got placed in silver.
And I'm like, everyone in silver is insane.
They're dashing everywhere.
They're dash dancing everywhere.
And then it turns out every tier as you go up, yeah.
The silver players and the gold players are crazy.
The gold players and the diamonds are.
The top 50 players all think that plup is insane.
They just keep scaling up.
Unless you're a plup, there's always a bigger fish online for you.
Even for plup, plup has lost sets online.
The thing is, plup has not lost any offline.
So, you're going to see this.
Plup is now sitting in winners' finals,
and we are about to see you joining it.
Stango or VBAT spoke for seeding for top eight,
but we've been talking about plup that was technically an upside on paper
because Cape was the number two seed,
Bubba's the number three,
but Stango is actually the number one seed in this bracket.
Yeah, playing a character that not,
a lot of people would expect,
especially if you followed rivals last year
and were missing at the end of the year,
but there's a certain character that Stango's playing
that a lot of people would message me frequently
to tell me that he's low tier and he needs buffs.
And I said, I don't know,
I think the character is pretty good and one person believed me at the time and his name was stango and he said
Man, I will prove it to everyone else as well
stango
One supernova with Olympia and said nah, I think the elephant stronger. We're playing loxodon
I'm trying to prove that I can do it with the character that at the time
A lot of people were saying we're not very good
But then you see this killer's list of people that he took out on the way here the victory path presented by White Claw Surge
Beating dry keep st. Pat melon Mario psych and Tino
There's a ton of phenomenal players here to riot
I mean I want to call out dry for this because dry went way above his seed beating some great players
But keep st. Pat melon everyone is so so good and he was doing it with blocks not
But we also have the other side, we have B-Bats.
Now, B-Bats hasn't been able to go to anything for a while
because of law school.
Now that we are in the summer, B-Bats has said,
hey, I've got a couple months to prove myself.
I'm going to show up an immediately win combo breaker.
I put in in the work.
I'm going to show up to Evo.
And we are now at the winner's side,
top eight beating players like Switch, Fullstream,
and Mysteries.
All both these players, two O's, all the way here.
So we mentioned being a little surprised
kind of like the fluff and the cake, both having to, you know, go deep into a, you know, three-game set,
both these players really dominate on their way to this winter side, so they're saying,
hey, there's a lot of talk and a lot of hype over the other side of winter side, but I think
the two you should be talking about, they would argue, is this side.
Okay, Bebets just saw how the fantasy break. Bebets just saw that. They're currently sitting at the
16.9% pick rate, but I think even if B-Bats is the Dark Horse, B-Bats is
beaten, Kegasol, and Spango in brackets in the last month. B-Bats hasn't dropped
a tournament since Genesis, and I don't think you all do that.
You gotta convince the people at home, they were the ones voting. The crowd is
here for both of these players. B-Bats might be a Dark Horse, but that Dark Horse is
We're just singing along to some bad bunny right now, we've got the loxidon, we've got the fleet, let's run it through!
So this was an interesting matchup because not one that we see super frequently, kind of, until...
I'm still Sango, really, as it kind of brought lox into the forefront of the meta.
It's always interesting because Lox, according to player frankly, is a ranked or a casual player.
Lox is an extremely popular character, but a lot of people are like he's kind of easy, like he's a little bit simpler.
But, he just can't do it at the top level, and Sangro's like, I think the consistency of knowing that I have certain setups that would always work is exactly why he's so strong.
I can play him in this lane, and I can beat the step-possessing on my opponent instead of worrying about, like,
him playing my micro-attacks with my attack.
The problem is, Stangle also has those micro-boop-its in attack.
He's the- he is the whole threat here.
Yeah, but right here, B-Bats is able to take first blood and get that first stock out of the board.
I told you all, we're out of law school time, we're in the summer.
B-Bats is about three to four months to prove themselves from being not dropped a single tournament since they decided to use it.
Yeah, both of these players are honestly coming into this tournament. We were mentioned, Stango, that was a little bit of both of them kind of playing out of their minds.
So this is a, yeah, unstoppable.
Genuinely, if I didn't say that Cank was my pick to win, I was thinking B-Bats. I think we might be in for a big Billy Summer.
Oh my god, no way, that was so ambiguous.
I feel like the aerial out and in fact this were burst for us.
You don't time and light on that special, you are liable to get from right after you're
liable to get from right back on stage.
That is the rocket of the mint fleet since the beginning of this game.
The tribe of true.
That's a great palette.
He got the dog, the rockstone, the stand, you know how everyone is going to slice it.
That's so close.
Yeah, I was about to say, like, the lead that BMATS had filled up was pretty insane.
It was pretty insane, and it is now suddenly within 40%, it's now within 30%.
Before I could even imagine it.
Yeah, what do you want me to say?
It's evaporating.
Okay, ooh, that is a phenomenal kill confirmed.
That back here is so strong, so lethal, so deadly.
I was talking about the other back here, but you know what?
We got both of them.
Now, these matches are dead even this whole time, but they are putting on a clinic back
and forth, and it is just time to see who's going to the doctor last.
Okay, here we go in.
I don't want to get to that single hit, but...
First back air, so you need to be back offstage.
Higher percent.
This ellipsis...
The ellipsis on the back air.
Or that down special back air.
It feels reminiscent of, like, Shining Bear from Falco and Baby.
Yeah, actually, yeah, yeah.
Oh my god, okay.
If you've got magma, that is the elephant's power.
If you've got some magma, that powers your strong attacks by giving them some extra frames.
frames it just lingers there. It's harder to punish and it's even top player sometimes will
dash in a little too early and lose their stock too. Still a strong attack. Here we go in that back
air. You are trying to threaten a lot of different aerials. You're forwarding to make you want to
send someone off stage. That falling up air is a great option for giving the combo but it is the
back air that is the tried and true kill option in the air. You might get some dunks. You might get
some spikes to fit down there. The back airs, that's your meat and potatoes with this character.
Yeah, it's got so much range. It's such a strong hitbox. It's really good to do well landing. It's
really good to catch people on platforms. People are some people who didn't even starting to optimize
the reverse back air to find some more problems from it too. You get that reverse hit.
Now both of these characters we say in the design world are Trevor characters, right? So
If these two are your favorite characters, you can thank Trevor. If these are your least two favorite characters, you can also thank Trevor.
Yep, that's the key.
A lot of the characters you got Dan on stage here, but Trevor is also a combat fighter.
You have the gameplay lead now, so we split the responsibility when it comes to the character design now.
down deep, get down to the stage, a big charge, not gonna do it, there are certain spots with
the locks, see if we're gonna check it on platform, just believe it, especially with mag like cover,
everything, there's a win chime, if there's a win chime, it's gonna pop, but to play high up
means that the enemy doesn't have a way to cover. Flood refreshing, finds the up strong spill,
the thing is, that also has the lead last game at points, it can just be fabricated before
I saw what the Dabney was kind of drifting in with it so it's a bit of aerial follow-up
from Spango but because of that wasn't able to get to the wall and wasn't able to continue
to the recovery.
The jab and he gets ulted, that's the classic.
The really quick dash is, I'll back it up there, I'm not scared.
His axe changes position during his dash, so...
It's really actually very impressive.
Yeah, I'm scared.
Big charge, that's not gonna kill yet.
What, he's trying to get down, you saw those arrows.
So the arrows that are shining after you hit your opponent with the other direction they're holding.
And sometimes you'd be like, oh dang, you were safe!
Oh, into the charge that is indeed going to kill.
I guess you guys have seen the magma coming out, the spaghetti and meatballs, as the community
likes to say, from that future special.
Even in the air, it's like a really not shotgun blasted process.
Yeah, it's a vertical field movement against any of the floating characters, right?
You absolutely faster through the game.
They will die relatively early to it.
He's trying to throw us a bit more to get back on the elephant.
Get it there.
I'm going to be that side specialist.
Every time it's really smart, not only can you get really good at pressuring.
That'll do it.
You drop down with that forward air and you know that air is coming.
Weaves it up.
We're sitting at 1-1.
Look at the snake face on there.
Alright Billy! Alright William!
And Stango, just composed, you always see the murder face.
Often we'll just pull up the hood, puts on the hat, says I need some blinders.
I just want to focus on the game right now.
Yeah, Stango, looking like he wants to be the villain of the community, but he's too nice. Everybody likes him.
Yeah, that's the problem. Stango, Stango online or here, pretends like he's the villain, and then you talk to him.
He's just a really nice guy.
He didn't bracket though.
Or sure, yeah.
If you just don't do purely on gameplay, he could be the better.
But if we're judging, you know.
Gameplay is a hood off everything else.
It's the rest that you're like, well,
alright, turns out you're just a nice guy.
What a clicky.
Springin' right now.
You guys are desperately trying to take this number one seed.
And you're both fighting.
I don't know if they can defeat Guap out of the final boss of the bracket.
I'm friends yet, but sitting in winners finals, that was gross!
Yeah, VVAT's offstage has just really leveled up as I said, it's going on and even clocks it up.
Oh, that fadeback to get to the ledge?
It's not looking like he can get exposed in a lot of areas, right?
Even though the players are piloting it, you're still limited in terms of what kind of tools
going to opt in each character has when they're put in these situations.
This is the big strong heavy versus the high-mutine to get you on stage to make them buy you
just so they can give you early.
That's not going to kill yet, but that's probably good.
And that wins.
Could have just hung on by a bagger as much earlier.
You're a little unsure though.
I like that you didn't hang out much, but maybe they're going to be able to get back up.
When he's trying to steal there, doesn't time the invincibility to get up well?
We have B-Bats starting to go for a ride.
We drop it down, tries to get that Florida into the Nair extension again, doesn't find it, and he's getting sent off stage for trouble.
Why, who gets the grab out of that? That's nuts! That was just pure movement.
That's the jab there. Surprised me.
I'm not quite at the edge of the platform, right?
Oh, you saw that turn around.
You got to be trying to scope out the back air.
This two wins are about 40%, 50%, possibly leading to death, but no.
We tacked! We tacked! We grabbed the legend and it is your turn!
Really good we grabbed that.
I thought he was going to be going for an option and grabbing the legend.
Just stealing it away for a second.
Wow, this combo.
33% off of that, uh, up the attempt.
Just the small children that they beat.
Niggas either they kill as far as they can.
That will purple which means it is guaranteed it is confirmed.
And that is still insane.
That's insane until I win jobs not done.
Hey.
Oh my gosh.
Oh!
Get that back there.
Now, let's see if that tornado makes it so that you have to go high.
This is still all Bebabs misses though, and it is now Stangos, Lee's on life, you get
the throw.
Are you able to kill the fake before they're able to get back?
It looks like we might be able to.
Trying to go for that up special.
Right at least one more nature on our action here.
I think it's in the wrong way and it doesn't matter if we're back on stage.
Get away from that shield there.
That's not going to do it yet.
That's not going to do it yet.
This is to stop once more.
We did hit him.
Gary?
Oh my God.
That hits below.
Damn, you've played yourself.
The Tempest has that lower platform.
I didn't know it hit below.
That's Spottos!
Oh my god!
What an ending.
Just like that, Snanker takes the lead.
The crowd lost it there!
Everyone saw that!
See the panic Spottos in the charge.
I don't know if this is gonna kill them now, but it's definitely a little better.
Yeah, Sanger now has so much momentum going into this game 4.
I know, it's the slowback in the 4th, that the slowback in the 4th.
But that, getting that not just to the wind, but on a huge reef is amazing.
Coming for the gas special in scene 2, definitely something that Sanger was aware of.
He wouldn't even attempt it in that situation if you weren't familiar with the stage
and knowing that, hey, at the lowest height this will reach.
kill yet but I think that one will. You can only eat so many meatballs before you fall.
Okay, let's say you have to spot your women and say that they get a lot of these big grabs,
especially if you drop the jumps. What? Oh, I'd say I think we both got a little mix up there.
Alright, Stango, getting something started, this is all from that Eftal, jab and Eftal
again, the ultimate gloves.
We have to go looking for the tornado, but it is now Stango that's setting B Vets off
stage.
Okay, let's see here.
It's a tornado, oh my god, oh my god.
That almost killed him.
And, see here, it's tornado, oh my god, oh my god.
I almost killed him.
You got him.
B-Bat's going really deep,
and happy to have the deficit.
Oh no!
She just charges in his face!
This went from being so even.
B-Bat's had him dead,
but it's in the last game,
and now Sting is off the field.
We won in the end,
and it's gonna be a free stock B-Bat's design.
number one seed for a reason let me fight
Quappan winners finals
for BEAT's job is not fun
doing it the hard way
yeah it's crazy because all these matches
with the way the players are playing
they all feel like Upsets
but this is our number one seed
so you can't possibly Upset Sangho
going in this bracket.
No, there was people were asking, especially people that are quite as familiar with rivals.
They're like, oh, I've heard of cake from rivals one being a club from Melee.
And I was like, well, who do you think is going to take it?
And I was like, well, neither of them are the number one seed.
So you got to put some respect on the Don.
You got to put some respect on the elephant, the locks, the stango himself.
And I've been a phenomenal player in multiple games.
And he's taken his talents to rivals to try and win EVO.
though he got seconds on the extended lineup stage last year he's got something to prove now
Yeah, for sure. I think that was like a it was definitely wasn't a breakout term because tango is already
But I think at that point it really went from a threat to basically in all of these majors
Basically top three or four guaranteed
It felt like stango was after after the era on last year and since then not only has he stayed in that position
But we mentioned switching to laxin on a character that a lot of people would consider low tier
And he's been able to keep just as much, if not better, performance.
And Evo last year was there, he always deprived me of the pride.
He's getting like anywhere from fifth to second at a bunch of events.
But at that point, the only person he lost to was Pluff.
And you know he doesn't go to a lot.
It wasn't until it didn't take that much longer, it was really super.
No, but next time.
Well, I know at the point of Evo, until Evo, I don't think had been kicked.
and he beat an ad, Evo, and then he beat cake at Evo
and only lost to Plup, and then beat everybody
at Supernova, which at that point
was the largest rival, certain amount of all time.
Even if cake, even if cake just got ranked number one
and Plup had Genesis and then Evo from last year,
if Stango says, yeah, but I won Supernova
and I won Evo 2026, the two biggest rivals
offline tournaments ever,
I mean, what are you gonna say to that?
That's a good point. That's a very good point.
So, yeah, coming in, yeah, for the rest of this year,
there's gonna be lots of arguments, basically,
on who is kind of leading the number one.
We know, you mentioned that Kegasol had gotten it
this past season from the R2CS rankings,
but yeah, there's a lot of players
who will be able to stake their claim,
depending on how this EVO top eight plays out.
And we are about to find out
how the rest of the bracket is going to play out.
And I love the waving in the back.
Well, I'm mirrored, but we are going to throw it to a break.
We will be right back.
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I'm brought to you forever.
I'll give you a thought.
This Thresh is like a tank screaming.
Those are just wheels of wonderland.
Ready to banish the darkness.
Come on, let's live a little.
In the light is your deliverance.
Hello?
Whoa.
Mama Griggin 85 lives here?
Yep.
That's my mom.
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No, she's so nice and real life.
What's up everyone, Damascus here, and welcome back to getting a closer look presented by Zeni.
Whether it's sunglasses, blue light protection, or prescription glasses, Zeni offers you plenty of option to keep your vision sharp.
And that's what we want, keep your vision sharp and take a look at everything that's happening at EVO.
I am right in front of the rival booth with community manager George.
George, what's up in this booth? What's happening?
So we got a lot going on today at Evo.
We've got our secret character room, the Guru room,
where you can go and try him out for the first time he's available.
We also got a bunch of setups to play.
You can fight devs, you can talk to artists here and all that stuff.
And exclusive merch, we just got a lot going on.
That's all we want, man.
Plenty of ways to come and enjoy rivals.
And of course, plenty of things to do at Evo.
We're all eye-catched by so many booths.
Why should people stop by these booths?
I think the most exciting thing here is to try out the new character who you just seen revealed
as well as meet a bunch of our artists and things that love to talk to everyone and talk about the
game. We're just excited to be the platform fighter representative here and it's a good time.
And how do they feel to be the only platform fighter on the main lineup and the only on the
main map for AGs? How do they feel for rivals in the community that's very dedicated to the game?
It's literally a dream come true. So yeah, it's awesome. We're excited to be here and we can't
We can't wait for the end of the show this Saturday.
Listen guys, this is its rival Shorsam Love, the only platform game here and on the main line-up.
So make sure you come and show some love, get too much and try the new character.
See you soon.
Welcome back to EVO Top 8 for rivals of A-32.
We've got a full history bracket that we've been going through.
We've seen some 3-0s, we've seen some best of 5s,
But right now, honestly, I want to see a burrito.
If you text HMD964 to 888222 for a chance
to win a free entree from Chipotle,
we love Chipotle here.
Let's hear it for Chipotle.
I just like making people cheer for things.
I'll be real.
It's been fun.
Anyways, that is thanks to you guys
for filling the burrito meter earlier.
Wait, I could be filling this out too.
Wait, wait, I don't know if I'm allowed to bring my phone out on stage.
I don't need the burrito because I got out of round one pools.
Oh, you got the Chafalt Lake hard burrito?
Yeah, I'm not in my pocket anymore.
In my wallet is a free entree that I earned with my gameplay.
They did not let me play the game.
Well, I signed up before way long ago, so no one...
I probably wasn't in it, but guess what?
You did anyways.
I played round one pools.
All right, but hopefully some of you gamers got some burritos.
I know a lot of people did.
That is both for the folks at Elm and for the folks in the audience.
But let's take a look at this bracket.
Like I said, we have literally had every kind of result from games five all the way to the,
you know, just kind of getting body trio.
But that winners finals is looking like stango against club.
Right now, though, let's take a look at the loser's side.
Got B-Vats and Beastly, but first, I'm looking at that stage, and I'm seeing the cake assault
and the Sophie.
Yes, we got two Zettaburn matches coming up.
You mentioned that that's the only repeat character, although we did see the fleet, right?
Well, that was the only repeat character before cake, it's like, hey, remember the character
I played a year ago?
Yeah, I mean, it seemed like a good choice, right?
We were able to get that.
That's the only game five thus far on this top eight.
So it looks like maybe we'll see it again at Keg is able to get back there, but I have to assume until then
We're gonna be seeing the Forsburn, which is what Keg is sold not only known known for not even known for it
I would say Keg is those Forsburn kind of why some people know rivals of ether in the first place
Well, a lot of people know rivals of ether because Steve popped your shoulder out of a socket
Oh that heat that didn't also happen. I would say a
Small some people do know it from that but I think a lot of people know it from Genesis 5
That made it to TMZ somehow, any way.
It's Genesis 5 with the Forsburn.
Look at the crowd right now.
Everyone's looking so nice, but we are flying into game one.
You said that is Kegasol on the fours.
Sophie on the Zetter.
You explained a lot because you've
had a couple of delights on what that Zetterburn does.
Damn, explain yourself.
What is this high you're going to do?
Yeah, Forsburn at a high level is our conception-based character.
He's hiding in his smoke, which is that neutral special, already has it out on his left side of the screen.
There you see him absorbing it, assuming it to charge himself, and now instead of being...
Now he loses his Ascension for a powerful tail option called Combust on a found special.
You have to inhale three stocks so that you can either get the Combust or the Superclone, but that would indeed be the Combust.
It's an omnidirectional hitbox, and even where you are on your opponent is the direction
it sends up.
I should probably explain a little bit of the clone too for the folks at home.
Yeah, so his clone is a side special, and he's able to create a duplicate of himself
that has AI you can kind of control it to.
You can say whether it's an aggressive mode, or a basic mode, and it can also be a now-special
popup.
There's just a lot going on in his specialist, but a lot of it is based around being a trickier
opponent, and you have the information that they don't, and they kind of have to get
Yes, or read some, in some cases.
It's tricky enough that I've legitimately talked to people that have only seen this game online
that are like, oh, like, I'm playing the game for the first time.
How do they do this in person? Because I can't see the first person,
and of course they can see themselves. I'm like, oh, no, no, no.
They also can't see themselves. They can just kind of get the feel for it.
If you're the one controlling you, trying to know where you are in the smoke,
the better you are, the more you're able to feel confident in that one.
Yeah, for sure. And actually, it kind of fits the platform better because once you have these guys level, a lot of times you are watching your point anyway, and you know you're slow enough to not watch yourself.
So the smoke kind of does that, so that where once you're at that level, you're able to kind of do all kinds of options and smoke without having to worry about it.
Yeah, and the smoke also, in addition to just hiding yourself, if you're there, if you throw out a move, you'll be able to be visible.
There's also things like there's an audio key if you pull out a cone with that side special.
If you're inside the smoke, then there's audio keyless.
Which means you're able to like, oh, I thought that was the real one because I didn't know there was a fake one on the stage.
Yep.
And Kink honestly doing a great job of showing the whole moveset, especially when we were talking about it.
But really pressing adventure, Sophie, I feel like the matchup wasn't able to bring it back, a good amount.
Oh, gets the throw, she holds in on that.
that's dead to right's cake. Does that right find it?
Very strong back air and I think you kind of did that either way but that reverse hitbox is
going to definitely see it with the open. Yeah I think at that percent I think yeah I was out of
the stage would have been here. Your grave and cake with a very strong game one kind of kind of
of what he wants as you mentioned users cake being rivaled ones bracket even but he also has
any of those runs he has has some dominant performance as well he wants to keep ready yeah
the foot off go you got me he said so he is beefy cake a number of times okay so he is a a major
victor and that was overtake yeah he's playing and trying to what are the things that we really
you need to be able to do against the force burn. As you can see that smoke on the stage, you can clear it,
and you put out any hitbox that will clear the smoke there, and that's going to be instrumental
because you're dipping and giving away some of the deception, or giving away some of that ability
to combust, and for the recovery, which may have been mentioned again, it also makes there a recovery
here. Because if you recover with that up special into the smoke, you don't have any special fall.
If you remember normally, you have to get into these ladders before you land.
Yeah, huge part of this smoke. I will say, depending on your character, ooh, find the tower of the stage!
It can be easier or harder to clear it out, so if you opt in for a lot of fireballs here,
I'm sure you can have a seat where you can clear out a lot of smoke at once.
But some characters, if you actually get out there, so, worth working for a smoke.
There we saw...
Over there.
second first same as the first you saw the sob tape time you get the strong one
say sometimes I talked to Kate about this okay how do you decide like how are
you trying to deceive your home if you like well sometimes it works other times
I just use it as a secret yeah it's not only a deception tool it's one of the
best projectiles yeah because it just runs at the end and then you decide to push
the bottom. That was actually crazy because that was a stall. Usually a lot of people will pop the
clone as soon as they get to their opponent. Sophie waited, it went through her, and then she hit the
tower. Really good call out, kind of going like that back and forth. There's the smoke there.
All right, Trisaker for the techies. How do we work here? They find it.
I'm trying to say, hey, I need you off me right now.
Phenomenal recovery.
You, the special bundle of break, first couple of break we've actually seen.
There we go, like I said.
That's third-person.
It's the second.
We're getting the two stocks in a row.
That's not our fair speech there.
Hmm.
That's not our fair speech there.
That's not our fair speech there.
That's not our fair speech there.
That's not our fair speech there.
They're all of the smoke in that line, nothing as I say it, but cake, incredibly proficient,
and immediately has the entire stage taken.
That's the final stage.
Probably thought that he wasn't able to fight, but I cannot believe that kill.
I was not ready for that.
And now we got dead even for this last dock here.
Well, so he has one
Cake has been here before cake has won on every single stage you've thrown at him
One has been you know, and it is now his gift one more in the victory
I gotta go through the loser's hide or something.
Okay, taking a ton of mylendos, a little bit more disjoint at 4th brunette over Zed-a-Burn
with that dagger.
So, because of our friending, we had neutral stuff, we used the spell dagger to get to
early advantage of the platform.
The machine went into it, that was such a good combo, but not gonna kill that quite
yet.
Clips him out, because we're able to go to the cloud.
We're able to get back.
That cloud is the only reason.
But then whiffs the grab and gets forward aired.
Sophie brings it to game two.
Regens it up.
Yeah, Sophie getting on the board.
That last stock was, you could tell how tense they were.
Because when there was a reset, there
was a little bit of time before there was a re-engage
in a lot of cases.
Both players trying to get the best, kind of the best starter
that they could.
couple a couple chances so if you did have that sour fair sweet fair like we
mentioned seeing like all three stocks are gonna end the same way but if all
three did maybe we got a problem but now it just means it's consistent and
sometimes you got to have a consistent kill move I mean it is a live game and
it does continue to get balance changes throughout but uh that's ever
fair has been since the beginning.
Hey, there's some people who feel like they're super scared to do this, because Dan is watching
and that means that I'm going to get my character character.
I've seen summer spot fair and sweet spot fair for over a decade, so I don't think that's going to be it.
I'm going to nerf her character, but it might not be because of anything I saw recently.
Could be something you saw a long time ago.
Yeah, exactly. Just assume that okay, there will be some nerf to your character.
And you got to be okay with that.
All the other characters are getting nerfed sometimes too.
It's okay.
Dan doesn't hate you specifically unless your name is John.
That's it.
Maybe that's it up.
Takes the first stock.
A lot of these games come down to the momentum.
It's so much easier to keep the pace than it is to have to make a giant comeback.
We're sending Kate offstage.
Let's see, this planet has clearly had a solid footing in that pit that downthrow into the
up strong, the trident roof.
Yeah, that pyrotechnics that used to down throw really knew that DI'd tough.
You realize the direction you're getting grabbed from right away, you can see it.
Oh, where's, hello?
Mix it back, get her jump back, promise how do you get back on stage.
I can't hear a footstep.
I'm just jumping right over that get up tab.
Yeah, that was really clean.
Come on, I know. Yep, you should be sending forward the pop.
Jake knows you're not being deceived by that one.
He just needs a hitbox.
Yeah, a little bit of a guttile, but this note there also making it,
oh, the timing of the guttile, a little hard to tell.
Every single invisible in there, unless he's hitting a bug,
I can move all he wants.
Oh, it's not going to drag in.
What?
I'm going to fight the downstrike out of it.
There's any combo. If there's any move that I sursy can take more.
It's doing any combos that go with that downstrike.
And so many charges in my matchbox.
Yeah, that exact situation.
The rival's won too.
Oh, and that's why, because I haven't seen it for so long now.
I remember commenting when he was 14, and now he's standing on the 2-0 stage.
And that is the beginning of us when we say you're going down to the depths of Aramata.
Really solid showing of that game through.
Kind of running away that, again, like you said, when he is playing well, it is like a showcase of Forzberg mechanics.
And when you're up you have that ability to kind of go and go for the consumes get charged because you know you you're pressing advantage your
You're already in their head and then the bus is just like we saw there just loads out the stock early
Yep, I receive the counter
The first part is going to be the biggest round of attacks in the game. Luckily, you can always CC and floorhug it all down to get a shield and get another option out.
That isn't a two-part strong attack, so we'll see. Fortunately, we'll throw out that cape, and that first part drags the person in.
Now, because the strong attack then, it throws up the banner and the kill move that sets out.
But, just, all the characters that can do, like, all right, I'm gonna do part one,
and now I'm gonna do one of my, so, some of the clean and dept, or I'm gonna clean and crab, like,
this, this work is really, really, really complex, because he's not, not just comboing you with his normals,
but comboing you with a cape.
Yep, and it's like a fucking dagger kind of inspired guy, can you play there, where he's got that, that short dagger in his cloak,
and he's using both of them for-
You guys weren't being that subtle with the character design for that one.
Not me, this is cool.
I would know, it's cool, it's sick, I'm glad, but it is very funny when someone's like,
I don't understand this joke, I'm like, well, he's got a cloak, he's got a dagger,
and they made a cloak and dagger character.
Oh, I get it now.
Well, that being said, I think one of the coolest characters in the final game,
there's somebody super unique, frankly, even outside of the special scene.
Yeah, for sure, like I said, it's kind of a Marvel's one of those nice, like, kind of close crowd of power.
not just came out from like a, you know, like gameplay level, but especially tournament play.
Yep.
I think, I think, though.
I mean, it's just a forward throw.
I love how long you're actually breathing before just doing the forward throw.
Maybe just not sure if the percent was enough for it to KO.
Yep.
That forward throw.
In addition to the strongs, that all gets stronger if you're on fire.
That forward throw also becomes a kill throw if you're on fire.
Or if you just really have to.
Yeah, it's already one. Yeah, a little bit. Yeah, without fire. But I mean, I'm interesting there.
I wonder if like a normal normal first would have made the, uh, half percent of that's a
bit of kill-post without fire. So you kind of have both combo options as a way to put that out there.
So we have the top stage, KT5, to make the most of it.
Harry! Big Harry! It doesn't find you! Wait, wait, never mind. Maybe my words keep that jarred, keep the pudger going.
That's the rival one type of it with the flat drop aerial out of the dash, so we're just calling it out with the parry there.
Follow it up there, and you can go into that forward air.
Forward air, not like a huge hitbox, it's pretty stubby, a lot of huge wall, I guess it doesn't feel great.
Wow, finds the back air there!
We're gonna make an aerial placement on both of those.
Hmm?
Yeah, for sure. Low percent is deceptively really good because it's so good at extending, you know.
Okay, we are high enough to be able to get back to the stage, which is why Kate said,
alright, I think you're going up, I think you're going up, and I don't think you're getting back.
One more for the road, we get the up, so can we find the back there?
Oh no, she escaped! That combo was so close!
There, one doesn't do it!
One more, one more!
Oh, that back air hit!
Because of the smoke there, that is why cake is immediately actionable!
Wow, alright!
I have seen Sophie do so many easy events.
This is 100% possible, sir.
This is how it starts, and you get put down with the forward tilt.
So much smoke through the chokes.
Even if you are not, and you cannot technically lose a neutral, you just can't see it's happening.
Oh, like that! Do it! You know why he was there!
We dropped out with the clone! Is that the real one? It is indeed!
We don't find the back if you're trying to find it up there.
And there we go. He knew that's what he's trying to find.
That was Dane and St. Kate is marching up through Loser's bracket.
This might be a Loser's Cake tournament, Dan.
Yeah, it's feeling like it reminds me of Loser's Cake.
We got to see, like we said, kind of the tour of Forsberg's moveset,
but I think that last stock really just...
Who said?
That combo. Like, I thought, you know, we saw it, we said it dropped,
but Sophie bringing it back, making a little bit scared,
But kick not really overextending much at all and able to close it out with the back air
She got out of the combo, but didn't get out of like still never felt like she was an advantage after that
Well, she did close the stock with the edge that talk true true, but then yeah, you're right
Like it really did feel like cake was like if she got the edge on it still felt like alright
But takes gonna respawn and come right back. What do you have the higher?
Yeah, the higher ground for sure. It really did
smoke is on the stage a
A lot of boards were in G play and they get some smoke out, but it really feels like oh
I have to smoke here because I need to get coverage with
Take this just yet. No, I got smoke everywhere
Unless I have to combust on set on lock. I just got the smoke
Yeah, we really saw it on that last stock the run the pick flow and pop out the one side
Take a pop up the other side already doing for there. There was a moment of just yeah complete deception
All right, as we're taking a look we got the Red Bull Best Seats
Thank you Red Bull for treating our VIPs and I'm taking a look
We got a bunch of the wives the worst players sitting there. We have Shannon, which is stango's wife saying hi
We are sitting there because she loves to yell for stango. So we want everyone to be able to hear for
Alright, so next up we got our other loser's side match, so we saw B-Bats get sent down
here, we saw Beasley continue his run. How do you feel about these two players in particular
running into each other in bracket?
I feel like B-Bats has been playing so well. B-Bats hit me this time ago, it was a 3-1,
But it felt like it could have gone either way.
Whereas Beastly did drop to losers, but then it's just we owed his favor.
I mean, Beastly won Genesis.
B-Bats hasn't dropped the tournament since Genesis.
B-Bats won Combo Breaker.
B-Bats won Combo Breaker. B-Bats has won Super Fusion.
He's won a bunch of the locals there, which, I mean, if you're going to locals in Tri-State,
basically feels like a major the entire time.
This is going to be a slobber, not going to be a slugfest.
I think on paper, I think on paper this is going to be slugfest, I would not at all be surprised to be that close to that.
Yeah, it's interesting because historically, going back to Rival 1, anytime you had Zetterberg going into a floaty,
it really did feel like it was going to be Zetterberg's favorite because that character, even if you take out Upstrong on fire,
early. He still has his able to get all the way to bracket, right? He's beaten
other characters with all of their options, so you're basically taking a
strong character and you're giving them a complete nuke, unlike they're up strong
in that specific matchup. So the other player has to play around it, so they
have to adjust their game for Zedr. Zedr doesn't really have to adjust his game.
He's already doing shine up strong against everyone. Now he can just do it
20-30% earlier and still get the KO.
Yes, for sure, yeah, I can play a little bit not quite the same, but I can get a lot of the same setups
I can just have a floatier fast-forward. You got a chicken combo game, but I could still get that shot
Yeah, and you're just getting in the bathroom. Like I said, we're loaded even more for it. So
So, let's see the fleet on fire.
Oh, and there we go, that was sub-100.
This is a very, very low ceiling.
Yep, yep.
The lowest ceiling of the starters for sure.
Yeah, I'm a little surprised it started here because of it, honestly.
Yeah, I mean, fleet does have some options right there, you know, to kill with up there
as opposed to just if the material is nice, but the spaces, the fast-faller, I feel like
Zedder is just being so important, he's just being consistent with that.
Yeah.
I mean, he has to know something we don't know, because...
Oh yeah!
I trust VBAT's decision.
It is, yeah.
I mean, I think Harbor is the only one.
I know.
Potentially lower, depending on where you're standing.
Okay.
That mare out of shield hits me with mine.
I'm just glad it's still gonna work.
Rides the wall, but gets back here.
No suit for Toro on stage to try to find a way to go that would have sealed the deal of the wind chime
But it's a you oh never mind. We got the reverse
That was great
The double reverse in China uno oh my god that killed that is two stocks taking below 100
This is sometimes the hot room fighters feeling a war of attrition
This person's at 180. I can't kill them if you're consistently getting kids
Hello 100 whether it is because of center fire or combo or your edge guard game anything like that
That is exactly what you need to do and that is why getting the 65% kill is so critical for me that
They ever you see both of our their past there on the KOs
It's going to be fleet offstage and you're on fire
Oh my god the fire goes in. Yeah, if that was on
on. This lasts for five seconds. Okay, up and that down throw into the up strong. I've
been calling it the Triton 2 and it is definitely going to confirm there.
Yeah, didn't even need fire there because you're already higher and it's still a good
KO option, right? The floaties make it even more obvious how strong that attack is, but
you need the fire for those sub 100s. You do not need it when it's above 100.
We're taking a look at what they're thinking and we are moving on.
We got some fun angles there.
That's the production.
Kondo Hodojo, this is where I would have thought more like we'd get starting out, right?
This is a stage where I feel like both characters like.
It still looks so even in the last one.
It was kind of proving me wrong, but you see it did come out on top.
What are the other stories right now? These are two players that both kind of feel like
there's quite a chip on their shoulder but something to do. They are both two people
that feel that the top 10 just came out. Both in the top 10 are feeling like, hey, I've
won some big things recently. I feel like I could have been a little bit higher. You
put an Evo victory under your belt, or you even get to the top three of this bracket.
No one's going to doubt you from here on out.
Yeah, yeah, that's for sure. I think in any of those, right, it's like there's people, there's a
story, you know, beside even with us, you have multiple people, way their point.
If you win enough, you make it impossible for anyone to do so.
Right now we're in a time where there's lots of, you know, players who
have claims and then they're solidified this year.
I think that charge would have done it.
I get there.
Just swift.
the shield up.
I'm just dodging the forward air with a regular get up.
So deep in order to find that back there, but still makes it back to the stage.
You guys drawing first blood here is huge.
Going into this game too.
Oh, that... that nerve is so bad.
Wait, wait, wait.
I thought that was going to be able to find me.
The nerve instead barely gets clicked.
I'm going to say, you're going to see the door to the up strong, but instead you just leave it wrong.
The DI out was great on the down to the right, but then the tech in place like, uh, BC was just ready for it, but the speed there right there.
I should know!
I'd say, I think that's going to be the pack. I don't think he's ever going to make it all the way there, but he's going to find some stuff back on stage.
Overthrow, you're just trying to set up these rinse repeat situations.
Now we've got a deadline, and honestly, we need a 54%
to get another opening where you want to take that, like this.
But, I was about to say, a shine-up truck from a flat would be close.
I don't know if I would, but everything's very close.
Hey, but you still got to put in the work, at least at this point.
You're not just in cures after a farm territory.
Although at 91%, maybe we'll get close.
We're just swinging sometimes.
We got hatred in our hearts a little bit.
Fix the pommel.
Yeah, normal pommel beats me when we're there and we saw it broken.
Okay, we got the range repeat.
Just get it back, especially by getting that clip.
Yep.
Because we were able to use that phenomenal platform movement, we were able to confirm that out there.
Ooh, got it! Climbed out!
Yup.
And right before that all-state chaseration, we saw a very recent change to Rival's 2,
where if you are invincible, you can clear out Zedderburn's fire now.
The puddle that he put down, which used to be a spanner for Zedders,
get the puddle out and make it annoying when you're coming back.
Now, if you're invincible, you just run over it, clear it out.
Uh, he does does that, and then security mid guard immediately after.
It's still a bit center-favorite because now you're making your mid-choose between clearing it out or, like,
maybe exactly where they're going to be.
Yep, yep, yep.
Bap-a-chai has a big skill, dude.
It's not just a pure fact.
If you get the transfer, if you get it back, I didn't even get, could not tell, look up on everything.
I, I, I, I was watching as well.
Yep.
Somebody, anybody second?
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
I'm gonna just get that drop-chai and the bomb.
Yeah, sometimes you can burn that fireball, you can either forward air or down air off-stage, and that's definitely what these things try to scope out.
I think you can do it first.
Ah, there we go!
Please stay taken first while this game is played.
I'm trying to put on the shield pressure, he sees this now, I'm getting out of here.
Oh wow that was a surprise, perhaps I should get the invincibility, that's why you're
able to get back around, tries to refresh, this is not good, we're gonna get back, you're
on the flat. I think that we're already all the way up there. I'm so scared we're gonna find like a
shine up strong.
Yeah, I'm there.
I'm just out there. I think it's all the flak that's involved.
Go for the super-rate up there that we did.
And we can't be used for the de-indice up there.
Let's see what if I go out.
There's four there as if I think he'll move. Oh my god!
See you twirling that bow. Let me throw up the forward strong.
Do it again.
Okay, we've got what we're trying to start.
That's a bad move or no, you're taking the shield damage or you're just getting popped for the entire time, drops down low, then there we get another one, we get a triple, you got one more before you gotta clean this up and that is it.
Oh my god!
The respawn fair.
I feel like that's also a game of the classic.
Alright, I got the option now and coming down with that respawn and you are not respecting this, I'm immediately killing it.
Yes. Something you see in families all the time. Go and see a group later if you're going to see a group later.
He's putting out the damage. They are literally from 1 to 7 each on the 47 to 46.
So back and forth with that offstage. Here's the win condition for the bats. Are you able to kill them here?
Not yet, but we are still in for your wrestling.
Oh, that remind, I was gonna say, this dude is getting able to get on stage, putting solid footing.
If the wind chime had popped, if the wind chime had popped earlier, and this dude was able to get back, that would have been nuts.
That would have been an all-time extra, sure. If this dude came back after that.
That could have been that could have been nasty.
The mediatory coming out of the game.
Hey, you've been in the side special in that spot.
The danger of that there, the strength of that side special isn't just the official impact.
Well, it is good.
It leaves the tornado traveling the entire path.
And it cuts us swath of the stage with just half the respect.
Yeah, for sure.
If you think that there's a gap in your pressure, it's not scared at all to be able to get up
air out of it.
The regular pummel too, thinking that you're already on fire, I'm going to regular pummel.
Let's see if this puts on enough damage.
It does not and because of that, B-Bets is able to strike first.
V-Best is already up 2-1!
V-Best is sitting in the green room like,
it's like, how are you feeling?
V-Best is like, I just want to put on a show.
I would have win, but I want to put on a show.
So give me a stage.
Yeah, V-Best hasn't been on a show for sure.
Kind of showing us everything that he's been able to do along.
And also, yeah, just the clutch,
the game with this top third stock last time,
that he's been able to pull off this front so far has been impressive.
This is just a back to so even, we've been back in and out so close to each other.
I don't feel like I could tell what resources we did have in AirDog, but if you grab leg,
you are not going to be able to make it back!
Alright, one center's down there without resources, and no ESF, you know, we go so high, right?
So, it's just a matter of timing your leg in between.
I basically goes back to this honest tournament play.
Could be the strength stock.
Oh, man, this is a lunder.
I'm gonna get this stuff from the back tunnel.
Fireball.
The shield grabbed.
That's not gonna get flipped.
This is all B-Bats.
This is all B-Bats.
What's going on?
Delusional semis.
I told you, our paper was a good one.
I'm missing victories from these things.
It looked like it could be a decent pair of these things.
But B-Bats is storming off.
We saw him singing along with the bad bombing.
We are still in this bracket, the job is not done for the boy.
Yeah, that was an awesome showing by B-Bats.
Yeah, really clutched it out and the momentum, like you mentioned,
I think going into it, you were saying the beastly kind of showing,
and it did feel at the beginning of the beastly set,
but B-Bats was able to steal that momentum
and it kind of just, yeah, ran away with it at the end.
I've tried it.
All right, we're going to get some of these replays in for you.
presented by PlayStation tournaments once again, but if we're talking about the story of this,
Beastly is now, even without that victory. If Beastly is like, hey, I feel like I should have been,
I know where I've been, I want to be ranked a little bit higher, making it to Top of the beat-up.
The largest tournament and not even loose for rivals. The largest offline event ever is certainly
They just stake your name on that claim.
He bats. He bats the one who comes out on top.
Yeah, I'm loved. Honestly, like the big thing I mentioned with Fleet is
the aerials, the disjoint, right? And again, Ceterburn, someone who has a recovery that, as we saw in that set, can, you know, be exploited.
You can know the timing, but the big thing is, with a disjoint attack, you can kind of get around, getting clipped
by like, you know, the special that other characters would so be best put that to good use
We saw it and those replays as well and was able to yeah come away with a huge win there
All right, I'm gonna give you guys a little bit of a teaser so you stay tuned before doing this break
I'm looking to the folks sitting down. We're getting winners
Stango versus walk to the people the crowd have been cheering for and screaming for the most
Do not move. We will be right back
Wait, wait, wait.
Nerd?
Nerd.
Commentary is about giving people a hit.
Yes!
This guy lied to me for 15 years.
I didn't know his age.
That was like my first couple of months until talking to you!
I was so little.
I was like, what the hell is it?
I was like, what the hell is this?
I was like, what the hell is this?
What the hell is this?
I was like, what the hell is this?
I guess it's weird for you to call me daddy.
That's very weird, Jack.
I need to go back.
I gotta avenge myself.
Jack, guys, make you laugh, too, man.
Oh, man.
That boy is breaking Joe in the lurch, look at him go.
How is he beating him?
This guy is a scrub.
There's no way I'm a scrub too.
Use them Joey.
Use the vans.
Use them Joey, use the Xenics, they're built for you like doctors and corrective lenses.
I'm not sure what to do with this.
Look at that lovely audience, look at everybody.
That is, thank you to the Airheads, Aircam.
Airheads is bringing the fun to Vegas during this event.
Power up your candy game with Airheads.
I'm seeing the bracelets in the crowd provided by them.
How you guys doing tonight? How's you liking this top eight?
Yeah!
Hi, I'm Saul Trevor on the Aircam, and he was feeling real good.
Very excited to see all those reverse aerials connect.
materials connected. I think that in particular was making him very joyous.
We do want to thank Trevor for being part of this game, for being one of the best
and instrumental in making a lot of almost all the characters.
Yeah, well... Well, okay, I'm sure he's involved even if he's not the lead designer.
In Rivals too, yes, all the characters are built up by Trevor.
He's the gameplay lead, the lead programmer, and
If you hate certain characters, you can blame me because their orchids trace back to rivals of either.
Before Trevor even started, a couple of them.
And Trevor blames me a lot every day, but uh...
There's a fine line, it's usually the wackier the mechanics, the more I'm like,
I think I'm gonna blame Dan for this one.
Alright, so, GUI.
Oh, uh, well, whose character do you think that is?
Ooh, ooh, actually.
I saw some wee traps, I saw some stuff that looks like he's throwing you into a set,
and he'll be able to wrap you up a little bit more.
You're already played Maple who has some trapped kind of things already.
I feel like we're looking at a danger you are correct. Okay. I've never been wrong before. I'm not gonna start now
Yeah, with that we have the evo fantasy pick the top eight presented by AT&T and
We are going on to our winner's final
This is the first seed versus the third seed
But based on that pick rate you would not know which was first thing which was third because that is what is the third seed?
even though he is 81% of you folks back home voting,
but I don't know how you say no
to the person who won EVO last year.
I think it just means 81% are in the club club.
So, you know, the part, it's a very, yeah,
it's not an inclusive club.
You know, anyone can join the club club
and all you have to do is cheer for club.
Right, and because until we crown a new champion
and extended lineups remain,
until we crown a new champion of EVO,
currently Evo is under property of the Plub Club.
That is there until there's a loss.
But we're getting Stango versus Plub.
Let me hear you guys if you're excited for this one coming up.
Already so much damage from the Mubbles coming out from Blub which makes a lot of sense because
Lothar hits very big, very big Herpog.
I gotta admit it is difficult to dodge those Mubbles.
Now before they get into this G-Mod, we're seeing the boy doing the Eggdog next to them.
Eggdog instrumentaling getting Blub out here with some wonderful foe, Shadow of the Zamsire.
But, egg dodgy sports, and upside we can see that in a lot of different ways, in this case getting fucked, you know.
Boyko is not a team that actually wants to spend those training partners.
Boyko is a phenomenal player.
And similar to that, they've been training partners and they've been rivals.
And not just rivals, but multiple games for a very, very long time.
And that'll clean it up 78% versus the lost one is a little bit scary at the most interest.
It's a little heavy.
You've got some wobble.
Especially when you get off stage, you're so much closer to the lost one if you can hit
by one of the back air or another.
And you lost one attack.
You see the magma turn around back here, so they almost just felt their shot back in.
Into the town air! That was gross!
Like a ready for that air, just a massive combo off of the tech.
The team is kind of reversal.
Just use the grab, and that was a big auto.
I think you're going to dash dance away, and I'm going to dash back through.
Just gonna extend, we're gonna dash through, get there from wide, make some reset, and Pox hasn't really found their footy yet.
They're gonna go find their way on stage.
Now, alright, they've at least reset their resources, but at the same time, no one would ever say that this elephant is in damage right now.
No, it does not feel like that. This feels like an extended edgeguard situation.
They've landed twice and it still feels like it's all one of the same, but Stanko finds the grab, Stanko finds some short footing on the stage.
stage. He just don't wait on the get-up. Okay, you have that falling there. He barely
gets into that back air, but he is not gonna get away from the up air.
Yeah, the uptilt that had to look back there was kind of insane. Sanglil will thought it
was his turn to get an attack and instead eat the uptilt and up air tumble.
Get one, we got two, we got three, and here's a meatball for your problems.
One more, should be able to do it, 129.
Definitely kill for something, just can't fight.
The extension, that'll do it though.
I think it's dropping because we should right now have a lot of gas fans and scared of the puddle, even without the bubbles there.
Not only the bubbles, but also because at any moment that will extend their straws.
I'm probably not going to do this early with the scent, but it's always the time.
Okay, so that up there is definitely the consistent option for M'Loxanon, you're able to get...
The world is basically your oyster there.
If I pick your poison, I'm gonna up here, I'm gonna back here, I'm gonna do the magma
back here.
One more trying to shove, working off stage so that you're able to get this edge guard.
Hey, oh that kills!
We went so far to the corner, it took so long that I thought we were living one more.
Yeah, I was a Cherubary to see that get up get all the way to the Boston or not, but
Stango able to pull it off kind of again. We mentioned the extended edge guard situation
Stango kind of able to put plop in that in that situation even though again like like you mentioned touching the ground
It's like until you get that solid footing and it can feel like
Yeah, you just been off stage that whole time
We talked about the history from from pop last evening that got all the way to topic before dropping
and then barely dropped. I think it was like one or two, maybe, in that top eight versus here,
just hogging it out of the game five and taking out.
And, you know, say, you want to come on the backboard.
One of the first times we've ever seen buffed straight up and down in the game.
Yeah, for sure.
You can go to 300 seconds if you win, you can just get to be able to save that.
Go way before they're into the back air.
Any other characters dead go right there, but we do have a puddle on stage.
Yeah, the puddle coming into the locker is not quite able to get back on the stage fast enough to get a bigger punnage.
Quick to grab out of it.
I think it loves using that falling forward air and not as scoopy as it would.
Either they're holding in or they're holding up and he's able to get a combo off that board,
puts him in the knockdown, that into the back air once again.
All road treat, they leave the room and all roads lead to the elephant's bear.
Also now, great refresh on the narrow.
We get one more. Yeah, you're forced to go too deep.
Yeah, I don't know if I can get the ledge there.
Don't wait!
Oh, that was just too far away.
I'm not able to get back to that puddle for a bigger punish.
You said Mare the Fish is at 1.47.
If he's dead, this could be even right now.
Stop!
Sit back!
Mare the Mare into the back air.
We're already at 93%.
We're doing Nair into the double Nair. Oh my god, this is custom.
Huge though!
Huge call out on the STI for those bubbles.
You're drifting away, I know exactly what I do here.
The baby back up though.
It's much a rival stuff to deal with all your opponent's organic options and habits,
and that is exactly what we get there, although, you know, that element can give her almost
the entire platform a better option.
Yeah, especially on this stage with the thinner platform.
All right, it's a 1-0-8.
Gagetek, though.
The thing is, we've already seen this from Sango.
All you need is one opening.
Oh, is there? We're so quick, and Sango aren't even able to get us against it.
I'm in the bubble.
It's a 4-0 migraine!
Yes!
So even without standing on the puddle,
even without standing on the puddle,
that forward throw just did it.
Yeah, I mean it is a kill throw,
or not a kill throw, but it's a strong throw and then it kills for a more so when you're on the portal,
but a lot of, just like Zed-er, right, when you saw some kills, you saw some forward throw without a flat fire.
It's still a good option, it's still really fast, you can still catch people with not DI because they're not sure what to expect, they don't want a DI.
I mean, I saw so many of box options before, like the throws that they've been there into.
Oh, I gotta hold out because I don't want to die here to there, to a turn on the back air,
to any number of options, and instead you just get thrown off stage in your toast.
And it is a slower animation, but it's still, you know, especially at this level with the
Last Noxious Nerf, it's still the same to be quick.
You've got very hard to adjust your aggro like that.
Let's say Zed-A-Runs is a little bit easier on that floor there.
Say it's slower, but it's not.
Saying something reactable doesn't mean you are always going to react to it.
Yeah, exactly.
Got bubbles.
All of a sudden, pop out to it.
That was a fast 78%!
Maybe I had to start. Um, Stango has not cared too much about that kind of head start,
because you can able to bring something back, but you can still like yourself to go online.
Okay, you can get it down there.
And then you can spot that strat. All right.
That's tough, he's scared of the puddles, so you can tell he's trying to get to the
bonus to the other side. That sets up the back air for a flop, and he just closing out the slot with it.
I'll get some shield out so fast that I can get away from that uptilt, which will drops
and that starts with all of this extension.
Every time we're like alright we're seeing a lot of run up, down turn we're seeing a
lot of uptilt, and the one time is oh my god wait, wait, wait.
Now the puddle's still on safe, that's why I was worried at first, but it looks like
This Fango doesn't care, so he can keep the fight going.
Oh no!
That's a little aggressive with that aerial, right?
Oh, and then we're seeing just a huge swing.
This Fango, you gotta stick home.
You can bring this back, I've seen three socks.
There we go, there we go, that's how it starts.
Exactly.
Getting the Magnetard this as well.
I don't know if the spot dodger is so pristine, you don't know exactly what each other are
trying to go for.
Like a jab, alright.
Finds a grab out of that.
I don't know, it's a nice little wing dash through and then turn around to grab.
Just a dash attack.
I don't have to go to the tunnel yet, but we're gonna do a bouncing while.
I don't have to go to the tunnel yet, but we're gonna do a bouncing while.
Yeah, bouncing while hitting the wall.
And I said, I said that I'd see stand with you the three stocks.
We are now at 56% on the last one.
I'm not counting the club out either, because momentum is definitely the elephant's favor.
It's not going to be grand sprinting.
Back here, getting off the edge.
But now it's been 100% on answer from the arcade as went from being looking like it was a reset.
Oh, okay. That was huge, but that...
It doesn't feel it! I thought that was gonna kill!
The throw, that's all he needs. That's all he needs! We're going to the puddle though!
And there, he sees it.
Oh, and that came down to the wires.
Sango almost pulls the dirty 30 there.
Sango looking like he had the slave mechanic Phoenix feather on that.
And she got a whole extra life and almost was able to.
I mean, almost got the reverse three.
Almost got the reverse three.
And now going into game 4.
Go!
Love with the beat.
You're going to die now.
This is the slowest one.
Like I said, I'm on the cards.
Right, but both of these characters,
before we're talking about a little bit of like,
we've either gotta figure this out with you.
You see so many up strongs,
so many up errors.
I feel like, love is actually on the top of me.
There's a bit more right with that up there.
Then I see like the first time I see it.
I've seen a lot of Unstanched from Stangler.
Sure, yeah, yeah.
I've seen a little bit more of the offside from the edge guards with the nears, but...
Oh, no!
He's gonna be caught up in front.
Yeah, I'll get 25% too.
Stangler's got some work to do in front of him right here.
That was so good. He mentioned that Stangler's won the first game.
Alright, Stangler, you've won the first game.
It's the first time to see Pluck without a lead, and it fires back, and it's pretty...
Yeah, right now he's playing the, you know, less-gassing patch, but also, if you're going to win him, you have to try to make him take it.
I think he's finding himself on stage, and that's exactly what Pluck is looking for.
He came back to the game so deep, if you have not seen him on stage.
It's big.
He's got a missing key.
We're gonna hit the facility edge-darning in case you are not quite sure.
And there we go, we hit the, that is the locks killer.
We're gonna hit by the first and you're slipping through the second.
And, just great pitch up.
I love playing, but now that it's been playing, he gives me a chance to get the longest he did.
1-2-4 ends up dying off from there, and he gives me a very charged up shot.
Yeah, bro.
And he said the SOS thing was almost ringing back when I got the signal last time.
I absolutely do care.
Yeah, for sure. Like I mentioned, the low-counting to just one good combo into an up-counting
and a 40-sock very early.
I'll see if I can kill the 80% when the sock is taken.
I promise we have no longer...
And the sock hasn't been taken. The sock might not be taken.
Oh, 3-4 there.
Oh, we just can't hit the far enough end of the hill down there.
Is that a... is that what I mean?
I have very, very few sponsors.
Yeah, we mentioned the Uptrump, but we forgot about, yeah, the aerial nuisance,
but it's a great vertical kill option for the Lord.
Oh, I thought he's gonna feel better to finish him.
Oh, my gosh, I dropped him so far.
Nice.
Get one more. Now we're too low.
We're way too low.
Yeah, there's a spot for the lockstop, right?
His recovery's kinda got that L shape right where he's going.
Going for upside down and also once you're in the diagonal their way too well
Shades of last year has found himself in brands once again
Yeah, you know like a lot of people talked about kind of
Not being here and like missing some tournaments and how people have caught up
But what kind of showing that there were people saying club wasn't gonna get top 32 because he was washed
It wasn't playing this game anymore, and I said you're dumb
He's going, that's just not happening, that's not going to happen.
And in fact, we are seeing Plup sitting on a winner side grand.
Now, if Stango makes his way all the way back, this is exactly what happened.
Because the last year, that was the first time that Stango got that win on K-Pasol.
He's got it now, but he still has to go through K-K in order to get back to Plup.
And we could see a return of the exact same two that we saw a year previous.
You might not have to get back to cake, right?
Because cake's got to get to Stango first.
I'm just saying, one of them's got to beat each other.
But also, we've got to be back from the mix still.
Yeah, exactly, right?
We've got to be back from the mix still.
So cake's got to work in front of him
this time to get back to Stango and kind of to make revenge
for last evo, right?
Because I think last year, a lot of the talk, I remember,
as me and you on commentary, was about would we
see the cake club kind of grand finals, right?
That's what everyone expected, and Stango showed up to say,
no, you forgot about me.
And then, I honestly gave us a really good grand finals,
because that was the first we mentioned.
The first time we saw Pluck lead was against Stango's Olympia.
So Kekosalt going into this year kind of gets some chances
to get some revenge, avenge kind of the bracket from last year
and get his chance at the rematch on Pluck.
We're about to see Kekosalt be that.
It is either going to be Kekosalt trying to bring us back
to where we were last year, though.
But I think cake's got a hopefully
of a different plan of like, no, I'm going to beat
Stango this time.
Let me see that rematch versus club.
It did go to game five.
Stango could bring the repeat a year later,
beating cake once again to fight club.
But we also have eBats, the person who is somewhat
newly ascended during the summer,
clean off of the victory at Combo Breaker,
victory at a few other large events,
but also victories over every single person
in this bracket path, except Klopp.
And that is because Klopp does not give you the choice
to fight him.
Yeah, but if you like Variety, B-Bats is the one
you should be cheering for here, because both Stango and Kake
are looking for their revenge against Klopp.
But B-Bats not played him in this corner.
B-Bats, oh, that's a swing and a haze.
You guys failed, but give me your shot here.
Give me your shot.
Now we get to see 4th or 3rd street.
I've seen a lot of these sets.
It took a while for BDAPS to be able to hit that 1st victory in a state.
It's for a bit.
Not only did he couldn't get the 1st victory,
but it was a dominant in your kick-state where every time.
Yeah, I feel like it has a chance.
I've seen that play the fleet did.
I don't know if you're going to start with that,
but yeah, it's a lot closer.
and they've been able to take some pretty big sets of 3 in another.
77 to 71, despite all of the combos, we're still sitting so even.
We think a lot of us in the second bounder who draws the first blood is going to come down.
If he was able to start getting that momentum, start building up the power in that first pack.
Ooh, we knew we were there because of the clone and we get the strong Harry out of Snoop.
I didn't see that much, especially in Rival 2. Not even something that, uh, you know, Rival 1 where the perry is faster would have, um, prevailing it, but man, spew, like, on paper, seems very strong.
Yup. That's answers. FIRE IS RIGHT BACK!
I don't think we're slowing down at all. I don't think we're slowing down at...
Oh!
Rival 1 versus Maylion is the precious force burn.
7 who's been number one for a lot of seasons to get 7, who's got a little bit of something to prove.
Yeah, there we see going for the 4-tilt to clear out the game and leave you vulnerable, right?
Because you're still in your recovery frame.
Oh, almost got all the way out!
It's going to be pretty difficult.
You can't get back, and it is going to be impossible after that one.
Knows that that's for special throw technique has a lot of start up knows exactly what
how she can do it and got the floor there out there finish off the edge guard
Usually we have starting in the same thing because he's very strong
But that's just getting able to get back to the stage,
getting able to get back to the ledge,
and then carries it on himself with the giant's co-out
with that down air.
Huge stock from Billy.
Yeah, and a neutral special into the double-jump counter.
Not something I've seen before.
A little bit of a stall, a little bit of like confusion there.
That was such a big like,
hey, I think you might be able to get back,
even if he's the pawn,
we could get the side special,
He now forced cake back onto the fleet.
Yeah, so like I said, something I have seen come out in Brack is something...
Yeah, cake is often into, but it makes me nervous.
It does. It does. This is the standard mint treat, and this is the summer.
They've each cleaned the green.
Okay, we find the back air.
The problem is, Kate, one of the best players in the world, currently ranks number one.
Not quite the character specialist is known for the force burn.
Is the only force burn on the top 50, but, you know, when you get ranked number one, no one can say you're wrong.
The problem is, can you beat Pete Atthero? Can you beat Pete Atthero?
Right.
right. Beginning arrivals to was the character that Kate was putting the most. Not quite
feeling the fours. They're saying, Hey, I think, I think he might be one of those soul
man characters. I hear you battle each other trying to get here. Yeah. Be that able to
draw that first blood, but 97% strong area all the way.
It's got a little bit of a stronger recovery, you've got a few more mixups, but also B-Bass
is pretty, not only do I know how to edgeguard you, but I know how to edgeguard you.
It's not just the force burn, but it is the man sitting on the chain.
Yeah, yeah, for sure.
It really did feel like that.
Once you get to this level, the character can go away a little bit, but the, you know,
the strength of the character is okay, right?
Yeah.
We got the edgeguarding on, okay, so that was the reason
the lane condition we were looking for,
but even if we saw that giant call out at the bottom
at the end of the last game.
I think that's changing the laces there still,
very last second.
Yeah, but every time you get hit,
you take the winch and you're about to get popped.
Counting the timer doesn't change either, so.
Oh, we set there.
Not gonna do it.
I'm not sure if I can clear it up here, but I can make you have to jump, I can make you
have to get out of his advantage.
You have to make it with a slight damage, but if you percent, it doesn't matter too much because there's a lot of differences in the area.
Yeah.
And now there's a tree.
Take a special get up.
Punish our phase.
We're taking it.
The forward take, you'll do it though.
Take, you were saying you weren't sure about the pig from the forward, but if you defeat the pig, the cake is up there.
Yeah, I already 28% of the next talk, so you guys must have kids with that as good as you can.
It does be indeed, but the problem is, there's certainly some pressure in that matter.
If you debate, determine if you're going to be able to come up with a crouch pressure,
you can try and hook when some of your combo starters come on the line.
And, man, that's fascinating. Oh my god, we are still popping with the wind chime.
Okay, trying to put on the pressure here. Both Mary are out of shield right now.
Yeah, Kim Power's shielding Mary's other shield.
Crazy fast little machine.
He's been so bad for the entire time.
As I said that, he's been back and forth the entire time,
but that is B-Bats firing through up 2-0 against the current number one in the world.
That huge combo into the reverse back there. What a last knock there by B-Bats.
I mentioned that one of the big things that happened to do that last year was that just a very brutal 6-0
like, beat Cate once and then just got demolished with combo break through the trans
and to the point that he's like, I never want that to happen again.
That felt bad, and that is why he went to combo break through, even though Cate wasn't there.
So we didn't just approve that, that wasn't a first location for him.
And now to be cake on the Evo stage would be a dominant force that would be such a strong showing
Not only can I win here, but I can win anywhere, but cake, cake fire straight through
Is still in the running
I was wondering, I was wondering.
No force burn though, we're sticking to fleet.
Just slamming the bow into you.
It's the shield out of the way.
Leave it to you, I'm a little too much charge on it.
Exactly.
You go down, that's it.
That is it.
back up to a piece and oh my god there goes these are two calm and converse individuals
but now oh the tornado I thought the tornado saved it almost did it almost did it looks
like like yes I'm not backers preserved there because I really didn't think this is going
to save them I'm just gonna say that it's two calm and converse individuals but we're
some panic options starting to come out. That is how you know. Why aren't you?
Okay. That's big. That's big. Not off the top though. I was waiting. I know Kate
loves going through that upspot hole. Something that Ebets does a bit, but Kate usually tries to
the scope out. Scouting for it. Okay, get the knockdown and get the touch
chase. Get grabbed. Get into scared and that will do it. Kate puts one on the
scoreboard. Oh, Kate, closing that out. Pretty, pretty strong performance, yeah.
There's a two-stop. There's a two-stop.
Looking really good in the fleet though, which is, yeah, like we said, kind of
We're surprised after the game one to see it come out, but like I said, I had seen I've seen him do it in the past
And I think yeah, just kind of eliminating the off-stage advantage, right kind of being like hey, it's really up to like
It's up to us as players what we're countering
Bring this
but we can get back to ledge.
We just have to look for that door tilt
and as soon as the person drops anywhere near
that we can immediately go for the drop zone right there.
That was pretty awesome, like you said.
Not quite able to get that backwards sending hitbox.
So if the boats go for it,
it seems to be the one that will, like,
intentionally use the finished combos instead
of if you're like, oh well, it's always like,
you're recovering this time and I just want to shoot for the moon.
Oh, that was a massive haul up.
Probably gonna be sinking, but hey, I can grab ledge and if you go high, I can refrauch
and get a break.
That's it, doing what Spargo did not do to him.
Way, way back.
That's a haul, yeah.
He's all Spargo had to do is stay on ledge and sometimes it's so hard that you do not
expect that aggressive of a drift back.
Harry, you can find anything out of it.
Let's see if Paul Mayor is coming through.
If you don't mention it yet, then why not?
If you hit your opponent there and hit something,
you can immediately push down and you fast fall back down on the stage.
It lets you get some crazy combos.
Some of the big extended sequences,
in fact, all of them that you see in this game are due to that mechanic.
Got him attacked, I'm on the boat, but I didn't have a future here.
Just like all the best mechanics.
Okay, carry!
We're seeing some... we're seeing some very attempts just in neutral.
See some little, like, atypical of both of these types.
At 98?
Yeah, yeah, I'm not expecting that much.
Okay, that's one good charge.
I don't think that's going to do it, but if you find your option, you can clean it up.
No, this is the let's dash!
Yeah, no, I understand.
Such a long land like these.
Now you're taking it.
You're saying?
That's not going to kill.
I'll do it.
What was the killing?
No.
That tornado, you send it low, so that they have to deal with it.
Hey.
It's a nominal attack, but it's going through the hero!
Take, takes us to a game five!
What a reversal there.
I, I didn't believe.
I thought when we saw the force room go away that that might have been the end but no no no no we're going to again five folks
Yeah, did you expect to see too much fleet in
I'll be honest. I thought we'd see one fleet. I thought it would be the best
And said we saw the fleet versus it's not working and now here in the bidder
It feels very fitting now
Having the character that you played for a long time used to be the main balance of pocket for some very specific matchups.
Come back and prove that it's worth on the longer stage.
I'm gonna take a still kind of just showing you the knowledge that's kind of prominent
in the game, just like in the game right now, just like in the game, yeah, the character's
got to be the same before.
He doesn't even need the strong.
If you're beat that's a you don't want to think about it but it could be easy at you.
The person who doesn't even name your character is not kind of beating the 4x off of you in
this final game with a... that's fires right back though.
Okay, you need to be able to kill.
You need to be able to kill here.
The longer this goes on the more you're losing these trades.
The more the trade becomes the war of attrition.
And now this is back to cake's game.
Oh, that is exactly what you needed to be able to get back on stage.
Damn.
The damage is already so.
The damage is results.
You don't need the arrowed cake.
We have talked about the story of Loser's cake.
Sometimes it also involves the games.
There's down O2, and this could be the reverse trio, with his opponent's counter pick, picking his opponent's character.
Okay, this is not insurmountable, but you've got to clean something up fast to get it to happen.
Yeah, for fear, especially with someone that's such good at using his kick, like he's always a good deal, he's a little bit of an entertainer, so he's got to play, you know, basically spotless in order to get out of his first dog run.
to stop them because a little desert is possible down here.
Hey, we hear a wind chime and it's now on cake, the air dodge out of it. It landed though.
On this head, the time we get the trade, it's a little bit extra percent.
It makes it even harder to make this come back.
96, that's potentially on the tournament stop here.
You gotta play perfect and you gotta do it now.
find the back air, break the eye to make sure nothing else is happening, be refreshed,
but gets hit, gets clipped, the Nair has not landed, Kegas playing so out there, just
keeps getting clipped. No way, the charge is going to do it! Kegas off with the Reverse
3-0!
Catches like that a point.
I can plant your character better than you can.
Oh my gosh, the fleet is what gets them out of that.
Such a crazy way that set was going to go.
After watching the game one, again,
like we didn't even predict the character swap.
It's a have-it-go game five.
What a performance there by Kake to go on to losers' finals.
What a performance by Kake, but I want to shout out
that's for just going on a monster road to get forth here really good showing by
the bats really impressive I mean going up to oh just really rattling cake
pushing him out as far as you can push somebody in a tournament honestly get
pushing him off his main then beating is secondary back-to-back but not able to
close out the stock and ends up getting the reverse 32 and that leaves the final
three exact same little bit of a different place exact same final three as
people on the extended line up and they all said now it's better line up is cool
I want the real deal I want the real deal let me get back to your final three
competitors of Stango cake assault and plop
And yeah, it really is, like we said, a revenge opportunity here.
So last year, Stango was able to take it and get himself into Grands.
Kekosal is looking for the V-Match here.
Stango is looking for his V-Match for his plup.
It's going to be the story of revenge, but we're going to be doing that right after a
quick break.
We'll be right back.
This is looking really good, I'm not even gonna front like that, it's a phone hit.
Off the board!
What's this?
I'm not gonna front like that, it's a phone hit.
Off the list of surge.
Mr. One, take ready.
I've never seen a mix like this before.
That's refreshing.
And that was a great combination.
Right?
What?
Why does he get a white claw surge?
Did I get zoned out?
Tough break, dude.
Gotta have that championship mentality.
That's the best assist I've seen since Captain Kuro.
I've been playing in the story fight for 100 years.
I remember that I had something to show myself.
I don't see myself waiting for at least maybe 20 more years.
I was very proud of myself.
It was much more than just playing.
It was being a part of this community.
With Anthros, your next match will fix your sit.
Try today, risk free for 60 days or your money back, guarantee.
Welcome back to EVO.
We are down to our final, final three competitors here for the privals to EVO 2026, but first,
first, as I am, I'm not the time, some of you guys are getting a little bit hungry, a
little bit hungry, and I think I know exactly the answer for you.
Let's give you some burritos, let's give you some Chipotle.
Yes.
So you guys are going to want to text GLE 5382 888222, and what does that get them?
That gets you a chance to receive a free entree.
I know, I've watched a lot of these events, and I've gotten like five plus free burritos
from watching Evil Combo Break or a few others.
It is now your turn.
you can do that from the audience. You can do that from home. We are very excited though.
One, thank you to Chipotle, but two, everyone is super, super pumped to see the rest of this bracket.
I'm excited. I'm very excited because, yeah, like we mentioned right before the break,
kind of a bit of a revenge effect. I mean, Loser's Cake is something historical.
He's playing out of his mind right now.
He went down O2, and that was like, way, way like that.
Yeah, the fleet was really, really, really crisp.
Lots of really good, you know, the combo game was really fast, too,
which I think is a good sign, because when you're playing that fast,
it gives you the opportunity to kind of set the pace, right?
If you're able to play that quick, you don't necessarily have to,
You can kind of be doing that on your punish game, have a lot of neutral, but you have the opportunity of your opponent trying to go
for that sparring style. Kick is locked in right now, so I think we'll see Sango maybe try to slow things down, maybe try to use that range that Lockdown has, but um...
Well, Sango, bar two. Sango loves just completing up the stock as fast as he can now.
Remember, both of these two are looking for that rematch.
for sure. Both of them now have lost to Plop, the man sitting pretty in-winner in the Grand Finals.
But is it going to be cake? Or is it going to be Stanger? Is it going to be a new opponent? Or is it
going to be a return? It's okay. Go! And say, if I don't think we're going to see that fleet right
now, maybe we'll see it again if we make it all the way to Plop when we see the okay. But
not quite yet. That was, did we just see a simultaneous grab so they broke out in the
in the middle of the smoke, so only one character had an animation.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, a little bit of a, yeah, some weirdness happened there.
Not a scenario you see that often, and it looked like the smoke
is still hiding in that specific animation. Not one that
we thought about the ramifications.
Yeah, it's alright, something new. Getting the game dev is like, you just
keep finding new things, and you're like, well, shoot.
Anyway, uh, what do I got?
Goes out, yep.
Use that command grab.
Use the grab or to skip to the ledge.
You can get that edge, even if you're buried.
It is that safety hatch.
Grab, I think was coping that weird way into the path to the ledge.
Oh my god!
I was not ready for the clone.
Stango wasn't ready for the clone.
The town airing to the first back air takes all the fires first, but Stango looks like
how you're about to fire back.
Yeah, cake here with all the air.
So a lot of times you get there smoked in between stocks, and in the fight, especially
in R1 in particular, you're going to use the stocks to help her dry.
Say, I did a great job clearing up the smoke.
The double parry?
I could see that. I mean, I'm scared of things.
Okay, we set up and only had 42%, so we're still sitting well, but it feels so rare to
see if this parry can do it.
This is on the time I grabbed. I think he's not trying to get back in.
Let's see...
Hotphone got caught by the little one.
Yeah, I think I have a couple of them. I don't know if that's what I was looking for.
Lots of smoke was around there too, and yeah, I didn't go for that.
Going for the hit there, so that was definitely purposeful by Kate.
Wait, oh my god!
I was like, oh, it's a wait, and then it's gonna go for the empty grab.
But there's a wait line running forward.
Nope, we got one more.
I think we try to use all of this movement to trip him up.
There we go, and I said, I was thinking that Kate may be at Stango Little Shook, but now Stango's up.
We're gonna be absolutely wrong.
The immediate reversal of things from the line delivery, but Kate is not too far behind now if he can, uh...
We need to go over the script for time to feel like they're not quite following the way we'd rate them.
And now we are dead even on my stock, starting off.
He got there, I told him that we need to get to last stage.
Right, right, right.
It's more exciting this way, guys.
I roll and Banggood's ready for dozen upstrow.
Being in charge wouldn't have done it, but that's something to be scared of.
We're gonna expel the smokes that we're able to get off the background stage.
They protect Jace, but the move makes him pop.
Jax, there is you there.
It will cover that big distance that Fango was trying to put between them.
So that meatball appears out so much stoke, and now,
the cake is in kind of a difficult situation.
Here we go.
There we go.
He's not going to do it, though.
It was so close.
Oh, it's a shield break.
Yeah, a little bit more juice on that.
We could have seen the shield break.
Now it's Cakes turn to play.
No!
No!
Stan, you grabbed the ledge and Cakes thought that he was going to be able to get through.
Yeah, I think there's a little bit of mis-input going a little lower than he expected.
Yeah, just a little bit of hope there, trying to get a chance with the ledge play.
I mean, it happens in the best of us.
Alright, alright.
Alright, a tough way to drop game one, but honestly like both players probably feeling pretty good about how they played
They had some stretches where it looks kind of dominant either side, but brought it to the last stock got their dammit
It goes kind of just I think what a button up
Like the little flog that they had
I hear that with that me fall the game is going to win now. It's been a take
So right back into the ground out of that CC
Really good job there, then. You're there.
Wow!
Finding a backer out of that.
I wonder who's hoping for a burst still.
They'll take it.
The Uncharged Magma in order to stall just a second longer
and throws off the timing.
Your gun is getting wrecked with the eye
and suddenly you're not getting hit.
Everyone's a little confused.
How did they go fifth there?
Almost enough and that will be enough.
Alright.
Stangers up by a game and now Stangers up by a stock.
Yeah, again, K.
We're far behind them, Tilly starts taking that, and here we go, it's already started.
We got a lot of stoke out there.
I'm gonna say we have two charges ready, so besides the full one more like that, now we
We have the Compost on Fluff!
Yeah, someone like Loxo, you can play a little bit, drift a little bit, but you are limited
because you have to get to that wall.
If you don't get to the wall with the 4-star ability, you don't wall jump, you're going
to die.
That was some phenomenal counter play there.
It's nice that you got cake wanted to go for shield drops, and instantly, like, form
a grab.
Oh, what's your question?
If I take this thing just out of range, or the Loxo's 4-tilt there.
And it's such a long 4-tilt, too.
Such a big move.
Such a big move on a big elephant.
Okay, we have the smoke, so you have a few different options to get back.
Which means that call out from Stengo, I'm just saying,
Nah, you're in the smoke somewhere, I think it's here. It was crazy.
Yeah, and then if you saw there, why didn't he, uh,
How statue into the smoke? Cause he'd out.
You can only do three, right?
Uh, avoid stalling, avoid...
I don't think you can pick every option.
And, uh, it didn't run out of, uh, smoke teleport there.
So at the very beginning of this bracket, the very beginning of the top 8, we had seen the predictions.
We were able to vote at home.
Everyone was voting cake, everyone was voting club.
Stango was sitting there at like a 7% prediction rate.
Stango's now up and looking very good in this game, although it is close.
That being said, you get clicked once, you get clicked twice, and you are dead at 57.
Stango, you are one game away from going back to Granz.
Yeah, Kake there, opting to keep his charge, which is something I'm kind of trying to surprise Stango, right?
Because I think Stango's got to be playing, thinking, alright, I have a lot to cover here if he goes for the neutral special,
puts the smoke out, Kake trying to get a little greedy, but also just be a little surprising going for the special.
Stango did not take the bait, and instead was able to cover Ledge, and taking Jax.
Now, well, the mind is to say this right away, but we've already seen a River's 3-0 from
Kigt today.
That is true.
Well, again, I'm just going to put that out of the world and see what happens.
So last year we also saw Sango get to take on Pluff and Grand finals out of the event.
And if that's the return, I think we're in for a great...
And it's already gotten a phenomenal top hit to get here.
Oh, for sure.
I think either of these players are going to give us a show and they can make it to,
Make it to 1, but right now, I think he has a big Hildrethline, but yeah, we just saw him do it in the last half.
The difference between the limes being this year and you can win a Bups considering brands.
If that Bups is dropped, I'll lob them on you.
Oh, for sure.
Even starting in the loser area winners, I don't want them.
But you think that makes him stronger?
If that makes him try versus cake.
I don't know, we don't have enough data?
We don't see them enough.
We thought that it'd be one evil last tune and I didn't go to one of them.
I'd like to pick it up while I'm playing like an anime character and he likes it.
He likes the loss of...
Oh, he does!
Yes, everyone's getting better.
I've been telling people all weekend that we have all 11 of the top players in the world here.
And they all knew what I meant.
It's so stacked up right in front of us we got big trying to climb this crown.
Putting himself in good position to do it pretty big being close to almost a full stop lane now.
Okay, so much of this cake starts late, so much it starts with the reverse 3-0.
Is the operating system online? Usually COS tag.
Okay, got some kind of back here. I thought we were just going to go for the bear.
It's a little too high. We do have combust.
Wow, just dash dance away from it, the whip on it.
It's the down tilt hits the combust cake is now a three socks to one never mind your socks to one
But still a phenomenal lead
Ventilates
We're staying all about to shut this town hits the globe hits the real one. I'm still here
Oh my god. See those shields just pop out out of the smoke here.
No way you went after the smoke there!
He's still winning this talk since the...
Oh, the stoop butt!
I think that's a bad spot for Stango to be in.
Yeah.
Okay, takes the game.
He's on the board and trying to do what he did last time.
I think if you're Stanger, the best thing you want to do is see cake start to get that edge in the running.
You know what cake with momentum is like.
Yeah, I think in Stanger that you really wanted to bring it to the last dock.
Not only to obviously try to win, but also get that fear in.
I think any tournament now, any platform fighter, once you get to your last dock, even if you're a hero,
there's so much more. The mirrors increase so much more than when you're back to.
Double down strong and immediate pop.
It's back on stage.
And I was just a little worried.
And I was thinking I was going to try to go up here like a bit early to kill.
There's a lot of play to transfer against the kids.
Ooh, the pull back with the cloak.
Wow.
That's a tough air challenge that I really could call out.
He got the rules off the top!
Oh my god!
Basically, kill off of that option there.
Did kill off of that option there, and we've got the combust, which means if we are in the right spot, we can kill disgustingly early, or we can use it as a great recovery option.
Just teleport right into it!
Again, yeah, like I mentioned, like, using that special is surprising, uh...
The re-grabbing of the Dash-Nak into the down and off stage, we still have a combust, and we are going down to the last stop even without it!
Dude, cake, what are you on? This is another level right now!
Yeah, this immaculately is playing around the edges of this game.
Hey.
Oh, manly, this is that!
Honestly, you're staying here to strike the step of the medium at this point.
Even if you don't get this game, even if you go to a game 5, you're just kind of gotta prove yourself that you can't do it.
That's more strong, would have to hit if they kind of snuck in with the dash attack.
And now he should drop into the air.
This is the kick assault we know. This is the kick assault we hear.
He's operating on a queen of other levels in the last two games.
I mean, he uses the last head for a reason. The operating system is online.
Just waits for the grab into the grab there. We're going to a game five!
Take us home with the three-stock.
Game losers, wangles, something I don't think any of us expected after that game won.
Point out evenly why the two-standard take it.
Dude, if Kate gets two reverse threes in a row, especially off the back of a three-stock?
Yeah, so this is...
Remember, just like five minutes ago, we saw the reverse three, we pulled out, he adds his own fleet,
he adds his own territory, he said, no, I can do this better.
now we're back to the force burn and we're doing it again yeah i know it hg is a reset right so
you can't get like too hung up on your own momentum it starts out three stocks zero zero again um
but yeah sango's gonna have to fight something really wants to take the first stock this game
because that's gonna set the tone especially after it's re-stocking game
More spook up the stage already.
Okay, Kassadin's trying to smother and we're trying to choke him out.
Hit the clone top, trying to force a nice start.
Okay, Sangyo, you get the grab.
This is what we like to see.
You get the re-grab, hit the good, and you fall.
Hit the boulder.
Old position.
Oh, in the second one.
Almost gets the offstage down there.
Wouldn't have been the spiking box that it doesn't out nonetheless
Nair into the down strong
Extra flat
The up special does not have much horizontal recovery there, so he's all with combustors
It seems like it's a completely busted character if he can get lost on all stages while he has a blast on deck.
Alright, it's Paul Goatary.
That is probably what I expected.
The more this happens, the more it feels like we are seeing him online if he's made up.
Why he's been the best in the world at this series for ten years?
It has been decade of kick-assalt dominance.
But even if he wins, he's still got to fight club.
Yeah, he's still got to finish off his elephant.
His elephant is a force to be reckoned with, even this far down.
It's the Goat Arrivals' long kick-assane though.
I am now the Goat Arrivals 2.
I'm going on to fight club.
This is exactly, exactly what folks were expecting.
They're just not in the labor they were expecting it.
The number one seed was fallen.
But incredible, incredible job.
Huge, huge results for Stango.
Still getting third at the largest tournament in the world.
The largest tournament Rivals has ever had is a phenomenal,
phenomenal result.
You have a lot to be proud of.
We love seeing the friends.
Look at that.
Yes, such a huge last he says by Kegisol.
Give it up for Stango, everybody! Give it up for Stango!
Say we saw Kegis walking off, needs to get a second to recover.
We know that we gotta get back, because we've been talking.
Rivals is kind of I think there's a large part of rivals because of the way that cake came up literally from when he was 14 all the way till now
That some of the story of rivals is just tied into the story of games
You're sure both as a person who's broke as a player
but
You still got a fight you want and you still have to make it happen
Yeah, I will say with that with that match that you mentioned how long cake is kind of being dominant and how long he's been in the face of rival
I will say that as a developer, we could not have gotten lucky
or getting cake salt to be the top player of our game
for this long.
I've said that so many times.
He is such a good ambassador for the game.
A lot of players, they get salty all kinds of things.
He is always a fighter.
He has been doing it.
Look at his face there.
It is so, seeing cake rattled or seeing cake stressed
is not a common occurrence.
Even when Kake loses, I don't see him respond that way.
You know what this means to everybody.
You know the emotion of playing on this stage.
Yeah, it's such a huge accomplishment for him.
And yeah, he's always been.
I mean, even you mentioned it, the top 50, right?
So he is the only Forsberg in Rivals 2 in that entire listing.
If you're watching this for the first time, you're like,
dude, that hyena character, the cloak and dagger,
that seems kind of broken.
Literally not a single other player
in the current top 50 names that character.
But when the number one player in the world does it,
you'd have to shut up and all of that?
Exactly.
And in Rival's 1, it was the same way.
Were other forcemen and other people tried him,
but he was always hit in shoulders above,
doing it with a character, doing it with techniques
that are honestly like kind of to me,
the way Kake plays is kind of like the core of how
Rival's meta looks.
And he's aggressive, he's fast, he's flashy,
he can be consistent, he can have, even in Rival's 2,
we're seeing his dominance here on the ledge. He just kind of had that full game and yeah,
just like a great person as well, just a really cool head, really, you know, respectful way that he
treats competition and he treats us as well, you know, as on the team. Someone that I'm very happy
to have been on the front with. We've been talking about Kekas if he's on the winner side. We've been
talking about Kekas if he's the man to beat. He's got, he's the man with something to prove right.
He's got, yeah, he's got his word cut out from another player who I also hyped up because he is also very, uh, like I said, a developer, very nice, uh,
Plump is super jangling guy, so, the fact that these two people are playing, this is one of those like, I'm holding up this sign that says I just clocked those teams to have fun.
Yeah, alright, Elmo.
Yup.
Pick a side.
Oh, I already picked my side!
At the very beginning of this bracket, there's one who said that you were voting for Plump and I was the one who said I wanted him to go to cake.
Yeah, we did actually pick them.
Are we geniuses?
Yes. Cool.
Yeah.
Just checking.
And therefore, I mean, I don't know.
I picked Fluffa.
I'm kind of with you now.
I will be cheering for both because I like Fluffa.
Oh, yeah.
I'm not upset with whoever wins,
but we gave them the biggest stage in the world
and they're about to put on a show.
Oh, for sure.
And here we go.
Grand finals.
Brabler's of Ether 2, Evo 2026, a lot of hard work by all these players, all the people in the community.
The awesome team here at Evo is all culminating here Saturday night for this grand finals, this set, maybe two sets, we will see.
But these players are locked, loaded and ready to give us a show.
Just thinking of, when I started playing this game, I didn't even start at the very beginning.
But seeing where we've come from and seeing where we are now, we're on the evil stage.
Most of the people in this crowd probably didn't get in here.
I saw the reactions to when this was announced to be on the main lineup.
I saw everyone pop off and said, alright, if we're only given one shot, we're going to be there.
We're going to make this the biggest tournament in the world.
And the players are making the best of every opportunity because, yeah, both of them have been playing out of their minds.
but then only one of them can be crowned the first ever Rivals Me Too Evo Champions.
The cake is won every single that we throw at it.
Does it win them all? But he comes back and eats the next gear.
He's won Heeper, he's won Genesis, he's won...
On every single event you can throw at it, only one he has never gotten was Evo.
Top has the Evo, but that was the extended lineup.
It was the real deal, but this feels just a little bit bigger, doesn't it?
Yeah, this feels a lot better than the real. Yeah.
Different maps have been grants, but it does really feel like this is the map that, you know, we were headed for.
We were barreling towards it, especially the way users take this lane.
Starting off, a great way to start our game, one they had bowls, managed to close the top pretty early,
and it cuts into damage very close with ever so slight damage leave but you know that kind of evaporate in a very good combo.
I'm not terrified of the mountain flop.
It's so scary that back here it means you've got to be holding out to kind of not let the two hits link up and then you're not going to get your DI right, right?
So you have to kind of climb out, perfectly, you know.
You have to burst it out and you have to then exit in if you do an extra clip.
Hey, club.
You won.
You've absolutely seen the cake of your life.
It's a treat for this to get you a game 10 grand.
I would love for this to be a game 10 grand.
I don't think I want to freeze.
That is what I want.
You'll put it in my brain.
Hey, I spoke for the reverse trio in the motion before.
I hope I am the same power now.
I hope you do.
Because I want to see the main magic.
So right now, Lee, or Keke, has his edge guard.
And again, very good extended edge guard situation up.
So no more puddle on stage, and up close a little too low.
I think it's not like still anybody's game.
Hit the ground once too, so we mentioned like some of these edge guards today,
like, you know, even though they got like what I would say is a soft reset,
because they were able to get some setback on stage, no puddle back down.
That would continue the edge guard.
Honestly, these are one of the few characters.
I feel like the puddle is more important in that sense than like if you play him again.
Yeah, that's true.
And especially since you can attack the droplet, it can be when you're in that edge of situation,
if you're focusing on getting the puddle out, you might get exploded for it.
You kind of do need to get on the edge.
Oh my god, get hit by the droplet. You're going very low. You are definitely not coming back from that one.
Yeah, they're receiving aerial recovery on down special does mean it has a height limit, right?
Just like Zettaburn, the way he can down special and get a double jump back,
jump back. You can't do that from too low or you will just die off the bottom.
So because of the last couple sets, the two reversals, we've been talking a lot.
We've been talking a lot about what this must mean to cake his history with the
game. The club, we need to put some respect on club. Having been a phenomenal,
one of the strongest forces in platform fighters has done it in Melee, has done
it in rivals, has done it in rivals one, has been a top player in slap cities.
He's playing Nazmi, every flatfighter you can possibly think of this man has been at the top of the lead of them.
Yeah, it's kind of insane.
I do like, uh, essentially not a natural skill, but just kind of his affinity and his ability to think, just think of games and think of space.
You can tell he has an advantage in it. Even when a game just comes out, you know, he could be playing for two hours and it's like he's already discovered and leveled up.
I found my check, this Twitter bio said best flatfighter player in the world and I think if you win EVO, you're gonna claim that for the rest of your life.
Especially if you do it in a totally different game than the one that you also want to Genesis.
Like the nail art.
I think there's one Genesis for best, what am I talking about? He's already got that one.
Yeah for sure, I mean we're getting to a point now where yeah, 2B is a platform, a fighter king, and across multiple games, and 2B is even.
You know, not just, uh...
...smile up.
It's huge.
You off the top!
That's the wind chime!
Wind chime KO!
Usually you use that wind chime to confirm the kill, but you know what?
Sometimes it's nice to have it pop off the top!
Yeah, this is an interesting change of stage choice, by the way.
I kinda like it.
It's already a little bit more threatening, because the wall's in this close.
This is the low ceiling, you can even know, okay, you can't kill up top.
Yeah, we're seeing what we can do with the douches on the early issue.
Like, normally if I'm a floating and I'm going against a character that has 14 douches on and working up air,
I would probably not hit the stage, but I see the idea, right?
It changes the dynamic of the Austin so much,
and we saw the take at a vertical KO as well.
So, I see the logic behind the thick, but it is a very risky pick.
It's risky, but man, the game does love the game though, where are we going?
Pretty low, we can't make it that crazy, the edge cancel on the up special.
I don't know, I think they did quite react to it.
You're trying to go for it again!
Wait, I have some tech that I have to show you now, let me see it.
It's the check.
Well, this opposite shielded it was smart, because, uh,
they came close enough.
Purple, right?
That was 157, but confirming into it from the down there,
you see that whale spinning.
You know you're in for a world of a hurt.
Okay.
You ranked the drop, but I think there's one for track and anything else.
Okay, clean this up quick.
And there's no droplet on stage, that's a big deal.
But, what's all the way back up forward air?
I choose to drop it, but it's not gonna launch it again.
Misses once more.
I think trying to wait counts those, I assume.
But instead, it's choose to drop it away.
Does it matter though? It's kind of a question.
It's on the stage, man.
There, we see this counterfeit working in advance, right?
We mentioned how high the percentage of that first one with that one on a platform.
Really impossible for a Fleece at the eye, in that corner, I think either the eye is going to get you killed out or in because the ceiling is so close.
You're all the way at the left side of the stage.
We saw this go to a Game 5 in winners, but we are either about to see Plup one step away from adding a Kevo title to his resume,
or we are about to see Cape as I'll have to do a third reverse 3-0 in a row.
in a row. Yeah, I mean, either way, he has to do it. If he wants to continue the tour,
but it would be such a save on the run. And let's see, the horseman is going to have to
do it because the fleet is back in the pocket. This is genuinely what I wanted to see. The
fleet was amazing, but something feels right about to take on the force. It barely escapes there.
Yeah, the problem is the off-stage pressure that Sloth has been putting off players, especially on a character like Forthbender, where you don't have smoke.
Yeah, you're pretty limited, right, in your options. It does a good job mixing it up, but...
It's been five things in a row, though, that he courses the other hand. I think at this point, you just gotta make something happen.
I know. It's a whole super-manage that's been finished off by that character. He was his own pop to kind of extend it.
Harry doesn't really find a house in there, does get the back air, once again, no puddle.
Oh my god.
The little ports of the poor children.
That's the strong.
They planned out the stage choice, right?
The Boston bar, pretty far away, even the small stage.
Okay, we have some bust on lock. We also do have the puddle.
One of the few things that can kind of kill before you are able to use it is that it is so strong.
There we see Kibus. Another benefit of it is it's very insane part of the AI because of how the angle changes based on where you're hit, okay?
The radio is on the back.
Now we have it dead even here. Two stocks of peace in this game, three.
Two stocks of peace. Two legends in their own right.
It feels somewhat fitting that it's coming down to these two.
We're about as chanting as I can't hear you, can't tell you before.
I think we're getting a little bit of both.
We've got the Fluff Fluff fan.
We've got the Property Fluff Fluff, but we also have the Take the Salt Eye Hards.
That goes super deep, but because we have the smoke, we're able to get back.
That air doesn't hit.
Roplaar just phenomenal.
Down there, and he's in the down frog.
I was telling you, I wanted to see the force burn.
And at no tech they are instantly reaction by Kegisol. Huge way to close out that stock.
I said in, you're still alive, you also get the smoke that means you can make the recovery a bit trickier.
Lance, that's not gonna kill ya!
That'll do it though!
Let's walk back here and now.
K, this is Dew or Die.
I just wonder if it's stock already here. In great finals.
This is either what takes us or cake starts going on the run.
Hey, there's the opening.
No, it's not!
You're scrabbing back and forth.
You get to grab.
Re-grab.
Okay.
Wow, just the immediate throw.
There's so much pressure, there's so much patience in order to find that.
You do not get a shield wrap at either of these two very easily
There's so much respect to the breaker
uses the pops off of the
Railbounds pops off the plumb
Get up there
Kind of brave to just run to the platform though
One guy in the mix for a brief second
It's going for the pair there, but they're huge as you got it.
Might have been able to butter a down shot and close it out.
Off of that exchange.
Is that it?
No!
Really wanted the back there, but you could tell you could see it without a reach.
Close for the up pair, they guaranteed that, and then takes the game with a backhand!
And the crowd erupts.
I don't know if Klump's going to take this right away, but it's definitely not going to be a 3-0.
Kake fires right back.
Being surprised plot there too for sure because it looked, after the up air, kind of looked like a, not a safe, but a not a desperate position that either player would have been, but Kake was able to find that back air, get a little bit of a surprise, catch a not perfect EI, it looked like decent EI, but that was enough to close out that slot.
Okay, no 3-0. I'm gonna put up a fight.
Yeah, and now, as we saw in his previous rounds, right, if he can really get back in the driver's seat, right, he was able to get a 3-stock in the middle of one of his reverse 3-0s on B-Bats, so...
It's crazy that we have to specify which reverse 3-0 we're talking about.
Yeah, right. I said B-Bow.
What was the standing around?
It was one-
No, it was- it was-
It was B-Bow.
It was mine. Okay, whatever. I won't-
Hey.
Right now, this is-
This is pretty bad even.
Maybe it's all happened back and forth.
He's getting a little bit of like a three-piece maybe-
Oh my-
But that was a crazy reversal!
You won't understand-
Pup hit the clone, not the right one,
and then Kig with the insane reversal
to close out that first stock. What? What an insane play.
And now we have him already racking up 40% after that.
Cake.
And it's building.
Cake.
We sent users cake.
You can do this to B-Bats. You can do this to Stango.
I don't know if you're supposed to be able to do this to Plop.
That is cheap, this man.
They take his old cans, they're erupting across the arena right now.
He's playing some of the best Riles I've ever seen him play, and like I said, I've seen
him play a lot of Grand Finals, a lot of tournaments that he had won in this series.
We saw him win 10 Meters in a row and this is still something that has to be seen.
The thing is, Pop is also...
This is some of the best we've ever seen cake.
I don't know if I've ever seen someone pilot an arcade that's good to swap.
Yeah, the two of them are definitely showing what this game is capable of and what these characters can do.
If we can only get one, then two.
Pop versus cake sets in here.
Oh my god, I'm so happy they're here.
We are in for a treat, folks!
And Plump able to get on the board this game, prevent the 3-Sack that we had seen around this timing, right? This game 4.
But it's looking very heavily, kid-favorite this match.
I have never seen someone make Plump look like he doesn't know what he's doing.
Yeah, this is the slow damage.
He's making perfect three after this one after he hears something in his ears.
It feels like cake is playing from a lead and it's not!
That being said, this has been a plot.
Plot was firing back.
It would be getting cake down to the potential of Stalki Deck.
Oh! You were holding out!
We gotta go to the puddle now!
Those are the Danjong and it's a knock!
The low ceiling!
We are going looking high!
I said I wanted to game 10 grand.
We are one step there.
Game five.
Still the first set by such a huge momentum swing.
No way!
You know what?
Shout out to Quatro-Quatro, round one!
This is how we overcame losing to that Ronald, was pulling out the Lorena.
This would be an insane way for Bluff.
to close this out if he can do it.
We haven't seen this character in this top 8.
He's not probably one at the very least, but...
Not the newest character anymore, not as late as it had it,
but one of the newest characters added in January.
Okay, alright.
And the plot is all right.
I think we are going to see Plub try to get as much off-stage opportunity as possible.
What you gotta do, that's to scrape this character.
You're able to get to the other checkbox that ends.
You say, we don't panic, we don't panic.
Anybody else would have died there.
But kick, not only hits back,
but he's almost reversing out of luck.
He's still carrying the momentum.
Cheers on stage.
Oh, he dropped a little too low.
I didn't position him either.
They have the chair on, but you can drop the phone as a dive bomb on top of it.
Look at all these hitboxes that you're trying to weave your way through.
Come on, you want to get the lights there.
We're looking at closeout only 4%.
There it is again.
That dash, that can sometimes kill you as early as 30%.
It is deadly, it is a spike off the stage.
Have to be staring at it.
The up air, the TI out, we're getting the second up air,
but it is very hard to get back to the wall,
and we have smoke out.
OK, you got a good deep.
You got a good deep, but we're not
only going to see if the Kepiso be properly
even plumped up, but we're about to see
You're not ready to take any of the brands.
You didn't even know we were just talking about the brand that we sold this bracket.
If you get a free stock and a full rainbow, you're nuts.
Yeah, absolutely insane character for us after seeing how much.
Hey, no free stock, no free stock, we're still on the board.
I am terrified of the Lorraine of the...
Ooh, look at the drop getting away from that back here.
Got hit by the back here, but didn't go any further.
The bust is online.
The bust online, but this is not enough damage for it to be threatening right now.
No, Keeg wants to use offensively, right?
He does not want to have to blow this up.
Oh, that's not it yet. That's not it yet.
One more. We get kicked by the cheater.
And that, one, two, and a,
one, two, oh my god, oh my god,
that deep purple night, three down, one,
has won Evo 2026, shut down the third,
reverse three of in a row.
Evo is officially property of the puck club,
Eggdog zone.
His outstakes command has won so many championships
and so many games,
But you can see on his face what this game's doing.
Such a huge win.
You could do it with Lorraine.
A character we hadn't yet perceived.
Only match of Lorraine at in top 8.
And he manages to win the whole tournament with it.
Lorraine won Evo!
There you go. That's why he made Evo that rain of skin. Here we go.
He's just solid bit with solid skin, isn't he?
I don't know. Always was. Always was.
I know that doesn't end the way he wanted it to, but for putting the rivals to me to
be on his back for so long, for showing what he was made of.
Guys, can any of you give it up for Cagasol!
Yeah, I can grasp the club. What an incredible run. Both of these two players. I wish, yeah,
I really wish they could both win, but unfortunately.
Fortunately, they don't make brackets for that, I wouldn't have happened. They don't
make brackets where both people can win.
No, I mean, yeah, it turns out that way. And platform fighters, we do have doubles where
That does happen, but this was the singles bracket,
rivals of Ether2, and Plump is your first ever
rivals of Ether2 Evo champion.
And we are saying first ever because, oh my God,
we wanna be back.
I wanna see this again, I wanna see this again.
Oh, for sure.
We want Plump competitors to be here on this stage,
and we love that Rivals of Ether2
was given a chance this year to kind of show what we're made of,
show how cool this genre could be
what these players can do and everybody in this top eight showed out. They gave us a great show and
we're just so happy with how this one turned out.
The back and forth that we saw from these two competitors, you know, for a long time it was
the like, can we make up the lead? The answer is yes, but we can't make them bleed enough.
I know, right? I mean forcing him off the ore can is kind of insane.
I'm not sure if you're keen, but then just the monstrous play, I still don't get purple, but oh my god, it's still like so late.
Yeah, I was a bit worried about what, like, close enough to the wall, right?
Yeah.
Like, for a wall tech, so, but that was the end of it.
Mm-hmm.
That was the end of the match, and yeah, Pluff able to do it.
I mean, we mentioned before, going into it, what that means, and we said that one thing Pluff is going for is kind of this platform fighter title, right?
title, right, of this platform fighter god, platform fighter master, whatever you want
to call it, someone who can be a top player and win majors, win ginormous stack majors
in multiple games, really playing his name down for that.
Literally the largest bracket of all time for this game.
It was enormous.
He plopped once again.
He says, why is the best in the business?
Yeah.
All right.
Well, speaking of the best in the business, let's hear it from our competitors.
We've got our top eight finalists.
Let's hear from Logan Samas.
We're gonna get this medal ceremony going.
We wanna give them all the accolades they deserve.
Thank you so much.
We have our incredible top eight competitors here
on the stage.
It's time to present their awards.
Let's make some noise for these players.
How did you like your first ever main stage rival
of ether two top eight?
Alright. First of all, in 7th place, please make some noise for Yoda Cage.
So finishing in seventh place, Sandstorm.
Yeah!
Finishing in fifth, please make some noise for Beastly.
Yeah!
Also in fifth place, Sofilo.
Yeah!
In fourth place, B-Bats!
And now your top three.
In third place, make some noise for Stango!
Your EVO 2026 rivals of Ether2 runner-up almost made an incredible run in Loser's Bracket.
Let's hear it for KAKE ASSAULT!
And your EVO 2026 rivals of Ether 2 champion retaining its power!
OK, let's present your top three winners with their formula.
of sticks, commemorating the first ever rivals of Ether 2, Evo, Main, Lion, Game,
finals, don't steal that speak, give that back to you.
Okay, right about now, it's time for the Evo Champions interview presented by AT&T
plop if you would do me the honor and privilege of joining me at the front thank you so much
congratulations now you have retained your title from last year but you are the first official
rivals of aether 2 evo champion how does it feel this year being on this main stage with all of
of this community support and getting the job done.
It truly incredible.
I feel the energy from the whole crowd, the whole time.
I felt people cheering for me.
I'm just glad I could show up.
It was amazing.
Speaking of the show now, there were a lot of people
before this tournament talking about how they hadn't seen
you competing offline.
You hadn't been at the events.
They were doubting.
They obviously weren't looking at the online ranks,
As Wisely clearly pointed out, what do you have to say to those people that were down
here before the tournament?
I'm just going to quit while I'm ahead.
No!
Congratulations, it's an incredible event.
I think the club's growing a bit bigger now.
What do you think?
Oh, yeah.
All is welcome.
All are welcome, of course.
the only person that was able to stop the cake assault reverse 3.0 as well. How difficult
was that?
How did a man, cake assault, he was on fire. Like I think his fleet was just not the character
versus me. His forest burn was like a force of nature, you know. And I was kind of lucky
that I got like a, I got two wins on his fleet, you know, so he couldn't adapt to my Lorena.
That's why I wanted to ask you about that Lorena pick. Everyone popped off crazy for that even
backstage. Talk us through that a little bit.
This is, sorry say again, I didn't hear you.
That Lorraine picked there at the end, talk us through that.
Because even backstage everyone was popping off when you picked that.
I think that's my best character, secretly.
I just, I'm holding her back from everybody to give them a chance, you know what I mean?
I respect it, it works out for you.
You are our EVO 2026, rivals of Ether 2 Champion.
Where's that trophy?
Here we go.
It's your moment, Plump!
You're Evo Champion for the first time!
Let's head back over to why he's down on the desk!
Alright, Plump, you better not quit while you're ahead, man!
We need you, Plump! You better not!
You can't win, Evo, in this say you didn't play your best character into the final game.
We gotta see them then.
What a win, what a speech.
We'll, we'll, we'll tie some. I'll hit them, I'll hit them in the DMs. We'll be like, you can't come here.
Whatever our next event is, I'll be like, please pull up.
I will personally make you get out there.
Yeah, right.
You gotta make it happen.
Back in Genesis a long time ago, we did doubles. I'll be like, if you play doubles with people, find a way to get you there. Come on, so.
Hopefully, hopefully it's not a while before we see him again because I want to see him at events
but he could, it sounds like he could be the person who goes away, it comes back if there's another big tournament
somehow wins it, so everyone's level enough, but Plump is still Plump.
If we only get to see Plump once a year, it is still a treat. It is still incredibly special.
It has been an entire year since last year though, it has been an entire year of competition.
I know, at least at one point, I was getting emotional on the dust.
I could tell you were too.
We're fine, we're kind of holding it in right now,
but there's been something incredibly special about this weekend.
Yeah. Like I said before,
it's been a goal personally of mine for such a long time to make a game that can be played on this stage.
Tonight, we got to see the culmination of basically a decade of work when it comes to game development.
But honestly, like the culmination wasn't just the game, right?
And our team in Eastern Studios, it's everyone who's been a part of this.
I mentioned, yeah, the community, the players.
We saw how much this meant to Kekosal.
We even saw how much it meant to Pluck.
I know Pluck likes to, you know, downplay it.
I'd say, welcome to the Pluck Club.
But you could see the emotion on his face before the grand and after the grand.
It's a huge win for him.
I mean, honestly, for me, even just the Evo, the Evo staff, the Evo production,
the Evo community, like one of the reasons I was so excited to kind of get here
I was seeing it, even years ago, way back in 2013,
just how professional I am, how everything has run.
I've always been kind of infatuated
with just this tournament and this scene,
and I'm just so grateful that we were able
to put on a show here tonight.
You said from the very beginning
that your goal was to make a game
that could be played on the Evo stage.
Not only did you get to the Evo stage,
but you got to the Evo main stage.
I know Plop did it, but Dan, you also did it.
Oh, thanks, man.
Thank you so much.
Yeah, thanks to everyone out there who watched.
It was such a great night.
I know I personally will never forget it.
I think a lot of the players here,
both of you as well, it'll be something to remember.
Thank you so much for joining us.
That brings to a conclusion today's action here
at the EVO Main Stage.
We'll be back right here tomorrow morning at 10 a.m.
We will conclude the first of our three remaining games.
We'll see you then. Take care.
See you tomorrow morning at 10 AM.
EVO 2026 concludes that.
Hi.
Hi.
See you. Good night.
What is up, everybody?
We are here in Las Vegas for another one, man.
This is EVO 2026, and legends are born.
Another exciting episode, another season.
What was gonna be fun?
EVO, Las Vegas, thousands upon thousands of people.
So everything else is practice.
Now it is time for the performance.
You get a chance to become a world champion.
Watch this, you know you're coming.
This is one thing that's been even.
Oh, that was ridiculous. This guy plays a lot of Street Fighter. You can tell
No, it's not how we do in the locals it's about coming here and exhibit it
Godlike, and the checkmate of four-tail shot.
Oh, my God!
Okay!
Get out!
No!
Why are you here?
Oh, my God!
They were really going to see who is built for that grand stage.
A lot of players have played it up.
A lot of players have tried to add to it.
Only eight remain.
Rambly back to classic guys.
Let's get it.
One spot!
Colisey got no security!
I can't hit him!
It's Ace Grand finals here at Evo 2026.
Both teams have got an absolute pass.
Oh, it is the 6-6 peter!
Still in 10-15!
Welcome to Guilty Gear and Stride.
An unbelievable performance!
And another trophy to raise for Restidos!
TRIPINAL!
Bigfoot!
Late Evolution 2020 for Unity 2!
Eight incredible competitors, but only one to be a champion.
To consider...
...the past, the future, and...
...ROCKWINCH GOAL!
Chipotle and 2XKO are back for round 2. Use promo code TAGTEAM at checkout to unlock the Chipotle fresh thick backpack and bucket hat for your avatar.
Visit Chipotle.com slash 2XKO for details.
Speak down!
Together, we can achieve...
...medicine!
Hello?
Whoa.
Mama Gruggen 85 lives here?
Yep.
That's my mom.
The absolute legend who went from gaming on her phone to ruthless online shrooming slayer
with no mercy for any living thing, is your mom?
Hey guys, Apple's with Peanut Butter?
How is this possible?
With AT&T Wireless and Home Internet.
Hey, text me if you need anything.
Level up your connection with AT&T Wireless and Home Internet,
now available across the nation.
No, she's so nice in real life.
Airheads have more fun.
you
you