Dark_Rob
Champion
Well, I finally did it. I attended my first offline tournament. What an amazing experience. Im going to try and give a summary of my experience. This tournament was held at the Play n Trade in Smithtown, NY. It was about a 45 min drive there.I actually lived in Smithtown for 24 years and this was my first time back there in about 10 years.
Im going to break this up into two sections, Street Fighter 4 and Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3. Lets start with SF4 first.
Street Fighter 4.
I got there early and hung out in the store talking and bullshitting with people, everyone was nice, and there was alot of talk about what SSF4 will be like. After awhile we all got brought downstairs and casuals begun.
I played about 5 or 6 different people during casuals. The vibe was chill and everyone had a good time. I won a few, I lost a few but they were all good matches, and I hit a bunch of Srk>FADC>Ultras which seem to still evoke oohs and aahs lol.
Then the tourney started. My first match was against Javits, a very good Ryu player. Also my first match EVER and they put me on the station being streamed! Talk about instant mental gaurd break. I choked.....and I choked BAD! Not to say Javits wouldnt have beaten me even if I hadnt choked....because he would have, hes just better than me. But dammit that one round woulda been mine if I hadnt have been so damn nervous and botched that FADC, Ultra.(Ive practiced those a billion times and I almost never botch them) But I was shaking like a leaf and I screwed it up lol. I wasnt that mad at myself though. That first match is an experience everyone needs to have, and now I got it over with.....so moving on.
So now im in the losers bracket. My next match was aginst a Zangief player.(I forget his name, but he was a nice guy) He was good, very good....but not Aure good. And Ive had to many matches against Aure to fall for a Zangief of a lesser level than his. Although he did get a round on me. I won fairly easily. YAY!
My next match was against a Dhalsim player.(again I forget his name) Now Dhalsim is a matchup I have very little experience with. Nevertheless this was my favorite of all the matches I had. And even though I lost, the hype going on around this fight was awesome. We were so evenly matched. Every match went the full 3 rounds, every round was down to the health wire and we went the full 3 matches. It was truly an adrenaline rush The last round of the last match we were both down to a drop of health and he scored with the dreaded jumping fierce. This ended my SF4 part of the tourney.
Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3.
First let me say that 9.95 and Shock are 2 of the most chill,down to earth dudes I could ever have had the priviledge of meeting. Both are really easy going, laid back guys and are eager to share they're knowledge about a game they are diehard passionate about. Now Ive never played UMK3 before tonight, but I have to say...I was instantly smitten with the game. The intensity factor of this game is through the roof! If you guys saw some of the shit I saw Shock pull off tonight, your jaws would be on the floor right now...Thats how good he is. Its like he has UMK3 encoded in his DNA.
So at first I goofed around trying to get the feel of the game and played some random casuals and surprisingly I didnt do that bad. And even though I didnt really know what I was doing, I was having alot of fun doing it.
UMK3 tournament.
My first match.(I forget his name) This guy had even less of an idea what he was doing than I did.(If you can believe that lol) I beat him 2-0 pretty easily.
My 2nd match was against someone who clearly knew how to play the game well(Sweet Johnny Cage I think his name was) He juggled me from pillar to post. Essentially he took me to school. And yet somehow I managed to take 1 round off him(dont ask me how lol) This sent me to the losers bracket.
Then I played some casuals with Shock and he showed me run jabs and some combos and a few mixups and tricks. I would need them for my next match
My third and final match was against Iloveyou Joe, (a well known name here on Long Island) Surprisingly I wasnt nervous. I wasnt concerned with winning really, I was just having a good time. Joe is a monster at UMK 3 and he beat me from one end of the stage to another. There was never a question he was going to win. But I must add,yet again, surprisingly, I got a round off of him.( Im as amazed as you are lol) Over all I had a good time and the game is sick as hell.
The grand finals came down to Iloveyou Joe vs. Shock. This match was epic. The absolute highest level of play you could ever hope to see. I cant even describe it because my knowledge of the game is to limited to even try and explain it. But it was amazing to see. The series was very very close. But as good as Joe is, Shocks command of UMK3 is absolute. He knows everything there is to know. Shock won 4-3.
This brought my first tourney experience to an end. I had a great time. Meeting 9.95 and Shock was the highpoint. And since 9.95 lives only 5 min from me hes going to train me in the way of the warrior in UMK3. Ive already ordered an AIAB stick just like the beautiful sticks they were using there tonight.
I now understand what Bone, Juggs, Tim Static and others have been saying all this time about tournaments. And though I always agreed with them. It was more out of logic than experience. Now ive experienced it.
So for all of you who choose to sit on your couch and play online. You have NO idea what your missing out on.
Im going to break this up into two sections, Street Fighter 4 and Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3. Lets start with SF4 first.
Street Fighter 4.
I got there early and hung out in the store talking and bullshitting with people, everyone was nice, and there was alot of talk about what SSF4 will be like. After awhile we all got brought downstairs and casuals begun.
I played about 5 or 6 different people during casuals. The vibe was chill and everyone had a good time. I won a few, I lost a few but they were all good matches, and I hit a bunch of Srk>FADC>Ultras which seem to still evoke oohs and aahs lol.
Then the tourney started. My first match was against Javits, a very good Ryu player. Also my first match EVER and they put me on the station being streamed! Talk about instant mental gaurd break. I choked.....and I choked BAD! Not to say Javits wouldnt have beaten me even if I hadnt choked....because he would have, hes just better than me. But dammit that one round woulda been mine if I hadnt have been so damn nervous and botched that FADC, Ultra.(Ive practiced those a billion times and I almost never botch them) But I was shaking like a leaf and I screwed it up lol. I wasnt that mad at myself though. That first match is an experience everyone needs to have, and now I got it over with.....so moving on.
So now im in the losers bracket. My next match was aginst a Zangief player.(I forget his name, but he was a nice guy) He was good, very good....but not Aure good. And Ive had to many matches against Aure to fall for a Zangief of a lesser level than his. Although he did get a round on me. I won fairly easily. YAY!
My next match was against a Dhalsim player.(again I forget his name) Now Dhalsim is a matchup I have very little experience with. Nevertheless this was my favorite of all the matches I had. And even though I lost, the hype going on around this fight was awesome. We were so evenly matched. Every match went the full 3 rounds, every round was down to the health wire and we went the full 3 matches. It was truly an adrenaline rush The last round of the last match we were both down to a drop of health and he scored with the dreaded jumping fierce. This ended my SF4 part of the tourney.
Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3.
First let me say that 9.95 and Shock are 2 of the most chill,down to earth dudes I could ever have had the priviledge of meeting. Both are really easy going, laid back guys and are eager to share they're knowledge about a game they are diehard passionate about. Now Ive never played UMK3 before tonight, but I have to say...I was instantly smitten with the game. The intensity factor of this game is through the roof! If you guys saw some of the shit I saw Shock pull off tonight, your jaws would be on the floor right now...Thats how good he is. Its like he has UMK3 encoded in his DNA.
So at first I goofed around trying to get the feel of the game and played some random casuals and surprisingly I didnt do that bad. And even though I didnt really know what I was doing, I was having alot of fun doing it.
UMK3 tournament.
My first match.(I forget his name) This guy had even less of an idea what he was doing than I did.(If you can believe that lol) I beat him 2-0 pretty easily.
My 2nd match was against someone who clearly knew how to play the game well(Sweet Johnny Cage I think his name was) He juggled me from pillar to post. Essentially he took me to school. And yet somehow I managed to take 1 round off him(dont ask me how lol) This sent me to the losers bracket.
Then I played some casuals with Shock and he showed me run jabs and some combos and a few mixups and tricks. I would need them for my next match
My third and final match was against Iloveyou Joe, (a well known name here on Long Island) Surprisingly I wasnt nervous. I wasnt concerned with winning really, I was just having a good time. Joe is a monster at UMK 3 and he beat me from one end of the stage to another. There was never a question he was going to win. But I must add,yet again, surprisingly, I got a round off of him.( Im as amazed as you are lol) Over all I had a good time and the game is sick as hell.
The grand finals came down to Iloveyou Joe vs. Shock. This match was epic. The absolute highest level of play you could ever hope to see. I cant even describe it because my knowledge of the game is to limited to even try and explain it. But it was amazing to see. The series was very very close. But as good as Joe is, Shocks command of UMK3 is absolute. He knows everything there is to know. Shock won 4-3.
This brought my first tourney experience to an end. I had a great time. Meeting 9.95 and Shock was the highpoint. And since 9.95 lives only 5 min from me hes going to train me in the way of the warrior in UMK3. Ive already ordered an AIAB stick just like the beautiful sticks they were using there tonight.
I now understand what Bone, Juggs, Tim Static and others have been saying all this time about tournaments. And though I always agreed with them. It was more out of logic than experience. Now ive experienced it.
So for all of you who choose to sit on your couch and play online. You have NO idea what your missing out on.
Glad you had such a great time. Now you got a taste!
