Now that we're at the beginning of 2014, I wanted to take some time to sum up the state of the game/community. Think of it as a small "state of the union". The short of it is that I'm really proud of everybody.. It's hard to believe this game hasn't even been out for a year yet, but we're just rounding off 9 months, and some majors are seeing their first tastes of the game. Without further ado:
Tournament Competition
This is one area that's made me consistently proud as a fan, and has really been a joy to watch. Since October, almost every single tournament has been a hotly contested gauntlet full of unexpected surprises, gigantic level ups, and heroes of all tiers. NEC was one of the best tournaments of any game in this family to date; but although it's hard to top, pretty much everything from DTN to FF and beyond has been a complete blast. APEX carried a strong feeling of uncertainty and rivalry that made it riveting to watch.
Moving forward we have Kumite 1/24-1/26 (which might be the party of the year), Winter Brawl 2/21-2/23, SoCal Regionals 2/28-3/2, and Final Round 3/14-3/16. That's a lot to look forward to at an exciting point in the game's life -- before you even talk about the 'traditional' big Summer majors.
Storylines/Hype
2013 really became a great year for storylines. We had the rise and fall of Christopher G. with his unlikely character in conjunction with the rise, reign, and fall of Aris on the opposite coast; Superman's path of destruction and the rebirth of KDZ as a suave wrecking ball of reckoning, along with his fun rivarly with Rico and the drama of The Break vs. NLBC (RIP). We had Skill Gaps, the East Coast vs. West Coast vs. Midwest hype complete with all of its callouts and money matches, Da Beech, and the surprising Hawkgirl/Lex domination of NEC by PPJ and the arrival of Grr and Emperor Max as players to be feared no matter the competition.
We also had 16 Bit dress up in a Catwoman suit? I guess that's hype too.
Recently we've had the meticulous push by @WoundCowboy, the battle for MMH supremacy, Tyrant Show You, a lot of picking up of Suits and an ongoing challenge for Batman of America. And still to come are the return of the Terry Bros and the emergence of Omega @HazeJupiter into the majors scene.
Community Spirit
One of the things I've really enjoyed over the last 9 months is watching different scenes come together and merge into something new. While there was a little bit of tension at the beginning (due to unfamiliarity), people have really started to get to know each other. @DarthArma, @Jonnitti, @KDZ, @Riyo, Frantastic you are all great guys and it's been a pleasure getting to know all of you. Rico and I have kept up a lot, and his willingness to laugh at himself and never take things too seriously, while still always playing at his best is a very cool personality trait. @Emperor DMS you are the stream monster of steam monsters, but you are also finding new roles in the community and it's great to see that too.
The way you can really tell the strength of a community is when good players go and lose or don't make it out of pools, and still have a great time anyway. A lot of guys have been great sports and commentators win or lose, and stuff like that goes a long way toward boosting a community spirit. Also Arturo / @Sabin you have been huge since the very beginning, so a huge Thank You is in order for you as well for bringing the hype.
Overall I've gotten to know so many new people and see new friendships being made all over, and it's really awesome to behold.
We had a chance to be beaten down this fall, and instead we stood up, fought back and became stronger and more cohesive. When I look at the forums now, I see oodles of tech threads and characters being developed day by day (except you, Cyborg, RIP).
And to the couple monsters still feebly trying to put ResidentSleepers in the stream chat during what have been some of the hypest matches of the year in any fighting game: we can't hear you over the sound of crowds and viewers screaming. Stay free.
Unanswered Questions
One of the things that strikes me about the state of the game right now is that there are still many unanswered questions. Who is the best character in the game right now? Who is second best? How good is Raven, or Superman? How far will Sinestro go now at big majors when really pushed to the limit, and what is Batgirl capable of?
-Will someone save Killer Frost from extinction and put MylesWright into retirement?
-Where does Green Lantern really stand? Wonder Woman?
-How far can Catwoman go?
-What's next for MMH? Zatanna?
Things to Work On
I really hope we don't let the ball drop on fixing the stream issues at East Coast. Literally every tournament this winter has been a reminder of how much excitement we're missing when we don't get to see pools. @GGA HAN, thanks for reaching out to Keits about UFGTX, and I hope you guys stay on top of him about getting that additional stream this year -- it'd be awesome.
And.. Where is the hype for SCR? There's been far more talk leading up to DTN, APEX. KIT etc. and some of those aren't even majors. There's almost no SCR talk on the forums. I started a thread to talk about pre-reg and it reached maybe 2 pages.. West Coast, are you guys excited about this tournament? Are you interested in getting people out to it? Do you care about keeping track of entrants or cap-busting? It's been close to silent and that's scary when the West Coast made so much noise about their events not getting any burn and how so few majors happen in the West.
I'm trying to do what I can; but for everyone in the WC scene, please do everything you can do to drum up excitement for this event. There will be a lot of talent there and it's a shame to let it come up so quietly.
Conclusions
Based on everything so far, I'm expecting an awesome time to come in 2014. In other games, this was the time period where new players started to take interest and train to reach for the gold as some of the 'old guard' passed on. It's also likely to be a huge period for character and metagame development, and for rivalries and challenges as people become comfortable with their characters and strong 'representatives' take up their battle gear.
For those of you who were around for MK9, it was sometimes frustrating to see great community support for a game that often didn't really get its chance to shine. So for Injustice, the combination of a game that's constantly in the forefront with a community of great personalities behind it from all walks of the FGC is a kind of payoff, and it really gives you hope for the future.
I love all you guys (except you SARDODEVIL, stop bumping 5 dead threads a day) and as always, if you need help with anything I'm around. Looking forward to a fantastic year and a ton of new stories.
INJUSTICE!
Tournament Competition
This is one area that's made me consistently proud as a fan, and has really been a joy to watch. Since October, almost every single tournament has been a hotly contested gauntlet full of unexpected surprises, gigantic level ups, and heroes of all tiers. NEC was one of the best tournaments of any game in this family to date; but although it's hard to top, pretty much everything from DTN to FF and beyond has been a complete blast. APEX carried a strong feeling of uncertainty and rivalry that made it riveting to watch.
Moving forward we have Kumite 1/24-1/26 (which might be the party of the year), Winter Brawl 2/21-2/23, SoCal Regionals 2/28-3/2, and Final Round 3/14-3/16. That's a lot to look forward to at an exciting point in the game's life -- before you even talk about the 'traditional' big Summer majors.
Storylines/Hype
2013 really became a great year for storylines. We had the rise and fall of Christopher G. with his unlikely character in conjunction with the rise, reign, and fall of Aris on the opposite coast; Superman's path of destruction and the rebirth of KDZ as a suave wrecking ball of reckoning, along with his fun rivarly with Rico and the drama of The Break vs. NLBC (RIP). We had Skill Gaps, the East Coast vs. West Coast vs. Midwest hype complete with all of its callouts and money matches, Da Beech, and the surprising Hawkgirl/Lex domination of NEC by PPJ and the arrival of Grr and Emperor Max as players to be feared no matter the competition.
We also had 16 Bit dress up in a Catwoman suit? I guess that's hype too.
Recently we've had the meticulous push by @WoundCowboy, the battle for MMH supremacy, Tyrant Show You, a lot of picking up of Suits and an ongoing challenge for Batman of America. And still to come are the return of the Terry Bros and the emergence of Omega @HazeJupiter into the majors scene.
Community Spirit
One of the things I've really enjoyed over the last 9 months is watching different scenes come together and merge into something new. While there was a little bit of tension at the beginning (due to unfamiliarity), people have really started to get to know each other. @DarthArma, @Jonnitti, @KDZ, @Riyo, Frantastic you are all great guys and it's been a pleasure getting to know all of you. Rico and I have kept up a lot, and his willingness to laugh at himself and never take things too seriously, while still always playing at his best is a very cool personality trait. @Emperor DMS you are the stream monster of steam monsters, but you are also finding new roles in the community and it's great to see that too.
The way you can really tell the strength of a community is when good players go and lose or don't make it out of pools, and still have a great time anyway. A lot of guys have been great sports and commentators win or lose, and stuff like that goes a long way toward boosting a community spirit. Also Arturo / @Sabin you have been huge since the very beginning, so a huge Thank You is in order for you as well for bringing the hype.
Overall I've gotten to know so many new people and see new friendships being made all over, and it's really awesome to behold.
We had a chance to be beaten down this fall, and instead we stood up, fought back and became stronger and more cohesive. When I look at the forums now, I see oodles of tech threads and characters being developed day by day (except you, Cyborg, RIP).
And to the couple monsters still feebly trying to put ResidentSleepers in the stream chat during what have been some of the hypest matches of the year in any fighting game: we can't hear you over the sound of crowds and viewers screaming. Stay free.
Unanswered Questions
One of the things that strikes me about the state of the game right now is that there are still many unanswered questions. Who is the best character in the game right now? Who is second best? How good is Raven, or Superman? How far will Sinestro go now at big majors when really pushed to the limit, and what is Batgirl capable of?
-Will someone save Killer Frost from extinction and put MylesWright into retirement?
-Where does Green Lantern really stand? Wonder Woman?
-How far can Catwoman go?
-What's next for MMH? Zatanna?
Things to Work On
I really hope we don't let the ball drop on fixing the stream issues at East Coast. Literally every tournament this winter has been a reminder of how much excitement we're missing when we don't get to see pools. @GGA HAN, thanks for reaching out to Keits about UFGTX, and I hope you guys stay on top of him about getting that additional stream this year -- it'd be awesome.
And.. Where is the hype for SCR? There's been far more talk leading up to DTN, APEX. KIT etc. and some of those aren't even majors. There's almost no SCR talk on the forums. I started a thread to talk about pre-reg and it reached maybe 2 pages.. West Coast, are you guys excited about this tournament? Are you interested in getting people out to it? Do you care about keeping track of entrants or cap-busting? It's been close to silent and that's scary when the West Coast made so much noise about their events not getting any burn and how so few majors happen in the West.
I'm trying to do what I can; but for everyone in the WC scene, please do everything you can do to drum up excitement for this event. There will be a lot of talent there and it's a shame to let it come up so quietly.
Conclusions
Based on everything so far, I'm expecting an awesome time to come in 2014. In other games, this was the time period where new players started to take interest and train to reach for the gold as some of the 'old guard' passed on. It's also likely to be a huge period for character and metagame development, and for rivalries and challenges as people become comfortable with their characters and strong 'representatives' take up their battle gear.
For those of you who were around for MK9, it was sometimes frustrating to see great community support for a game that often didn't really get its chance to shine. So for Injustice, the combination of a game that's constantly in the forefront with a community of great personalities behind it from all walks of the FGC is a kind of payoff, and it really gives you hope for the future.
I love all you guys (except you SARDODEVIL, stop bumping 5 dead threads a day) and as always, if you need help with anything I'm around. Looking forward to a fantastic year and a ton of new stories.
INJUSTICE!
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