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Regarding the News with 16 Bit and Pig...

KingHippo

Alternative-Fact Checker
So I’m sure I’m not the only one who has caught word of the news that @GGA 16 Bit and AK Pig of the Hut have been banned from attending any Big E or Shin Blanka event. I find this news not only shocking but also extremely disheartening, both as a competitor and a fan.

Competitively, we are losing two of the community’s most accomplished players (and current Evo finalists). If @GGA pimpimjim decides to stand with his teammate, then we will have THREE Evo finalists who will no longer attend any of these events. To outright ban two of the absolute best at the game does a disservice to anyone who wants to travel to play the absolute cream of the crop. Further, if Pimpimjim decides to not attend, then the previous NEC champion will not be able to defend his crown, which is often another highlight for those traveling. There is simply no reason to hurt the competition like this.

As any follower of the community will tell, there are few who have personalities as big as these two players, which can be good and bad. Pig has, at times, shown a kindness and willing to drive the whole scene forward that are unparalleled amongst his peers, yet at times also exudes an overbearing drive to play at the highest level. 16 Bit has been a longtime contributor of entertainment with his work @K7L33THA's Kombat Tomb Podcast as well as endless amounts of commentary at majors and locals. Like Pig, sportsmanship and social graces can go out the window when the competition is high, and sometimes he has crossed the line, also like Pig. However, both are gracious in defeat (mostly!) and still attend many major tournaments and contributed their goodwill through not only their play but also their presence. To rid any tournament of these individuals is to rob those who can’t attend those tournaments of two big time stream favorites.

Now, obviously, there are two sides to every story; I’m sure words and decisions are being misinterpreted on both sides. Despite this, I cannot ignore the fact that two players are now banned from major tournaments and the reason does not have to do with:

A) Threat of extreme physical violence that has caused previous player bans (Ex. DarkPrince from Evo for threat of violence)

B) Personal issues between TO and player that may evolve to an incident (Flash Metroid and former UFGT TO Keits have had issues in the past, yet he was never banned from the tournament itself)

I don’t know if there is any precedent where two players have been banned for seemingly having a bad time at a tournament and being vocal about it. Was it wrong of them to go nuts on a public forum? Probably. I’m sure a lot of the problems that befell Final Round could have been talked out behind closed doors. However, this does not excuse the seemingly random leap to BAN from what appeared to be a disagreement on how the tournament should have been run. And really, I find this hard to believe. Big E and Shin Blanka have been running tournaments for almost two decades, and no doubt have made mistakes along the way. Why all of a sudden these recent events have become ban-worthy is to me quite brazen, and I feel as if perhaps the impact that 16 Bit and Pig have had on the community hasn’t been brought to their attention (or if it has, then it has been grossly downplayed or misrepresented).

Granted, these men are in charge of their tournaments and have the right to ban anyone they like, there’s no disputing that. Final Round and NEC and Summer Jam will persevere no matter what, and that’s good. While I’m not so big a fan of their recent actions, Big E and Shin Blanka have shown hospitality to lower represented scenes such as those of the various Ark-Sys fighters as well as Tekken, which is very commendable. It is a good thing for all that these tournaments will continue, but I can’t help but be disappointed in the decisions they have made when in the past they have been very helpful and gracious to the various other scenes, fledgling or otherwise.

I can only speak for myself when I say that due to my strong disagreements with the recent decisions, I will also not attend another Big E or Shin Blanka event until the bans are lifted. This isn’t something I came to easy; should the opportunity arise I would love to compete at any of these tournaments, but not at the cost of not being able to play against some of the very best to play the game as well as hanging out with two people I consider friends. I wish no ill will on the tournaments and I’m sure they will continue to be strongly attended events, but I cannot in good conscience go to these tournaments while I feel they are holding back the competition from being the absolute best.

Sadly, I am not sure how this can be fixed. There has been a lot of name calling, a lot of mud slinging. TO’s are in threads telling these two players that they just want brackets posted ahead of time so they can have an advantage and are scared of real competition, while the Bit and Pig have also really thrown a lot of negativity towards Kombat Network and some of their personnel. Both of these childish actions need to stop if there is to be any sort of resolution, and I hope both sides are mature enough to understand why talks can never advance farther unless that sort of garbage continues. On the other hand, the TO’s, Big E and Shin Blanka, need to open talks and discuss exactly what constituted the ban, or else I can only assume the worst and that the only reason a ban was instituted was because players had some negative things to say about their tournament, which comes off as petty and insecure.

I can only hope that there is some resolution, since I find the whole situation silly and unnecessary, but it is what it is. I support progression, not regression, and for as long as these tournaments have gone on I had hoped there would be more progression than what they are currently showing.

PS: If the situation is to be resolved, I think a premature closing of this thread would not do much to help that. I have broken no rules and am not instigating any action to my knowledge, but if I am I would hope a mod or admin would be kind enough to let me know what is wrong with the OP so I can edit it, and not just take the posts off the forum. We don’t need a repeat of the situation with Legion, who tried to voice his concerns with FR and was needlessly censored for it. I will repost this thread as many times as need be with proper rule and instigation adherence in the worst case scenario that the thread be closed.

@BigE
@ShinBlanka
@Shock
@CrimsonShadow
@STORMS
 

Zoidberg747

My blades will find your heart
Banning anyone from a tournament, ESPECIALLY two of the top players in the scene, is ridiculous. If they had caused fights there would be a different story. But simply speaking their mind on issues of tournaments(and lets be real, there have been some big blunders) should not warrant a ban, and their concerns should at least be heard out.

There is certainly stuff going on behind the scenes but I can't see any reason justifying them being banned.
 

coolwhip

Noob
I'm sure shit has been said behind the scenes but this should be handled behind the scenes. Because in public, nothing 16 Bit or Pig said came off as anything more than mere criticism. I'm not saying it was always fair, but there wasn't anything that made me go "DAAAAAAAAAAMN." Banning them is absolutely ridiculous, but I'm sure some East Coast TO will justify it by making vague statements about how we don't know (Rebelo?) what really went on, etc...instead of actually addressing the situation.

PS: On a somewhat related note, taunting two of the most successful NRS players by implying that they need pools posted ahead of time to get an advantage is not only childish, but incredibly stupid. And no, nobody cares how in the old days, pools were never posted, except people stuck in the old days.
 

PunkMafia83

PSN: YaRnToNpUnKMAFIA
OK. I am UK, maybe I don't understand. What I do understand from the players POV that the tournament sucked. Bit was asked to speak up on behalf for the new community. He did.

Did the to's ever give a reason why they did a bad job?
 

Scott The Scot

Where there is smoke, there is cancer.
Wow I don't know how I missed the news! But based on this thread (fantastically written btw, great read) it sounds like they got banned for simply voicing their opinion. Now I haven't seen the evidence or anything like that but it sounds like Pig and 16 could have been offensive in some way. I'm not saying they have because I haven't saw what they wrote but it sounds like it. It also sounds like Big E in the heat of the moment could have slammed the ban-hammer prematurely. I love watching Pig and 16 play on stream, I do, they're great and I'm sad to see them go, I hope that it's all fixed soon and everyone can move on. I'm praying!
 

TaffyMeat

Infinite Meter Kombos
So according to this thread, people were banned for bitching. It's not all about computer game skills, If people want to be professional, then people should act accordingly in a professional manner. Perhaps people can Learn from this instead of bitching. Which is why people got in trouble in the first place. According to this thread.
 
Weren't they saying they wouldn't go anyways? Most tournaments are in the eastcoast, it's not about agreeing with them or not, but this is what we have. People who live outside the US don't even have the luxury to argue about this. People outisde the US don't ever get to go to a tournament except for something that you guys would call a local that might happen once or twice a year. I don't think not going to these tournaments until x players is unbanned is going to solve anything, because if I was Big E I wouldn't even give a fuck about someone who talked bad about my tournament(whether it was justified or not). If you want to solve this problem go to those tournaments and talk it out like a man, this is childish.
 

Scott The Scot

Where there is smoke, there is cancer.
You missed the news because the Illuminati (not to be confused with the Skype Illuminati) refuses to discuss it in public, deletes posts that do, and close the threads that do (this thread's fate will unfortunately be no different).
I want to investigate this further because I'm curious about it but I'm scared that if I ask questions I'll dissapear.