In the early hours of Monday, the 7th, the Evolution Championship Series, Better known as EVO, concluded its 27th edition, beating all audience and competitor records from previous years.

A breathtaking tournament, in every way

A EVO 2023 took place this weekend, between the 4th and 6th of August, in Las Vegas, in the United States.

Eight were the official fight games of the competition, among them Tekken 7, Guilty gear strive, Mortal kombat 11 ultimate, Dragon Ball FighterZ, Melty Blood Type Lumina, Granblue Versus Rising Beta, Street Fighter 6, and making a triumphant return to EVO, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, which had already been dropped by the organization, but thanks to its popularity, they were convinced to bring it back one last, glorious time. 

Not to mention unofficial tournaments that took place at the gigantic Mandalay Bay convention space, whose Sunday finals were broadcast live via Twitch directly from the gigantic arena, where millionaire martial arts fights are usually organized. 

The beating was widespread and many upheavals happened in the three days of the event, remembering that for some games, like Mortal kombat 11 ultimate, due to the smaller number of participants, the tournaments ended on the opening Friday of the event and on the following day, on Saturday. 

Sunday, in turn, was reserved for the highlights of the competition, which included Street Fighter 6 and its overwhelming 7.061 entrants, diluted to the top 6 competitors, who tested their skills at the conclusion of the EVO, at the end of the night, after the clashes of Tekken 7, which had 1.580 players, Guilty gear strive, with 2.481, and Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, bringing 1.346 nostalgia fans on duty.

The number of registrations beat all the records of past editions of the EVO, totaling over 12, compared to 8.049 players in last year's tournament. To get an idea, Street Fighter 6 alone has nearly surpassed that number with entrants this year, showing that fighting games are here to stay, breaking ground among the rest. eSports. 

tournament results

Street Fighter 6

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_uqHOLnA7Jg&pp=ygUTZXZvIDIwMjMgc2Y2IGZpbmFscw%3D%3D

Saying that the battle for the champion's trophy Street Fighter 6 was fierce is not enough, because the tournament was not only the first time that the game was played in the EVO, but also had an absurd number of participants. Big names in the competitive Street Fighter universe fought in this tournament, such as Justin Wong, Daigo Umehara, Tokido, Haitani, Alex Valle and Punk, but who ended up winning was AngryBird, from the United Arab Emirates.

Playing with Ken, the member of the NASR team defeated the Dominican MenaRD, who brought Blanka and Luke to the arena. The grand final between the two had a reset, because MenaRD, coming from the lowest bracket of the tournament, managed to win in the first best of 5, forcing AndryBird to fight again, until finally taking the victory.

The main players of SF6 of the tournament were, including their cash prizes:

1. NASR|AngryBird (Ken), $20.000

2. Bandits|MenaRD (Blanka, Luke), $15.000

3. FLY|Punk (Cammy), $10.000

4. Rohto|Tokido (Ken), $7.000

5. RC|Haitani (Chun-Li), $6.000

5. Ibushigin|Kakeru (JP), $6.000

The top three took home joysticks bronze, silver and gold, respectively.

Guilty gear strive

The shit watered down by animes from Guilty gear strive drove the crowd wild at the Mandalay Bay arena. The clash between the Swede Leffen and the Japanese NBNHMR was fast, but no less exciting, thanks to the skills of both. Leffen came out on top, showing absurd control of the Happy Chaos character.

O ranking end of the game looked like this:

1. TSM|Leffen (Happy Chaos), $10.000

2. ONi|NBNHMR (Nagoriyuki), $5.000

3. Daru (I-No), $3.750

4. MR|Umisho (Sun), $2.500

5. Ibushigin|Tyurara (Ky), $2.500

5. Solo|Verix (Nagoriyuki), $2.500

Tekken 7

the end of Tekken 7 brought a beautiful farewell to the game from the competitive scene, since next year it will be replaced by its sequel, Tekken 8. It turned out to be an equal-character fight, with Arslan Ash from Pakistan and Ao from Japan controlling Kunimitsu, the game's female ninja.

The dispute was close, and Ash came out as the winner, taking home, as in the case of the other matches of the finals, the joystick golden! The ranking looked like this:

1. TM|Arslan Ash (Kunimitsu), $10.000

2. GyoGun|Ao (Kunimitsu), $5.000

3. KDF|Ulsan (Bob, Feng, Kazumi), $3.750

4. TUE|Genghis D0n (Katarina), $2.500

5. KDF|Meo-IL (Geese), US$1.500

5. RB|Anakin (JACK-7), $1.500

Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3

Unfortunately, it didn't work out for the current winner of Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, the Chilean Kane Blue River, known for his career as a true World warrior. He was defeated by the American Jibrill, who eventually took the cup in the last EVO to have the game on the main stage.

Just take a look at who was in the top 6 of UMvC3 and how much they won in prize money:

1. Jibrill (Zero, Dante, Vergil), $10.000

2. HB|Evasion (Zero, Dante, Vergil), $5.000

3. KaneBlueRiver (Hulk, Sentinel, Haggar), $3.750

4. JNGL|LiberalTerminator (Nova, Spencer, Dr. Doom), $2.500

5. SpartanThrone (Wolverine, Dormammu, Iron Fist), $1.500

5. Mundank (Nova, Spencer, Magneto), $1.500

Dragon Ball FighterZ 

Here are the top 6 of DBFz and your cash prizes:

1. Hikari (Blue Gogeta, Vegito, Android 17), $10.000

2. Solary|Yasha (Blue Gogeta, Vegito, Android 17), $5.000

3. FLY|Nitro (Gotenks, Android 18, Adult Gohan), $3.750

4. Gropis (Super Baby 2, Frieza, Beerus), $1.500

5. STG|GarlicBread (Super Baby 2, Captain Ginyu, Krillin), $1.500

5. 860|Kite (Lab Coat 21, Base Vegeta, Android 21)

The King of Fighters

Xiaohai confirmed his KOF dominance again by crowning himself the tournament champion. Look who was in the top 6 of the The King of Fighters:

1. DouyuTV|Xiaohai (Kyo, B. Jenet, Krohnen | Kyo, Isla, Krohnen), $10.000

2. XG|ET (Isla, B. Jenet, Krohnen), $5.000

3. SP|Mok (B. Jenet, Luong, Kukri), $3.750

4. CN|Wero Asamiya (Kyo, B. Jenet, Iori), $2.500

5. MadKOF (Geese, Clark, Heidern), $1.500

5. KOR|Lacid (Meitenkun, Shermie, Ash), $1.500

Melty Blood Type Lumina

1. BO|Moai (Michael), $10.000

2. GS|Dai (Michael), $5.000

3. Jimmy J Tran (Ciel), $3.750

4. Aporia|Jing (Hisui), $2.500

5. KoreanWrestlingMan (Mario), $1.500

5. ScrawtVermillion (Kouma), $1.500

Mortal kombat 11 ultimate

1. Ninjakilla212 (Fujin), $10.000

2. TMM|Nicolas (Fujin, Johnny Cage), $5.000

3. TMM|Scorpionprocs (Fujin, Kotal Kahn, Johnny Cage), $3.750

4. Panther|A Foxy Grampa (The Terminator, Sub-Zero, Kitana, Robocop, Kung Lao), $2.500

5. TheMightyUnjust (Jacqui, Kano), $1.500

5. Xombat (Johnny Cage), $1.5000

Granblue Fantasy Versus Rising Beta

1. GS|Gamera (Yuel), $10.000

2. Buh (Siegfried), $5.000

3. Yuisis|Shuaboo (Anre, Seox), $3.750

4. Diaphone (Siegfried), $2.500

5. GS|JFK JP (Lancelot), $1.000

5. Slashgg (Ferry), $1.000

Next, the results of the games whose tournaments took place in EVO, but were not part of the top eight titles. They were part of Community Showcase the event. 

Killer Instinct 

1. PAIR|Nicky (Rash, Eyedol, TJ Combo, Sabrewulf, Riptor)

2. Bass (Spinal, Eagle, Mira, Cinder, Kilgore)

3. HS|Rico Suave (Omen, Gargos, Fulgore)

4. F3|Hollywood Sleep (Aria, Glacius, Maya)

Guilty Gear Xrd REV 2

1. Peppery Splash (Venom)

2. Crocs N' Socks (Slayer)

3. Foo (Kum)

4. JIG|Kedako (May)

5. CATPION|Daymendou (Slayer)

5. Zwei Not (Johnny)

BlazBlue: Central Fiction

1. Jona (Valkenhayn)

2. PAG|Monarch (Λ -No.11-, Es, Litchi)

3. Daze (May)

4. Taihenna (Λ -No.11-)

5. Killakob3s (Bang)

5. Ruka (S)

Street Fighter III: Third Strike

1. Umezono (Chun-Li)

2. Cookie (Elena)

3. Beesu (Yun)

4. Hungbee (Gold)

5. Maurya (Dudley)

5. Chrisdat (Chun Li)

Samurai Shodown

1. Umezono (Chun-Li)

2. Cookie (Elena)

3. Beesu (Yun)

4. Hungbee (Gold)

5. Maurya (Dudley)

5. Chrisdat (Chun Li)

Granblue Fantasy Versus

1. GS|Gamera (Djeeta, Zooey)

2. GS|JFK JP (Lancelot)

3. Yuisis|Shuaboo (Seox)

4. Buh (Anre)

5. Beesu (Belial)

5. JCG|Ryo (Percival)

ultra street fighter 4

1. El Cubano Loco (Vega)

2. BlockbusterJon (Adon, Rolento)

3. DM|Kurokiba (Dee Jay)

4. Flubendorp (El Fuerte)

5. AMTRS|KojiKOG (T. Hawk)

5. Hungbee (T. Hawk)

Super Street Fighter 2: Turbo

1. ChoiBoy (Ryu)

2. Makiri (Ken)

3. Frank Punches (Ryu)

4. Silentscope (Cammy)

5. Enforcer (Ryu)

5. SHEETZ|Klimax (Balrog)

Guilty Gear XX Accent Core +R

1. FF|ElvenShadow (Faust)

2. JIG|Kedako (May)

3. PepperySplash (Venom, Johnny)

4. AMTRS|RF (Faust)

5. Foo (Potemkin)

5. Orrax/Luke (Sun)

Under Night In-Birth EXE: Late[cl-r]

1. ESFC|Mario (Wagner)

2. Jack Ingof (Phonon)

3. PPT|KaiAi (Linne)

4. BNP|Knotts (Seth)

5. AONI|Twang (Akatsuki)

5. UBW|CG (Enkidu)

DNF Dueling

1. Kazunkai (Vanguard)

2. Bored-erlands (Launcher)

3. TGC|Bluelinkys (Swift Master, Inquisitor)

4. Ganondeurf (Launcher)

5. UncrownedJax (Grappler)

5. EnDai (Inquisitor)

Soul Calibur 6

1. GOD|Incendiate (Geralt)

2. DF|Boom (Hwang)

3. OmegaXcn (Taki)

4. Blanket (Voldo)

5. ReidGaming (Cassandra)

5. Scavenger (Siegfried)

Garou: Mark of the Wolves

1. Scrubs (Kevin)

2. Jean-Carlo (Khushnood)

3. Colossus (Tizoc)

4. Cole (Kain)

5. Chiavoni (B. Jenet)

5. ManChest (Kevin, Grant)

Skullgirls: 2nd Encore

1. EG|Dekillsage (Filia, Cerebella, Big Band)

2. Kings (Black Dahlia, Parasoul, Filia)

3. CTK|BicepsAtMid (Filia, Annie, Cerebella)

4. DawnHibiki (Fukua, Annie, Cerebella)

5. SunsetRadiance (Ms. Fortune, Annie, Robo-Fortune)

5. CCND|SwingBeatz (Beowulf, Cerebella, Big Band)

BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle

1. FLY|Razzo (Hakumen, Merkava | Yang, Carmine)

2. iXA|Gouda (Hilda, Chie)

3. HPH|Kiomi (Jubei, Carmine)

4. TNS|Ronan Healy (Akatsuki, Blitztank | Waldstein, Blitztank)

5. MOX|Yui (Adachi, Chie | Yumi, Chie)

5. Megakin (Chie, Elizabeth)

Street Fighter 5: Champion Edition

1. EliTheCurry (Laura)

2. Rize|SilverRupee (Ed)

3. WeegeePlus1 (Rashid)

4. Lizardman (Rashid)

5. GGND09 (Lucia, Alex)

5. Revilo (Zeku)

Persona 4 Ultimax Arena

1. Mighty Joey (Teddie)

2. Pepe (Mitsuru)

3. Atarax570 (Elizabeth)

4. PFC|BigPat (Shadow Junpei)

5. T-Loc (Shadow Mitsuru)

5. Specter (Ken)

Vampire Savior (Darkstalkers)

1. Mighty Joey (Teddie)

2. Pepe (Mitsuru)

3. Atarax570 (Elizabeth)

4. PFC|BigPat (Shadow Junpei)

5. T-Loc (Shadow Mitsuru)

5. Specter (Ken)

Capcom Vs. SNK 2

1. Coates|Bas (A-Groove: Yamazaki, M. Bison, Blanka)

2. ChoiBoy (C-Groove: Ken, Cammy, Sagat)

3. Kilomax (P-Groove: Blanka, Cammy, Sagat)

4. Señor Payaso (K-Groove: Sagat, Rolento, Cammy)

5. 613|Jay (K-Groove: Chun-Li, Blanka, Sagat)

5. Ericturbo (A-Groove: Iori, Sakura, Blanka)

Marvel vs. Capcom 2

1. Crizzle (Magneto, Storm, Psylocke)

2. J2Jin (Storm, Sentinel, Captain Commando)

3. Master Servbot (Magneto, Cable, Sentinel)

4. Lockdown (Strider, Sentinel, Dr. Doom)

5. Dios X (Sentinel, Cable, Blackheart)

Street fighter alpha 2

1. ChoiBoy (Ken)

2. Coates|Bas (Akuma)

3. PAG|VickiViper (Sakura)

4. Greenjoker23 (Rolento)

5. SaberAZ (Rolento)

5. TTF Deluxe (Ryu)

Virtua Fighter 5: Ultimate Showdown

1. Kurita Oyakata (Taka-Arashi)

2. SF | Gentleman Thief (Jean)

3. Dropkick|Phoxx (El Blaze)

4. GenesisFrenzy (Aoi)

5. Johnny E (Brad)

5. VFNumbers (Lei-Fei)

Big announcements and news

A EVO is much more than a simple gaming championship, over the years it has become a true convention for fans of the popular video game genre, with a huge variety of activities and vendors present to delight those in attendance, many of whom attend the tournament not to compete, but to be part of the public and have fun with others with common interests.

There is also great importance given to the announcements made by the developers of the games that are in the competition, which this year yielded some blockbuster headlines, such as the news for the coming Mortal Kombat 1. The party is such that these revelations are usually reserved for the last day of the event, and are made in front of the arena crowd, who always go wild when they hear the news.

This year, the highlight of the announcements was in the hands of Ed Boon and company of NetherRealm, who confirmed that Reptile will be part of the cast of Mortal Kombat 1, featuring an action-packed trailer and several cameos, such as Havik and Ashrah, two fighters from the PlayStation 2 era of the franchise who will also join the game's roster of fighters.

From what we saw in the video, Reptile seems to have two distinct forms, the human one, very similar to how he was in the beginning of the franchise, and his reptilian one, which refers to his cool in the last film adaptation of MK. Interestingly, he will be part of the good guys, along with Ashrah, who underwent a complete reinvention, becoming a kind of champion of Justice. Havik, in turn, is tremendously bizarre, because, believe me, he has a blow in which he rips off his own arm to attack the enemy.   

The studio also revealed that Sareena, the half-woman, half-bat, will be part of the assistance characters, a new mechanic that is being introduced in the 12th title of the beloved series. Remembering that Mortal Kombat 1 launches for Xbox Series S/X, PlayStation 5, and Nintendo Switch on September 17.

At the gates of the end of Tekken 7 on sunday, the producer of the Tekken franchise, Katsuhiro Harada, together with his traditional translator, the game designer Michael Murray, brought some news related to Tekken 8, the new title in the series, which still has no set release date. Raven, the dangerous ninja who made his debut in Tekken 5 will be back in the eighth game, with a new, futuristic look and electrifying moves.

Raven will be part of the roster of 16 fighters from Tekken 8, along with the colorful Azucena Milagros Ortiz Castillo, the “queen of Peruvian coffee”, star of her own trailer, presented next to Raven's, shortly after Harada and Murray pretend to have finished with the news on stage, something they always do, drawing laughter from the audience as they ran back to the lights and introduced the new fighter.

As the trailer indicated, Azucena is a master at evading her opponents' attacks, in addition to having an absurd control of the fight on the ground, with moves very similar to those of MMA. She will have more than one fighting posture, one dedicated to deflecting enemy blows, using the strength of others to cause a lot of damage to the poor people who attack her, along with another, with a lot of speed and agility of fists and legs. 

According to the game's director, Kohei Ikeda, in a post on the PlayStation blog, Azucena's special move is called Liberator, a kind of pose that serves to provoke his opponents; she switches to a stance where she cannot block, and instead, she detects and intuitively dodges high and low blows coming from the opponent, which prevents them from maintaining a more aggressive fighting pace. And when activating the mode Heat, the pressure becomes even more intense, as with every punch or kick coming from his opponent, Azucena is able to automatically counterattack after dodging.

Ikeda even revealed details of the new character's backstory when explaining why she is entering the tournament. King of Iron Fist: promote the coffee produced by your family. Whenever she delivers her rage art, comically, a TV commercial is shown, where the Castillos' coffee brand is stamped on screen. 

Out of the new member of Tekken, her themed phase was also shown while she was fighting. The new combat arena takes place in the high altitudes of Peru, and like other fight locations in the game, it also has more than one floor; the latter turned out to be the interior of an Indian pyramid, filled with gold everywhere.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbOnC5DJx2c&ab_channel=StreetFighter

Capcom was not far behind. Before the finals Street Fighter 6 at the end of the night, the producer brought a band to the stage, which performed some of the game's melodies before making a transition to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles theme song. The tribute was not for nothing, as soon after a trailer debuted, revealing that the most famous reptiles on TV will invade the world of the game through additional paid content. 

They will be clothes for characters of the four turtles for the modes World Tour e battle hub, Michelangelo, Raphael, Leonardo and Donatello, new emotes, titles, emblems and even wallpapers for your technological gadgets within the game. The release date for this content is tomorrow, the 8th, and it can be purchased directly from the in-game store.

And she didn't stop there: the new character to enter the ring of Street Fighter 6 won a special video, it is the Chinese AKI, who appears to be a female version of the lieutenant of the great villain M. Bison in the previous game, FANG In the trailer, she shows a very cunning side by poisoning the main character. 

The new fighter will be the second addition to the game's roster, following Rashid's introduction last month. Together with the two, it has already been announced that Street Fighter 6 will feature Ed, the boxer with powers psycho similar to those of Bison, later this year, and with the demon in the form of a person, the medallion of the series, Akuma, in 2024.

Behold, a quick look at Outfit 3 for Juri, Marisa, Guile, and Dee Jay in # StreetFighter6! Stay tuned for more info on their release in the future. pic.twitter.com/T7WY5iibvP

- Street Fighter (@StreetFighter) August 4, 2023

Finally, among the novelties for Street Fighter 6, Capcom showed at the beginning of EVO new outfits for some of the game's characters, such as Juri, Marisa, Guile and tournament darling Dee Jay. For now, there is still no premiere date for these character skins. 

For the madness of the old players, SNK showed more of the continuation of the Fatal Fury series, with what until now was called Garou 2, following the nomenclature of the last game in the series to be released in 1999, Garou: Mark of the Wolves, now becomes Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves. 

The video released by the developers of the company responsible for the sensational King of Fighter XV, showed the new visuals of the game, confirming that they will bring a graphic treatment similar to other SNK titles, using the technique cel-shaded for your characters, giving them an appearance similar to drawings made on celluloid. 

Among the fighters shown were Rock Howard, protagonist of Garou, and his godfather, Terry Bogard, who were present giving tips on their potential competitors and places where they will eventually exchange many blows. SNK stated that Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves it's "furiously in development", but there hasn't been any mention of platforms or even a hint of a release date for the new game.

Not getting too far behind in the announcements, Arc System Works released the new character that will be part of Guilty gear strive, among the novelties that will be part of season 3 of content for the game: none other than the loudmouthed and capped Johnny. He will enter the game with everything on the next 24th.

There was also the promise of a major update to the base game of Strive, which according to the game's team, will bring "changes to the balance for the entire cast, new battle mechanics and unprecedented moves for some of the characters".

Guilty gear strive wasn't the only news from Arc System Works in the EVO. Along with Frenche-Bread, the studio behind Melty Blood, one of the games in the tournament, revealed that Under Night In-Birth 2 Sys:Celes, the sequel to the long-running 2012 fighting game, is in development.

The game that brings a mix of light novels 2D, frenetic action is coming to Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5 and PCs next year. Remembering also that it will have new technology of rollback, which will cause matches online in the new game are as stable as possible.

According to the release of the game, the synopsis of Under Night In-Birth 2 Sys:Celes is as follows: 

Players will take on the role of the young high school student and protagonist of the story, Hyde, who encounters a mysterious girl named Lynne, causing his hidden EXS powers to awaken. The two team up in a herculean effort to defeat the fearsome Paradox, believed to be the most powerful user of all. However, just as the two manage to emerge victorious, an enigmatic force called Kuon, the Aeon, arrives to crush the duo, announcing that it will begin the end of the world. Linne ends up disappearing, and Hyde, alone, decides to save the world from Kuon's hands, wandering aimlessly in the Night...

game synopsis Under Night In-Birth 2 Sys:Celes.

The children were not left out of the news of the EVO, with the announcement of Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl 2, continuation of the success among younger players, which brings several franchises from the paid TV channel. The straw of the new fighting game by Fair Play Labs and Ludosity was in charge of the former champion of Super Smash Bros the game is heavily influenced by, Juan “Hungrybox” DeBiedma, who showcased the game's updated mechanics.

They include different control options and a power meter. slime, the booger so loved by Nickelodeon's captive audience, which is a hugely important aspect of the new game. And of course, this wouldn't be a trailer for EVO if it didn't bring some kind of introduction of some character; the glories were for Plankton, SpongeBob's archenemy and his gang. He will feature his robot suit, which for some reason is also his computer and/or his wife Karen. 

Xbox Game Studios, together with Iron Galaxy, in partnership with streamer Maximillian, surprised the audience of EVO right on the first day of the tournament, bringing the announcement of news for their 2013 game, Killer Instinct, to commemorate the tenth anniversary of its release. 

Among the Updates, there will be new character balancing, especially Eagle and Rash, as well as improved online matchmaking and upgrade graphics for 4K, in Xbox series s e X. Adam Heart, lead combat designer of Killer Instinct, promised that the update will come during the fall season in the United States, which is equivalent to the interval between September and December in the northern hemisphere.

It is possible to play Killer Instinct completely free on Steam and on consoles Xbox One e Xbox series s e X.   

Riot Games revealed on Friday the 4th that League of Legends hero Yasuo will join the roster of fighters for its new game, 2v2 Project L. Nicknamed “the Unforgivable” and armed with his famous Wall of Wind, his MOBA exclusive attack, Yasuo was one of the four characters available to play in the demo present at the event, along with Ekko, Darius and Ahri. 

There is currently no release date for Project L.

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Understand the timeline of Mortal Kombat so far

Sources: PlayStation Blog, Event Hubs e Polygon.

Text proofread by: Pedro Bomfim (07 / 08 / 23)