Otakon Tournament Report

Hey guys, here is my take on the Otakon VF4 tournament... 64 players entered, I'd have to say the majority were casual players or those who were at the con and entered the tournament for something to do.

1st place: Alex Golden (me from Southern New Jersey & Rochester, NY) as Jacky
2nd place: Hyun (from Boston) as Jeffry and Kage

I didn't catch the name of the players who came in third and fourth. I have a few photos and video clips from a digital camera I will put up soon... I saw the two players who lost in the semis taping the finals, if you are reading this I'd like to buy a copy of the tape off of you.

We saved some of the final round matches to a memory card, except the first and the last - nerves kind of got in the way, and neither of us remembered how to save replays heh. I'll have to get them from the Otakon guy or something.

The competition I was primarily concerned with was Hyun (who I had met at March Madness in Philly) and Rich (my brother). There was a bearded Aoi player who looked to be sharp but I don't think he entered the tournament.

Also there was a Jacky player from Roanoke (sorry I didn't get your name), Gandolf007 (forget who you used), an Akira player with somewhat spiky hair, IIIDemon who played Lion, and the two guys who made it to the semis (didn't catch their names, the one I met used Vanessa). I was concerned here because I had fought him in practice rounds twice earlier in the day and lost both times, I guess I was on a roll and won two of the 2/3 3/5 round matches in a row.

Hyun played Jeffry in all of his matches until the finals, and seemed to have a pretty easy time with most of the competition. While waiting in line I mentioned to him I wasn't too good at playing against Kage because Rich and I never really use him. The finals were best 3/5 3/5 round matches. I guess I should have kept my mouth shut, because he used Kage and had an easy time defeating my Jacky in the first two matches. Fortunatley the finals were 3/5 matches - I decided to stick with Jacky - even though I had just lost pretty badly the first two matches, I felt I had the best chance to win with Jacky. I was just hoping not to get swept in the finals like my New Jersey Nets... But the way his Kage dominated my Jacky in the first two rounds I thought for sure I was going to lose a third...

I began to change style, tried not letting him get off as many TFTs and other throws. I won the third match and Hyun went back to playing as Jeffry. His Jeffry didn't fare as well as his Kage did, and people in the crowd speculated that if he lost as Jeffry he would go back to Kage for the final match. That is what happened...

So it was all tied up, final match of the tournament. My Jacky versus his Kage. The final round went like this: I had won two rounds, he had won one. We both had about 75% health, I hit Jacky's knee to the back throw. He got up and kicked me down. I got up didn't block and he kicked me down again. I rolled back got up, and went for Jacky's , combo. The punch hit but he blocked the low sweep and kicked me to the floor again. At this point neither of us have much life left, I get up, he comes in to attack but I hit a standing to win the match.

The tournament was a lot of fun, but at least for me very nerve wracking. My heart was beating a mile a minute, especially while playing against the Akira player and during the finals. The early rounds were intense because it was single elimination, if you lost you were out, and with the competition some of the matches could have gone either way.

Looking forward to the next tournament in Roanoke, VA at Magfest - http://www.magfest.org --- see you guys there!

 

Wow, very good account of the VF4 action. Both you and your brother play very, very well. BTW, i was the guy from Roanoke who played Jacky. And i also took one of the 4th spots (single elim, so 2 3rds, and 4 4ths). The finals of this tourney were some of the most spectacular matches i'd ever seen. Can't wait for MAGFest now, i've gotta get my game up to that level.

 

yo i also was in the 4th place chategory the guy who beat me was allan (the vanessa player, and good friend of mine) the other semi final guy was another friend of mine dave. we are all from knoxville which has a very very small vf community

 

yeah, i heard ya about those small VF communities. I'm surprised i did as well as i did, for this was the first time i'd played outside of Roanoke. BTW, who were you playing?

 

fbt: thanks for the compliments...

woodman: thanks for the info on the other players..
i tried to add their names to my original post but the edit time had past...

is there anyway to get in touch with them so I could get a copy of the tape? I'd really appreciate it... If I got a copy I'd be able to put it online, lots of people at the tournament said they'd want to see it...

many thanks

 

Like I said back at HG, wish I had friggen made this event, hell, wish I had known about it..would of showed up..I live about 20-30 min outside of Bmore.

 

Hey, were in MD are you (if you are) I am looking for some local competition.

 

Y0! I was the chinese Vanessa player that played you in the semis. Good fight. You were the only one I played during the tourney that had me on the edge. Good tourney I hope to make it to the one in roanoke.

 

Damn, looks like the next big VF4 tourney will be here in Roanoke! Awesome! I'll try my best to make it worthwhile. I'm gonna really push the idea of a 2 out of 3, double elimination tourney, that way we will know who is definately the best. Oh, and the other day, Gndalf007 had a brilliant idea, awarding trophies for winning. Any thoughts?