My EVO 2023 Experience
The fighting game community is in the middle of another renaissance, a period bolstered by features such as GGPO rollback netcode and more lenient control schemes making fighting games the most accessible they have been. Mortal Kombat 1 releases in September, Tekken 8 just had a Closed Network Test with a roster swelling in size, and Riot Games’ Project L is aiming to change the way we think of tag fighters.
For those unaware, the Evolution Championship Series (or Evo for short), is an annual esports event held in Las Vegas, Nevada. The event holds multiple tournaments, booths from vendors all across the arcade hardware space, playable builds and demos for upcoming games ranging from indie to major, and lots more to see and do.
With Evo 2023 having record attendees from across the globe, Evo has definitely swelled in size since its first introduction in 1996. What started as a small Super Street Fighter II Turbo/Street Fighter Alpha 2 tournament between rivals on the Shoyuken forums from Sunnyvale, California is now the single largest esports event to date.
The annual Evolution Fighting Game Championship is more than just a major tournament – it’s a celebration of the genre. But what is it like to attend Evo?
For starters, Evo is always held in the middle of the summer in one of the hottest places in America so be sure to book a hotel near the Mandalay Bay Convention Hall. Even though it’s blazing outside, you’re going to be inside most of the time, and the air conditioning is usually set to blast, so a light sweater might be a good idea if you tend to get cold.
Weather aside, you’re going to do a lot of walking, so be sure to wear your comfiest shoes or rock your cushiest insoles. It feels almost religious, making the pilgrimage together through the Mandalay Bay to the convention hall to wait in line for your badge.
Junkfood Arcades new ‘SWORL’ controller, featuring two analog sticks and a WASD layout.
My experience here is a little different since I went mainly as an observer, so if you’re also registered to compete, arrive early and know the layout of the floor plan. It’s super important especially if your round 1 pools match is right at 10 am. Preparedness is key unless you just want to DQ away your free entree from Chipotle.
Each year that I’ve gone, they also offered a free water bottle along with water stations throughout the convention floor – so be sure to stay hydrated! Get a good sense of what’s happening and where – the Evo website has a schedule of what happens each day. In particular, Friday morning at the main stage is where most of the developer and community showcase happens. Those are usually things like game announcements or special exhibitions like the Daigo/Justin Wong exhibition from 2022.
So plan your time accordingly to see what or who you want to see throughout the weekend!
As far as what was announced this year, I did my best to try and float around the scheduled showcases and kept a close eye on social media for announcements.
From Cygames, we received more details regarding Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising. The game releases on November 30 and they also mentioned a free-to-play version.
Additionally, Arc System Works also had a developer showcase detailing all the new changes coming to Guilty Gear Strive for their Season 3 content. A returning character, Johnny was also shown, being the first DLC character for Season 3.
Arc System Works and developer French Bread are also working on another iteration in the Under Night series, titled Under Night In-Birth 2 Sys:Celes.
SNK Corporation has finally revealed the title of the long-awaited sequel to Garou: Mark of the Wolves. The sequel is now called Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves, with the trailer possibly hinting at the several stages featured along with sneak peeks at Terry Bogard and Rock Howard sporting a cel-shaded look.
Iron Galaxy announces a 10-year anniversary update for Killer Instinct after an exciting exhibition. There are talks of balance updates, improved matchmaking, and 4K support for Xbox Series X|S.
Riot Games brings a playable build to the public at Evo and announces Yasuo as a playable character. This one is definitely interesting, a recent announcement that the tag-based fighting game will also allow duo queueing with a partner will make Project L a very dynamic fighting game where teamwork is key.
NetherRealm Studios and even Ed Boon was tweeting about Reptile all week leading up to Evo, so he was at least expected. The trailer debuted during Sunday’s Finals and showed all sorts of characters from the 3D era of Mortal Kombat that I honestly didn’t even recognize at first. Ashrah and Havik are back as playable characters, with Sareena and Frost as ‘Kameo’ characters.
Bandai Namco also had Katsuhiro Harada and Michael Murray show off more Tekken 8 characters. But not before Yoshinori Ono crashed the stage and made a pretty cheeky ‘Tekken x Street Fighter’ game tease like it’s Comic-Con 2010. Raven returns while Azucena is a newcomer with the trailer showing her unique ability to spot dodge.
Finally, Capcom announces a TMNT crossover for Battle Hub cosmetics, and a cinematic trailer for the next character for Street Fighter 6, A.K.I.
Okay, there may have been an announcement I may have missed, that entire weekend usually is chock full of info to follow. There’s one last recommendation I have: go to the Sunday Finals Day. It’s usually separate from the Evo badge registration as it takes place in the arena at Mandalay Bay.
It’s definitely exhausting to try and stay the entire duration since it starts at 10 am and usually ends late depending on how long the matches run, so it could end as late as 11 pm, with closing remarks leading up to midnight or later. Seats are also general admission on a first come first served basis so be on the lookout for better seats as the night goes on because, by the end of the night, it was packed in the arena. The crowd and the energy are equally infectious. 10/10 will go again.
