Fighting Games Friday: It’s Evo Japan 2024!
Evo Japan 2024 is now upon us. The event first came onto the scene in 2018, as an alternative to the main Evo event that takes place every year on the West Coast of the United States. Few were entirely certain of the idea when it first began, as a Japanese tournament was unlikely to get quite as many eyes on it compared to one held within the US every year thanks to the time difference. Not to mention the other setbacks in recent years, like the COVID-19 pandemic and how some games couldn’t be played at specific portions of the tournaments thanks to some peculiar licensing issues. The first event was also a money-losing venture thanks to the unique way in which it needed to be financed.
Yet, it was successful enough that it’s returned yet again this year. Evo Japan still has nothing on its larger brother that’s dependably held in Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas every year midway through the summer, but this event slightly more than an appetizer for that one. The time differences between Japan and several parts of the western world will make it difficult to catch some finals live, but it’s a good thing streaming archives exist considering how entertaining this is bound to be.
Evo Japan 2024 will be the first big tournament for Tekken 8, following its release at the end of January. Several smaller tournaments have been held since then, all of which have been entertaining. The community has intently watched to see how the best Tekken players around, and a few neophytes, have settled in to learn how to master this installment. But this will be the first tournament to gather a solid majority of them, and should thus make for a great time.
The experience will be better for those with the opportunity to watch the finals live, though. The Tekken 8 finals will begin at around 3PM Japan time on the 29th, remarkably at 2:00 AM Monday morning for those of us on the East Coast of the United States. This will be the kind of tournament to catch the archives for as you’re getting ready for work on Monday, because, uh, nothing will get you psyched for the day like watching high-octane Tekken matches.
I’m not going to overlook Under Night In-Birth II Sys: Celes, which will also have its first big tournament. This will also be the first notable tournament for an Under Night In-Birth title in a good while. Melty Blood Type: Lumina was the main attraction from developer French-Bread over the last several years, which helped expand the development team’s audience. The updated versions of the prior UNIB titles were essentially good fallback good whenever tournament organizers didn’t have many other choices. Now that the developer has proved that its games are a draw in larger tournaments, it’s fully earned its place as a main title on this big -ish stage.
I’m also making sure not to forget Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising, another one having its first tournament. This one isn’t quite as big a milestone as the last two thanks to Rising being more of an updated version of the original game, but it’s nonetheless important thanks to this being the game’s biggest showcase in years. This tournament notably and thankfully won’t be accompanied by fans begging Cygames for rollback netplay, the efforts for which got them to listen with Rising including the feature.
The other games are returning titles, namely Street Fighter 6, The King of Fighters XV, and Guilty Gear Strive. This will be the first time to see the games with some balance updates, new features (like one KOFXV received), and new characters, and should all make for an entertaining time at the very least. One key title that will appear is Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike, a classic title that’s provided plenty of legendary tournaments, and I still feel like I’m putting that too lightly. There’s no telling whether this will be one of those memorable tournaments, but like the others above, it will at least make for an entertaining time.
The other attraction will be the announcements. It was already confirmed that League of Legends fighting title Project L 2XKO (I still don’t like that name) will be playable, with Illaoi being a big focus. The very Tatsunoko vs. Capcom-looking Hunter x Hunter: Nen x Impact and Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves will also be playable. Last year’s event showed how there are unlikely to be anywhere near as many announcements compared to the main Evo events, but the presentations will still be respectable.
They’re also not the main attraction, clearly. Have fun watching the tournaments. I just recommend not losing any necessary sleep over catching them all live, especially if the weekend is your best time to get that beauty rest. I know it’s mine.
About The Author
Geoff
News Editor | Geoff is some nerd who writes for a blog and thinks he's knowledgeable. He write a lot about video games, but is capable of writing about other subjects, too. Twitter
