The rise of esports, live-streaming, and professional gamers has culminated in a thriving competitive community that just seems to be rising in popularity. With millions of spectators and viewers, and billions generated in revenue, video game competitions have become a major factor in the industry over the past ten years or so.Esportshas helped the pastime integrate better into popular culture and the mainstream, and created careers for young people that seemed unimaginable at the start of the century. There are a number of genres that perform particularly well in video game tournaments, from MOBAs to FPSs, but fighting games are some of the most popular.
TheEvolution Championship Series, otherwise known asEvo, is one of the biggest and most well-known fighting game tournaments in the world. This annual event is an open tournament that has competitors from all over the globe converge to compete and features a revolving roster of different games each year. The 2022 tournament will take place from August 5 to 7, and now that this year’s list of games has been announced, competitors and viewers have lots to look forward to.
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The Lineup
This week, thelineup for Evo 2022 was released. In addition to the main event – the competitive tournament – Evo also serves as a kind of E3 for fighting games, giving developers and publishers the chance to show off upcoming projects or provide updates on ongoing games. Speculation is rife, and it seems likely that the recently announcedStreet Fighter 6will make an appearance during the proceedings, as well as the rumoredTekken 8.
For the full list of games, see below:
This list doesn’t present many surprises, with classics likeStreet FighterandTekkenmaking an appearance. Bandai Namco’s 2018 titleDragon Ball FighterZis another solid choice, with a highly praised fighting system, character roster, and visuals to recommend it. Games likeStreet Fighter 5: Champion Edition,Mortal Kombat 11 Ultimate,Tekken 7, andGuilty Gear Strivereturn after already featuring in Evo 2021. More recent games have also been included in the list, like 2021’sMelty Blood: Type Lumina.There’s evenThe King of Fighters XVthat was just released in February 2022, which doesn’t leave players that much time to hone their skills before they compete and will be an interesting new addition.
EVO 2022
The upcoming tournament will be thefirst in-person Evo event since 2019, and fans will no doubt be excited to descend upon Las Vegas to celebrate the return of such a prestigious event. The tournament has gone through some tumultuous changes in recent years, with previous Twitch and Red Bull employee Rick ‘TheHadou’ Thiher joining Evo as a new general manager. Thiher promised to bring the event to “undiscovered audiences” and continue to bolster the tournament’s legacy for future generations.
As not only the first in-person event after both the 2020 and 2021 tournaments were switched to online, this will also be the first live tournament afterSony teamed up with RTS to acquire Evo in 2021. A number of Evo co-founders moved into advisory roles, with the controversy surrounding co-founder Joey Cuellar causing major publishers like Capcom, NetherRealm, and Bandai Namco to distance themselves from the 2021 event.
Now that Evo has also distanced itself from disgraced co-founder Joey Cuellar, it seems like service will resume as normal for this year’s tournament. However, Nintendo has announced that its own fan-favorite fighterSuper Smash Bros.will not be making an appearance at this year’s Evo, much to the disappointment of many gamers. While the reasons for this decision aren’t entirely clear, many have speculated that Evo’s association with Sony has caused Nintendo to rethink its own ties with the tournament.
There have been a number of popular fighting games that have come to be associated with Evo ever since the tournament rose to prominence in the early 2000s. Alongsideiconic fighting game franchises likeTekken,Street Fighter, andMarvel vs. Capcom,Super Smash Bros.was one of the games that came to define tournaments like Evo.Super Smash Bros. Meleeoriginally appeared at the tournament in 2007, and since then it was featured in every Evo from 2013 to 2018 and became one of the most-watched games at each event. Its absence will surely be felt, but with the list of exciting fighting game titles,Evo2022 is still shaping up to be a memorable event.
