The first weekend of December 2012 ushered in a rare opportunity
for the fighting game community to gather and celebrate what they do
best: brawling for fun and supremacy!
Held at,
and sponsored by, Addicted 2 Gamez from November 30th-December 2nd, the
stage was set for a series of tournaments that saw players from all
walks of life compete in well known titles. Games in competition
included “Super Street Fighter IV AE”, “Ultimate Marvel Vs Capcom 3”,
“Tekken Tag Tournament 2”, and “The King Of Fighters XIII”
The organizers even brought in special participants from overseas to
join in, namely CJ and Filipino Champ. Both are revered competitors in
the professional tournament circuit, most especially the annual
Evolution Fighting Championship series.
A2G
organizers Jerry Domingo and Nelson Ngan were on hand to promote and
keep things under control. “Our aim is to promote the Fighting Game
Community” Ngan remarked. “Bringing F. Champ and CJ to the Philippines
is our way of attracting others players to compete and develop their
skills in fighting games, to develop the community and bring out
potential players who can represent our country in international
tournaments”.
At the A2G tournament, fighting games are the preferred aarena.
Indeed, the fighting game community has a lot of potential that's yet
to be tapped. With E-Games titles like “Ragnarok”, “Ran Online”, and
“League of Legends” promoted to an international degree, it’s only fair
to say that Fighting Games can match up to that success. It’s a genre
that has only recently gained an attraction again with the release of
next generation titles and systems, and many good players hail from
outside the United States, which includes countries like Japan,
Singapore, and the Philippines.
As a fighting
game player myself, I joined in the A2G tournament thanks to the
invitation of some friends from the fighting game community. It was the
second day of the long weekend event and the first day of December, with
participants engaging in tournaments for two of Capcom's newest and
best titles to date: “Ultimate Marvel Vs Capcom 3” and “Super Street
Fighter IV Arcade Edition.”
Elimination matches
then took place, winners and Losers brackets were soon formed, and
ultimately the one who came out on top was none other than the Evo 2012
Champion himself: Filipino Champ.
He faced
stiff competition however in the finals against Andrew “Dru” Martinez,
another good SFIV player who competed in Singapore once and matched up
against Champ’s Dhalsim with his own M. Bison. Ultimately, Champ’s
skills pulled him through.
F. Champ (real name
Ryan Ramirez) also goes by the alias “col. CC Filipino Champ” in the
fighting game tournament world. He is a Filipino-American known for his
proficiency and skill at Capcom games.
Ramirez/F. Champ visits the Philippines on occasion to participate in local tournaments and to visit his family.
“The FGC is still in its infancy, but has a lot of potential to grow,”
he said, and went on to say that “There are a lot of good players in the
Philippines, and I come here to help promote Fighting Games
professionally and give these players a chance to find success in
playing them.”
Meanwhile, as this year’s
Evolution 2012 World Champion, Ryan “Filipino Champ” Ramirez has found
success in something that started out as a hobby. Being very passionate
about fighting games, his love for the genre started with “Street
Fighter II”, and since then he has built himself up to become the
respectable force to be reckoned with in professional tournaments held
the world over.
Thanks to his dedication, Ryan
is now sponsored by several promotions and advertisers who bank on his
skills and potential as a fighting game guru. He once working for jobs
that paid below minimum wage, but now he plays professionally and earns
by being a marketable presence in the community. Filipino Champ continues to hone his skills and compete at official tournaments the world over.
Follow the fighting game community in places like Pinoy2DFighters or the international boards at Shoryuken.com
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