Similarities

Came across this article comparing Street Fighter and Poker. If nothing else, it's a fascinating comparison.

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The Evolution 2010 Season Wrap-up

Part 1 - The Fighting Game Boom

Except this year, I'm doing things differently. Normally, what I did in the past wrap ups, as mentioned earlier, was discuss each community individually and talk about the strengths and weaknesses of each individual community from what I observed. This year, however, I think it would be a mistake to do such a thing. And the reason for this is because, this year above all other years, we need to focus not on the individual communities, but the Fighting Game Community as a whole. And that's because this year, the Fighting Game Community may have taken its first steps into becoming something much bigger.

Let's just cut to the chase, first and foremost. Street Fighter IV has changed everything. What this game and Super Street Fighter IV have done to the Fighting Game Community cannot be denied. One main reason that it's not proper to focus on the communities of Marvel Vs. Capcom 2, Tatsunoko Vs. Capcom, Melty Blood, Tekken, and Super Street Fighter II: HD Remix is because, quite simply put, these communities are overshadowed by the sheer size and power of the Street Fighter IV community. And while this may make some of these other communities upset to hear me say this, especially because some members of these communities look down on Street Fighter IV, I think communities need to look at the positives that Street Fighter IV has been bringing the Fighting Game Community as a whole.

Whenever I talk about the Fighting Game Community to friends and where it needs to go and how it needs to grow, the topic of poker always comes up. Of any mainstream gaming communities that exist today, the Poker Community is the one that I feel as though the Fighting Game Community needs to follow and emulate as much as possible. There are many facets that can provide similarities between the communities, but the reason I bring this up today is because I feel as though the way Chris Moneymaker's win in 2003 initiated the Poker Boom, Evolution 2010 may have been the closest thing we've yet seen to achieving a similar boom. And it's all a direct result of Street Fighter IV's immense popularity.

You see, Chris Moneymaker was an unknown player. He was what we would refer to, in the Fighting Game Community, as a "newb." But he got entry into the World Series of Poker by winning a satellite tournament and proceeded to not only win the Main Event as the World Series of Poker, but to do so by taking down veteran professional player Sam Farha heads-up at the final table. After Chris won, everyone believed they could also win. And thus: the Poker Boom. Though a similar situation where a "newb" has taken down a pro hasn't happened in the Fighting Game Community, the huge increase of players at events like Evolution from one year to the next upon Street Fighter IV's release was very similar to the increase of players at the World Series of Poker the following year after Moneymaker won.

Now, I dunno about most of you people, but before the Poker Boom, poker was one thing to me: people sitting in a smoke-filled room asking for more cards and trying to bluff each other. Whenever you saw poker on TV shows or in movies, it was always the same format: each player is dealt 5 card hands and they are allowed a maximum of 3 cards for redraw. Texas Hold-Em was a version of the game I had never heard of even though it had been the Main Event at the World Series of Poker since forever.

After the Poker Boom, Texas Hold-Em was the main form of poker played. Even TV and movies began to reflect that. Casino Royale -- the recent James Bond film -- for example, had a plot that revolved around Texas Hold-Em. Without the Poker Boom, they probably would have played the same 5 card style of poker that we had seen in TV shows and movies for forever. Hell, they might have even just played Baccarat, the game that was originally played in the book.

Since Moneymaker's win in 2003, Texas Hold-Em has exploded. Everyone plays that version in home games, and when you hear "poker," Texas Hold-Em is now the first game you think of. Even your average joe pictures Texas Hold-Em as what poker is now. But here's the question: are there other versions of poker? Are there even more skilled versions of poker out there, that rely less on luck and require more knowlege and skill?

The answer to both of those questions is "Yes." There are tons of poker versions out there, and many of them do require stronger knowledge and take away some of the luck. There's Omaha High-Low, Stud Eight or Better, Razz, and on and on. Heck, there's even huge differences between tournament play and cash game play. Some formats are more skilled, some are less skilled, but none are as popular as tournament Texas Hold-Em. But here's the question: do you think fans of these other versions are frustrated that Texas Hold-Em is the most popularly played poker format out there?

Maybe. But most of them more than likely have accepted Texas Hold-Em as the main format in the poker world. In the mid 2000's, when ESPN showed the World Series of Poker, they used to televise many different games. They showed the Omaha games, the Stud Eight or Better games, and so on and so forth. But recently, in the past couple of years, ESPN has moved away from showing these games. They only show Texas Hold-Em events now. Why? Because the other formats simply didn't get as many viewers.


So by now I'm sure many fans of the other games like BlazBlue and King of the Fighters and Tekken are either sad or outright angry with me because they think they know where I'm going with this poker analogy. Am I really sitting here, telling you all to declare Street Fighter IV as king all-mighty of the Fighting Game community and to just accept it, like many poker players have just accepted Texas Hold-Em as the top-most played poker format? Am I saying that everyone should drop their games and go learn Street Fighter IV? Well... no. Not at all.

What I'm telling you is this: use the exposure of Fighting Games to the general public through Street Fighter IV to help your own community grow. Look at the influx of potential players and, instead of looking down upon the casual Street Fighter IV fan, nuture them and introduce them, slowly, to your game of choice.

Everyone nowadays goes into poker learning Texas Hold-Em. But it's almost a guarantee that, through the natural course of exposure to Texas Hold-Em, players who become serious about the game eventually move on to learn the other formats. They start learning how to play the other games due to general curiosity and the need for variety.


Is Street Fighter IV a simple game? Yes. But it's approachable and it's easy to learn. People who don't understand poker at all can watch poker on TV, see the percentages written on the screen, and recognize when someone catches a miracle card to win a hand and understand the elation or devastation experienced by the players. What they don't see is the slow-plays and the fake over-betting with a strong hand to feign weakness by appearing to try and buy a pot. People watching Street Fighter IV can tell everything that's going on and see who's winning thanks to the life bars and get excited by Ultra Combos and their pretty animations and recognize big comebacks and narrow victories and understand the elation or devastation experienced by the players. They don't see a lot of the subtle strategies that go on with Footsies and Option Selects and finger dexterity, but they don't need to: the game looks fun to them and they can understand it.

So the same thing starts to happen with Street Fighter IV that happens with poker: people who spectate start to get interested in playing because the game is so fun to watch. And they step into it and learn the subtleties little by little and their appreciation of the game grows. You start to understand why poker cannot be played without chips and why Street Fighter cannot be played without Throws. And then they start to understand the idea of why slow playing the set of kings is so effective and why baiting Wake-Ups becomes a fundamental tactic. And then they slowly but surely become good at a game that is actually friendly enough to allow them to get to a point where they are truly competitive. Yes, they are still going to lose to Patrick Antonius and Phil Ivey and Chris Ferguson and Johnny Chan 99 out of 100 times at the poker table, but they can at least play. And yes, they are still going to lose to Alex Valle and John Choi and Arturo Sanchez and Justin Wong 99 out of 100 times, but at least they can play!

And then what happens? They go to events like the World Series of Poker or Evolution and they start watching. They start seeing other games like Omaha or Marvel Vs. Capcom 2 or Seven Card Stud or Tekken and they become intrigued. And it's really up to those other communities, now, to bring those players in and introduce them to a different game. And who knows? Some of those people coming in as Texas Hold-Em fans may become one of the best Omaha players ever. A few of those Street Fighter IV kids may become pro BlazBlue players. You never know.


And this is bringing me to my main point: the Fighting Game Community needs to act as a whole from this point forward. This is why I do not want to discuss each community individually anymore. The Fighting Game Community is one entity, and it will only become successful and mainstream if it acts like one entity. The separate games of the Fighting Game Community need not ostricize and fight against other games. They need to start learning how to bring in other players and take advantage of the other communities.

Tekken players need to write up articles such as, "If you like using a Rush Down character like Cammy in Super Street Fighter IV, well then you should look at these characters to play in Tekken because they have similar sensibilities." BlazBlue experts need to write how strategies you've learned in Street Fighter IV apply to BlazBlue, such as Option Selects and BnB's and safe Block Strings and such. Heck, why stop at Street Fighter? They should even write articles that say "If you appreciate the Okizeme games of Tekken, here's how BlazBlue implements their Oki game in similar fashion."

The Fighting Game Community can only benefit from the influx of players that Street Fighter IV has brought in, and it's time for people to start realizing this and taking advantage of it. Only by doing so will the Fighting Game Community not only continue to grow, but to thrive and become truly a mainstream form of competitive entertainment.

Drink With Me

Drink with me to days gone by,
Sing with me the song we knew.
Here's to pretty girls who went to our heads,
Here's to witty girls who went to our beds.
Here's to me, and here's to you.

Drink with me to days gone by,
Could it be you fear to die?
Will the world remember you when you fall?
Could it be your life means nothing at all?
Is your life just one more lie?

Drink with me to days gone by,
To the life that used to be.
At the shrine of friendship never say die,
Let the wine of friendship never run dry.
Here's to you, and here's to me.

Drink with me - Les Miserables

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Somehow not being able to sleep at night led me to re-reading posts from my last blog. I notice how my three blogs differed in tone for a large majority of the posts, but somehow I feel I used to write better in JC. Must've been the arts class and all. Anyway I came across a couple of lines I posted from this song at the time, but now the whole song seems relevant when it didn't back then.

Conception

It's 5.45am in the morning, Sydney time, and I'm wide awake to the sound of generic pop music blasting from speakers 2 rooms down. I've slept for a grand total of 30 minutes, because somehow my brain refuses to shut down til 5am every day. White people on the floor stumble out of their rooms half-awake to start a day of alcohol and general debauchery, and while I don't condemn their activities in any sort of sanctimonious manner, I can't help but feel a general disdain for the enthusiasm they show to such an event. A fellow countryman here promises me that this will be a day to remember, and I don't doubt that, just probably not in the way that he expects.

It's Conception Day at Macquarie University, which according to Wiki celebrates the Conception of the founder of the school, Lachlan Macquarie. His conception is celebrated because apparently his birthday falls on an unappropriate day for festivities.

And festivities there are. When I asked what kind of things go on on Conception Day, my over-enthusiastic compatriot proudly proclaimed 'A Bouncing Castle' as one of the main highlights of the day. I stared at him and asked him how old he was, he said '24' and asked how that was relevant.

... I could go on. I know I sound annoyed and a small part of me probably is. But as usual in place of annoyance the pervading feeling of a general apathy is how I see this whole day. I mean I REALLY couldn't care less that you'd wake up at 6 in the morning to drink, party and screw around. I don't even care that you have to wake the ENTIRE hostel up at the same time with bad music, because clearly EVERYBODY should be participating in this momentous event. (Somehow even that shit is authorised) A few hours from now I'll probably be in an open-minded enough state to go to Uni to see for myself what's happening. I might even have fun.

God knows I've tried for ages to live this nihilistic philosophy of life. It's not easy. Stoicism was definitely out of the question, because I lacked the patience required to exercise that kind of viewpoint. I settled instead for trying not to care about what other people did, so long as I wasn't affected. And while I'm greatly affected by the proceedings around me now, my question with it extends far beyond myself (I think).

People who know me well and would like to think the best of me say that deep down I actually care about others in general. I maintain that I look out for the interests of firstly myself, and then my loved ones, and then subsequently I couldn't care less. I realise now that I'm lying to myself. I don't say this in any attempt to justify that I'm a better person than I thought I was, I'm just stating a point. My preferences for entertainment are such that I recognise that they will not be appreciated by the general populace. Yet I don't see the need to impose it on everyone else, especially at the time of the day that I know that people are obviously not rational and wiling to listen. (Self-included)

So I think what I'm trying to say is that maybe I'm not as big an asshole as I thought I was. I've often wondered which is worse though, the sinner that's self-aware, or the one that's ignorant. Because while morality can be cured, ignorance most certainly can't. On the scale of the most fucked up things I've seen or heard people do, I honestly believe I'd rank this as one of the highest. Some of the most evil events in history arose from a group of people sharing the common belief that THERE WAS NOTHING WRONG WITH THEIR ACTIONS. Even when I do something wrong and later admit it to myself, there's at least the chance that I'll try not to do it again, or that whatever's left of my conscience will tell me not to do so. For those that remain ignorant, repentance is completely out of the question.

It's the start of my 3rd week as an 'adult', and I struggle now to maintain some level of maturity and not walk out of room and thrash the large speakers outside. I guess it's good that my anger isn't directed at any one person right now. Unfocussed anger is less likely to induce action, at least from me. I can assure you that my fellow residents will not see it the same way.

Nightmare Booster

Yes this is a post about dreams, but it is in no way inspired/related to the movie Inception, which for the record was a great movie, but everyone should stop talking about it. Also, if we're paying for entertainment value, I feel the $10 I spent on the Tekken Movie was far more worth it than what I spent on Inception.

I've mentioned this before in post a year or more ago, but the really scary nightmares arn't the ones that involve you being chased by some monster or whatever. Frankly I havn't had one of those in more than a decade.

The scary nightmares are the ones that have every realistic possibility of coming true. A nightmare is something that plays on your insecurities and exaggerates them, sometimes to a fantastical level, and in such a way that you've no way to deal with it. When you're a kid your greatest fears (I suppose) would be the monsters under your bed, the dark, vertigo or whatever. Your best dreams take place in the shape of a 5-storey arcade that was operated by mechanical pencil lead. You buy a box from the counter and one stick of lead would be the equivalent of a 50c coin. Some days I wish I could visit that place again.

Anyway so there are nightmares, and then there are those gg nightmares that seem to hit EVERY single insecurity at one time. I swear I couldn't have written a book about my life in a more dramatic fashion. I'm still shaking as I type this. I don't normally analyse dreams unless their rather vivid, and this one definitely was, although it didn't take very much effort to decipher the meaning behind it.

Dreams don't show you things you don't already know about yourself. Anyone with the least bit of introspection should be able to admit to his own insecurities. But to reminded of all of them in one night, waking up in the morning not feeling any particular worry, but just a general feeling of fear...

I'm thankful for my alarm today, for once, because it broke through the dream in a way that brought me to reality in one swift jolt. Not because I didn't need to see the ending, no. My dreams never 'end' anyway.

Something Different

It's 4am here in Singapore, the World Cup final is playing on TV in my living room but I, along with currently 11905 and increasing people are watching online the Marvel vs Capcom 2 finals at Evolution 2010 in Las Vegas, not to mention the people watching live in the ballroom.

This is the excitement of 90 minutes packed into 2-3 minutes of excitement of the best, and the other truly beautiful game of the world. Nothing like it.

Achievement

I have officially spent more hours today studying (8) than hours slept the night before (7). Anyone who knows me well enough would know that my study hours are full study hours.

Poker Facebook

I had... one of those dreams last night that start to get you thinking about things you wouldn't otherwise have considered.

I still remember alot of it, but anyway the important part has something to do with this guy I used to know in army. He was... a nice enough person, a good enough friend of mine, smart and able to reason and consider other points of view. His only flaw (if it could be called that) was probably not being ambitious enough, and not willing to push himself to strive for something better. It wasn't laziness, it was more of a contentment with what he had in life and where he was going. I... only spoke to him once more after I left the service, when he called me some time in January to ask how I was doing. He's also one of the few people outside my usual circles that know where I am now and what I'm doing. We agreed to go get a drink with him some day after he leaves, although I think we both knew that wasn't going to happen.

Anyway the point of the dream was that I ran into him one day 20 years down the road and he asked me somewhat sadly why I never bothered to keep in touch. I gave some pretty bad excuse about not having the time to, but in reality it was that one particular aspect of his character that I disagreed with that makes me unwilling to put in the effort to maintain a relationship. Which is one of my personal flaws - this... belief that because some people are the way they are, it makes them... 'not worth the effort' of me trying to maintain a relationship. Not in the sense that I believe I'm better than them, or that they're useless, but in a simple pragmatic way that I don't see my relationship with them going anywhere, and hence why invest the time and effort into sustaining something with no foreseeable future? Sure I may be wrong, but that's how I see it.

Which brings me to my final point. Lately I've been getting more and more requests from people asking me to join Facebook. I have friends here in Sydney who claim that I am the only person they know that doesn't have it. (isn't on it, whatever.) I think part of the reason why I've staunchly refused to jump on this trend -heh, other than the fact that it is a trend- is that I fear the many pseudo-relationships I have to open myself up to online. There are many people from service who's names I've forgotten and have no wish to remember. I've met alot of people in my life that would throw a punch at me in real life and add me as a friend on Facebook. The whole... superficiality of it annoys me. If you and I arn't friends in real life why maintain this virtual facade?

And yet... there is a small tinge of regret. What you do to others you usually find done to yourself, and there are people I do wish that I could've gotten to know better. People whom I havn't seen in almost 10 years, but who sometimes flit into my thoughts briefly, causing me to wonder where they are now. The knowledge that these questions could easily be answered by the click of a button is almost too... tempting. And as I write this now I seriously am considering opening an account. Online social networking is still social networking, and every relationship built starts with small, superficial steps that grow into something far more meaninful.

But no. For the simple reason that it's too easy. Too easy to extend myself online, where the emotional hurt of a failed attempt at a relationship is minimised to a sad emoticon. Too easy to be fooled into thinking that a relationship could be more than it actually is. Relationships have to be worked for. I know that better than most people.

Making a friend isn't as simple as a click of a mouse online, and never will be. It's a long, beautiful process that starts with a phone call, and a day out.