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Seattle’s Street Fighter V scene makes big impact at Red Bull Proving Grounds

Seattle's Hugh 'Nightmare2450' Norfolk pops off at Red Bull Proving Grounds finals (Red Bull)

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Seattle’s Hugh ‘Nightmare2450’ Norfolk pops off at Red Bull Proving Grounds finals (Red Bull)

It might be pretty and have terrific seafood, but when it comes to fighting game talent, the Pacific Northwest is overlooked.

Historically, California and New York produced the lion share of the country’s best players, but with renewed interest in the FGC with Street Fighter V, Red Bull Proving Grounds gave other regions a chance to prove their worth.

Three Seattle representatives made the most of their opportunity. Jonathan “JLMN” Ng, Hugh “Nightmare2450” Norfolk, and Kyle “KyleP” Palsson battled through the Red Bull Proving Ground monthlies to earn the right to compete at the Proving Grounds finals in Santa Monica last weekend. All three had different aspirations for Proving Grounds, but all came with a common goal: Don’t go 0-2 in the finals.

KyleP placed ninth, while JLMN and Nightmare2450 made top 8, finishing in seventh and fourth places, respectively. None of them went 0-2, and they definitely showed Seattle could play some Street Fighter V.

“It ushered us onto a national level. It put us on the map,” JLMN told Yahoo Esports, who beat NorCal Vega main and long-time Street Fighter veteran Rommel “ROM” Macatangay 3-0.

Seattle’s new blood

Of the three players, JLMN has the least amount of experience in competition. Street Fighter V lowered the barrier of entry, however, and it gave him something to work for while he battled health issues.

“The past two years have been hard. I had a lot of downtime from surgeries so I thought I’d take Street Fighter V more seriously and played more locally,” JLMN said.

The Proving Ground final was the first time the M. Bison main got to play in a situation where thousands of people were watching on the livestream. It made him nervous, but it’s a situation every player must overcome to make any progress in competition. He also learned a tough lesson about overconfidence.

JLMN had previously dominated Canada’s sole representative, Van Nguyen, in casual sets, but that didn’t carry over to when play mattered most. Nguyen eliminated JLMN after putting himself in a 0-2 hole. JLMN underestimated Nguyen and allowed him to come back from that deficit to lose the set, 3-2.

JLMN can learn a lot from KyleP, the player with the most competitive experience and recent success in the Seattle area.

Kyle 'KyleP' Palsson (background) watches Kevin 'Dieminion' Landon and Julian 'Squall' Jones play casuals
Kyle ‘KyleP’ Palsson (background) watches Kevin ‘Dieminion’ Landon and Julian ‘Squall’ Jones play casuals (Red Bull)
 

Ask questions first, punch later

KyleP might be one of the nicest guys in the FGC. The trading card game and Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 convert has a self-deprecating attitude that can disarm even the toughest competitors and lull them into a false sense of security.

Then he hits you with something ridiculous and because it hits, he looks like a genius. But if it misses, he looks like a fool. That’s the KyleP mix-up. You never really know what’s coming. That’s what has made him successful in trading card games and Marvel, and hopefully, in Street Fighter V with Laura.

“I’m impatient. That’s the card game in me,” KyleP told Yahoo Esports. “I’m used to forcing my turn.”

Despite his experiences in competitive gaming, KyleP doesn’t go into a tournament believing he can win. He expected to go 0-2 at the Proving Grounds final. Mark “GLB” Villanueva, a Chicago Ryu player, bodied KyleP straightaway on finals day.

However, he did have a competitive match against one of his favorite players, Proving Ground grand finalist Kevin “Dieminion” Landon, and he beat out top Atlanta representative Andre “Dregamesta” Philadelphia to avoid going 0-2.

It’s a small victory, but it gave KyleP hope the Seattle scene is motivated to show up and improve.

“I hope Seattle has the desire to get better,” KyleP said. “To improve, people have to have the motivation to play. Learning how to improve is very hard. I learned to improve because it got beat into me in Marvel. I got bodied until I asked questions. Most people fear asking questions and then the perception is you aren’t motivated.”

Kyle 'KyleP' Palsson hamming it up with the commentators at Red Bull Proving Grounds finals
Kyle ‘KyleP’ Palsson hamming it up with the commentators at Red Bull Proving Grounds finals (Red Bull)
 

Nightmare mode

Motivation is even more important as players enter the phase of Street Fighter V in which the top pros are starting to pull away from the rest of the competitive scene.

“I moved to Seattle about 5 or 6 years ago and I didn’t know Seattle even existed,” Nightmare2450 told Yahoo Esports. “There’s no publicity up here. That’s why the Red Bull Proving Grounds event was cool because you got to see players from these scenes come out of nowhere.”

Nightmare2450 had the luxury (or misfortune, depending on how you look at it) of coming up in SoCal with the original Wednesday Night Fights when Street Fighter IV rekindled competition. Back then, they had a three-tier system for players based on skill level. Group A was the pros, while Groups B and C were the scrubs. Nightmare2450 was in Group B.

“I got into Group A one time. I lost to everyone and went back down to Group B and never saw Group A again,” Nightmare2450 said. “It made me really want to play because every game meant something.”

Seattle doesn’t have a grouping system quite that sophisticated, but Proving Grounds was a great chance for Nightmare2450 to show the world what he could do against a legitimate Street Fighter veteran like Dieminion.

The two met in top 16 and had a tight set that went 3-2 in Nightmare2450’s favor. The set also provided plenty of meme-worthy moments as Nightmare2450 pounded the buttons on his fight stick, clapped enthusiastically, and popped off big-time after the win.

Nightmare2450 lost the runback to Dieminion in an equally competitive 3-2 set but if there was ever a moral victory to take away from a loss, having a good showing at the Proving Grounds final was it.

“I told our guys I don’t care if we win or lose,” Nightmare2450 said. “We have to show Seattle can play. I want the scene to grow.”

Battle in Seattle

All three players have Red Bull Battle Grounds, which takes place November 4-6, in their sights. While Proving Grounds allows amateurs or lesser known competitors play through a tournament series, the ultimate goal was to reach Battle Grounds, where they will attempt to play their way into one of two spots in the Capcom Pro Tour North American Regional Finals.

The Seattle players put in great work at Proving Grounds, but now the stakes are higher. They need to show up big against players coming in from other regions, including Proving Grounds winner Dieminion. It won’t be easy, because they’re all playing for a potential shot at Capcom Cup.

“My goal was to show Seattle isn’t free,” Nightmare2450 said. “I want people to know Seattle exists. I want Seattle to be on the same level as a Wednesday Night Fights or Next Level Battle Circuit.”

Source: Yahoo eSports