SoCal Regionals 2016 Recap

SCR 2016: MKXL, Smash 4, SFV

The 2016 SoCal Regionals took over the Esports Arena in Santa Ana, CA the weekend of Oct 14-15. Three of Panda Global’s finest were on the scene at the premier fighting game tournament, competing in Street Fighter V, Mortal Kombat XL and Super Smash Bros. for Wii U.

Mortal Kombat XL

This was the first competition since the adoption of the new patch, and there is no denying the impact these changes had on the results -- inviting some of the most enticing upsets we have yet to witness; with the mother of them all carried out by our very own Scar, who not only eliminated reigning champion SonicFox from the tournament, but stole his spot in the Grand Finals.

Scar’s Smoke proved troublesome in the Winners Finals, as WoundCowboy (Shinnok) dominated the match-up, sending him to the Losers bracket after a crushing [0-3] defeat.

Our Panda then squared off against SonicFox (Cryomancer), who had likewise found himself on the Losers side after a meeting with WoundCowboy. The tournament thus saw the top two players in the United States battling for glory in the Losers Finals. Scar was able to overcome his longtime adversary, and with impeccable execution to boot: pulling off an impressive [3-0] victory.

Returning to face WoundCowboy in the Grand Finals, Scar had momentum in his favor and quickly took a 2-0 lead. After he successfully reset the bracket, there was absolutely no denying whose tournament this was: Scar dominated the following three games -- not dropping a single round -- to take the set and first place [6-1].

Smash 4

Zan -- a SoCal native and beloved Toon Link main -- had entered the tournament anticipating the opportunity to test his skill versus NME’s Meta Knight player Tyrant. His wish was granted as the pair was pitted against each other for a place in Top 8. The set came down to the last hit in game 3, with Zan advancing on the Winners side [2-1].

With his Winners bracket run cut short by VoiD’s Sheik [0-3], Zan met with longtime practice partner Zenyou (Mario) in Losers Quarter-Finals. Able to close the gap on Zenyou’s two game lead, Zan brought the set to game 5 where despite an impressive turn around the last hit went in Zenyou’s favor [2-3] with Zan taking 5th place.

Street Fighter V

FChamp lost to Cuba’s Ryu [0-2] to enter Top 64 on the Losers side, wherein he quickly fell to top ranking Vega player Flash to end his tournament run in 49th place.

Up Next

FChamp and RayRay are headed north this coming weekend (Oct 27-28) for the Canada Cup, where they will be competing in Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3, and Street Fighter V -- a Capcom Pro Tour event boasting an impressive $15,000 prize pool.

You won’t want to miss Scar at his next tournament. Our champion will attend the North East Championships XVII, hosted by Big E Gaming Dec. 16-18 at the Valley Forge Casino Resort in Philadelphia.