With the Raleigh Pro Circuit Competition now only days away, MLG took some time to speak with Suiken, a Tekken player from Southern California, to get his thoughts on the Season so far and the upcoming Event.
MLG: So, Suiken, let�s just jump right into this with a question that I'm sure has been on more than a few minds. Where did you get your nickname from? Suiken: When I first started to play Tekken, I really wanted a name to suit the character I was using, and at that time I really liked Lei, and Suiken means Drunken Fist.
MLG: Well, that makes sense. Let�s move on to your character. You seem to have had the most consistently top-placing Tekken 6 Lei in the United States. What is it about your Lei that makes him different from others? What made you decide to use Lei as a main? Suiken: Great question�Lei is a great mix-up character. I love to use mix-ups and most of my game involves forcing opponents to guess and making them second-guess their own games. My Lei playstyle has changed from Tekken 5 DR to Tekken 6.0 to Tekken 6BR because of changing factors in the game.
MLG: Would you say these changes have been for the better or the worse? Suiken: I can tell you that from Tekken 6.0 to Tekken 6 BR Lei got worse, but I feel he got worse for the better.
MLG: Well, that's not confusing at all. Can you elaborate? Suiken: (Laughs.) Sure. My mindset has always been that I had it good in 6.0; Lei was Ranked S+ because he had juggles that started from any animal stance. To be honest, I played very simply and didn't really have to try hard to win since he was so good. But then T6:BR came out, and Lei has now dropped to a mid-tier character, which forces me to play much harder to win. So T6:BR keep me grounded as a player, and forced me to use my skill more instead of just relying on the character.
MLG: So, basically, a weaker Lei has forced you to step your game up. Have you ever felt that picking Lei held you back in a tournament? With so many other players picking high-ranked characters, like Holeman using Lars or Nin using Steve, have you ever felt your choice of character has caused you to lose a big match? Suiken: I feel Lei has his moments. He has lots of hard matchups, but as a player you must know how to overcome those, so, no�I don't feel he's held me back at all. In the end I don't think Lei cost me anything; I just have to play harder as a Lei player.
MLG: That's the beauty of Tekken; any character can win any matchup as long as the player has the skill to do so. With that having been said, here's the question you must have seen coming: do you have any advice for up-and-coming Lei players? Suiken: Drop him now! Don't pick him! Just kidding... but if anyone decides on Lei Wulong as a tournament character, my first advice would be: know his animal stances, learn his movements, learn his weaknesses. Then learn your frame data and study your matchups. You must know every matchup in game; otherwise you can lose to a random Armor King player.
MLG: Ah, that story sounds a bit familiar� good advice, either way! So, tell us what your training regimen is like. How long do you practice per day/week and what do you work on? Suiken: In SoCal [Southern California] we have lots of gatherings at our local arcade's Vid94/Super Arcade, around three times a week Tuesday through Thursday, and if there�s any downtime after that I work on my movement; I throw breaking, juggles and then punishing. I spend at least an hour a day working on it, on the 1p side 10x then 10x on the 2p side, and in the end I play more confidently on both sides.
MLG: So, unlike a lot of players, you don't have the infamous "one side weakness" that can be so common. Moving on� as some of our readers already know, you've been a very busy man as of late on the Tekken scene. Care to share a bit of what you've been up for those who don't already know? Suiken: A few weeks ago my good friends Rip (the 2nd Place runner-up at Evo) and Aris (the 1st Place Comic-Con winner), teamed up with me for the SBO Qualifiers in San Mateo, California, and we won an SBO seat for Team USA!
MLG: Wow, congratulations! Who did you guys have to beat in the Finals, and will your SBO team happen to be entering the 3v3 at MLG Raleigh? Suiken: In our final match we had to play Mr. Naps� team (Master Bolo, Willpower, Mr. Naps). We had already beaten them in Winners Final, and then we met them in Grand Finals and came out with the victory. I was hoping we would be able to team up for the MLG 3v3, but with Rip commentating and Aris� flight leaving early, it won't happen. Instead, I�ve teamed up with Just Frame James and MatrixMatt for a team SoCal at MLG Raleigh.
MLG: Good luck with the 3v3 with the new team; they're definitely a capable group. So, it's safe to say that you've played in just about every tournament format that Tekken has ever touched, right? How do you feel about the MLG format as compared to other tournaments? Suiken: Yes, I've been lucky enough to compete in most of the Tekken tournaments. MLG�s format is great because it gives me a chance to learn the opponent�s playstyle and bad habits. I also favor this format over the rest for single-play tournaments.
MLG: So far that�s definitely been the common opinion given by the players. You're currently ranked 4th in the top standings for the MLG Pro 2010 Season, only 140 points behind Columbus runner-up GM. Would you care to give us a brief rundown of the challenges you faced in Orlando and Columbus? Suiken: There were so many matches I had to overcome in Orlando. Some of them were The Realyst (NYC), MYK (SoCal), Just Frame James (SoCal), and Mr. Naps (NorCal). From Columbus I had to play Trungy, Jio, and Pokchop.
MLG: That�s definitely not an easy bracket for either Event. If you had to choose one, who would you say has been your toughest foe thus far? Suiken: For Americans it would have to be Mr. Naps, Just Frame James, and Myk, and then Nin, Holeman, and Knee from Korea.
MLG: It�s unsurprising to see Nin, Knee, and Holeman on that list. Of course, we assume you've heard that, because of scheduling conflicts, the Korean players might not be at MLG Raleigh. If that turns out to be the case, do you think we may see very different Top 8 results at MLG Raleigh? Suiken: I think we�re going to see a good cast of different players; there are many players that know how to beat the
players but not the
characters. That happens a lot in this type of tournament, and with the Koreans not there to take out key players it�s anyone's game.
MLG: As you may or may not know, MLG Raleigh is the 50th MLG Tournament, and it's expected to be the biggest in MLG history. We all know there will be some players new to MLG, possibly even some of the Japanese or European players. There will also be players who have been ignored at previous Events because they faced difficult brackets right out of the gate. Of the new blood, who do you think people should watch, and watch out for, in Raleigh? Suiken: I agree 100% that this will be the most intense Event for Tekken players; many will be forced into new style of play (Japanese/Euro). I've played some overseas players before and it's all different. All the new blood will do whatever it takes to win. I've always watched out more for the no-names than the big names. I have my eye on the European players and the Midwest players. The Midwest/Upstate people have been waiting for their moment to shine, and this is it. The European players are going to be here to show the USA how to play, and we�re going to shut them down if they try.
MLG: It will definitely make for an interesting tournament, and one that's surely not to be missed, even if it has to be watched on stream. We all know there are multiple rivalries among the various US regions. What do you feel is each region�s strong point? Also, what do you feel is the difference between the American and Korean players? And last, but not least, do you think the West Coast will be able to walk away with this tournament? Suiken: Good question. The East Coast is always good, but it lacks a learning curve for new players to learn and grow. California has the biggest cast of top players; they are always advancing their skills and looking for new blood. The Midwest has a good scene but lacks experience, and Texas has maybe a handful of good players but after that it all goes downhill. In the end there�s a big skill gap between America and Korea; where they have many outstanding players we have only a handful, and we�re still not at their level. There will only be a handful of West Coast players going to Raleigh and that makes us more dangerous. So I�m pretty positive that the West Coast will take the win.
MLG: Sadly, that's one thing that's always held America back; the top players are very spread out, compared to Korea or Japan. Suiken: I agree 100%.
MLG: Here's a question a few people really wanted to know, so we have to ask. Ever since MLG Columbus, there's been an inside joke involving players screaming "JUNKKKKYYYYAAARRRDDDDD!!!!!� What started this? Suiken: Haha, wow. I didn't know it had gotten this big, but here's how it went down. During MLG Columbus, I was invited to the Upstate/Midwest room where the top players were going at it in Team format and MM format. During this time we had Rip who, as all of you know, is one the best Law players in America. He proceeded to use this move (Junkyard) on a number of Upstate and Midwest players. The move hits M,L,M with the last move being able to be delayed, but for some reason they always kept getting hit by the last move and didn�t try to parry, so every time someone would get it the room would explode� and the rest is history. So now everyone that gets hit with it receives a junkyard scream.
MLG: Ahah, well, that explains everything. It was pretty widespread among TZ, so people were wondering what was going on. Anyway, it's about that time; before we bring this to a close, do you have anything you'd like to say? Suiken: To all my friends and family, thank you for your help and support and a special thanks to MadCatz, SDTEKKEN, and MLG! Keep on learning, everyone, and I hope to see you at the next MLG!
MLG: Thank you for your time, and good luck with both SBO and MLG Raleigh! 
Originally Posted by naz
Nu te-ai inscris ?
JustFrame James (Law)
Fighting GM (Lee)
ATL pokchop (Bruce)
- can't wait for DC!
. Cred ca incerc de peste 3 ore da nu reusesc nicium sa trec mai departe . Am reusit o singura data sa ajugn sa ma bat chiar cu Devil Jin , da era cam tarziu . Pe langa ca aveam putina viata , erau si o gramada de pasaroi sa il ajute . Eu am destul de multe obiecte pe mine (joc cu Lars ) cateva dau lighting damage , una imi da +350 HP , unele mareste damage-ul si tot asa (la fel si la Alisa ...i-am ales cam tot ce am crezut ca e mai bun )
By RonanN1 in forum Console Club
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