« EVO2K11 Panel Lineup Revealed »

Over at Shoruyken, Tom "Inkblot" Cannon has been revealing the many panels to be featured at this year's EVO World Championships. These panels will give the community insights into some of the people and processes that we depend on to keep our scene thriving. They'll also give those of us who go 0-2 something to stave off the depression. Either way, there will be plenty of reasons to attend EVO this year.

Sign up at EVO2K, and check out the full summaries of these panels below! 

Panel #1: Feed the Stream Monsters: A Guide to Broadcast Fighting Games

Friday, July 29th at 10:00 AM.

Through a series of personal anecdotes and examples from the past 3 years of fighting game broadcasts, Feed the Stream Monsters chronicles the evolution of their online streams as they went from cramped apartments and tiny garages to the grand stage of EVO. Join “Mr Jared” Rea (iPlayWinner), AJ “Potatohead” Papa (Level|Up Series) and Louis Vigil (Offcast) as they educate any potential tournament broadcaster on how to build a successful web stream while bolstering your local community.

Discover how they got started in the world of fighting game streams, scaled their operations to handle the sheer magnitude of major events and utilized the power of their local communities to expand and improve upon their efforts for the benefit of all. Find out what makes their operations successful with valuable best practices, tips and golden rules as the panelists discuss their greatest successes along with their biggest mistakes and everything they’ve learned along the way.

BONUS: Arrive to our panel within the first 10 minutes and receive a special raffle ticket for a MadCatz Tournament Edition FightStick to be raffled off at the end of the panel. Special thanks to MarkMan for making this possible!

Panel #2: Skullgirls: A New Age of Heroines

Friday, July 29 at Noon.

Tired of comeback mechanics, infinite combos and input shortcuts? Worried fighting games are headed in the wrong direction?  Join project lead Mike “Patron Saint of Combo Videos” Z as he explains why Skullgirls’ innovative ideas are a true refinement to the genre, introduces newcomer Parasoul, answers your questions, and… maybe more!

Panel #3: Inside the Mind of the Beast: Daigo Umehara Exposed!

Friday, July 29 at 2:00 PM.

Seth Killian sits down with EVO 2009 and 2010 Street Fighter champion MCZ Daigo Umehara for an in-depth discussion and review of past match highlights.  They will talk over and explain the tactics, player reads, moment-by-moment thought processes, and even the mistakes Daigo made on the road to his championship victories.

In addition to the panel, a new “Beast” shirt (pictured above) from Meat Bun will be available for the first time on site at EVO in Vegas.

The design features several elements including the mythical “Hakutaku” figure (a beast!) with six buttons, and “98”, representing the year of Daigo’s first international challenge where he fought against Alex Valle (this battle was just recently named one of the Top 10 moments in Pro-Gaming history). This will be an extremely limited-run edition shirt, sold at $20.

Panel #4: MvC3: Past, Present, and Future!

Friday, July 29 at 4:00 PM in the Amazon Ballroom.

Capcom producer Ryota Niitsuma will share behind-the-scenes insights from the MVC3 development process and discuss thoughts on the future direction of the Marvel Vs Capcom franchise.  He will be joined by MVC3 battle system designer and Capcom fighting legend Hidetoshi (“Neo_G”) Ishizawa (see below for credits) to discuss the thinking behind the battle systems, and what the future might hold for everything from character balance, mechanics, and more.  Fighting fans will not want to miss this rare opportunity for insight and discussion.

From Seth Killian:

The FGC is already familiar with producer Niitsuma-san, but please DO NOT sleep on Neo_G, who doesn’t draw a lot of headlines, but is one of my personal fighting game heroes of all time.

EVO2011 will be his first public appearance anywhere outside of Japan, and if you’ve ever had a nerdy question about why some feature is this way instead of that way, Neo_G is the man with the answers.  He is an accomplished player, my friend, and one of the most knowledgeable people about fighting games on the planet.  He has been a key member of the team behind a TON of the FGC’s all time Capcom favorites—see below for his unbelievable credits list.  Join me for a very special opportunity to meet him alongside producer Niitsuma-san, and help me to show him what an impact his lifetime of work has made to fighting gamers around the world!

A partial list of Neo_G’s credits include:

–Marvel vs Capcom 2, Designer

–Marvel VS. Capcom 3, Battle System Designer

–Street Fighter Alpha 2, Designer

–Street Fighter Alpha 3, Designer

–Street Fighter Alpha 3 MAX, Director, Assistant Producer

–Street Fighter III, Designer

–Street Fighter III: 2nd IMPACT, Director

–Street Fighter III: 3rd STRIKE, Director

–Darkstalkers 3, Designer

–Capcom VS. SNK 2, Lead Designer

–Hyper Street Fighter II (Arcade Version), Director

–Tatsunoko VS. Capcom, Designer

–Tatsunoko VS. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars, Director

Panel #5: The King of Fighters XIII: Panel and Discussion

Saturday, July 30 at 10:00 AM.

Join KOF XIII Producer Kei Yamamoto and ATLUS Project Manager Yu Namba for an inside look at development on THE KING OF FIGHTERS XIII, including an opportunity for fans to ask questions about their most pressing topics.

Panel #6: Street Fighter III: Online Edition, Reinventing a Classic

Saturday, July 30 at Noon.

This panel will feature Derek Neal (SF3:OE producer and former EVO competitor), Christian Svensson (Sr. Vice President, Capcom), and Dave Lang, CEO of Iron Galaxy (SF3:OE developer).  Join them to discuss the many decisions behind bringing back a classic, and for a spirited face-to-face chat about the kinds of features *you* would like to see in future fighting games!

Panel #7: Namco Bandai - Get Ready for the Next Panel!

Saturday, July 30 at 2:00 PM.

TEKKEN Team Director Katsuhiro Harada, Game Designer Michael Murray and Community Manager Rich “FilthieRich” Bantegui will share their thoughts on the future of the acclaimed fighting franchise and provide insight on upcoming releases including but not limited to : TEKKEN Hybrid & TEKKEN Tag Tournament 2 (Arcade). They will be joined by SOULCALIBUR V Director Daishi Odashima, as he shares new information from the next highly anticipated title from the Project Soul team.

We’re really excited for EVO 2011. The competitive gaming scene has exploded, and NAMCO BANDAI GAMES is making sure to stay on top of the game and of course, connect directly with people who have been dedicated to the scene and fighting games. I’m personally hyped about taking both teams around to show them more of the competitive gaming culture and feed them the delicious plate we all know as EVO. Please join us for this event and take this opportunity to ask questions, talk tech and play a few games with us. We have a few tricks up our sleeves and everyone should stay tuned for what we have in store for the fans at EVO2011. Until then – Practice practice practice – this isn’t your weekly tournament….. THIS IS EVO !! ” - Rich “FilthieRich” Bantegui

Panel #8: New Directions in Street Fighter X Tekken

Saturday, July 30 at 4:00 PM in the EVO Panel Room.

The one-and-only Yoshinori Ono will be on hand to discuss recent developments and new directions for his latest production, Street Fighter X Tekken. Will the always-surprising Ono-san have some special EVO-exclusive news to share with the audience? You’ll just have to come and find out!