eSports Report – 03/19/2012

WHAT ALREADY HAPPENED:

LoneStarClash (Finals at 11:10)

All props to TeSPA, Quantic, and CSN for putting on an amazing event. The production value for these tournaments just gets better and better, and the LoneStarClash went off without a hitch.

To make things better, the finals between Polt and Stephano are amazing. We’ve seen a lot of shutout finals in StarCraft II but the last GSL and MLG finals have been great. Here’s hoping it stays that way. The VOD above is for the final day of competition with the tournament finals starting around 11:10. That’s 11 HOURS in, by the way.

Street Fighter X Tekken Cross Counter Invitational

We decided to get in on this whole tournament scene with Street Fighter X Tekken. Organized by Machinima’s Brandon Thompson and Cross Counter’s Gootecks and Mike Ross, this invitational has a lot of top-tier play as well as some goofin’. Marn doesn’t take being dead weight all too lightly either, and make sure to check out the tournament infinite.

North American Team Star League (NASTL) Finals (Starts around 15:00 in)

The finals of NASL’s stab at this whole team thing happened, which I regrettably haven’t seen yet, though I’m pretty jazzed that Team Liquid came out on top. Mousesports is spunky though, they are not wanting for spunk. Yep, spunk all over those guys. Just don’t get it in your eyes, I hear it burns.

I’m excited to see INcontroL back on the casting mic though, man’s hilarious.

COMING THIS WEEK:

MLG Columbus OH (March 23 – 25)

We’ve got another MLG weekend upon us, and unlike the Winter Arena some weeks back, this is a stacked MLG tournament. That means that Halo: Reach will be happening in addition to all the non-Capcom fighting games they could find: Mortal Kombat, SoulCalibur V, and King of Fighters XIII.

Last I heard there will be a standard definition stream available for everyone, but high definition and picture-in-picture layouts will cost you money, provided you’re not an MLG gold subscriber already. If this event is anything like the Winter Brawl, they’ll be broadcasting on Twitch.tv, but through a custom little website where you can stack up the streams to view more than one at a time.

MLG is a hotbed for BarCraft activity too, so if you’ve a passing interest in drinking beer and watch people beast, check out the BarCraft subreddit or use TeamLiquid’s BarCraft list. If you decide to go to one (and you totally should), they generally ask that you call ahead and RSVP at the venue. Those events fill up fast, so a little warning goes a long way.

NorCal Regionals 10 (March 24 – 25)

NorCal Regionals are a magical time of the year where we can all come together and collectively not give a shit about the differences between northern California and southern California. You can also see some hype gamers play every fighting game under the sun. Well, every modern game… here’s the lineup: Super Street Fighter IV Arcade Edition 2012, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, SoulCalibur V, King of Fighters XIII, Street Fighter X Tekken, and Mortal Kombat.

HELLA MIND GAMES