The current double tournament tour is akin to a double game pack, argues producer Daizou Nonaka
Hi everyone! Capcom producer Daizou Nonaka with you once again. We are on the road to Wrestle Kingdom! The new year can’t really start without January 4 and 5, nor can the last one really end.
We say it every year, but this year in particular, 2020 has had an awful lot going on. We went from Jyushin Thunder Liger’s retirement and then it seemed almost right away, all that New Japan Cup hype got turned into a long shutdown. Then we had the empty arena matches, to the limited crowds, through the G1… So much, and none of it we’re likely to forget any time soon.
And then there’s World Tag League and Best of the Super Jr.! At the same time! What a time to be a fan. I want to talk about this unique tour from a videogaming perspective today.
Two great tournaments in one great value pack!
So we have two tournaments at once. Twenty wrestlers in ten teams for World Tag League, ten junior heavyweights for Best of the Super Jr. They share the same card for the opener and the last league matches, and the other cards alternate between tournaments, so those crowds in Aichi and Fukuoka that get to see everybody are super lucky! This whole package is like a real videogame bundle pack.
If you’re a gamer then you understand the concept of these bundles. Two, three or more games on one disk or cartridge, sometimes as a retro pack with favourite games from decades ago. The idea behind them is to create a great value add for fans, as well as something special for them to add to their collection. Often they’re a chance to try classic titles on modern hardware, and as such the best ones are put together with a lot of care and attention from their creators.
The player isn’t directed to play these titles in a particular order. They might not even be directed to play at all, but instead enjoy classic art or music in gallery modes. It’s a real buffet like experience, where fans are set loose to enjoy the games in any way they wish.
With the double tournaments, I think the message is the same: follow the tournament you like the best! Of course, there are fans that want to watch every second of both, but here we have two tournaments competing for the fans’ time and money. Fans should take advantage of that and really embrace the tournament you’re most interested in, and even if you’re watching both, really throw your support behind the one you like best.
That makes things more interesting for the wrestlers too. All the World Tag Team wrestlers are thinking not just about winning the league, but in doing better than Best of the Super Jr. in the process. The junior heavyweights feel the same way. It’s all about the joy of choice! That’s true of both these tournaments and game bundles.
As for my picks? Well for World Tag League for me, it comes down to three top teams. Last year’s winners FinJuice, the current tag champions Dangerous Tekkers, and already six time champions the Guerrillas of Destiny. As dangerous as Jeff Cobb and O-Khan look as well though, I’m going with… G.o.D!
They might have been away from Japan for a while, but we’ve seen on STRONG just how good they still are. They’re my pick to stick to the end. And in Best of the Super Jr.? Current champion Taiji Ishimori, the man he won it from, Hiromu Takahashi and El Desperado are all up there. Master Wato and DOUKI are dark horse picks, but for me…
It has to be SHO’s year. Since his partner YOH was injured in the New Japan Cup, we’ve seen a different side to SHO in his matches for the NEVER and KOPW titles, and he’s really left an impression with me. I think he’ll leapfrog those names I mentioned and claim his first big singles win. I can’t wait for both SHO and G.o.D to not only battle for their respective trophies, but my attention as a fan!
DAIZO NONAKA is a veteran wrestling fan and videogame producer at Capcom, where he’s famous for his work on the Mega Man series. He’s only now able to sleep again after several wakeful nights thinking about O-Khan’s mystery partner.
