More than 700 people gathered this weekend at the Las Vegas Convention Center's Evolution Championship Series to compete in the franchise that was responsible for the creation of the ESRB rating system: Mortal Kombat. The top eight out of the 700 who make it through the competition will compete at the series' debut at Mandalay Bay.
One player who has made it to the top eight, the one who continually impressed spectators over the past few months: Texas resident Brad "Scar" Vaughn. Scar, known for his proficiency on Sonya Blade, has come close to winning it all before, taking second at Community Effort Orlando 2016 last June. He has come a long way -- and he wants to win more than ever.
"Going into this EVO, I feel like I'm the strongest I've ever been," he said. "In the past games, going into EVO, I haven't been as strong as I have been recently. Making second at KIT, doing good at ESL, and coming here, being in the position I'm in with Sonya Blade, the game plan I have now, and the changes I've been making while playing the character, I feel like I have a really good shot, more than ever to take this tournament."
Each time he's tried, he's had one obstacle in his way: Dominique "Sonic Fox" McLean, inarguably Mortal Kombat X's best player. Sonic Fox has taken every major tournament within the last year, including Evo 2015 a year ago. Scar came close at CEO, but was unable to close out the series despite having a 2-1 lead early on.
"I feel like since Sonic Fox is the best player in the world, then you have A F0xy Grampa who also gives me trouble, but outside of that, we're looked at as the top three players in Mortal Kombat X right now," he explained. "So I feel like when it comes to those two guys and as well as them going against me, it could go either way... Sonic is my main goal because when it comes to tournament, as far as offline, I have yet to secure a match win against him. Going to this tournament, if I do face him, then hopefully I can bring it out."
Scar made it to the Mandalay Bay for Sunday's top eight, and unlike many esports players, he said he doesn't suffer from tournament nerves once he gets his first match of the day out of the way.
"I feel like there's no difference than any other tournament," he explained on his mindset of playing at such a big event. "So it doesn't matter how many people are watching me play, even though it's probably the biggest stage I've ever played on [if I make it.] I'll treat it just as the rest of the tournaments I've competed in."
When asked about characters outside of Smoke and Sonya, Scar said "I've actually wanted to dive into Mileena. I've talked to a well-known player by the name of Sawface, who's a well-known Mileena player, and he played all three variations. I originally wanted to come to EVO with that character in my pocket... I wanted to use that character and she already has really good tools."
But despite being one of the best in Mortal Kombat X, Scar, alongside many of his peers, is looking forward to a new game that releases in 2017, Injustice 2. That game, developed by the creator of Mortal Kombat, NetherRealm, features DC Comics characters, the likes of Batman, Superman, The Flash, Supergirl and Wonder Woman.
And one problem that Mortal Kombat has always encountered is its gore and graphic violence and how that translates to the mainstream viewer. This often keeps people away from the game. For players and fans, it's not big deal, but outside the bubble, it keeps people away.
Scar said he hopes that Injustice 2 can fix that, and brings together new players, companies and teams into the NetherRealm-centric community. He believes most Mortal Kombat players will play Injustice, and hopes that the game succeeds.
"I think [Mortal Kombat] has kind of pushed into the mainstream because I know with Mortal Kombat 9, there was very little money in it like MKX has now," he said. "The blood and gore is always gonna be a little iffy with some of the top sponsors and stuff like that, and the world named companies. But I feel like that's gonna change with Injustice 2 and I feel like Injustice is gonna be that game that allows big companies and sponsors to gravitate towards it."
He says that giving fans the ability to relate to their favorite superheroes will play a big part in pushing Injustice 2 forward, in his opinion.
"Everyone loves their superhero characters, everyone is familiar with Batman and Superman," Scar explained. "There's not gonna be much gore in this game, if any, and people can identify their best players with the characters in the game. Everyone wants to be the best Batman, the best Superman, the best Flash. I feel like that game is gonna naturally let big companies and sponsors pour more money than they would into MKX because of the blood and gore."