The Evolution Championship Series, most commonly known as EVO, is a renowned event among the fighting game community. Often, it is where the best fighting game players gather and compete to be recognized as the champion of a given game. Great moments and personalities have been made at EVO, such as G01's comeback against SonicFox in the Dragon Ball Fighter Z tournament of EVO 2019. EVO then, is one of the most anticipated and hyped events within the fighting game community.
Often, a fighting game being played at EVO is seen by many as a badge of honor for said game. For 2022's EVO tournament, Super Smash Bros was already announced to be missing from the line-up. Even with its history among the fighting game community, many admitted that Super Smash Bros had a history of controversy with some of its top players being included in sexual assault and harassment allegations. Moreover, Nintendo is often seen by the gaming community as overly-possessive of its franchises and games, even shutting down fan projects.
Besides the removal of Super Smash Bros from the line-up though, the list of fighting games that will be at EVO 2022 have been revealed. Popular fighting games such as Street Fighter 5 and Tekken 7 are headlining the event, with other games such as Mortal Kombat 11 Ultimate and Guilty Gear Strive diversifying the pool somewhat. "We are thrilled to present a slate of fighting games representing so many of the genre's player-bases for EVO 2022," said EVO general manager Rick Thiher. "I'm greatly looking forward to seeing what happens when we start the event series' next chapter together."
Even with some big names like Super Smash Bros being absent from the tournament, the line-up of games is still impressive for many fans, who will be glad to see the return of the event after 2021's EVO tournament was canceled due to COVID complications. EVO 2022 returning to a physical tournament is one of many gaming events that are returning to normality after COVID. The Tokyo Games Show has also recently announced it will once again allow people to return to the event.
One thing fans have been slightly disappointed about is the fact that nearly two years into a new console generation, yet all the games announced will be played on the PS4. However, there is hope for future EVO tournaments to include next-gen consoles, as the announcement of Street Fighter 6 means players may soon have to move on to newer games.
EVO 2022 takes place from August 5 to 7.