Name - Giuseppe Grosso aka KN|OBS|EMP REO (Twitter - @MK_REO)
Age - 21
Fighting Out Of - Long Island, NY
Years Competitively Gaming - 2+
Character(s) of Choice - Kabal
Major Accomplishments - 2nd at EVO 2011, 1st at MLG Raleigh 2011 + 2012, 1st at Devastation 2011, 1st at Final Round 2012, 1st at Toryuken 2012, 1st at CEO 2012
The first thing I
would like to ask you is, what is it about Mortal Kombat makes you so loyal to
the game?
Everything. Characters, story, stages, music,
atmosphere, gameplay, design, etc. Mortal Kombat has always had some of the
coolest looking special movies and characters I have ever seen in a game. I
guess love at first sight is true, because I experienced it.
How did you feel about
your overall performance at MLG Raleigh?
It wasn’t satisfying enough. Even though I won, I was angry at the fact
that Pig got one game on me and CD Jr got two games on me. I have nothing against these two players but
it really rustles my jimmies when I lose a game to any player, regardless if I
win the set. Ultimately, I was happy
that I won but I couldn’t ignore those three losses I took that day, they were
engraved into my mind for a good while.
Do you believe that
you are the best Kabal player in the Mortal Kombat Community?
Back then when MichaelAngelo, OnlineTony, and
Erik Warda played, they all had better Kabals than me that I looked up to. As
far as within the US currently, I’d say it’s a tie between Detroit and I for
best Kabal. There are others who are extremely close and can be considered like
Cat, Mortyseinfeld, Master D., Perfect Legend, CDjr, KevoDaMan, AC1984,
Lulzlou, and more. If we are going to consider who the best in the world is,
then I would have to give the title as best Kabal to either DoctrineDark or
Mordrek for the amount of tech they have found that innovates to how Kabal is
played today.
Which character do you
believe causes the most problems for Kabal?
Shao Kahn. Joking aside, there really is no
character that gives Kabal problems.
At what point in your
time playing Mortal Kombat did you decide to pick-up Kabal? What convinced you
to stick with him all the way through your tournament career?
When I noticed Kabal was the best character in
the game by far. There are certain players I know I will never be as good as
pound for pound, so I make up with it by using a character that is better.
This is a question
I’ve wanted to ask you for quite some time, why did you opt to use Kung Lao
against f0xy in your final match at EVO?
I thought Kung Lao would be a lot better than
I thought by how players talked up the character so I wanted to go into EVO as
a 50/% Kabal and 50% Kung Lao user. It wasn’t until after EVO that I realized
the main reason people thought Kung Lao was so good was because of Perfect
Legend, not the character itself. It’s always good to solidify your knowledge
on the game through experience than hearsay.
How many hours per
week do you spend practicing in the time leading up to a huge tournament?
I practice hardcore one week before the
tournament to ensure my mindset is ready and my tech skill is sharp. Otherwise,
I usually spend more of my time playing other MK games.
You just recently
placed second at T13, did you take anything out of that tournament in regards
to your game play?
Yes, I polished some things up that I noticed
I could have been better in.
Was there anything
specific about CD Jr’s Kung Lao that gave you trouble?
Aside from CDjr outplaying me pretty convincingly,
I feel I could have gone with a better approach like not trying to rush in on
Kung Lao from full-screen, for starters. I had no idea why I was favoring
playing so aggressively rather than zoning and letting him come to me.
What do you have to say
to people who believe that Kabal is not the best character in Mortal Kombat?
They haven’t played a good Kabal player yet to
experience the character’s strengths.
What sets you apart
from the other players in the Mortal Kombat Community who main Kabal?
I don’t have a secondary and I only use
costume two alternate color.
Will you ever make an
effort to main a character other than Kabal in the future?
No.
Do you foresee Mortal
Kombat making another run at EVO 2013?
Hopefully, but unlikely, I really would like
to see MK make it for another year, though.
Why do you think
Mortal Kombat has drawn so much hate from the rest of the Fighting Game
Community?
Many other players who come from different
fighting games don’t understand Mortal Kombat, so they judge it and compare.
Games are not meant to be compared to each other.
Who do you view as
your biggest threats going into MLG Dallas?
Perfect Legend, 16 Bit, and CDjr, in that
order. Aside from these three players who usually beat me, there are too many
other threats to list. I would be here all day.
Why do you think the
community is so willing to throw you under the bus when you make a mistake or
if you don’t place top 8 at a tournament?
Enjoyment. For every major I’ve been to since
Power Up 2011, I’ve only been outside the top three twice. I think players do
not mean any harm at the end of the day, they just see it as a way to get back
at me.
What are your overall
thoughts about the Mortal Kombat Community?
It’s the best one I’ve ever been a part of. I
couldn’t possibly ask for a better one.
Do you think MLG
Dallas will be the last time that Mortal Kombat sees $16,000 and change up for
grabs?
Hell no.
Let’s say that MLG
Dallas is the last time we see Mortal Kombat under the MLG spotlight, what is
your favorite memory from your competitive MK career?
Power Up 2011 when I made top eight. It was my
biggest achievement that assured my doubt at becoming good at the game.
I’m going to give you
a list characters in the MK, tell me who believe is the best with each:
Kabal – DetroitBalln313
Kung Lao – Perfect Legend
Cyrax – Maxter
Kenshi – Pig of the Hut
Sonya – Showtime
Johnny Cage – Dizzy
Ermac – K-Frog
Reptile – TylerLantern
Perfect Legend has recently
stated that he believes that, because of resets, Cyrax is the best character in
the game. How do you feel about this?
I do not believe a character that loses
terribly to Kabal has any shot of being the “best” character in the game. Perfect Legend knows his shit when it comes
to Kung Lao, but he is very wrong on Cyrax.
Who are some of the
underrated talents going into MLG Dallas that are being underestimated?
Way too many to list. I wouldn’t know where to start or end.
Is there anything that
you would change about Mortal Kombat as it is right now?
I would make Kabal less brain-dead.
What are your
predictions for top 8?
I don’t have full predictions for the top
eight since too many players who could do work are going. However, I strongly believe Perfect Legend,
16 Bit, and CDjr will be in the top eight.
The rest of the spots are up for grabs to pretty much everyone else.
Is there anything
about MLG Dallas that you would like to make a point about before we wrap this
up?
I predict a certain someone is going to take
it who many do not suspect.
Is there anything else
that you would like to add to this interview? Any last words of hype or
shout-outs?
NY challenges any players to a team fight for
$100 5v5 at MLG Dallas. Shout-outs to my
sponsors Kombat Network, The On Blast Show, and Empire Arcadia.
Follow me on Twitter @NRC_CRUM for more Pre-MLG Dallas coverage.
Photo credit to MLG and video credit to Team Spooky
No comments:
Post a Comment