EVO 2019 has just begun, and some of the best fighting game players in the world are now going head to head for big prizes in titles like Mortal Kombat 11 and Soul Calibur 6. The quality of the players participating in this year's EVO means that there are certain to be some phenomenal matches to watch this weekend. However, one of yesterday's matches was notable not only due to the competitors' skills, but also because it was interrupted by a PS4 crash.
The EVO 2019 match in question occurred during Tekken 7 pools, where Tom Savage was taking his Asuka up against Jello Buddy's Master Raven. Both players had secured two round wins in the first match of the set, and they were in the midst of the deciding round when the game froze and crashed to the PS4's blue application error screen. As some would expect, the competitors seemed less than thrilled by the situation, with their reactions suggesting something like frustrated bemusement.
The commentators for the match seemed similarly puzzled, describing the situation as both "unfortunate" and "insane." So too, they joked that the crash was a results of the competitors' "OP" combos and explained that technical issues can occur even at an event as major as EVO, which features a big schedule change this year.
Fortunately, the match that was ruined by the PS4 crash did not prevent Tom Savage and Jello Buddy from completing their set. After some down time, the competitor's recreated the conditions that were in place at the time of the crash, and Jello Buddy went on to win that match. Furthermore, Jello Buddy won the next match, which was less eventful than the first, taking the set over Tom Savage in the process.
While this particular match happened during the Tekken 7 tournament at EVO, the real star of the event appears to be Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Indeed, Nintendo's new crossover fighting game will close EVO this year, and the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate tournament at EVO 2019 is the biggest in franchise history, with almost 3,500 players registered to compete. Time will tell if something as confounding as a system crash will occur during the Smash tournament, but one thing is for sure: stellar matches are on the way.
EVO 2019 will take place August 2 - 4 in Las Vegas, NV.