In May of 2009, just one month after its debut, Evo Champion Joey Newell took down what is arguably the most famous match in fighting game history at EVO – The Deathmatch!
The DM was between Team Razer player Kyle “Gizmo” Miller and Team Misfit player Alex “Goldenboy” Caceres. Each competitor picked their own character and fought for two minutes with no rules or regulations.
This article will talk more about why this match became so popular and how it helped grow the community. But first, let us look back at some important events that led up to this moment.
Event 1: Evolution Studios Announces Mortal Kombat 9
Mortal Kombat debuted as an arcade-style fighter way back in 1997. Since then, it has gone through many different styles including 2D, 3D platformer, beat ’em ups, and even online multiplayer (OML). It now boasts over 25 million downloads all across various digital distribution services.
But before those ever happened, there was only one thing people really knew them for — competitive play. MK had always been around the fight genre, but never exploded into something big until 2008 when NetherRealm launched the original version of Injustice: Gods Among Us.
That got the ball rolling and inspired other developers to create new fighters.
In May of 2017, an unexpected new show was announced by streamer Kyle Johnson. He had just finished his morning workout when he revealed that there would be a new show coming soon. His followers knew it was going to be something special because he always spoils his surprises for them.
The show’s main character is Quinn Collins, played by Chris Dondonbury. Quinn works as the assistant manager at a coffee shop in downtown San Francisco. While working here, he meets two other employees who share some surprising secrets.
His superiors send him undercover to find out what they are really doing during work hours. When he does this, he finds out that they are trying to revive an old successful experiment from years ago. This experiment involves using a mix of elements to create a combustible gas that can be used instead of oil or natural gas for fuel.
This new gaseous fuel is called eXtreme Quantum Collision Technology (XQCT). This gassy fuel is mixed with water and sprayed into the engine. Once it gets fully combined, it produces energy and you don't need to worry about running out ever again!
It also doesn't break down like regular fossil fuels do. This means that there is no need to constantly update your car's engine and never run out of power. There has been some controversy though about whether or not XQCT actually works.
When X-Country Challenge was first launched in May 2016, it had just under 1 million views on its most recent episode. Now, almost three years later, it has more than 20 million!
The reason why this happened is because of two things: great editing and the community growing around the challenge.
X-country challenges focus on creating an entertaining video by having your friend or colleagues go on a road trip with you as co-drivers. These are usually fun to watch since there’s always so much laughter and hype surrounding every contest.
But beyond that, the community really takes off when people from all over the world join in and talk about their country’s best food, biggest cities, and/or funniest accents. It's like having a party where everyone brings something special — and they're sharing it with everyone else!
This is what made the difference for us here at Fun To Watch. We love seeing inspiring stories, but we also love talking about our own lives, so we let the audience pick any topic they wanted to see discussed during one of these trips.
Before there was large group of people performing modified martial arts moves in flashy, fast-cutting styles that we now refer to as xqc (aka eXtreme qigong combat). There were only a few individuals who had made it into popular media. People like Tony Robbins, Robert Allen, and Bruce Lee have gone down in history as major influencers in self-help philosophy and personal growth.
But not many know about another individual who influenced several generations – Qigong master George Iii. He did his thing in an extremely slow style that focused on breath work and relaxation.
And he’s no longer with us!
Sadly, due to health issues, he could never really spread his art outside of his inner circle. But his influence is still very much alive within the community he created.
Many current practitioners are either directly inspired by him or learn some of his exercises from watching videos of him teaching them. Some even say they picked up bits and pieces from other masters that he filmed practices of.
His passing away has left a big gap in our culture.
As mentioned earlier, one of the main reasons why XQc got so popular is because they marketed themselves well. Product endorsement is a very powerful way to spread your brand’s message as an entrepreneur.
By getting yourself into position where you are seen by many people, you can gain exposure for your business or product. People will talk about you and what you do, which may influence other people to come in contact with your company or buy from you.
Xqc has done several photoshoots and media appearances to promote their fat blaster device. This gives them exposure that could help them market their products more than we already have!
They also make it clear how professional and helpful they are during these interactions. This creates positive perceptions of both them and the product they endorse.
In September of 2016, XQC held their first ever Charity Cup event where they raised over $5,000 for Special Olympics. Since then, their events have been an interactive gaming experience with all proceeds going to benefit the organization.
Since then, their charity works have included donating gift cards to online shopping sites, buying new gear or supplies for underprivileged children, hosting movie nights, and more!
Their most popular event is the “X Games Assemble” event that happens every February at The Warehouse in Chatsworth, California. This event features games such as snowboard half pipe, skate board street luge, and figure eight jam.
These events have become very well-known due to the involvement of celebrities such as Ryan Seacrest, Tori Spelling, and even Ellen DeGeneres. Many people enjoy watching these athletes compete because of how hard they work and how dedicated they are to their craft.
In May of 2017, Team Yelland purchased an apartment in The Lakes at TurtleMountain, a community just north of Jacksonville off Highway 17. It’s their second home now!
Team Yelland is made up of three people — all of whom work full time jobs outside of racing. Since they don’t have any free time, buying their own place was important to keep them together as a team.
The apartment takes about two hours to get into town because there’s no public transportation close by. But it’s totally doable if you are self-driving!
Since Team Yelland doesn’t have much money right now, they didn’t spend too much on the car.
In May of 2017, Chris Cornell made his final performance at Soundwave Festival in Australia. He performed two songs — one acoustic and one electric — before exiting stage for good.
The show was filmed for Vevo and later released as a music video that received over 100 million views. The song he sang was an intimate ballad called “Empty Space” which is about loss and heartbreak.
After the concert, fans noticed something strange though - aside from his guitar case, there wasn’t anything else left behind. It seemed like he packed up and left right after performing his most famous song.
This sparked speculation and theories about what might have happened to him. Some said it was because of internal struggles he had been dealing with for some time while others thought he may have died onstage.
No matter what people think, many are inspired by his work and legacy so there has never been a shortage of explanations or interpretations.
In May of 2017, Team Liquid’s Counter-Strike team was in full production mode. The organization had just won two Major championships back to back, and they were looking forward to taking some time off before coming together again for another championship run.
But then something happened that would completely upend their season. Two members of the roster — Chris “Huang” Zhong and Kaleb "Zeus" Butler — got into an argument at a house party. It got heated quickly, and soon both players found themselves embroiled in a shouting match online.
The argument took place over who was more successful as individuals, not as teammates. But it didn't take long before people noticed how similar their playstyles were. Both are known for being aggressive supercar drivers, so naturally, the conversation turned towards cars.
It is well documented that Andreas 'Dread' Antoniou is very passionate about his Porsche 911 GT3 RS and has done several high profile runs in it. So when he mentioned his car to Zeus, things escalated rapidly.
What happened next made waves across social media because of its absurd nature. Huang called out Dread's car by name and model number and said that he wouldn't be able to afford one if he kept playing video games all day. He also promised to buy himself the same vehicle if he stopped.
After dropping the price and making light talk about potential trade ins, Dread ended the discussion and walked away.
