Post-Battle Report: G-Rap SF Casuals at GrandLan, August 15th 2009

Our first public gathering took place on August 15th, 2009, at GrandLan in downtown Grand Rapids, and was a success by anyone’s measure. Matches were played, rivalries were formed, and Dan Hibiki signed more autographs in Marvel Vs. Capcom 2 that this author is personally comfortable with… especially considering that my Magneto didn’t actually want one, let alone ten. Thanks Chauncy, but remember in the future: no means no, even for eight by ten glossies.

The assembled crew included Slappy, Chauncy Talon, MrBaggs, Singe, G-Boobie (that’s me), and even a few casual players drawn in by the sound of pure, uncut hype. Street Fighter IV was the game of the day, but Singe laid down the law in King of Fighters XII, Chauncy signed autographs and beat people up in Marvel vs. Capcom 2, and MrBaggs showed us how to play Blazblue. In Street Fighter, Slappy showed me the terrible power of a Zangief in the hands of someone who knows how to use him, while Chauncy’s Sagat learned the power of the wild courtesy of my Blanka. And Singe? Singe proved that he is, indeed, the proto shoto by picking one in every game he touched… Even Marvel.

The best part of the day was putting a stick in the hands of someone who showed up to play WoW, but was compelled to play Marvel with us, presumably based on the difference between our relative volume levels. “If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em”. Chauncy, Singe, and MrBaggs did an excellent job showing our new friend the ropes, and hopefully we’ll see him at future events as a result. That’s true passion for the game, and I salute you guys for it.

Our next event is scheduled for one PM on August 29th, at GrandLan in downtown GR. Bring your stick, bring your hype, and most importantly, bring your friends. We want this community to flourish. Games are all on 360 at GrandLan, so if you need to borrow a stick, we can work something out.  Games on the 2D menu include Street Fighter IV, Marvel vs. Capcom 2, King of Fighters XII, and Blazblue, but let us not forget our friend the third dimension: there will be Virtua Fighter 5 and Soul Calibur 4 to satisfy participants with a desire for eight way run. It’s fun, it’s free (I’ll be handling the hourly rate for anyone who can’t cover it this week), and it’s only getting bigger.