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Tokido
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“I don’t feel like I really beat him. The debt I incurred at Kemonomichi can only be repaid through Kemonomichi.”
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// Chapter 1
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“I didn’t really think about it during the set because I was so focused on the game. When it was over, I realized my whole approach was feeble in comparison to my opponent’s.”
When “Kemonomichi 2” happened in March of 2018, the main event was Umehara (Guile) vs. Tokido (Akuma). Tokido lost 10-5. He had shown peak performance at tournaments throughout the previous year, 2017. If there had been such a thing as an MVP title, Tokido undoubtedly would have received it with unanimous support. Then came Kemonomichi 2. Tokido thought he had prepared as best he could.
“That was pretty naïve of me. I should have known there was a better way. It was only after losing that I realized that. ‘Come to think of it… (laughs)…maybe I could’ve taken this more seriously.’ It was after the fact. I felt like such a chump.”
Tokido had won his way through the entire previous season. In some sense, he had been treating Kemonomichi as an extension of that. Winning throughout a grueling season of tournaments requires having the breadth and depth to take on a wide variety of players. It’s a completely different approach than what’s required at a one-on-one event like Kemonomichi.
When Umehara is up against a single opponent, he has the ability to sink his teeth in deep. In 2012 it was Umehara (Ryu) vs. Infiltration (Akuma). In 2015’s “5th Topanga League,” it was Umehara (Evil Ryu) vs. Momochi (Ken). In both cases, Tokido got to see Umehara’s thorough preparations up close.
“In reflection, I’ve found quite a few areas for improvement. I had already seen how Umehara-san marks an opponent once he’s set to face them. For instance, he would use sparring partners to build up his game. Even though I’d seen this for myself, I still overlooked it. It’s a real regret for me that I wasn't able to get to a point where I could say, ‘I did all I could.’ I mean, I was just slacking.”
In his own words, Tokido is the type of person who “doesn’t understand unless you beat it into him.” But that also means when you beat it into him, he does understand. He took his landslide defeat at Kemonomichi 2 as precious food for thought as he embarked upon the Topanga Championship in 2020. The entire championship rested on the outcome of Grand Finals, and Tokido (Akuma), through sheer skill, grabbed the opportunity to settle his score with Umehara (Guile). The big showdown was seen as an opportunity for revenge for Kemonomichi 2, not only by Tokido himself, but also by the viewers.
“I went into the event trying to develop a better understanding of how he operated, what he was doing.”
He chose a young player, Higuchi, to be his sparring partner to run Umehara simulations as realistically as possible. He asked for his cooperation “in a work capacity.”
“I hired Higuchi-kun to be my partner, as a job. There was one time he’d been playing other people even though I’d asked him to spar with me, and he told me, ‘Sorry, I’m too tired.’ I remember telling him, ‘Don’t jerk me around (laughs).’”
The anecdote speaks to Tokido’s desperation. He went into the Grand Finals with extraordinary determination, and won 7-0, a complete shut-out. His successful revenge on the big stage was met with unstinting praise. At the time, Tokido himself felt great satisfaction that he had been able to use his experience of defeat to get payback.
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// Chapter 2
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From the Capcom Pro Tour and its culmination, the Capcom Cup, to the world's largest tournament, the Evolution Championship Series (EVO), there’s no shortage of major tournaments with huge prize pools for pro players whose main focus is Street Fighter V. Compared to those large-scale tournaments, which offer huge sums of money to the winners, Kemonomichi occupies a strange space. It’s a small-scale event, both in terms of venue and production value, and the monetary earnings are negligible. The main difference is that it constitutes a “risk match.” There is something to be gained by winning, but more significantly, it’s an event where defeat has a cost. To Tokido, who has had a fulfilling career as one of the top pro players, the “demerits” of Kemonomichi far outweigh the merits. What exactly is Kemonomichi to him?
“It’s the place where Umehara-san gets serious.” Tokido says what we saw at Topanga Championship, the scene of his revenge, wasn’t exactly the “serious” Umehara. But Umehara’s victory rested on those Grand Finals as well, and he himself has admitted his defeat. Surely he took it seriously.
“He may say so (laughs), but I don’t think so.” There was something else in him that Tokido sensed at Kemonomichi 2. That’s what he means. “Okay, then I’ll put it another way. It’s like there’s a switch inside Umehara-san that Kemonomichi flicks… So as of now, I don’t feel like I really beat him at Topanga Championship. I feel like I’m not good enough. The debt I incurred at Kemonomichi can only be repaid through Kemonomichi.”
Tokido’s skill carried him through that decisive match of the Topanga Championship, and there was nothing to be ashamed of in how he fought or prepared. But for him, it doesn’t quite make up for his defeat at Kemonomichi. He says it made him all the more aware of the magnitude of his missed opportunity.
“Anyone who loses Kemonomichi isn’t allowed to come back.” It’s hard to tell how serious he is, but Kemonomichi organizer Umehara has been aggressively drumming up hype during his streams and promotional videos. What was Tokido’s motivation for participating in Kemonomichi again after his first loss?
"Because Umehara-san told me to (laughs). With Kemonomichi 2, I asked Umehara-san directly if he would face me and he agreed. I agreed to do Kemonomichi 4 because we had that bond of trust between us. In my mind, that background matters.”
Tokido says this was the first time he heard Umehara’s taunting phrase, “If you lose, you can’t come back.”
“I think even losers keep playing. So what if they lost? Couldn’t they change after that and evolve their playstyle? Is that not enough?”
It's clear to everyone that Tokido has accomplished enough since losing Kemonomichi 2 to deserve another shot at the event. Umehara surely wouldn’t have considered it otherwise.
Does he have any thoughts on a possible Kemonomichi rematch against Umehara?
“First I need to focus on Kawano for Kemonomichi 4. But if Umehara-san flicks his switch again based on the outcome, that would be a plus. But it’s up to him. If he doesn’t, I don’t think there’s anything I can do about it (laughs). I’ve already tried a lot of different things to flick that switch.” Things like diligently producing results time and again in the pro gaming scene.
“Since losing, I’ve tried to make my presence known. But it doesn’t seem like even he has any control over when the switch gets flicked.”
The first thing is for Tokido to work on himself. Then, it’s just a question of whether their paths should cross. What about the option of just throwing down the gauntlet again?
“No, I think it’s too early for that. I did lose, after all (laughs).” It’s too soon for him to be the one to broach the subject. If it serves as a source of motivation for him in the future, so be it. For now, Tokido has the time to spare.
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// Chapter 3
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Since his loss at Kemonomichi 2, Tokido has undergone two major changes pertaining to Street Fighter V. The first is that he switched to a leverless controller. The second is that he uses a different character now.
The matchup for the upcoming Kemonomichi 4 will be Tokido (Urien) vs. Kawano (Kolin). Tokido officially began using Urien in the summer of 2020. “It started with Street Fighter League: Pro-JP in 2019. The rules required us to have a sub-character, so I practiced with him until I was decent.”
Urien joined the character roster during the period referred to as “Season 1.” Tokido had used the character in the past in Street Fighter III 3rd Strike, so he says there was a familiarity, albeit from a different title. The decisive factor in his switch from Akuma to Urien was his aforementioned victory over Umehara at the 1st Topanga Championship.
“That tournament was run using the PC version of the game, which was rare at the time. The control response felt completely different. I thought that if the standard was going to shift from console to PC, I’d have to rethink my tactics and everything else.”
To run a large-scale tournament, it’s necessary to gather a considerable number of hardware units with identical specs. Because of those circumstances, the tournament standard up to that point had been the PlayStation 4 console version of the game. But with the current COVID-19 situation, it’s difficult to run large-scale tournaments with high attendance in the first place. It was only natural that the PC version would become the standard in the professional scene, as it is said to make the differences in skill more visible.
“To begin with, the PlayStation 4 version was getting closer in responsiveness to the PC version with every title update. That raised questions for me a while ago. If things keep going this way, would a more reactive character like Dhalsim be more suitable, or would a rushdown character like Akuma be better? I concluded that if the PC version is going to become the standard, Akuma’s characteristics will be difficult to leverage in professional matches.”
With changing hardware comes a need to adapt one’s strategy to the hardware’s characteristics. Changing characters is one aspect of that. But Urien isn’t new to the game, he was added early in the game’s life. It’s not easy to play catch-up and get results using such a well-tread character.
“When I tried him out for myself, I sensed that he had potential left to discover. I thought I might be able to get a little more out of him.”
Perhaps it was because he was playing catch-up that he was able to see these things. In the end, he was able to achieve a level of performance that even caught the attention of Urien users who had come before him, ultimately achieving top-tier results in the pro scene.
Umehara has also acknowledged Tokido’s improvement with Urien. “I guess the character change was made with the idea of competing as a pro gamer for an entire season. He’s done a great job improving in just over a year. To me this also feels like a very Tokido thing to do (laughs).”
He also spoke of the impact this has on competitions like Kemonomichi. “He’s been winning with Urien, but when it comes to a tight competition like Kemonomichi, you can’t ignore the experience gap. When it comes to a one-off match, he’d be better off with Akuma, the character he’s put more years into. You can’t train for that Tokido unless you play him. As for Kawano, it would be hopeless if he had to face Akuma, but against Urien he should stand a chance. People have had Urien flagged as a strong character for years. They’ve accumulated tactics for dealing with him. There’s also no shortage of Urien sparring partners who have been influenced by Tokido. I wonder what Tokido’s going to do about that.”
Compared to a character one has used for years, there’s only so much one can do in a one-off competition. The key to success seems to lie in how much he can build upon the character in preparation for the unique event that is Kemonomichi.
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// Chapter 4
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“The quality of his play is definitely high. He managed to set himself apart from the people around him by learning how to use a leverless controller early.”
Kawano, who will be Tokido’s opponent at Kemonomichi 4, has risen to prominence over just the last two years. He was one of the first to convert to a leverless controller, while other pro gamers were hesitant to use one. Tokido holds Kawano and his precise gameplay in high regard.
“He has good ideas and he’s willing to challenge himself with risky moves. He’ll try to see how far he can step in, or he’ll have a light attack blocked and then connect with a second light attack and actually turn it into a combo. You can see that he practices things that put a lot of stress on the mind. He’s very precise.”
All top-level pro players have high precision, but Tokido says Kawano clearly stands out among them.
“It’s not even close. Kawano really does a good job. I like that stuff too, so I get it. The parts of the game that reward you the more you practice them. And there’s a good chance he’s been properly drilling things I’ve been neglecting. I can’t say for sure, though.”
Among top-level pros, differences in ability are slight. Each player meets a high standard in every area. But that alone isn’t enough to be at the top of the scene; something extra is needed. Kawano’s “precision” is a weapon of that magnitude, and Tokido appreciates it as a “relatable strength.”
“I think he takes the game seriously. I suspect he spends more time thinking about it than others.” Before the coronavirus, it wasn’t uncommon for the two to face off and exchange ideas at match meetups. “You can see it in his play, for one thing, but also when he talks shop; he must be thinking pretty hard about it. He’ll bring up problems and solutions I’ve arrived at myself, and it’s like, ‘Man, you’re really thinking about this stuff and taking notes.’”
The two haven’t had much personal interaction, such as going out for meals. They know virtually nothing about each other’s personalities, yet Tokido says it’s abundantly apparent Kawano is earnest in his attitude toward fighting games.
“I hear he works out and stuff. I bet he’s light on his feet. I don’t know if he does it for his gaming, but I bet he does. I think he pays attention to that stuff.” Physical fitness is something to which Tokido is very attentive as well. Perhaps “relatable strength” includes paying attention to things off-screen.
I asked for an analysis of the strength of Tokido’s character, Urien, versus that of Kawano’s character, Kolin. “In terms of the matchup, I think Urien has an advantage. Maybe not a 5.5 matchup, but probably a 5.1.” That means the odds are at least 49 to 51, in Urien’s favor. It’s a dynamic Tokido felt when he tried using Kolin himself.
“I’ve been using Kolin myself, with the help of Mizuha, who’s a Kolin player. Sometimes you make good discoveries by putting yourself in the other person’s shoes. Having done that, it’s my feeling that Urien has the edge. But regardless of this matchup, using Kolin did make me realize how good she is. She’s an easy character to move around, which makes her easy to analyze.”
He has recruited the help of the young pro gamer Mizuha to help him verify things, but he can’t leave it up to someone else to figure out what to do. “One concern I have is the difference between a stick and a leverless controller. Mizuha uses an arcade stick, so I’m conscious of that difference.”
Having the lessons “beaten into you” by a specific opponent—that’s certainly one way to get in shape. Tokido’s preparations appear to be proceeding smoothly.
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// Chapter 5
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Kawano has had more momentum this year than any other player. This time, it was Tokido who accepted the challenge. To Tokido, winning would allow him to hit the reset button on his previous Kemonomichi loss. He might not be able to turn a negative into a positive, but he can at least bring it back to zero. Depending on how you look at it, this fight is about that, too.
As we enter mid-December and the event draws close, I asked about his state of mind and received a surprising answer. “Well, um, there’s really no plus side. I can’t even take things back to zero (laughs). To be quite honest, I don’t think I’ll lose to him. Gee, am I allowed to say this? I do think he’s a good player, but he’s only won a little in such a short time. So, to be honest, I'm not sure why he's doing it. I don't think Ume-san should accept it either.”
This is the same Tokido who had just given Kawano unflinching praise, but he says that this is a different matter. “I mean look (laughs), he’s good at the technical stuff. But that doesn’t mean there’s no gap between us. The last time we faced off was at the (3rd) Topanga Championship in July, so it hasn’t even been half a year, right? He’s not going to turn things around in an event like this, with rules meant to test your comprehensive skill.”
Then again, there is the old maxim, “If you haven’t seen a man for three days, [behold him with awe]…”
“I think if he had a close advisor or someone who could tell him what he's missing, he could change in a short period of time. Either way, I’m not going to go easy… At first, my thought was basically, ‘Oh, so I’m being allowed back.’ Now I’m fully pumped for the fight.”
He says that for awhile after receiving the invite, he had trouble picturing a showdown against Kawano.
“I accepted because Umehara-san asked me to, but Kawano hasn’t said anything to me. Part of me feels like, ‘Man, when it was me, I asked Umehara-san directly to be my opponent.’ I think it would have been better for Kawano to ask me directly. Now it’s a face-off between two people who haven’t established any trust.”
I told Tokido about Kawano’s extraordinarily strong spirit toward this match—that he believes himself a player who should surpass Tokido; that he’s confident in his chances at victory. Tokido says he couldn’t tell.
“It’s not clear that Kawano has that enthusiasm or what-have-you, unless someone tells you about it… Maybe he doesn’t realize it. He really thinks he can win. At this point, it’s kind of eerie.”
Does he mean there’s something scary about Kawano’s unfounded confidence?
“That’s what I’m saying… I may not have a switch-activated power reserve like Umehara-san, but I think I’m like a marathon runner who’s maintained a high pace. If he thinks he’s been putting in the effort to match that, he’s wrong.”
The training and discipline Tokido has amassed to date have created an overwhelming confidence within him. It doesn’t appear to be wavering. Is there no basis for a Tokido loss?
“No, there isn’t. I’m constantly searching for some way I might lose this. What could cause me to lose? Physical condition, I suppose. But I’ll be fine as long as I don’t do something to cause it myself.”
Kemonomichi 2, Tokido vs. Umehara. At the time, Tokido was in peak shape, yet Umehara seemed to think the challenge came too soon. Now Tokido has received a challenge from Kawano, who’s in peak shape. Will history repeat itself?
Kemonomichi 4’s main event. Only one player will be left standing.
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