Evo 2023 – Street Fighter 6 Is Already Setting New Records

Street Fighter 6 is already setting records over a month ahead of the legendary fighting game tournament Evo 2023. Here is what you need to know.

While everyone knew that Street Fighter 6 was a big success for Capcom in terms of sales and reviews, we certainly did not expect it to make a strong start in its esports life.

Earlier today EVO, the iconic fighting game tournament held in Las Vegas Nevada announced that a month ahead of the event, Street Fighter 6 is already setting records for all-time competitor sign-ups at a single fighting game.

Street Fighter 6 at #Evo2023 has officially broken a franchise and All-Time Evo record for competitors pic.twitter.com/bdaGDmCoHI

— EVO (@EVO) June 26, 2023

Previously, that record was held by Street Fighter V, whose debut at EVO 2016 had an impressive 5,107 signees and a $101,070 USD prize pool. Eventually won by the now-banned Korean player Infiltration.

This is huge for many reasons, not just showing that despite COVID and drama shutting down the event in 2020 and 2021, EVO is still strong under their new leadership Sony. But it also shows how much the Fighting Game Community has grown over the years.

Last year, the event smashed attendance and viewership records with Guilty Gear Strive being the final game at Grand Finals with 2,158 total competitors and won by American player UMISHO.

Capcom Cup 2023

It is also important to note that EVO 2023 will be the first sanctioned event of the Capcom Pro Tour, a year-long league. Here players compete for points and placements to enter the Capcom Cup where 48 players from around the world play for a $2.000.000 USD prize pool.

EVO is one of 3 big international events. While other tournaments are held around the world in 26 regions over the next year both online and offline.

This is one of the largest prize pools in Fighting Games to date and is extremely important to Street Fighter 6's community.

Just last weekend independent Fighting Game tournament CEO in Miami Florida hosted the first big offline Street Fighter 6 tournament with over 1000 competitors in attendance. Won by last year's Capcom Cup winner MenaRD.

Street Fighter 6

Street Fighter 6 is undoubtedly a success for Capcom. Marrying what worked in past entries of the franchise with brand new mechanics and a stellar suite of accessibility options. Add to that an already amazing roster of 18 characters and you have one of the best fighting games of the last 20 years.

EVO will be the first real proving ground for the game and its competitive scene. For the first time players from around the world will clash in an offline tournament. This means we'll get to see how most of the pros stack up against each other, now that a new game release has evened out the playing field.

EVO 2023

Since its inception in 1996, back then still known as Battle at the Bay, EVO has slowly and steadily grown into the biggest Fighting Game tournament in the world and a yearly must-see esports event.

Every year the event draws thousands of competitors from around the globe to compete over the weekend for a shot at gold in some of the biggest Fighting Games.

Special about EVO and other events of its type is the open structure which allows everyone with a controller to sign up and play. While the year-long leagues such as E-league or Capcom Cup are exciting to watch, nothing will ever top the prestige that is winning at EVO.

So the person winning their chosen game at EVO could claim to be the best in the world, no matter what the official leagues would eventually decide. This is what makes the event so exciting to watch, especially in the debut year of a title.

But that's not all, the event is traditionally a big convention for all things Fighting Games. Including the reveal of new games, trailers, characters, and playable demos. The upcoming Mortal Kombat 1 for example will be playable at EVO 2023.

So you can expect to see a new trailer for the upcoming Tekken 8, probably the reveal trailer of Street Fighter 6's first DLC character and the announcement of the Third Season of Guilty Gear Strive.

For more on Street Fighter 6, EVO, and everything else esports stick with us here on ESTNN