Over the past few years, the massive fighting game tournament known as Evo ran into quite a few difficulties. The rise of COVID-19, as well as the sexual misconduct allegations levied against the event’s co-founder. led to the cancellation of the 2020 tournament. Then, the persistence of the pandemic resulted in Evo 2021 becoming an online-only event. With the pandemic seeming like it will finally wind down, the organizers of Evo 2022 have decided to bring the tournament back in full force, with an in-person event planned to take place in Las Vegas like before. And now, the organizers have unveiled the lineup of games that players can expect to see in Evo 2022.
According to a press release, Evo 2022 will feature a lineup of nine games, with many of them having shown up regularly at the tournament before. Heavy hitters such as Street Fighter V: Champion Edition, Tekken 7, Mortal Kombat 11, and Dragon Ball FighterZ all make their return, in addition to other noteworthy games like Guilty Gear: Strive and Granblue Fantasy: Versus. After the last Evo, the world saw the releases of both Melty Blood: Type Lumina and King of Fighters XV, so it makes sense that these games will join the lineup as well.
A noteworthy participant
Fighting game fans will likely rejoice at the inclusion of Skullgirls: 2nd Encore. Despite being a beloved fighting game since its initial release in 2012, Skullgirls has faced quite a few hurdles over the years. Evo organizers rarely hosted the game alongside the heavy hitters, and developer Lab Zero’s lead game designer Mike Zaimont faced allegations of sexual harassment back in 2020. But with a restructured team of developers, as well as a recent Season Pass, Skullgirls has made a big comeback, and Evo has been featuring it right alongside the greats.
All in all, the Evo 2022 lineup looks fairly robust, and fighting game fans will no doubt feel more than ready to return to a more traditional tournament setup. The issues that many fans have had with the netcodes of recent fighting games will make the prospect of a new in-person event even more enticing.
