Jun 28, 2018
Fighting Game Community Interview: Ben “Shinobi!” Robinson
After working tournament support for years, Shinobi! is ready to make his own mark with Climax of Night.
You have a pretty extensive organizing background, but would it be fair to consider Climax of Night a step up from your previous work?
Very much so. Up until now, I have had the pleasure to work under many great [tournament organizers] over the years and lead tournaments for their events. I work in tandem with them to help run their event. Climax of Night is my event. Just me this time. I choose my team, venue, name, theme, games, all of that. Now that I have the ability to make the rules, it’s time I gave games I love another home; a home for just French Bread.
Where did you originally get the idea for this tournament?
Since 2015, I’ve always wanted to run something involving the company that created games I genuinely love. I thought about a Melty Blood exclusive since I’m a longtime player and still play to this day. Then [Under Night In-Birth] came out and it was another breath of fresh air for me. But I didn’t feel I was ready to step out and run an event with just two games at the time. I needed time for the community to grow since UNI was a very young game back then and Melty was uncertain.
In your mind, why do the games you chose deserve to make up the core lineup?
A simple answer would be to say they’re related to French Bread, however I feel there’s more to these games that needs to be shown. People like the games, don’t watch much of it. Melty’s an enjoyable game to watch at higher levels and so is Under Night. [Dengeki Bunko Fighting Climax] is something not many people have seen at higher levels either due to its anime nature and aesthetic. So why don’t I run something with just them?
Is there any chance of expanding this lineup with either main or side tournaments? Why or why not?
I get that question a couple times, but it’s mostly for the poverty games French Bread made long before Melty Blood like Queen of Hearts. While it would be a funny gesture to add those games, I want to keep this tournament as far away from that as possible. There is a very healthy and competitive community I want to set on display here; something for them. I do not want to take that away from that group. However, I will give space for side tournaments. You know that’s how Melty started in the States.
BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle is untested at the moment, and the other three games are fairly niche as far as the American fighting game community is concerned. What kind of turnout do you expect for this event?
I’m thinking 150 unique entrants at most. I feel that’s honest with the game roster across the board.
These days, it feels like tournaments need to have a unique identity or aesthetic in order to succeed. What would you say might set Climax of Night apart in addition to its lineup?
The games themselves made Climax of Night’s aesthetic. It’s a very broken, Engrish-heavy set of games (aside from BBTag) and I plan on taking advantage of that with the night themes as well. [Fighting game community] tournaments, especially in the South, are very exciting and interesting places to be at night. I hope the “nightlife” of this tournament is one people won’t forget.
Any final thoughts you’d like to share with the community?
Thank you so much for the immense amount of support and faith you have in me and my team to deliver a tournament series long overdue in North America. Please keep playing and growing stronger; you’re the reason I’m able to make this happen!
Pre-registration for Climax of Night is now open on Smash.gg. You can also help contribute to the event by purchasing an exclusive shirt from Teespring.
Responses edited for clarity and brevity
