Ludwig buying Rivals of Aether II’s registration numbers adds to the manufactured and forced hype of Evo this year

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: the FGC really doesn’t like influencers. Despite this, Evo, the largest fighting game event of the year, has been sorta taken over by content creators.

Recently, Evo revealed the registration numbers for its fighting game lineup. It looks like Street Fighter 6, Tekken 8, and 2XKO will be the top three games getting the stadium treatment for their Top 8. No real surprise there.

However, the FGC was a bit confused to see Rivals of Aether II in the fourth place spot above popular games like Guilty Gear -Strive-. It soon came out that this was due to streamer Ludwig Ahgren and some in the FGC believe it was a bit of a scummy move.

Back in April, Ludwig announced that he wanted Rivals of Aether II to have a big showing at Evo. He initially told his fans that anyone who beat him in a 1v1 would get a free pass to Evo. Why did he even care? Because his brand, Offbrand Games, developed the game.

As time went on, Ludwig revealed that he’d give out Evo registration codes, making the three-day event free to attend, if players signed up to compete in Rivals of Aether II. This would save them $235. All gamers had to do was sign up on Start.gg for the Rivals tourney if they got approved.

Many in the FGC saw this as Ludwig “buying” Rival’s fourth-place spot. They accused him of buying up a bunch of Evo passes and giving them out. While it’s not the scummiest thing we’ve seen in the FGC, it did skew the registration numbers.

One player joked: “Rivals 2 about to have the biggest drop in players this side of when you got a free shirt for playing KOF XIII at EVO 2011. Otherwise, looks about what I expected.”

Pretty much. Plenty of players are going to drop out of the Rivals of Aether II tournament once they get to the event. At that point, they already snagged their three-day pass and can compete in other tournaments they care more about, or just hang out and watch.

However, this could happen with 2XKO as well. Riot promised the Pool Party Senna skin to anyone who signed up for that tourney as well. This clearly boosted the game’s numbers, putting it in the third-place spot. This is similar to the OWCS Champions Clash boasting massive viewership, but it was largely due to gamers wanting the Twitch Drops. It doesn’t mean interest doesn’t exist, but… Is the interest for the esports side of things truly there?

Either way, this all points to the larger issue at hand: Evo is getting taken over by content creators and corporations.

Evo is seen as the most prestigious fighting game event, respected for bringing the FGC together. As the mainstream esports scene continues to see a decline in hype as Saudi Arabia and manufactured moments erase authenticity, the FGC has been seen as a haven for real grassroots action.

Unfortunately, Evo was purchased by a Saudi Arabian company and some cracks are starting to show. The creator showmatch was already met with hostility, but at least we had intense, passionate, real tournaments. Right?

Well, now that’s even being questioned.

In regards to all these registration numbers getting inflated by interfering and meddling companies, one player stated: [Ludwig] boosting the player registration to appear higher is a dick measuring contest that was not asked. He also randomly started throwing shade at 2XKO, the closest game with higher registration.

It will likely make the tournament harder to run for no good reason, because a large portion of players just won’t show up.

All the extra money from those DQ registrations is going directly to Evo, now owned by Saudi oilers. Many FGC people have cut ties with Evo because of how shady it has become, and that’s money he could have spent on more grassroots smash tournaments like Genesis.”

Another added: “Everyone else aired the rest of the concerns, but I do think there is a conversation to be had about the ethics of dumping all this money into a Saudi-owned event. I really, really wish this could have gone to something like Supernova or Combo Breaker instead, or maybe even a new supermajor.”

I think this can be summed up pretty easily: the vibe is just… lame. The authenticity, grit, and passion of the fighting scene is sinking as more people meddle with Evo. Ludwig giving away free registration could be seen as supporting the community, but it unfortunately just adds to the manufactured feeling of the event, moving it away from genuine engagement.

Ludwig didn’t even really have a good response to the frustration.

He wrote: “I’m sure I got taken advantage of. People sold codes, shared them without permission, and signed up with no intention of playing. But that’s the price I’m willing to pay to make this the biggest Rivals 2 event we’ve ever had. The community has rallied around this, and I’m pumped to go to EVO this year.”

Okay… So boosting your own game’s numbers at a big tournament isn’t tacky? Isn’t fake? Isn’t adding to the idea of forced moments in the FGC? Having the biggest event ever isn’t much of an achievement if you paid people to show up. It’s a manufactured moment. It’s not genuine interest. It’s not real.

And that’s really the issue.

It’s fake.

Evo Japan has already fallen victim to the event’s massive growth following Saudi Arabia’s purchase. Evo hosted the broadcast for a very important showmatch between Daigo Umehara and Saul Leonardo “MenaRD” Mena II. Japanese players viewed it as a “fight to the death,” where the loser was essentially “dead” since this was a one-time shot at victory. But Evo’s broadcast was full of over-the-top hype that took away from the respectful and intense event it was meant to be.

Said one tweet: “I think Evo is trying too hard to create another Moment 37. S***’s not organic anymore, and all the forced hype cheapens it. I miss when s*** happened, and we reacted, not making some noise for a prospect of an idea of some s*** farmed for a response.”

That’s just it. Having the biggest Aether tournament ever means nothing if you paid for it to be the biggest. And that’s really the vibe of the entire Las Vegas event at this point, with all the creator showmatches and corporations begging for players to attend.

It’s just not the same.