The main shoutouts thread on GerCalibur can be found here:
http://www.ger-calibur.de/index.php?threads/e-b-o-2012-review-shoutouts.1243/
I will re-post here anyway as I know some players will only check 8WayRun:
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Just like EBO 2011, this was the most fun gaming experience of the year.
Firstly, thanks to all those who I got to play in casuals. The constant chance to play casuals against so many players is what makes EBO so great for me.
Secondly, apologies in advance to those I forget to mention by name; with 50+ players at the tournament, this will be inevitable.
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General:
To
the Germans, who welcomed us with open arms and smiling faces, and who turned out in force even though many of you have not played the game much over the past few months, thank you for putting on a great show, and for so many of you supporting this game. It made it really special for the rest of us. Some will probably be disappointed, such as JAG, dag and LMTR for not making top 8, but Kalas and Kerrigan's placing was enough to show that Germany is still clearly one of the strongest nations for Soul Calibur. And the Trio Infernum's complete annihiliation of the competition in the 3v3 was more like what we would have expected.
To
the French, who so dominated EBO 2011, bad luck this time. It was always going to be hard to repeat last year's feat with only 4 players. And, of course, you clinched the national tournament to remind us all where Europe's premier scene remains!
To
the Polish, being described as 'Ringland' was unfair on you I think, as you took second place in the national event despite Ring losing twice, and it was very encouraging to see 5 of you here, so that he had direct support and fellow players to compete with.
Shoutouts to those who came down from other nations, such as
WhYYZ. I know from experience what it's like to be the only one to come, and to try to compete with lots of new people all speaking different languages. It shows a special love for the game, which hopefully will have a positive effect on the enthusiasm of other players in your communities.
I have to mention our own UK team as well of course. Even though we were chopped in half at the last minute, due to last minute change of plans from Wil, Testiskulls and Synraii, we were still able to put up a good fight. 2nd place in the 3v3 event and all of us finishing in the top 12 was really great and very encouraging for us. Grunt Dude will have wanted to do better, and Joel will need therapy after that classic self-RO, but I think as they are relatively new to the top level at SC, they did pretty damn well.
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Individual:
It would just be too long to mention everybody I met, and no-one would want to read it, so I will try to keep this as brief as possible.
I will refrain from saying "I wish we could have had more games" because this applies to everyone who was at the tournament.
Malek and
Panto: you are two of the first SC players I ever met, and two of the best ambassadors for the game. It was a great pleasure to meet you again. You guys are my heroes, and I have learned so much from you both. It has long been my personal goal to get to a point where I could give you guys some trouble, so now that I am getting closer, I can feel like I have achieved something to be proud of.
SoulA55a5in: I've played you loads online and it was great to finally meet you. We didn't get to play but we can make amends on XBL.
Dropical: maybe it is unfair to mention someone just because she is a very beautiful girl, but, well, life is unfair :) . You have a great deal of skill and played very well, and it was a pleasure to meet you.
The Raph guy (
Heniek I think? sorry if this is wrong)
Vigo: good games dude, sorry for the scoreline :S ... Raph does seem to be getting weaker as you said, but if you enjoy the character so much, you should stick with him and see what ideas you can come up with. I felt the same about Leixia many weeks ago, but a friend convinced me to give her another shot, and I'm really lucky I did.
Dranakal and
Sazayel: it was great that you two came to support the game when so many French players have moved away from it. Both of you are obviously really good and maybe it is just a lack of confidence that prevented you from getting further (or other issues maybe in Andy's case?). Hope I can make it to France some time to play you both again.
Bryareos,
LuCypha X,
Falkenberg,
Zu Face: GGs in the group stage. Congrats to LuCypha for taking out Dranakal. 2ndF, you have to stick with SC to keep the Germans afraid of the Tira matchup! She is completely broken!
Di: thank you for putting in the effort to help organise, and to run the stream and brackets. You are a really nice guy and it was great to meet you. I doubt you were serious about your skill level, and I hope you keep playing the game for the sake of the Polish community and the SC community in general.
Ring: we UK guys thought you were the favourite for this, and I doubt we were the only ones. You won the event so easily it was almost sad, and yet I doubt anyone was surprised. You are so far ahead of the rest of us that it is actually quite funny when you talk so modestly and humbly! The only negative thing was that you shouldn't have struggled so much against me in the tournament. I think you were very lucky to edge our matches 8-0.
Darkslayer: most players would be delighted with a top 8 finish, but I can imagine you might have felt disappointed not to go further. I think you and Ring demonstrated much more match-up knowedge and skillful use of Just Guard than any other players, and were imo the ones who have best adjusted to SCV. I wonder if you have ever considered going to MLG because I think you would do extremely well.
Chazy,
Neo,
Ryuga: you guys ruined the 3v3 tournament by beating us. I hope you're proud of yourselves. GGs! And thanks Chazy for joining our team. Neo: sorry for the things that happened in the other matches; Grunt was pushing start without thinking because he was watching the CE as if the round was over and trying to skip a replay, and Joel only realised after the 5v5 match that he had been spamming aB overkill, he wasn't trying to antagonise.
Fleshmasher and
Limiter: it was really fun playing you in casuals, and I was relieved to dodge you in the tournaments. 'Fleshy' as Kalas calls you... like you said, you have improved a great deal in a short space of time. Thanks for helping us out so much in the 5v5, especially against France. Perhaps you mightbe able to start a mini-scene in Hamburg?
The Trio of the Glades: congrats for taking the 3v3 so easily; I hope it provided some consolation as I imagine JAG and Dag would have liked to have gone further in the solo. Congrats to Kerrigan for taking EIN and Z.W.E.I. so far - spectators in the venue and on the stream really enjoyed your matches and were rooting for you to go even further. I also hope that the three of you continue to play SCV, because like Belial once said, you are the pride of German calibur.
Kalas: I wouldn't know where to start. Thanks so much for organising the tournament, and for helping us UK guys get back. Even though you live so far from other German players, you were still the one who took on a great deal of responsibility to look after the players and the event and everything, and all of us owe you a great deal of gratitude.
Absentees: many players weren't able to make it to E.B.O. this time. Only Malek, Panto and Sazayel returned from France this time around. The biggest disappointment for me was that neither Sacharja nor Docvizzo were able to make it. Both of them would have made the outcome of each tournament very different. I really hope I get to meet you guys again soon.
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And of course, last and most importantly of all, thank you so much to
G.O.D. Waffel and
G.O.D. Mistmöhre. Your tournament is the only one in the world I have ever heard of that can attract so many players, without the promise of big cash prizes or sponsorship, in any game. It was a great pleasure to meet you again, and I really admire how you take the time to make every single player feel welcomed and catered for. The orgainisation was fantastic, just like last year. Your efforts have once again made E.B.O. the most enjoyable tournament in the world.
Hope to see all of you again next year.
mattring (
