Chris Gonzalez is the best all-around fighting gamer in the world.
If eSports qualified for the Olympics, Gonzalez would be up there with Apolo Ohno and Michael Phelps. He plays at entirely different level, with more medals to his name this year alone than some small countries: 16 gold, 11 silver, and 10 bronze. He’s won an astounding seven different games this year.
The New Yorker—known alternately as Chris Genius, Christ G, and Christ Geezus—proved his primacy once again this weekend with two first-place finishes in Street Fighter IV and Marvel vs. Capcom 3, the main events at the Fall Classic suite of tournaments in North Carolina.
If that wasn’t enough, Gonzalez earned silver in the King of Fighters XIII tournament and qualified for the prestigious Capcom Cup.
In 2012, Gonzalez was a top-tier player. In 2013, he’s having an all-time great year, setting himself apart as the most consistent and strong player that Marvel vs. Capcom 3 has ever seen.
But that success has come at a steep cost. A rash of scandals has built him up as something of a villain for many in the fighting game community.
In April, he was accused of being involved in match-throwing twice. Later that month, he got into a Twitter fight with Evolution Championship Series cofounder Joey “MrWizard” Cuellar in which Gonzalez called MrWizard a “faggot.” Gonzalez quickly deleted the tweet but, far from apologizing, he said he stood behind what he’d said.
There’s another black mark of a different sort on Gonzalez’s otherwise impressive 2013 run: He’s missing a prize from Evolution Championship Series, the Super Bowl of fighting games and the de facto world championships. Despite dominating Marvel vs. Capcom 3 for the entire year, Gonzalez failed to take home first at Evolution in July.
He was knocked out after a stunning comeback by Justin Wong.
While that’s certainly a significant hole in his resume, it’s clear, however, that Gonzalez’’s long list of 2013 tournament wins more than makes up for that one loss.
A little more added to my collection. Yay me. pic.twitter.com/JrwWYKIpYc
— Christopher Gonzalez (@NYChrisG) September 2, 2013
— Christopher Gonzalez (@NYChrisG) August 20, 2013
Gonzalez’s victory in Marvel vs. Capcom 3 this weekend came after six straight wins over his rival Filipino champ. An hour later, Gonzalez swept Justin Wong out of the Street Fighter IV finals with a strong 6-2 win to capture his second gold of the night.
Any hypothetical doubters out there ought to note that Gonzalez beat both Evolution 2013’s Marvel vs. Capcom 3 gold and silver medalists, Flocker and Wong, as part of his dominant run at fhe Fall Classic.
ChrisG may not have won EVO, but I still believe ChrisG to be best player of 2013.
— Rod Breslau (@Slasher) September 16, 2013
Gonzalez ended the weekend with a 48-25 record across three games.
Published: Sep 16, 2013 10:48 am