Xyro77
Unity Ruleset Committee Member
http://www.mlgpro.com/content/news/306942/If-you-Can-t-Beat-him-Join-him-MLG-Interviews-Ally
MLG sits down with elite smasher and 2010 Orlando runner-up Ally. The Quebec native discusses his hometown Smash scene, the Orlando bracket, matches against Mew2King, stage selection and more.
MLG: Thank you for taking the time to speak with MLG today. You're a relative new face to the MLG audience. Tell us a bit about yourself: when did you first become aware of the competitive Smash scene, and how long have you played for?
Ally: I was aware since Melee tournaments were around, though I never played Melee competitively because I couldn't travel back then. I've been playing Smash since 64 came out.
MLG: You mention not being able to travel. How is the Smash community up in Quebec? Are there many local tournaments or competitive players up there? Do you think geography puts you at a disadvantage?
Ally: Not being able to travel as in, I had no money, and no one knew me so I couldn't really travel. The Quebec Melee scene was great, but right it’s kind of dead, and there's barely a tournament for Melee and Brawl each month, sometimes one per three months. My location is kind of disadvantageous because I need to pay much more for transportation, even for any 40-to-60 person-sized tourney in New York. It's $120 to $145 round trip to get to New York. But we do have great players [in Quebec], they are just not really known.
MLG: Orlando was your first MLG event. What did you think about the experience and the atmosphere?
Ally: Unique, and I think, other than Halo's hype and the Tekken Grand Finals hype if I'm not mistaken, Smash had the biggest hype at MLG Orlando. The venue was awesome, a lot of people showed up, and matches were intense and mostly close. My only complaint would be that there was nothing to eat other than the restaurant, which was kind of expensive. Of course eating the free stuff was nice, but... I think I wanted to eat something else. (laughs)
MLG: In the Top 8 we had six different main characters represented. Were you surprised by the character selection diversity in Orlando?
Ally: Not really, being the first event, most of the people who should have been seeded got eliminated by other top players, or Meta Knight vs. Meta Knight top player matches. I am sure when everyone is properly seeded, the diversity will be different.
MLG: Well, you have a pretty diverse range of characters that you play. You're known not only as a Snake main, but as a player who’s proficient with a variety of characters. How often do you switch up characters during tournaments?
Ally: Depending on my mood, I will either use Snake, MK, Wario, Falcon or other characters. I often switch to another character to keep me in the mood for Brawl — I tend to lose my mood for the game most of the time. I didn’t use any different characters during MLG because I felt like my other characters wouldn't stand a chance yet.
MLG: With so many characters that you play, what are some of your favorite matchups? And what are some of your least favorite?
Ally: Using any character against someone's Snake is my favorite matchup. Beating up on Snake is fun. Falcon vs. Wario, Wario being my opponent, is my second favorite. I dislike Snake against DeDeDe, Marth, or Snake himself.
MLG: So what about Snake v. Meta Knight? You're a successful tournament player, so you are obviously proficient at dealing with Meta Knights. What do you think you do better in that matchup than other Snakes?
Ally: I don't know. I play this game while trying stuff that shouldn't work most of the time, but maybe I just read people better. That’s mostly the difference.
MLG: Back to Orlando. You were heavily favored to win the tournament in all of the MLG Live Blog polls during Orlando, even coming into the tournament without much practice. What do you attribute the poll numbers to?
Ally: My last loss was at Pound 4 (January 16th-18th), against Mew2King, where I got 3rd. Mew2King got 2nd, losing to ADHD twice. After that I beat them both consistently until Orlando, where I lost to Mew2King in the Winners Bracket and the rematch set. Well, I can’t say I am the best player. I’m probably even in sets now with Mew2King, but I had the greater odds to win the tournament since ADHD beats Mew2King all the time, though this time ADHD did not run into Mew2King but into me.
MLG: So were you surprised by ADHD's 6th place finish? Or do you think it was simply an unfortunate bracket?
Ally: If ADHD was on the Mew2King side of the bracket, I think he would have placed 1st, 2nd or 3rd guaranteed. The random seeding made for some interesting matches early on. I wouldn't be surprised if all of the top finishers from Orlando place much lower than expected. I wasn't surprised by 6th place. Orlando was unfortunately very advantageous for Mew2King.
MLG: Other than the finals, of course, what was your most difficult match in Orlando?
Ally: San, the Ike player from New York, and probably Tyrant.
MLG: You had an interesting quote regarding Mew2King in your last interview. You said, "I’ll beat him in Columbus. I have a backup plan for stages like Brinstar." What adjustments are you looking to make, and what gives you so much confidence?
Ally: I'll just play different characters. Snake is not the best option there. But I will end up banning that stage.
MLG: Ah, well that relates to my next question. In that same interview, you also gave a laundry list of stages you don't like: Brinstar, Rainbow Cruise, Delfino, Yoshi’s Island, Lylat Cruise, Norfair, or Green Greens. Are you planning any specific characters to use for certain stages if you get counter-picked?
Ally: I will just use Wario or Meta Knight on counterpicks where I stand next to no chance [with Snake].
MLG: Mew2King stated in his interview that he thinks he and you are about "50–50". Any keys to topping Mew2King?
Ally: Under the current MLG rules, I feel like Meta Knight has an advantage, so Mew2King has the greatest chance of winning.
MLG: Which rules specifically? Stage selection?
Ally: Yes, stage selection. Meta Knight has Brinstar, Norfair, Rainbow Cruise and potentially Green Greens. Let's say ADHD loses his first game to a Meta Knight. The Meta Knight player will have the advantage during his own counterpick if he loses the second game, which gives ADHD almost no chance of winning.
MLG: And Meta Knights simply ban stages like Final Destination against your Snake?
Ally: On the first match, if Meta Knight is seeded first, he can strike most of the neutral stages and have counterpick stages as starters. Even if he is the 2nd seed, he'll just strike the neutrals.
MLG: Back to Mew2King. How do the mind games change when you've logged that many games against a single opponent?
Ally: It's mostly just the one who has been losing to the other one most recently changing his playstyle, which may lead to victory. But really it's mainly who reads the opponent the most, when it comes to neutral stages at least.
MLG: Do you think you and Mew2King can go undefeated in doubles this season? What's your general approach to doubles play?
Ally: We will most likely not lose to anyone; we’ve never lost to anybody in a set, and as long as neither of us plays stupidly, we’ll keep winning. Especially with no Wii remote users, many good teams like Razer and Gnes won't happen.
MLG: Are there any players you think will be making a big impact in Columbus?
Ally: Definitely, though a lot of players that went to Orlando won't be going to Columbus. New players will definitely show up. I do expect more upsets because most of the West Coast, East Coast and South players have never played the Midwest people.
MLG: Well, thank you very much for your time, Ally, and best of luck in Columbus!
MLG sits down with elite smasher and 2010 Orlando runner-up Ally. The Quebec native discusses his hometown Smash scene, the Orlando bracket, matches against Mew2King, stage selection and more.
MLG: Thank you for taking the time to speak with MLG today. You're a relative new face to the MLG audience. Tell us a bit about yourself: when did you first become aware of the competitive Smash scene, and how long have you played for?
Ally: I was aware since Melee tournaments were around, though I never played Melee competitively because I couldn't travel back then. I've been playing Smash since 64 came out.
MLG: You mention not being able to travel. How is the Smash community up in Quebec? Are there many local tournaments or competitive players up there? Do you think geography puts you at a disadvantage?
Ally: Not being able to travel as in, I had no money, and no one knew me so I couldn't really travel. The Quebec Melee scene was great, but right it’s kind of dead, and there's barely a tournament for Melee and Brawl each month, sometimes one per three months. My location is kind of disadvantageous because I need to pay much more for transportation, even for any 40-to-60 person-sized tourney in New York. It's $120 to $145 round trip to get to New York. But we do have great players [in Quebec], they are just not really known.
MLG: Orlando was your first MLG event. What did you think about the experience and the atmosphere?
Ally: Unique, and I think, other than Halo's hype and the Tekken Grand Finals hype if I'm not mistaken, Smash had the biggest hype at MLG Orlando. The venue was awesome, a lot of people showed up, and matches were intense and mostly close. My only complaint would be that there was nothing to eat other than the restaurant, which was kind of expensive. Of course eating the free stuff was nice, but... I think I wanted to eat something else. (laughs)
MLG: In the Top 8 we had six different main characters represented. Were you surprised by the character selection diversity in Orlando?
Ally: Not really, being the first event, most of the people who should have been seeded got eliminated by other top players, or Meta Knight vs. Meta Knight top player matches. I am sure when everyone is properly seeded, the diversity will be different.
MLG: Well, you have a pretty diverse range of characters that you play. You're known not only as a Snake main, but as a player who’s proficient with a variety of characters. How often do you switch up characters during tournaments?
Ally: Depending on my mood, I will either use Snake, MK, Wario, Falcon or other characters. I often switch to another character to keep me in the mood for Brawl — I tend to lose my mood for the game most of the time. I didn’t use any different characters during MLG because I felt like my other characters wouldn't stand a chance yet.
MLG: With so many characters that you play, what are some of your favorite matchups? And what are some of your least favorite?
Ally: Using any character against someone's Snake is my favorite matchup. Beating up on Snake is fun. Falcon vs. Wario, Wario being my opponent, is my second favorite. I dislike Snake against DeDeDe, Marth, or Snake himself.
MLG: So what about Snake v. Meta Knight? You're a successful tournament player, so you are obviously proficient at dealing with Meta Knights. What do you think you do better in that matchup than other Snakes?
Ally: I don't know. I play this game while trying stuff that shouldn't work most of the time, but maybe I just read people better. That’s mostly the difference.
MLG: Back to Orlando. You were heavily favored to win the tournament in all of the MLG Live Blog polls during Orlando, even coming into the tournament without much practice. What do you attribute the poll numbers to?
Ally: My last loss was at Pound 4 (January 16th-18th), against Mew2King, where I got 3rd. Mew2King got 2nd, losing to ADHD twice. After that I beat them both consistently until Orlando, where I lost to Mew2King in the Winners Bracket and the rematch set. Well, I can’t say I am the best player. I’m probably even in sets now with Mew2King, but I had the greater odds to win the tournament since ADHD beats Mew2King all the time, though this time ADHD did not run into Mew2King but into me.
MLG: So were you surprised by ADHD's 6th place finish? Or do you think it was simply an unfortunate bracket?
Ally: If ADHD was on the Mew2King side of the bracket, I think he would have placed 1st, 2nd or 3rd guaranteed. The random seeding made for some interesting matches early on. I wouldn't be surprised if all of the top finishers from Orlando place much lower than expected. I wasn't surprised by 6th place. Orlando was unfortunately very advantageous for Mew2King.
MLG: Other than the finals, of course, what was your most difficult match in Orlando?
Ally: San, the Ike player from New York, and probably Tyrant.
MLG: You had an interesting quote regarding Mew2King in your last interview. You said, "I’ll beat him in Columbus. I have a backup plan for stages like Brinstar." What adjustments are you looking to make, and what gives you so much confidence?
Ally: I'll just play different characters. Snake is not the best option there. But I will end up banning that stage.
MLG: Ah, well that relates to my next question. In that same interview, you also gave a laundry list of stages you don't like: Brinstar, Rainbow Cruise, Delfino, Yoshi’s Island, Lylat Cruise, Norfair, or Green Greens. Are you planning any specific characters to use for certain stages if you get counter-picked?
Ally: I will just use Wario or Meta Knight on counterpicks where I stand next to no chance [with Snake].
MLG: Mew2King stated in his interview that he thinks he and you are about "50–50". Any keys to topping Mew2King?
Ally: Under the current MLG rules, I feel like Meta Knight has an advantage, so Mew2King has the greatest chance of winning.
MLG: Which rules specifically? Stage selection?
Ally: Yes, stage selection. Meta Knight has Brinstar, Norfair, Rainbow Cruise and potentially Green Greens. Let's say ADHD loses his first game to a Meta Knight. The Meta Knight player will have the advantage during his own counterpick if he loses the second game, which gives ADHD almost no chance of winning.
MLG: And Meta Knights simply ban stages like Final Destination against your Snake?
Ally: On the first match, if Meta Knight is seeded first, he can strike most of the neutral stages and have counterpick stages as starters. Even if he is the 2nd seed, he'll just strike the neutrals.
MLG: Back to Mew2King. How do the mind games change when you've logged that many games against a single opponent?
Ally: It's mostly just the one who has been losing to the other one most recently changing his playstyle, which may lead to victory. But really it's mainly who reads the opponent the most, when it comes to neutral stages at least.
MLG: Do you think you and Mew2King can go undefeated in doubles this season? What's your general approach to doubles play?
Ally: We will most likely not lose to anyone; we’ve never lost to anybody in a set, and as long as neither of us plays stupidly, we’ll keep winning. Especially with no Wii remote users, many good teams like Razer and Gnes won't happen.
MLG: Are there any players you think will be making a big impact in Columbus?
Ally: Definitely, though a lot of players that went to Orlando won't be going to Columbus. New players will definitely show up. I do expect more upsets because most of the West Coast, East Coast and South players have never played the Midwest people.
MLG: Well, thank you very much for your time, Ally, and best of luck in Columbus!
