"Leo's Cloud is Annoying:" Abadango on Training, Rivals, and Mewtwo Matchups

Image courtesy of 2GG Lakitu. Graphic by TheRealHeroOfWinds.​

Yuta "Abadango" Kawamura is known for revolutionizing the way characters play. Though a veteran from the Super Smash Bros. Brawl days, Abadango didn't gain international exposure until 2015. He first captivated audiences with his Pac-Man at tournaments like Apex and EVO, but it was his Mewtwo which permanently cemented his status as a titan of Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. At Pound 2016, he became the first Japanese player to take a major tournament, doing so in convincing fashion. Since then, he's continued to refine his Mewtwo play while juggling a rotating roster of secondary characters.

Since October 2016, Abadango's been sponsored by Luminosity Gaming. This has enabled him to travel to a wide variety of events like Genesis 4 and 2GGC: Civil War. This weekend, Abadango will be looking to take Umebura Japan Major over incredibly difficult competition. He's coming in off of a 2nd place finish at KSB 2017, where he lost only to Echo Fox's Leonardo "MKLeo" Perez, so things are looking good for him. I took some time to chat with Abadango about his character, practice routine, and the Japanese tournament scene.​

Hi Abadango! Thanks again for talking with me. It looks like out of everyone registered for Umebura Japan Major so far, you're the second highest rank on the PGR. [NOTE: Abadango is the highest ranked now that James “VoiD” Makekau-Tyson cancelled.] Would you say you're feeling confident going in?

I'm not so confindent lol. You guys already know Japanese results are inconsistent because we have a ton of good players. (Of course, most top player's level is higher in the USA. I want to avoid the arguments lol.) Also, MKLeo is coming; his Cloud is one of the most annoying Clouds for me to fight besides komo.

Yeah, I was wondering about MKLeo. Do you plan on going MK again (if you'd rather not say for strategic reasons, that's fine)? How do you feel about Mewtwo vs. Cloud?

I will never go MK I guess. He knows the MK matchup very well. And maybe I'll go Mewtwo next time. It is one of the hardest matchups (Sheik, Diddy & Cloud). I'm fine only on Battlefield against Cloud. His “hitpoints” are twice as high as Mewtwo’s. That’s the problem of the matchup.

That makes sense. A few other MK players (Tyrant, AC) had some luck against MKLeo, but I'm not sure if that comes down to the character or something else. For Mewtwo, what makes the Sheik matchup so hard? You seemed to be doing pretty well in that one until KKON. Diddy I understand, that one's always looked bad.

Sheik can catch Mewtwo more easily than others. It’s also hard to land and ledge get-up.

Good points. With so many threatening players attending, how do you prepare for a tournament like this? Do you use the same strategy as for monthlies?

I practice at someone's house Smashfest. At home, I watch videos to learn and do training mode to lab new moves and maximize combos.

Hmm, I was wondering about differences in tournament format. A lot of Americans are surprised when they first learn that Japan plays Bo1 pools. [NOTE: Umebura Japan Major will use the American pools format.] How would you recommend getting used to this?

It’s not recommended. It's just for newcomers to play a lot. It also destroys seeding.

I really appreciate you taking the time to talk. There's a huge timezone difference between us.

No problem, goodnight.

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What is the Bo1 format?

 

What is the Bo1 format?

Sorry, that's short for best-of-1.

 

I can't imagine only doing Bo1 pools. There's to much jank and involvement around gimps and spikes to really factor in true skill with only one game in Smash.

 

I can't imagine only doing Bo1 pools. There's to much jank and involvement around gimps and spikes to really factor in true skill with only one game in Smash.

They're always round robin Bo1, not bracket pools (based on what I read elsewhere), but I'm not sure how much that helps lol

 

The pools are very large though. Instead of just 4-6 people like some tournies in the west, they are like 10-12 people or such. That way you get to play tons of players.

Is it fast paced and more volatile? Yes. But the idea is that if you're good enough to make it out, you *might* lose once somehow to a much worse player, but you really shouldn't be losing several Bo1s somehow, and drowning. If you do somehow drown, then you really weren't good enough to deserve making it out.

Only problem is that the better players towards the top, like Abadango mentioned, can have a bit volatile results and thus it can produce less accurate seeding. But I think it's cooler for the lower and middle level players to be able to have exposure to a wide variety of MUs and players and skill levels, instead of just going 1-2 or 0-2. I also hate that, whether in RR pools of 4-6 people (which I feel is less common than back then) or bracket pools, it really sucks if you are unlucky and face players or characters you really struggle against and get almost no value out of the tournament. I think the idea of fighting a wide spread of players and characters is very appealing.

Now for the umebura major tournament, it makes sense they are using a Bo3 format, because that is going to be a more important tournament that will value accurate seeding more than locals or regionals.

 

Loved the interview, and great intel.

 

Good interview. I can't imagine doing best of 1 format though there is so much that could go wrong in the first game that you can't make up in game 2.