Xyro77
Unity Ruleset Committee Member
http://www.mlgpro.com/content/news/308049/MLG-Interviews-Mew2King
With MLG Raleigh right around the corner, and Mew2King hotter than ever, can anybody take him out? We got a chance to sit down with him and get his thoughts about what happened in Columbus and what it means for the upcoming event.
MLG: Thank you for taking time to sit down with MLG this evening. You've been to lots of MLG events, dating back to Melee. Of all of them, which is your favorite?
Mew2King: MLG Columbus probably, because it's in my home state and the pro lounge was nice.
MLG: Glad to hear you enjoyed the pro lounge. You’ve now won both MLG Super Smash Brothers Brawl events. Do you think anybody will be able to take you down at MLG Raleigh?
Mew2King: ADHD and Ally are both capable of beating me. Probably several others. I'm glad I've played well up until now, because I legitimately need the money.
MLG: At MLG Columbus, you dropped no sets and only one game. Hundreds of players practice Brawl consistently, yet lately you have been in a league of your own. What makes you so much better than the current competition, despite other pros practicing constantly to catch up?
Mew2King: I don't know; I've always been really good at video games. I think a lot about strategies, and I've always had video game talent.
MLG: Besides Smash, what games do you enjoy competing in or playing the most?
Mew2King: I like Mega Man 2, Mario games, Super Metroid, Halo PC, and a bunch of other Nintendo stuff mostly. I grew up on Nintendo, and since I was a little kid I've always wanted to be the best in the world at various games. I've accomplished that goal now, I think, so I am pretty happy about that.
MLG: I think many people would agree that you have accomplished that goal, as you proved at MLG Columbus and MLG Orlando. Which of those two events was more difficult to win?
Mew2King: I won both by about the same amount. Although Ally won four games at Orlando over the span of two sets while I won 3–1 at Columbus.
MLG: I see. In Winner's Finals at MLG Columbus, you played Nick Riddle and his Zero Suit Samus. What do you think about the Meta Knight vs. Zero Suit Samus matchup? Were you impressed by Nick Riddle's skill with Zero Suit Samus?
Mew2King: Nick Riddle is really good and I love that guy. He used tactics that Snakeee, a Zero Suit Samus main from New York, has exposed me to before, so I knew how to counter them. Meta Knight wins the matchup, but I don't know the ratio. Maybe 60:40.
MLG: There is a running joke that Nick Riddle is "2008 Snakeee," yet Nick Riddle has been considerably more successful lately. Why do you think that is?
Mew2King: Because he's a better player. Snakeee was really good for his time, but people got better and he also got worse. The combination of the two is why he hasn't been successful for a long while. Also, I think Zero Suit Samus can be a really good character. Her range, speed, and juggling capabilities are very powerful.
MLG: Interesting. Diddy Kong is historically your least favorite matchup. You did not have to fight Gnes, a Diddy Kong main from Texas and a 6th Place finisher at Columbus. Were you relieved to avoid him, or any other players in particular?
Mew2King: Yeah, I think he could beat me. Same with ADHD. But I will be working on my banana game for if we do fight. I think a lot of players can beat me, but I've been doing really well up until now, thankfully.
MLG: It certainly hasn’t been evident thus far that you can be beaten. In addition to Nick Riddle and his Zero Suit Samus, there were a lot of characters seen in the Top 16 that are not normally used in tournament. Were you surprised to see such a wide variety of characters?
Mew2King: Yeah. With rules that make Meta Knight more powerful than he ever was before, he only took four, then eight, of the Top 16 placings at these tournaments. I honestly expected him to take a lot more placings, due to the stage list and sheer number of good Meta Knight players attending. There are a lot of really good characters who are unexplored because most people just want to take the easy way out and copy other people. I used to do that in my early Melee days, but I’ve learned a large amount since then and come up with many innovative tricks and strategies, and I continue to do that in Brawl.
MLG: Being a top Meta Knight main, it is inevitable that many of your tricks and strategies have been copied. Does it bother you to see other people using those tricks, or are you happy to help the other Meta Knight players out?
Mew2King: I used to be happy, but now that everyone is copying me, then copying each other, the character is evolving far faster than the other characters. I feel like I mastered or came really close to mastering him at this point, and because of that reason, among others that I have stated (such as stages and current ruleset), I think Meta Knight is very overrated.
MLG: Characters notwithstanding, were there any players that particularly impressed you at MLG Columbus?
Mew2King: Nick Riddle and Esam were really good and I like seeing them do well. ADHD and Gnes as expected did well (Gnes unfortunately had to fight and lose to Ally twice, then fight Dojo, his biggest counter). Shaky is doing really well with Ness. It's too bad Fow (the other best Ness) hasn't been keeping up to date with these big out-of-state tournaments. That kid has a lot of potential. Shugo has been improving really fast as well.
MLG: What was your most difficult set at MLG Columbus? Was anybody more difficult to defeat than you expected him or her to be?
Mew2King: I don't know. I played really well at Columbus, so I went through the bracket strong.
MLG: What are your favorite and least favorite counterpick stages?
Mew2King: Uhhh I don't know, I don't think I really have favorites. Many times I'm not sure what to ban, and what to pick.
MLG: MLG Raleigh is now right around the corner. Are there any players who didn’t go to Columbus or Orlando, or who didn’t place well at either event, that you expect to do well at Raleigh?
Mew2King: That's hard to say. DEHF has not been doing as well as he should have. FOW and SK could do well, but they have not been playing much in the past year so it's hard to say how well they would do right now. If Shugo were to travel to Raleigh, he would do well.
MLG: It has been noted that Diddy Kong is your least favorite matchup. What is your favorite matchup?
Mew2King: Snake then Meta Knight dittos probably, because Snake is my most practiced matchup, and everyone tries to Meta Knight ditto me for some reason. Half of my Brawl play time is probably against a level 3 computer Snake. And I am 100% serious.
MLG: That is probably very shocking to a lot of people.
Mew2King: I did that in Melee too, back when I cared about Melee. The majority of my play time was against computers. It works for me, but it seems to not work for many other people.
MLG: Judge, a Meta Knight player from Michigan, switched to Wario against you in a bracket at MLG Columbus and cited the impossibility of beating you at the Meta Knight ditto as the reason for the switch. Are you considered unbeatable at the ditto because of your vast knowledge of your character, or are there other reasons?
Mew2King: I'm just better with Meta Knight than they are, I think, and people have done it with me a lot. That's my best guess, I suppose.
MLG: Let’s shift gears and discuss teams. You and Ally have won both MLG events thus far. Are there any teams out there capable of beating you two?
Mew2King: Maybe, but Ally and I have yet to drop a set to anybody for a year now.
MLG: What teams give you guys the most difficult matches?
Mew2King: Hmmm, well, at Orlando I'd say Nick Riddle and Shaky were definitely the hardest. Razer and Gnes were very hard back at Winterfest (Gnes teams with Dojo now but performs better against us with Razer). At Columbus, the only match we lost was a last-hit game to Jash and Bizkit. But I think it was because Ally tried Meta Knight instead of Snake, because the 1st and 3rd games where Ally went Snake we won by a pretty large margin.
MLG: In a previous interview, you stated that you and Ally are "50–50." Despite that statement, you have beaten Ally in both MLG events thus far. Do you still believe this to be true, or do you think that you have gotten to a point where it will be very difficult for Ally to beat you?
Mew2King: I've been beating him a lot recently. He hasn't put the time and effort into the game that I have. I’ve practiced for both MLGs, while he hasn’t practiced for either.
MLG: You've played Ally in hundreds of games in your Brawl career. How do you mix it up against somebody that knows your playstyle so well?
Mew2King: I don't want to say too much about that but I do think there are a lot of things Ally does not do against tornado that he can. Powershielding, angling your shield up, and spot dodging the end of it are good against tornado. Snake can also duck under tornado.
MLG: It will be interesting to see how Ally adjusts if you two square off again in Raleigh.
Mew2King: I don't think he cares enough.
MLG: Interesting; hopefully he can pick up the pace again. Thank you so much for your time and we look forward to seeing you again at MLG Raleigh.
With MLG Raleigh right around the corner, and Mew2King hotter than ever, can anybody take him out? We got a chance to sit down with him and get his thoughts about what happened in Columbus and what it means for the upcoming event.
MLG: Thank you for taking time to sit down with MLG this evening. You've been to lots of MLG events, dating back to Melee. Of all of them, which is your favorite?
Mew2King: MLG Columbus probably, because it's in my home state and the pro lounge was nice.
MLG: Glad to hear you enjoyed the pro lounge. You’ve now won both MLG Super Smash Brothers Brawl events. Do you think anybody will be able to take you down at MLG Raleigh?
Mew2King: ADHD and Ally are both capable of beating me. Probably several others. I'm glad I've played well up until now, because I legitimately need the money.
MLG: At MLG Columbus, you dropped no sets and only one game. Hundreds of players practice Brawl consistently, yet lately you have been in a league of your own. What makes you so much better than the current competition, despite other pros practicing constantly to catch up?
Mew2King: I don't know; I've always been really good at video games. I think a lot about strategies, and I've always had video game talent.
MLG: Besides Smash, what games do you enjoy competing in or playing the most?
Mew2King: I like Mega Man 2, Mario games, Super Metroid, Halo PC, and a bunch of other Nintendo stuff mostly. I grew up on Nintendo, and since I was a little kid I've always wanted to be the best in the world at various games. I've accomplished that goal now, I think, so I am pretty happy about that.
MLG: I think many people would agree that you have accomplished that goal, as you proved at MLG Columbus and MLG Orlando. Which of those two events was more difficult to win?
Mew2King: I won both by about the same amount. Although Ally won four games at Orlando over the span of two sets while I won 3–1 at Columbus.
MLG: I see. In Winner's Finals at MLG Columbus, you played Nick Riddle and his Zero Suit Samus. What do you think about the Meta Knight vs. Zero Suit Samus matchup? Were you impressed by Nick Riddle's skill with Zero Suit Samus?
Mew2King: Nick Riddle is really good and I love that guy. He used tactics that Snakeee, a Zero Suit Samus main from New York, has exposed me to before, so I knew how to counter them. Meta Knight wins the matchup, but I don't know the ratio. Maybe 60:40.
MLG: There is a running joke that Nick Riddle is "2008 Snakeee," yet Nick Riddle has been considerably more successful lately. Why do you think that is?
Mew2King: Because he's a better player. Snakeee was really good for his time, but people got better and he also got worse. The combination of the two is why he hasn't been successful for a long while. Also, I think Zero Suit Samus can be a really good character. Her range, speed, and juggling capabilities are very powerful.
MLG: Interesting. Diddy Kong is historically your least favorite matchup. You did not have to fight Gnes, a Diddy Kong main from Texas and a 6th Place finisher at Columbus. Were you relieved to avoid him, or any other players in particular?
Mew2King: Yeah, I think he could beat me. Same with ADHD. But I will be working on my banana game for if we do fight. I think a lot of players can beat me, but I've been doing really well up until now, thankfully.
MLG: It certainly hasn’t been evident thus far that you can be beaten. In addition to Nick Riddle and his Zero Suit Samus, there were a lot of characters seen in the Top 16 that are not normally used in tournament. Were you surprised to see such a wide variety of characters?
Mew2King: Yeah. With rules that make Meta Knight more powerful than he ever was before, he only took four, then eight, of the Top 16 placings at these tournaments. I honestly expected him to take a lot more placings, due to the stage list and sheer number of good Meta Knight players attending. There are a lot of really good characters who are unexplored because most people just want to take the easy way out and copy other people. I used to do that in my early Melee days, but I’ve learned a large amount since then and come up with many innovative tricks and strategies, and I continue to do that in Brawl.
MLG: Being a top Meta Knight main, it is inevitable that many of your tricks and strategies have been copied. Does it bother you to see other people using those tricks, or are you happy to help the other Meta Knight players out?
Mew2King: I used to be happy, but now that everyone is copying me, then copying each other, the character is evolving far faster than the other characters. I feel like I mastered or came really close to mastering him at this point, and because of that reason, among others that I have stated (such as stages and current ruleset), I think Meta Knight is very overrated.
MLG: Characters notwithstanding, were there any players that particularly impressed you at MLG Columbus?
Mew2King: Nick Riddle and Esam were really good and I like seeing them do well. ADHD and Gnes as expected did well (Gnes unfortunately had to fight and lose to Ally twice, then fight Dojo, his biggest counter). Shaky is doing really well with Ness. It's too bad Fow (the other best Ness) hasn't been keeping up to date with these big out-of-state tournaments. That kid has a lot of potential. Shugo has been improving really fast as well.
MLG: What was your most difficult set at MLG Columbus? Was anybody more difficult to defeat than you expected him or her to be?
Mew2King: I don't know. I played really well at Columbus, so I went through the bracket strong.
MLG: What are your favorite and least favorite counterpick stages?
Mew2King: Uhhh I don't know, I don't think I really have favorites. Many times I'm not sure what to ban, and what to pick.
MLG: MLG Raleigh is now right around the corner. Are there any players who didn’t go to Columbus or Orlando, or who didn’t place well at either event, that you expect to do well at Raleigh?
Mew2King: That's hard to say. DEHF has not been doing as well as he should have. FOW and SK could do well, but they have not been playing much in the past year so it's hard to say how well they would do right now. If Shugo were to travel to Raleigh, he would do well.
MLG: It has been noted that Diddy Kong is your least favorite matchup. What is your favorite matchup?
Mew2King: Snake then Meta Knight dittos probably, because Snake is my most practiced matchup, and everyone tries to Meta Knight ditto me for some reason. Half of my Brawl play time is probably against a level 3 computer Snake. And I am 100% serious.
MLG: That is probably very shocking to a lot of people.
Mew2King: I did that in Melee too, back when I cared about Melee. The majority of my play time was against computers. It works for me, but it seems to not work for many other people.
MLG: Judge, a Meta Knight player from Michigan, switched to Wario against you in a bracket at MLG Columbus and cited the impossibility of beating you at the Meta Knight ditto as the reason for the switch. Are you considered unbeatable at the ditto because of your vast knowledge of your character, or are there other reasons?
Mew2King: I'm just better with Meta Knight than they are, I think, and people have done it with me a lot. That's my best guess, I suppose.
MLG: Let’s shift gears and discuss teams. You and Ally have won both MLG events thus far. Are there any teams out there capable of beating you two?
Mew2King: Maybe, but Ally and I have yet to drop a set to anybody for a year now.
MLG: What teams give you guys the most difficult matches?
Mew2King: Hmmm, well, at Orlando I'd say Nick Riddle and Shaky were definitely the hardest. Razer and Gnes were very hard back at Winterfest (Gnes teams with Dojo now but performs better against us with Razer). At Columbus, the only match we lost was a last-hit game to Jash and Bizkit. But I think it was because Ally tried Meta Knight instead of Snake, because the 1st and 3rd games where Ally went Snake we won by a pretty large margin.
MLG: In a previous interview, you stated that you and Ally are "50–50." Despite that statement, you have beaten Ally in both MLG events thus far. Do you still believe this to be true, or do you think that you have gotten to a point where it will be very difficult for Ally to beat you?
Mew2King: I've been beating him a lot recently. He hasn't put the time and effort into the game that I have. I’ve practiced for both MLGs, while he hasn’t practiced for either.
MLG: You've played Ally in hundreds of games in your Brawl career. How do you mix it up against somebody that knows your playstyle so well?
Mew2King: I don't want to say too much about that but I do think there are a lot of things Ally does not do against tornado that he can. Powershielding, angling your shield up, and spot dodging the end of it are good against tornado. Snake can also duck under tornado.
MLG: It will be interesting to see how Ally adjusts if you two square off again in Raleigh.
Mew2King: I don't think he cares enough.
MLG: Interesting; hopefully he can pick up the pace again. Thank you so much for your time and we look forward to seeing you again at MLG Raleigh.
