Alright Board 8, it’s Contest time again, and I know you all are excited. I am too, so excited in fact, I organized a Crew of me and 6 (yep, 6; we’re even bigger now!) other users, whom you know and love, to analyze every match in this Contest because we love it so much. You might remember this from the Spring 2004 Contest, Summer 2004 Contest, and Spring 2005 Contest, and now we are back to analyze this beauty of a Contest right here.

Now unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past years, or are a new user, I’ll tell you the basic premise of this. Our job, as the Crew, is to analyze and predict each match that takes place in the Summer 2005 bracket. During these analyses, we tell you what we think is going to occur, and why we think that. So yeah, we’re basically here to tell you why your picks are either right, wrong, or just plain stupid. But you didn’t enter this topic for me to explain stuff; you want the write-ups! Well…scroll down a little for those, because first we have introductions! Here, you get to find out a little about the Crew and our expectations for the Contest. Happy reading, and I hope you enjoy our write-ups as much as we did writing them…..actually, I just hope you enjoy our work. =D



Moltar - Three words, readers. This bracket owns! It’s the best way I can say it. It might have taken CJayC a lot longer than usual to get the bracket up, but it was sure worth the way. Every day, some match is being discussed. Upsets could happen all over the place. Brackets are a lot more diverse, arguments are a lot more fierce, and lots of fun is left to be had. This Contest should be one of, if not, the best Contest we’ve ever had. Be sure to expect the unexpected…like Shadow getting snubbed…Shadow didn’t deserve that…Shadow deserves to own in this bracket...Shadow… .Shadow?!!?…SHADOOOOOW!!!</whining>

Ulti - After two contests that were absolutely dull, the most recent of which ended around two months ago, CJayC decided to shock the hell out of us with the Summer 2005 bracket. Not only did he take extra time to make the bracket as good as possibly could (it's quite clear he used the extrapolated stats), but he made it 8 divisions of 8 and got rid of company caps. This essentially gets rid of the standard crap that you see with 9-16 seeds while allowing the entire bracket to be stronger overall. And while some fodder still got in, most of the fodder are board favorites that we wanted to see get creamed, anyway. What this leaves us with is a fun, hard to call bracket that can only be outdone by 2002/2003.

So without further ado, let's get right into the matches themselves.

Soul - Hello Board 8. I'm XxSoulxX. This is my second contest doing this little project. In the Spring Contest, I finished tied for first, which was pretty cool. Of course, that was only for 32 matches. Now, I've been invited to participate in the big contest. And man, what a contest at that. With lots of upset possibilities and a whole slew of new entrants, this contest looks to be the best Summer Contest yet. Only one problem though: This contest lacks Christian. No biggie, I'm sure he was ranked 65th and was therefore snubbed for Agent 47... Anyway, on to the predictions!

Outback - Thumbs up. The bracket's good. Keeps us interested, gives us some matches we've been waiting to see (namely Sonic/Mega Man), and makes a tournament with an unpredictable winner. However, I have one main complaint. Too many obscure characters; not enough classics. Why is Agent 47 in over Fox McCloud? Why is Yuri Hyuga in over Ken Masters? Yes, these 2 snubs I listed are characters I like. There are other snubs I didn't mention. But honestly, are Yuri Hyuga and Agent 47 making this contest any more predictable or interesting? I think not, and next time, Ceej, please look past the top 64 and try to make a more interesting bracket with possibly the top 70, 80, or 100. With all that said, I think this is the best bracket yet, and look forward to the contest.

Inviso - After a four way tie for first place, I’m back, in the flesh and in the fur to analyze the summer contest this time around. Let’s just see the boys try to keep up this time. =^_^=

Inviso’s Thoughts on the Bracket: In my opinion, there are way too many RPG characters in this bracket…and most of them are going out round one. If you’re going to have fodder, at least have it from different genres. I realize this is Gamefaqs, but characters like Yuri and Geno stand no chance of winning any match, because unless you’re from a Square RPG, you aren’t going anywhere except past a few weak fodder characters yourself. The seeding sucks too, with Dante and Kirby as ones while Crono is a two AGAIN…and Dante will go out second round, as will Kirby. A lot of characters that have proven themselves to be strong got snubbed, like Aeris, Shadow, Liquid Snake, and to a lesser extent, Tails, while Manny Calavera and Agent 47 make it in. All in all, I think the only reason board 8 likes the bracket so much is because there are so many RPG characters, and because it’s difficult to predict, which kinda sucks, because now chances are even smaller of winning the prize. Also, Link, Cloud and Sephiroth shouldn’t have been moved, because they can really take out the trash like CATS, and should do so this year.

Tnote - Well, this is the fourth contest I have been around for, and easily the one I am most excited about. For the first time in my tenure, the finals are not 100% predictable for those of us who follow the contest with anything more than a passive approach. Everyone knew CT/FFVII, Link/Cloud and Sephiroth/Ganondorf were going to be our title matches. And with the exception of Link/Cloud, even the champion was fairly evident in the above matches. This year, with the exclusion of Clinkeroth from the field of 64, the champion truly is unknown. Crono, Samus and Mario are all logical choices for the SC2K5 crown,
and an argument could be made for Mega Man potentially making a run to the tournament of champions.

While I admit the bracket is rather Square-heavy, to me that is not a bad thing, because even though Zidane is going to get beat like a red-headed stepchild by Crono, his inclusion means the exclusion of the Tanners, Guybrushs and Hazukis. And anytime we can exclude pirates and cat lovers, that is a good thing. Some uber-fodder remains, but as a whole, this 64 character bracket, coupled with the addition of a tournament of champions, makes this the most exciting and unpredictable bracket in my 2.5 years at GameFAQs.

Vlado - And so, the time has come for the fourth GameFAQs Character Battle. After an absolutely boring Villain Contest, CJay obviously decided to work hard towards making this an exciting one and I think he'll be successful. Cloud, Link and Sephiroth being out of the main bracket, it makes it much less predictable and it opens the path for a new champion. Who will it be? Crono? Samus? Someone else? We'll see. A first glance at the bracket shows many interesting matches, with Mario vs. Samus taking the cake. Will Mario win and eliminate Crono's main threat for the title? Or will Samus make it and move on to face The Silent Hero? Who will the Nintendo fans support? This seems to be the main question of the contest, even more important than who would be crowned as the new champion.

As for the aftermath, the short Tournament of Champions, all that I can say is that whoever wins the main bracket will lose to Sephiroth. As for Cloud vs. Link, we know that the winner will win the whole thing. But who will win between them? Advent Children will already be out and I don't think this one is as easy to predict as it may look. One thing's for sure and it's that we're in for another summer of fun, thanks to our beloved contest, the most sacred GameFAQs tradition.

LOL BLACK MAN

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Explicit Content, having fun, not being warned.
Cheer Up Emo Kids.

And that concludes the Introductions. Except the Mario/Joanna analyses posted sometime around bracket lockdown.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
SC2K5: Samus is going all the way!

Shadow didn%u2019t deserve that%u2026Shadow deserves to own in this bracket...Shadow%u2026 .Shadow?!!?%u2026SHADOOOOOW!!!</whining>

Die.
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SC2K5 bracket: Samus over Snake, Crono over Megaman, Samus over Crono; Link over Sephiroth

Good thing I introduced you, no one would have known who to throw things at.

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Explicit Content, having fun, not being warned.
Cheer Up Emo Kids.

And no, I'm not fixing this. Shadow isn't even worth it.
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SC2K5 bracket: Samus over Snake, Crono over Megaman, Samus over Crono; Link over Sephiroth

teh taggage
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Cool tracks: Bob Dylan - Hurricane / Aphex Twin - Window licker / Radiohead - Idioteque

That's a whole lot o' analyzers.
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Eating peasants like popcorn
Common, Talib Kweli, Mos Def, De La Soul, Kanye West = Kings of Hip Hop

Hey Slowflake. Shadow won a match in 2003! BURN

Tag.

Good luck.
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PETITION: Ability to preview contests to moderators before posting it. http://boards.gamefaqs.com/gfaqs/genmessage.php?board=7&topic=19643565 (198 Signs!)

*tombstones ExTha*
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SC2K5 bracket: Samus over Snake, Crono over Megaman, Samus over Crono; Link over Sephiroth

*rests in peace*

guess we'll tag this... nothin' like reading your own writing =)

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RIP: Tnote827 - 4/4/2005
Sp2k5 - 77/80 (stupid Master Hand)

Tag

Tag.
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Wheels within wheels, in a spiral array
A pattern so grand and complex.

You took out what I had in parenthesis, you bastard :(

~*ST*~
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Winner of the Spring 2004 "Best. Game. Ever." Contest
"If my fate is to be destroyed... I must simply laugh!" -Magus

tag
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Summer 2005 Contest - 0/0 points
Current Match Prediction: Mario vs. Joanna Dark

Wow, 7 predictors now? This is going to be tough.
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"ertyu is actually a language. For example, 'dum' is ertyunese for 'godly'." - Topaz Kitsune
*Waiting for Guru winner's sig*

Tag
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WWEGSB Hardcore Legend Masa
*Is now in need of a sig

tiggity-tag
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-A Phan
"Set your gearshift for the high gear of your Soul!!"

taggy
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AC/DC

These are always fun...
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"If I had a dollar for every time Spongebob annoyed me, I'd have one dollar. He's just one unceasing continuity of annoyingness." -my friend

Tag'd

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As much as I want to put something original about the Guru Contest here, I can't, because Yoblazer owned me way too hard.

Mushroom Division Round 1 - Match 1 – (1)Mario vs. (8)Joanna Dark

Mario
Game/Series Known From: Super Mario
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: 6th (37.47%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 5th (38.18%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 6th (34.77%)
Seed in 2002: 1
Seed in 2003: 1
Seed in 2004: 2
Lost in 2002 to Link in the Finals
Lost in 2003 to Sephiroth in the Elite 8
Lost in 2004 to Crono in the Sweet 16

Mamma Mia! Look who’s kicking off the Contest again with a 1-seed. It’s Mario!

Joanna Dark
Game/Series Known From: Perfect Dark
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: N/A
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: N/A
Seed in 2004: N/A

Joanna? Now there’s someone I didn’t expect to see in here. Must be PDZ hype.

It’s good to be analyzing a Summer Contest bracket again. So good…

This match should play out a lot like Mario/Morrigan did, except with Joanna being a much weaker Morrigan...meaning the match shouldn’t play out a lot like it at all…meaning that my previous statement doesn’t make sense. Oh well.

Moltar’s Bracket Says: Mario will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: Mario: 78% - Joanna: 22%



Ulti’s Analysis

In six contests, Nintendo has been the 1 seed in the first match six times. Mario continues the trend, and this year Joanna Dark is the fodder. Perfect Dark Zero may have had something to do with this, but Ngamer64 (the biggest Perfect Dark fan on the board) is no slouch in his own right when it comes to rallying some friends. And thankfully, we'll probably see the cel shaded hot Joanna instead of the short-haired idiot from the N64 title.

Not that the match is in question in the least, but Joanna could surprise everyone and land in the 20-25% range. Mario took on JC Denton of Deus Ex fame last year, and Denton managed 16.46%. You have to figure that a console FPS character from one of N64's most critically acclaimed games can do better than 16.46%, especially given recent Xbox exposure.

So what the hell, let's take JC's percentage and add 7% to it.

Ulti’s Prediction: Mario with 76.54%



Soul’s Analysis

What a better way to start off this contest with the mascot of videogames, Mario. Mario finally gets his deserving one seed again. It looks to be a great contest for this somewhat hefty plumber. He actually has a fair shot at winning it all! Well, enough about the future, let's get on with his first round match.

Joanna Dark is from the Perfect Dark games. I'm sure everyone has heard of the PD game for N64 or heard about the PD game for XBox, right? For those of us who are a fan of FPS games, Perfect Dark is one of those truly "wow" games that makes us happy to be fans of the genre. Of course, it wasn't Half Life or another PC FPS, but for a console shooter, it was among the best. The XBox version of Perfect Dark is very anticipated because of it's performance with the N64. Joanna is the main character of the series, in case you didn't know.


So, we kick off the tourny with a relatively close match, right? I mean, PD is a classic game. Joanna should be able to put up a fight, right? Well, let me remind you who exactly she is facing. Mario, the most known video game character of all time. Mario, who stars in classic hits like Super Mario Bros. 3, Super Mario World and Super Mario 64. Mario, who stars in Super Smash Brothers, Super Smash Brother Melee, Super Mario Kart, Mario Kart 64, Mario Golf 64, Mario Tennis, Mario Party 1-18, the list goes on. If there's one way to get your character known is to place him/her in as much spinoffs as possible. It seems like Nintendo mastered that art.

So, can Joanna, with her one classic hit, compare with Mario? Nah, seriously doubt it.

My prediction: Mario wins with 85.56% of the vote. This will hopefully please Heroic Mario.

Outback’s Analysis

He's a friggin ICON!

Another season, another contest. And again, we start with a bang, but with the best bracket in recent contest history, who's complaining? I for one am very happy with the bracket, and await the beatdown that's coming in the first match.

Mario, 82.21, Joanna 17.79



Inviso’s Analysis

Well…once again...Mario is a one seed. And he’s against a hottie. I have seen Joanna Dark from the N64 game…and she was nowhere near as good looking as she is now, and I gotta applaud this pic. But anyway, on to the actual match. Mario is noble nine. He’s pretty much a lock for his division. But unlike previous contests…where he took on Servbot, a weak character from the Megaman series, Captain Olimar, a character from ANOTHER Nintendo game that is nowhere near as popular as the Mario series, and JC Denton, from another game that is relatively overlooked…he’s taking on Joanna. He’s taking on a female character, which is the main character of a game that gets a lot of praise not only on Gamefaqs, but also in the mainstream. It’s often regarded as the best FPS of all time alongside another Rare game…Goldeneye. Combine this with the fact that Mario’s popularity has been on the decline in recent years…with his lack of good games, and Joanna could perform well.

My Bracket: Mario Mario
My Vote: Joanna Dark
My Prediction: Mario Mario with 76.54%



Tnote’s Analysis

Mario has a documented history of first round blow-outs that are just not exactly as big as they should be. Actually, Mario has a documented history of beating a lot of opponents by not quite as much as he should. Some people equate this to some semblance of anti-voting, some people equate this to JC Denton vote stuffers, and everybody else really could care less about why Mario let Captain Olimar crack five-digits.

I personally never got a chance to play Perfect Dark, and I probably will not be touching any subsequent sequel or thirdquel Rare decides to release. That being said, Perfect Dark performed fairly admirably against an extremely under-seeded Symphony of the Night. Joanna should not be as strong in relation to her game as Alucard, but she still may be able to avoid a quadrupling.

Pick: Mario with 78.27%



Vlado’s Analysis

Not much to write here... It's clear Mario will win, even (or especially) if you're a complete n00b on GameFAQs. I'm very surprised Joanna actually made the contest... But there were even bigger surprises there (see Manny Calavera). Since it's her debut, I can only assume about how strong she will be. One could go on and say how she has the so-called TJF on her side and how Mario will also get anti-votes, but I doubt that'll do much... Well, Perfect Dark was one of the big N64 games and Perfect Dark Zero will be huge on the Xbox 360, but... "Will" is the keyword here. Hype alone could hardly give her a significant boost, especially knowing that Xbox is not big on GameFAQs. At least until then, Joanna is just your average fodder, though I believe she'll do a couple percent better than her fellow Rare character Conker.

Predicted percentage: Mario with 72.34%.

Hey look, a poorly-disguised tag!
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The King of all Cosmos' route to summer victory:
Round 1: (4) Tidus... LET ME DREAM :

Inviso, I love you.

~*ST*~
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Winner of the Spring 2004 "Best. Game. Ever." Contest
"If my fate is to be destroyed... I must simply laugh!" -Magus

Im tagging this early. And just for the sake of twisted irony, I'm predicting the winners of this analysis contest:

Ulti: 15
Soul: 14
Vlado: 11
Moltar: 10
Invisio: 9
Outback: 4
Tnote: 4

Maybe I'll make an actual analysis for my prediction one day. Or maybe I'll tell you the truth that it's completely random.

I'm tagging this
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"For the next 15 years, just like the last 15, handheld gaming will be known by one name: Nintendo" - Reggie Fils-Aime

Right now, it's looking like Outback is going to take today's match.

Nice performance by Mario by the way. Unless you want to think Joanna is just a bit stronger than Denton, I think it's safe to say that the Big M has increased a little since 2004.

You took out what I had in parenthesis, you bastard :(

>.>

And just for the sake of twisted irony, I'm predicting the winners of this analysis contest:

Nice predictions. Too bad it doesn't have me in first where I belong. ^_~
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Mario vs. Joanna - Bracket: Mario - Vote: Mario (0/0)

Mushroom Division Round 1 - Match 2 – (4)Ness vs. (5)Carl Johnson

Ness
Game/Series Known From: Earthbound
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 55th (15.44%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 34th (19.14%)
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: 12
Seed in 2004: 6
Lost in 2003 to Bowser in Round 1
Lost in 2004 to Auron in Round 2

Ness is still weak as ever, and manages to worm his way back into the Contest, and again, he has a higher seed.

CJ
Game/Series Known From: Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: N/A
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: N/A
Seed in 2004: N/A

Another newbie steps up to the plate and tries to prove himself to us. This time it’s CJ from San Andreas.

Wow, here’s our second match of the Contest, and again, it’s trying to throw us off guard. In 2002, Morrigan upset Spyro. In 2003, Fox upset Pikachu. In 2004, Ganondorf didn’t upset Alucard since he was the higher seed, but it did throw a lot of people off. Only 63.02% of the brackets got it right. Now the tradition of the “It looks tough to predict but if you take some time and look at the match it’s actually pretty obvious” second matches continues with Ness vs. Carl Johnson.

Ness has a Baseball Bat! Carl has a Gun! Guns > Baseball Bats!

Well, let’s analyze this baby. Ness is from the hugely cult Earthbound. Ness is possibly the most popular cult character at GameFAQs. CJ on the other hand, is from the biggest game with the casuals right now, GTA:SA. Cults vs. Casuals, what a match! Polls at GameFAQs are decided by both, and I believe that the casuals will give CJ the victory.

“But Moltar!” You scream, “Isn’t that the same argument used for people who said Jak would beat Ness?” Well, CJ is in a entirely different league than Jak. Jak was weak. He game is weak. His game wasn’t Game of the Year at GameFAQs. San Andreas was.

Ness wears his hat backwards! CJ wears his hat to show his gang sign! Gangs > coolness!

So yeah, CJ isn’t going to be wiping any floors with his opponent. Ness will keep it somewhat close. He has a decent-sized fanbase, but I think Carl is going to be much stronger than Jak, and the casuals will silence the cults this time.

Ness is white! CJ is black! Bla- No, let’s not even go there.

Moltar’s Bracket Says: CJ will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: Ness: 44% - CJ: 56%



Ulti’s Analysis

This match is deceptive in that it's a lot more interesting than it looks. At a first glance, one would assume that Carl has it in the bag due to the smash success of San Andreas even on GameFAQs, a site that is massively skewed toward hardcore gaming and a somewhat younger taste (ie, GameFAQs loves their good Nintendo games).

The catch is appeal. Ness has been in all of these contests since 2003 in some form, and the EarthBound fanbase will vote all things EB over anything else. Ness isn't strong in the least, but he has his following. And while I believe that CJ will win (and with relative ease in relation to the hype that the match has been getting), I don't think that CJ will be as strong as Vercetti. GameFAQs is very.... white, to say the least, and I doubt that CJ will have the casual appeal of an Italian mobster. I could be wrong, but who knows. Either way, I believe that CJ will be weaker than Vercetti, but beat Ness in a close match. There is a little wiggle room in there, and the fact that people know who CJ is should push him over the top in what could be a surprisingly close match.

Ulti’s Prediction: CJ with 52.34%

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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Mario vs. Joanna - Bracket: Mario - Vote: Mario (0/0)

Soul’s Analysis

Well, what do we have here? Our first match that could go either way? Hmm... interesting.

Ness is from the cult classic Earthbound for the Super Nintendo. He's also in the SSB series. CJ is from GTA: San Andreas, a very popular game among the casuals.

Now, you say this match is going to be close? Among all the evidence I have stating otherwise, I'll just tell you one thing. Popular > Cult. kthx.

But if you still don't believe me after all that huge evidence, let me ask you a question. How many of you actually heard of Earthbound other then on GameFAQs? How many of you seen the commercials for San Andreas? You know, the one with "Welcome to the Jungle" playing in it. Come on, don't lie to me, of course you seen it at least once. Hell, I'm still seeing them regularly on TV, and I only watch 2 hours of TV per day, tops. So let me repeat this: Popularity > Cult.

More proof is that Tommy Vercetti places 11 spots higher then Ness. CJ is expected to be more powerful than Vercetti. After putting two and two together, things are going to look pretty messy for Ness.

My prediction: CJ wins with 62.23% of the vote. Close? I think not. *Goes off to listen to some Guns N' Roses*



Outback’s Analysis

A gun against a baseball bat. Who wins?

Another contest, another debated 2nd match. This time we have GTA: SA posterboy Carl Johnson against Earthbound lead Ness. To the outside bracketmaker, this match looks pretty obvious. CJ is from GTA, one of the most, if not the most, mainstream franchises in all of gaming, against Ness, an obscure character from a love/hate SNES RPG. And honestly, they're not too far off. Sure, GTA is relatively weak in these contests; Tommy Vercetti has never exactly been a power, but Ness only managed 56% against Jak, who while having starred in games on the PS2, has never reached the popularity that the GTA series has. Is 6% that much of a bridge for CJ to gap? I think not, and he'll do more than 6% better than Jak.

CJ, 56.42, Ness 43.58



Inviso’s Analysis

Ness won his first match ever…Earthbound’s first match ever…last summer, against Jak. Let’s give him a big hand…that he doesn’t have to beat at the end of Classic Mode. Well…that victory proved one thing. Ness is a decent character? Hell no. It proved that PS2 platformers get **** for respect on this site. It proved that Jak sucks. That being said…we have Carl Johnson, from Gamefaqs’ game of the year, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. Now, Ness may have a lot of Nintendo votes from SSB and SSB: M…but even with all of that…he’s still little more than a cult character. Tommy Vercetti, from GTA: Vice City, managed to beat Donkey Kong, who is much more popular and well known than Ness, so I can’t see Carl having any trouble at all.

My Bracket: Carl Johnson
My Vote: Carl Johnson
My Prediction: Carl Johnson with 64.88%

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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Mario vs. Joanna - Bracket: Mario - Vote: Mario (0/0)

Tnote’s Analysis

This is the match that I am really anxious to see, and fortunately, I will know within two days whether or not I will have a chance in this contest. I have spent a lot of time analyzing this match-up from both a mathematical and a common sensical direction. The common sense in me says that Ness just cannot compete with something as vast and consuming as Grand Theft Auto. The mathematics, however, have left me with a slightly different outlook.

I feel that 2k3 Vercetti would beat 2k5 CJ around 60/40. I feel this way for numerous reasons which are not terribly relevant in this analysis. Using a non SFFed Ness, Vercetti is expected to beat him with around 62%. This leaves CJ with a couple percentage points on Ness, which I think can be made up from a couple different sources. I think the SSB:M blitz will only help Ness increase his popularity as time goes along. Additionally, I think there is a race factor that could hurt CJ. Tenpenny really should not have lost that bad to Liquid, especially given he is voiced by freakin’ Samuel L. Jackson. Enough people have played against Tenpenny, as evidenced by the GTA:SA domination of the FAQs. And while I know FAQ popularity does not equal contest success, it sure as hell should equate at least 25% on Liquid Snake. All things considered, I see this as a great place to pick an upset, and I am going to do just that.

Pick: Ness with 50.83%



Vlado’s Analysis

The second day of the tournament should give us a slightly more exciting match. However, I don't see it ruining any actually serious brackets. Ness proved to be a weakling in his two appearences in the contest, getting blown out by Bowser in 2003 and doing just a bit better against Auron in 2004, where he managed to avoid getting doubled. However, it's admirable how loyal the Earthbound fans are, not only helping him get in, but also earning him a respectable seed. Anyway, a cult fanbase is far from enough to get you wins against opponents that don't totally suck in the contest. It's obvious that Earthbound is far from something to be noticed on GameFAQs and Ness can mostly thank SSBM, not his original game, for his only win so far, last year against Jak. It is likely to also remain his only win, at least until he faces another fodder of Jak's caliber. Earthbound proved to be unbelievably weak with its loss against Doom in the spring of 2004, despite being the higher seed. And Giygas did not do much more this Spring than to earn the nickname "Menstrual Blood" thanks to his picture and then get blown out by Ganondorf. Luckily for him, Tenpenny managed to do even worse and occupied the last place. Bottom line, Ness is weak and has absolutely no reason to have improved since last year.

Let's look at his opponent. Carl is the main character of GTA: SA, which has occupied the top spot of the Top 10 FAQ pages for quite a while now. However, judging by Tenpenny's aforementioned craptacular performance, we shouldn't be fooled about CJ's power. He'll naturally be much stronger than Tenpenny, but still not strong enough to stand any chance against Mario. I expect him to be just above Tommy Vercetti's 2004 level, which would be more than enough to easily take care of Ness.

Predicted percentage: Carl Johnson with 62.36%

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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Mario vs. Joanna - Bracket: Mario - Vote: Mario (0/0)

This is the match that I am really anxious to see, and fortunately, I will know within two days whether or not I will have a chance in this contest.

Missing a one point match isn't going to lose anyone the contest.
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"Heil Dweebenheimer!"
MasterMage119

Just wondering why you'd equate the NEW GTA character...to the OLD GTA character...2 years ago.
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"Nobody knows the trouble I've seen. Nobody knows but Jesus."-Grif
"Shut the hell up Grif!"-Church

Assuming that was directed to me, I did 2k3 Tommy on 2k5 CJ because 2k3 Tommy was his most powerful year, as it was his game's release year. GTA is not a series I view as one where characters's popularity ages well, as I expect Tommy to be weaker this year than he was last year, just as I viewed him to be weaker last year than he was the year before. Basically, what I was saying is Tommy at the height of his popularity would beat CJ at the height of his popularity at least 60/40, with the difference resulting from a myriad of reasons I am way too lazy to explain. If Ness gets hammered tomorrow, I clearly was wrong about my views, but if CJ does not crack 55%, it would be a very difficult sell to expect CJ to be more popular than Vercetti. Really, anything under 60% leans in the favor of Vercetti>CJ.

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RIP: Tnote827 - 4/4/2005
Sp2k5 - 77/80 (stupid Master Hand)

Inviso, I'm wondering why you (and others) are calling GTA:SA GotY, when it came out last October. Sure, it just came out on XBOX and PC, but I'd wager 75% (perhaps more) of its final sales will be from PS2.
~~~
Trivia XV: Dragostea Din Tei
http://www.audioscrobbler.com/user/cokes311/

It was ranked GotY last year on GameFAQS.
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"ertyu is actually a language. For example, 'dum' is ertyunese for 'godly'." - Topaz Kitsune
*Waiting for Guru winner's sig*

Tag
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I shave the goats until they have 100 sides, paint each of the 100 sides with a number, and drop them off a cliff; they're like die, except much funnier-TheRNG

I'm going to do an impression of me tagging this topic!

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the-elite.net congratulates yoblazer, winner of the Spring '05 Guru Contest!
Contest Archives: http://thengamer.com/gamefaqs/

[This message was deleted at the request of the original poster]

tag
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This is just here so my post looks normal.

I think it's obvious Gordan Freeman would win the contest.

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llll \|/ llll GO CANADA GO
llll ¯|¯ llll Die hard Cubs, Pistons, Patriot and Maple Leaf fan.

Hey! I think I already analyzed the whole thing. You can check, it was a rush!

Well, there goes my perfect bracket
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"For the next 15 years, just like the last 15, handheld gaming will be known by one name: Nintendo" - Reggie Fils-Aime

Not mine... =)

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RIP: Tnote827 - 4/4/2005
Sp2k5 - 77/80 (stupid Master Hand)

[This message was deleted at the request of the original poster]

Mario...................80.9% 80157
Joanna Dark.........19.1% 18925
TOTAL VOTES................99082

96.53% of the brackets called this match correctly.

Well, great vote totals for the first match. It seems that this might be 2003 all over again vote-wise, which is excellent news. In the first match of the Contest, Mario whooped Joanna in a JC Denon-like manner. It is looking likely that Mario might have boosted, unless you think JC and Joanna are that close to each other.

Today, Ness is surprising many again. Last year, he surprised against Jak, this year against CJ. Right now, Ness has 54% of the vote and is gaining. Seems we have the first huge board upset already. Looks like this Contest is looking to be as unpredictible as we wanted.

Also, congrats to Inviso! Both her brackets made it on the leaderboard. Hopefully we might see Tnote as well, after calling this match correctly.

CLOSEST PREDICTIONS

Outback - 1
Moltar - 0
Ulti - 0
Soul - 0
Inviso - 0
Tnote - 0
Vlado - 0

The match ends between Tnote and Outback's predictions, but Outback is a little closer. Nice job on the first point!
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Ness vs. CJ - Bracket: CJ - Vote: Ness (1/1)

tag
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I had everythign set up right but when I fell off the chair I just hung there by my neck... I ended up getting bored - DiabloTerrorGF

Ahahaha, the Analysis Crew got owned by Ness.
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This is just here so my post looks normal.

Um...CJ can still come back.

At any rate, there goes my spot on the leaderboard.
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Summer 2005 Contest - 1/1 point
Current Match Prediction: Ness vs. Carl Johnson

It's highly doubtful though. Ness does very well with the day vote, and it would take a monstrous evening/night vote for CJ to come back.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Ness vs. CJ - Bracket: CJ - Vote: Ness (1/1)

Bump
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"ertyu is actually a language. For example, 'dum' is ertyunese for 'godly'." - Topaz Kitsune
*Waiting for Guru winner's sig*

Mushroom Division Round 1 - Match 3 – (3)Zero vs. (6)Ryu Hayabusa

Zero
Game/Series Known From: Mega Man X
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 14th (33.28%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 10th (28.50%) Adjusted Value: 11th (31.67%)
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: 7
Seed in 2004: 4
Lost in 2003 to Sonic in Round 2
Lost in 2004 to Mega Man in the Sweet 16

Zero is back, with a nice seed and a lust for blood.

Ryu H.
Game/Series Known From: Ninja Gaiden/Dead or Alive Series
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 28th (20.65%)
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: N/A
Seed in 2004: 3
Lost in 2004 to Sora in Round 2

Ryu H. is back and ready to take some more names and kick…not a lot of ass.

In our first vet vs. vet match, Zero goes at it with Ryu H. Yeah, I know it’s a dissapointing one, but hey, we gotta slug through it.

In 2004, Ryu H was set to win his four-pack. He just had to get through Jill….Jill. Ok, maybe it wasn’t a given that he was going to take it. Maybe people believe Ryu was over-estimated and Jill was under-estimated. People were saying the winner of this match was winning the four-pack. So the match took place (twice) and Ryu won by a close margin. Now, Sora destroyed him in the next round, which was pretty surprising, but hey, at least he isn’t over-estimated this time.

Zero is strong. Very strong. Ryu H. has no chance to win here. Oh well, at least Ryu is going to lose looking bad-ass. Have you seen the match picture for this match? It’s one of the best Round 1 pics ever!

Moltar’s Bracket Says: Zero will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: Zero: 69% - Ryu H: 31%



Ulti’s Analysis

Zero scored 46% on Sonic in 2003 and managed to actually win updates against Mega Man in 2004 during an SFF match. Ryu H failed to break 40% on SORA. There is nothing to discuss, and though it's possible that Ryu H is underestimated by the 2004 stats, that only means that he may overperform by a percent or two. Zero has this with ease.

Ulti’s Prediction: Zero with 67.04%



Soul’s Analysis

Robot Vs. Ninja. A gamers dream. Pshh, yeah, ok. One of the overlooked matches in the bracket, and with plenty of reason. Hayabusa stunk it up last year. He almost lost to Jill Valentine, then was blown out of the water by a kid with a key. Hmm... Zero, on the other hand, got 47% on Sonic in 2003, and got 44% against Megaman with SFF. No brainer really.

My prediction: Zero wins with 76.53% of the vote. NEXT!



Outback’s Analysis

Ninja vs. Robot! WHOAMG COOL!

There's really nothing to analyze here. Zero is one of the strongest performers in the contest, and, if given a good draw, could have a shot at defeating a member of the Noble Nine. This year, however, he gets a couple of easy matches with Hayabusa and Lloyd before bowing out to Mario. Maybe next year, Zero.

Zero, 68.90%, Ryu Hayabusa 31.10%
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Ness vs. CJ - Bracket: CJ - Vote: Ness (1/1)

Inviso’s Analysis

Finally, we have a match where BOTH characters have been in a contest before. Zero made a strong showing in last summer’s contest, perhaps managing to reverse-SFF Megaman in order to do as well as he did. Ryu on the other hand, struggled to keep a 14 seed down, and failed against the might *rolls eyes* of Sora. That’s right…Kingdom Hearts Sora. Anyway, Zero is shown to be a second tier character, right below the noble nine, perhaps overtaking Solid Snake, while Ryu is a mid tier character with nothing special about him. I suppose Ryu has a chance to make a strong showing…and he’ll do better than Joanna against Mario…but that’s the best he can hope for.

My Bracket: Zero
My Vote: Ryu Hayabusa
My Prediction: Zero with 70.32%



Tnote’s Analysis

Zero is comfortably ahead of Sora, who easily dispatched Mr. Hayabusa last contest. Zero keeps appearing in the overly pimped Capcom games, and Hayabusa will probably be getting a crappy picture again. Nothing will outdo the futility of Prince Ryu, however Zero will not need any outside forces to double the X-Box ninja. I would like to take this time to rant about what a completely overrated piece of trash Ryu was last contest, costing me two very valuable points. This is probably where my hatred for Ninja Gaiden originated…

Pick: Zero with 68.27%



Vlado’s Analysis

Another day, another boring match. This contest seems like it'll get interesting in the closing stages, as opposed to the early one, much unlike last year's. A single glimpse at the X-Stats tells you that Zero has this in the bag, and it won't be close at all. After missing the fodder-ridden original Character Battle, Zero made a triumphant debut in 2003, owning Scorpion, a quarterfinalist the previous year, and then inevitably losing to Sonic, but coming much closer than anyone would have expected him - namely 47.66%. The year after we saw a similar picture, though he was involved in two SFF matches - against Protoman, which made the old school Megaman series badass look really bad and against Mega Man, where Zero did extremely well.

Zero is one of the most intersting contestants and I think his popularity actually increased between 2003 and 2004, despite the X-Stats suggesting otherwise. It should be kept in mind, however, that, thanks to the ****load of SFF matches, the 2004 stats are the ones one can least rely on. The blatant SFF in the Mega Man vs. Zero match wasn't even considered when making those (though, I admit, it would be hard to determine exactly what the adjustment should be) and that's why I believe Zero was actually stronger in 2004. His top match so far, however, remains the one against Sonic in 2003:

http://www.gamefaqs.com/poll/index.html?poll=1344

Not all that much to say about Ryu Hayabusa... He was expected to do really well last year, when many thought he would beat Sora, even after his less-than-stellar performance against Jill in a match he barely managed to win. While Ryu might have increased a little, as Ninja Gaiden's popularity keeps growing among Xbox owners, it's clear that he won't come anywhere near Zero. When the most memorable thing about your only appearence so far is that Cats took over your match pic, you know you are not exactly going to do great.

Predicted percentage: Zero with 65.70%.

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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Ness vs. CJ - Bracket: CJ - Vote: Ness (1/1)

I most certainly did not get owned by Ness, yo. And no, there is no chance of seeing my bracket on the top 50... unless of course uncompleted entries actually can make the top 50. I refuse to rant about have an empty spot winning the Kefka/Vercetti match, but I am a bit bitter it is there on my entry for prizes.

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RIP: Tnote827 - 4/4/2005
Sp2k5 - 77/80 (stupid Master Hand)

TAGZ0RZ!!1
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QUEM TUNGÔ MINHA COCA?

tag
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Look at my Winter Contest 2K4/2K5 Analysis Fanfic: http://boards.gamefaqs.com/gfaqs/gentopic.php?board=579546
End of message. ~ Garsha

Tag
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"I don't measure a man's success by how high he climbs but how high he bounces when he hits bottom." - Gen. George S. Patton

retag
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Summer 2005 Contest - 1/2 points
Current Match Prediction: Zero vs. Ryu Hayabusa

*tags*
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"For the next 15 years, just like the last 15, handheld gaming will be known by one name: Nintendo" - Reggie Fils-Aime

tag
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Still looking for a good sig...

Ness.....................55.14% 54881
Carl Johnson.........44.86% 44644
TOTAL VOTES...................99525

51.9% of the brackets called this match correctly.

I don't know what's more surprising about this match. Ness winning against CJ quite easily, on a day where CJ's game got tons of press about a ratings change, or the fact that Ness was the bracket favorite over a GTA character. Ness took the early lead and never looked back. People with CJ in their bracket were confident and vocal before the match, but it seems that a lot more people had Ness winning than we thought. With Ness being the bracket favorite, it's a little easier to understand why he won.

Today, Zero is performing a little weaker than expected against Ryu, but that could be responsible to Ryu's recognizable picture helping him out.

CLOSEST PREDICTIONS

Tnote - 1
Outback - 1
Moltar - 0
Ulti - 0
Soul - 0
Inviso - 0
Vlado - 0

Tnote was the only Crew member to have Ness winning, so he automatically gets the point. Congrats.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Zero vs. Ryu H. - Bracket: Zero - Vote: Zero (1/2)

68.27? Funny, I have here Zero with 66.67% in my notes; I must have thought differently while writing it up.

And I cannot stress how shocked I am that the majority of brackets picked Ness over a GTA character, especially given how much bracket love Vercetti and Vice City have seen in this identical contest setting.

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RIP: Tnote827 - 4/4/2005
Sp2k5 - 77/80 (stupid Master Hand)

My prediction: Zero wins with 76.53% of the vote. NEXT!

Once again, you overestimate a character..
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Bracket: Zero - Vote: Zero Points: 1/2 Rank: 1/2

I know I voted ness. I'm already better than 6/7 of the analysis crew!</narcissistic glee>

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...he loves dancing, on the other hand. What is art if not... girls in skin-tight, translucent outfits heaving and grinding onstage? - Lava

It's pretty obvious the percentage is high because almost all the 0 bracket had Ness winning.

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llll \|/ llll GO CANADA GO
llll ¯|¯ llll Die hard Cubs, Pistons, Patriot and Maple Leaf fan.

500 0 brackets losing equates to less than a 2% swing. 0 brackets mean nothing in the scope of altering prediction percentages.

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RIP: Tnote827 - 4/4/2005
Sp2k5 - 77/80 (stupid Master Hand)

Once again, you overestimate a character..

Don't worry, at least one of my outlandish predictions will work for me. >_>
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This is not a sig, just felt like writing something down here.

Mushroom Division Round 1 - Match 4 – (2)Lloyd Irving vs. (7)Albert Wesker

Lloyd
Game/Series Known From: Tales of Symphonia
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: N/A
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: N/A
Seed in 2004: N/A

Lloyd surely got seeded high for his first Contest…

Wesker
Game/Series Known From: Resident Evil
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: N/A
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: N/A
Seed in 2004: N/A

Yeah, Wesker was in the Villain Contest, but that still makes him a Summer Contest newbie.

http://www.gamefaqs.com/poll/index.html?poll=1997 – Kefka/Mithos
http://www.gamefaqs.com/poll/index.html?poll=2009 – Kefka/Wesker

I <3 start out analyses with polls, because it allows me to get straight to the point, and it’s nice visual proof. If Mithos is stronger than Kefka (which we can tell when we compare them to a common opponent), then how in God’s name is Wesker going to be able to win here? It’s nearly common sense that Lloyd is going to be stronger than Mithos, who is already stronger than Wesker. The only thing good about this match is that we might get a reading for Kratos Aurion.

Now, if all was right in the world and I could trust the stats, I would say Lloyd would get 70%+ on Wesker, like Kefka did, but I don’t trust Lloyd enough to think he can do that. It’s weird but, ya know…

Moltar’s Bracket Says: Lloyd will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: Lloyd: 67% - Wesker: 33%



Ulti’s Analysis

Mithos scored 36.02% on Kefka. Wesker scored 29.63% in the very next match. Kefka may have overperformed a little due to the angel pic, but given the large discrepancy that usually lies between villain and hero, Lloyd is likely far stronger than Mithos is; by turn, he should be far stronger than Wesker is. Kefka can't have overperformed by more than a percent or two on Wesker, and even then it gives him no chance to win.

Ulti’s Prediction: Lloyd with 68.45%



Soul’s Analysis

Before I begin this analysis, let me say one thing: FFDragon is laughing at us from wherever he is right now. Wesker, one of his favorite characters, somehow manages to make it into the tournament again! I don't know how he did it, but he somehow managed to get enough nominations for Wesker to bring him into the contest one more time.

Wesker was in the villain contest, as most of you know. He was hyped to be one of the best villains in the contest, so much so as to say that he could defeat Kefka. Well, after a horrible, horrible defeat, Wesker was gone. But, he managed to come back for the 64 character tournament. Lloyd, on the other hand, is new. He was given a 2 seed, that means he must have got a lot of nominations. You can thank Leonhart for that.

The only thing logical here is to look at the villain of ToS, and see how he did during the contest. Maybe that can help us where Lloyd lies. Looking at the X-Stats, Mithos actually landed higher than Wesker. Yes, the villain of ToS scored higher than Wesker. Now, do you honestly believe that the villain of one game is more popular then the main character? If you believe that Mithos is more popular then Lloyd, then go ahead, pick Wesker to win. I, on the other hand, want to win these bragging rights, so I'm going with Lloyd.

My prediction: Lloyd wins with 66.47% of the vote. Congratulations, you move on to face Zero next round. -_-



Outback’s Analysis

Man, the more I think about it, this bracket really isn't that good. There are a lot of bland first round matches and this is one of them. Wesker has absolutely no chance, and Lloyd will push towards a tripling.

Lloyd 71.11, Wesker 28.99

Inviso’s Analysis

Wesker’s back after his embarrassing performance in the Spring Contest and he’s taking on Lloyd Irving from Tales of Symphonia. Wesker barely beat a cult character, Luca Blight, who was obliterated by Magus the summer before. Wesker went on to lose miserably to Kefka, bringing him down to just above Pyramid Head in the X-Stats. Kefka faced and beat someone else before Wesker though. He beat Mithos, the villain of...wait for it…Tales of Symphonia. Now, if the VILLAIN of ToS can outperform Wesker, then the HERO will easily be able to best him. Now, the point I’d like to make is that…just because Lloyd will beat Wesker, does not mean anything. Ness beat Jak after all and he’s still weak as ****. Anyway, the point is, if you’re from an RPG…and it’s not Final Fantasy VII, VIII, X, or Chrono Trigger, then you pretty much don’t stand a chance at winning any matches except against the weakest characters in the tournament.

My Bracket: Lloyd Irving
My Vote: Albert Wesker
My Prediction: Lloyd Irving with 62.55%



Tnote’s Analysis

Wesker whipped my favorite villain ever, but I took solace in correctly predicting he would barely crack 60% on Luca, when numbers said he needed a doubling to make a run at Kefka. Now, I personally knew he had zero chance at beating Kefka, but was lucky enough to get into a couple debates with some RE fanboys about how Wesker could make a play for the division crown (LOLWTFBBQ!). The Angel Kefka picture just helped humiliate the fanboys who backed the wrong horse.

I do not put too much weight into the Spring statistics, because for whatever reason, they suck. However, seeing Lloyd’s villain perform better than Wesker on a common opponent leave Zero (no pun intended) doubt as to who will win this match-up. All that is left to decide is exactly how strong will Lloyd be, and I personally would be very shocked to see him fall short of 60% on Wesker, which would leave Lloyd:Mithos within the range for the usual Hero:Villain difference.

Pick: Lloyd Irving with 62.83%



Vlado’s Analysis

This is one of the more interesting matches, at least to think about. It actually has the potential to completely destroy the theory that the X-Stats are almost always correct. Of course, Wesker would have to win for this to happen. While the chances of that happening are very small, they still exist and I can say I would very glad if Wesker somehow made it, simply because of the sheer shock it would cause on the board.

Lloyd is a newcomer, but his game's villain Mithos was in the Spring Contest and did much more respectably against Kefka than Wesker. HOWEVER, it is important to keep in mind that Kefka received his ultimate picture in the battle against Wesker and I claim that the 2005 Spring Contest was the one where pictures mattered the most in contest history. So Wesker's quite probably a bit stronger than the X-Stats suggest. However, that will not be enough for him to win here.

Lloyd is the protagonist of an RPG that got popular mostly thanks to being on Gamecube, which lacks quality RPG titles as a whole. I'm sure he'll be a little stronger than Mithos, but the difference won't be all that big, as fans of cult-ish RPGs tend to stick to their characters, no matter who they are. Though it must be noted that, especially at the moment, Tales of Symphonia is above the "cult" level. Had this been Jill Valentine or Leon Kennedy facing Lloyd, it would've been hard to pick the winner, but Wesker just can't hope to have the main Resident Evil characters' popularity and that showed in his lackluster performance against Luca Blight, who received more votes than the number of copies his game has sold.

Predicted percentage: Lloyd with 59.02%.

tag
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LET'S GO METS!
Record: 48-46 Next Game: Thurs. @ 12:10 vs. Padres

Vlado has Zero's match locked down. He went the lowest.

~*ST*~
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Winner of the Spring 2004 "Best. Game. Ever." Contest
"If my fate is to be destroyed... I must simply laugh!" -Magus

Damn...you guys absolutely suck.

First, almost all of you got Ness' match wrong.

Then all of you over-estimated Lloyd.

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llll \|/ llll GO CANADA GO
llll ¯|¯ llll Die hard Cubs, Pistons, Patriot and Maple Leaf fan.

70% for LLOYD? I was actually worried about this match, looks like my gut was right (and about Ness too). It's still early and Lloyd could go up to like 57% or so though.
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XBL: Vance Mendoza (Halo 2: 19 in Double Team, 16 in Rumble Pit, 28 in Team Slayer) <- But MLG > MM
Proud member of the Hylian Knights--3/3 in the 2k5 SC

tag
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Drink punch...eat cake...? It sounds...complicated. I don't know if I can muster the energy to do it...

retag
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I had everythign set up right but when I fell off the chair I just hung there by my neck... I ended up getting bored - DiabloTerrorGF

The closeness of this match is quite a surprise, but I for one have never really trusted the extrapolated standings. We just don't have enough data to go on, and and there'd still be a several percent margin of error due to changes from year to year, even if we had 100 contests to go on.

However, you guys have got to get your act together. I remember last year when everyone, especially ulti, was throwing around eerily accurate predictions.

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...he loves dancing, on the other hand. What is art if not... girls in skin-tight, translucent outfits heaving and grinding onstage? - Lava

Stupid Lloyd is WAY underperforming. I want him to go up about 10%. Then I'll like the results. Or Wesker winning. The sheer chaos of that will throw the stats out the window. And probably a couple of heads, too.
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Yoshifan scorecard: Next Match: Lloyd Vs. Wesker: 66.66%
Points: Oracle:110.28/150.00 Contest:3/3

Damn. I should be in this. I knew Lloyd was going to underperform.

Well, the good news is at least Zero will thrash Lloyd in a month <_<

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RIP: Tnote827 - 4/4/2005
Sp2k5 - 77/80 (stupid Master Hand)

Zero.......................63% 57507
Ryu Hayabusa.........37% 33771
TOTAL VOTES.................91278

69.09% of the brackets called this match correctly.

Hayabusa didn't do too bad yesterday. The match ended without decimals too, which is nice to see. Unfortunately, Zero came out of this match looking bad. Not only did he underperform greatly, but this match had low vote totals compared to the previvous ones, and his bracket support is weak as usual. Poor Zero...

Today...I don't even want to talk about it. It's stuff like Lloyd being weak that makes the Crew, and all the other "experts" out there look stupid. It was logically impossibly for Lloyd to flop this bad, or Wesker to do so well, and yet he did. Don't call us bad though, we told you thi Contest was going to be unpredictible. It's what you all wanted, anyway.

CLOSEST PREDICTIONS

Vlado - 1
Tnote - 1
Outback - 1
Moltar - 0
Ulti - 0
Soul - 0
Inviso - 0

Vlado had the lowest Zero pick so the match is his. The new guys are starting off very well.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Lloyd vs. Wesker - Bracket: Lloyd - Vote: Lloyd (2/3)

Zebes Division Round 1 - Match 5 – (1)Samus vs. (8)Yuri

Samus
Game/Series Known From: Metroid
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: 4th (41.07%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 7th (37.94%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 4th (39.50%)
Seed in 2002: 5
Seed in 2003: 2
Seed in 2004: 2
Lost in 2002 to Sephiroth in the Elite 8
Lost in 2003 to Link in the Elite 8
Lost in 2004 to Cloud in the Final 4

See Samus’s record? It’s pure domination. You go girl! Also, no one other than Clinkeroth has been able to stop her.

Yuri
Game/Series Known From: Shadow Hearts: Covenant
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: N/A
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: N/A
Seed in 2004: N/A

Not the kind of Japanese hentai, pervs. It’s Yuri the character from SH:C.

I know Samus vs. Yuri has a ton of joke potential, but eh, I’ll lay off. Yuri is so not a guy’s name either. Anyway, Samus has no troubles here. Our first huge blowout of the Contest, yay! Anyway, I expect Samus to be stronger than Mario, and Yuri to be weaker than Joanna, so you do the math.

Also, Samus got 81% and 82% on Lara and Sam respectively, and there’s no way Yuri will be stronger than them.

Moltar’s Bracket Says: Samus will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: Samus: 87% - Yuri: 13%



Ulti’s Analysis

Had I played SH: Covenant, I'd have a little more to say about this match. As it stands, it's simply Samus blowing out a character whom I don't know yet. From a statistical standpoint, this match is comparable to Samus/Isaac of 2003. I'd actually be surprised if Yuri managed to do worse, so I'll add a percentage onto Isaac's score and Yuri the benefit of the doubt.

Ulti’s Prediction: Samus with 74.34%



Soul’s Analysis

When I saw this match, I screamed in joy. "Finally, Command and Conquer gets a representative in this tournament, and it's ****ing YURI! Kickass!". Yeah, you could say that I was disappointed when it was Yuri from Shadow Hearts.

I'll admit it, I have never played any other the Shadow Hearts games, ever. I'll also admit that I've never played any of the Metroid games ever, so this analysis should be kind of even. Too bad the final result won't be.

Metroid has had a representative in every contest so far. Some have done well, while others have done bad. Then, there's Samus. Out of all the representatives, she has done the best so far. She started in 2002, with some strong wins over Ken Masters and Ryu. She then followed up with one of the best matches of all time, with a win over everyone's favorite Hedgehog, Sonic, by 34 votes. She then got over 47% on Sephiroth. She then went on to defeat Isaac and KOS MOS in the SC2K3 contest, rather easily. She continued by beating Squall by 18000 votes. After a loss to Link, she went on to pummel the SC2K4 crowd with huge wins over Lara Croft, Sam Fisher, Sora and Sonic the Hedgehog. She is a very strong candidate for winning the entire contest.

You think someone from Shadow Hearts can compete with that? Sorry KB, but I'm afraid that this is going to be a landslide victory.

My prediction: Samus wins with 86.02% of the vote. Ouch, can this be the biggest blowout of the contest? Well, we'll see.



Wyvlane’s Analysis

I predict Samus will win by 97% because Samus is a ****ing powerhouse and I've never even heard of the person she's up against nor have I heard of his/her game.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Lloyd vs. Wesker - Bracket: Lloyd - Vote: Lloyd (2/3)

Inviso’s Analysis

Here is the future champion of this contest, Samus Aran. And as is tradition for champions, Samus will get to blowout some character or game that never deserved to be in this contest in the first place. It’s a shame that she doesn’t get to face CATS. Anyway, Yuri’s from Shadow Hearts, a cult RPG which falls under the rule I just stated for Lloyd and Tales of Symphonia. This has potential to be the blowout of the contest, as the only other choices are Snake vs. Calavera, or Sora vs. 47. This 8 seed spot could’ve been so much better filled by a character from any genre other than RPGs or sports. To think, James Sunderland got passed up for Yuri Hyuga. I don’t care if Kyle Bowen and The Real Truth like him, if we’re lucky, they’ll be the only ones voting for him.

My Bracket: Samus Aran
My Vote: Samus Aran
My Prediction: Samus with 87.91%



Tnote’s Analysis

If it were not for the two or three gung-ho Shadow Hearts posters here at Board 8, I would have no clue who Yuri was. As it is, I only have a casual understanding of him as the protagonist of the Shadow Hearts series. I eventually would not mind running through the games, but I consider myself to be a rather avid gamer, and the sheer fact that I have little knowledge of him leads me to assume a sizable portion of the voting public will also be left in the dark to his origins.

This is not to say characters I do not know cannot be strong (I hadn’t touched SotN or Halo until about six months ago), but to make a run from a crap seed you better have some recognizability. Samus begins her march towards becoming the first non-swordsman to win a contest, in addition to being the first ‘she.’ And I think she will be doing it with a complete thrashing.

Pick: Samus with 88.27%



Vlado’s Analysis

I've heard good things about Yuri... However, his game is far from popular. In fact, if it wasn't for Kyle Bowen, I doubt I would've heard of it by now. Quite frankly it'd be a stretch to even put Yuri on Laharl's level, as Disgaea at least has somewhat of a following, which was confirmed once again by the young demon's return to the bracket and with the respectable 6th seed. I imagine Yuri will be around Luca Blight's level, and only if he gets a picture as cool as the one he has in the "Meet the Characters" page.

Samus is one of the favourites in this contest. Should she beat Mario, most would consider her a lock to take the championship and earn the position of Sephiroth fodder in the Tournament of Champions. (Heck, some even claim that she could beat him, a claim I can't help laughing at.) Anyway, this match won't be any kind of a test for her. She'll win it easily and I can only hope she doesn't embarrass Yuri Hyuga much. However, since Nintendo characters seem to be on the rise, that might as well happen... Poor Yuri.

Predicted percentage: Samus with 84.68%.

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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Lloyd vs. Wesker - Bracket: Lloyd - Vote: Lloyd (2/3)

Vlado's doing quite well with this thing.
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Eating peasants like popcorn
Common, Talib Kweli, Mos Def, De La Soul, Kanye West = Kings of Hip Hop

As long as characters keep under-performing, and he has the lowest pick, he'll get it.

Though this time, Ulti went quite low.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Lloyd vs. Wesker - Bracket: Lloyd - Vote: Lloyd (2/3)

Lloyd didn't underperform. We just underestimated Wesker because of his loss to Kefka, it's that simple.
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*** Support Tifa Lockheart in the Summer Contest 2005 ***
Thanks to everyone who helped her get in!

No, Lloyd underperformed like mad. Take Wesker through Luca and this still makes Lloyd trash.

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RIP: Tnote827 - 4/4/2005
Sp2k5 - 77/80 (stupid Master Hand)

No, Lloyd is just this strong.
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*** Support Tifa Lockheart in the Summer Contest 2005 ***
Thanks to everyone who helped her get in!

tag
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http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v326/sixsixsix/Misc/iloveinfamus.jpg

Lloyd Irving 54.69% 46373
Albert Wesker 45.31% 38421
TOTAL VOTES 84794

53.88% of the brackets called this match correctly.

Did Lloyd do ANYTHING noteworthy in this match? Let's see, he failed not only to break 70% like some people thought. He also failed to break 60%, and he didn't even break 55%! Using Mithos, Kefka and Wesker, even Mithos is supposed to do better on this. Also, Lloyd barely was the bracket favorite in this match, and he's 5 seeds higher! Looks like we definitely underestimated the casuals here...Geez, it's hard to imagine Wesker doing so....good.

Today is absolute ownage. Samus has over 86% of the vote against Yuri, and is rising. Go Samus! Reach the stars!!

CLOSEST PREDICTIONS

Vlado - 2
Tnote - 1
Outback - 1
Moltar - 0
Ulti - 0
Soul - 0
Inviso - 0

Another one for Vlado! The lowest Lloyd pick paid off.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Samus vs. Yuri - Bracket: Samus - Vote: Samus (3/4)

This leads me to believe Wesker is much stronger than we realized.

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I thought there was some mistake, this couldn't be the family-friendly carjacking game I thought I knew.- Maddox

up
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I had everythign set up right but when I fell off the chair I just hung there by my neck... I ended up getting bored - DiabloTerrorGF

Zebes Division Round 1 - Match 6 – (4)Riku vs. (5)Frog

Riku
Game/Series Known From: Kingdom Hearts
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: N/A
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: N/A
Seed in 2004: N/A

Newcomer alert! See, the mass N/A’s tell you that a newbie is approaching!

Frog
Game/Series Known From: Chrono Trigger
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 14th (26.97%) Adjusted Value: 13th (29.96%)
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: N/A
Seed in 2004: 6
Lost in 2004 to Solid Snake in the Sweet 16

The strongest newcomer in 2004 is back and ready to beat some more opponents.

>.> <.< *DUN DUN DUN*

It’s time for an episode of….CONSPIRIACY THEATHER

Yeah so, Riku vs. Frog, 6th match of the Contest. Big whoop. You have to look deeper into this match to find the truth behind the lies. Check the 2004 Unadjusted stats. Sora and Frog have the exact same value. Riku is from the same game Sora is. Coincidence? Or maybe just part of a plan; Alucard’s plan! You think that’s all? Oh, but that’s only half the truth. Look at the seedings. How did Riku manage to get a higher seed then the already strong Frog? Nominations? Pfft, don’t give me that. Too many Rikku typos? Ha! The real reason is because CjayC wanted to throw off the people. Lots of people might have played CT, but the casuals haven’t. More casuals have probably played Kingdom Hearts than Chrono Trigger. The bracket making newbs see Riku, and then see a Frog. The go with Riku for the higher seed and BAM, 1 point down the drain. I’m on to your games, Ceej, you won’t fool me!

And that, concludes today’s episode of….CONSPIRACY THEATER

When life gives you lemons, it’s all a plot by the government to force you in to big business and compete to eliminate your competition.

*DUN DUN DUN*

Well, this is a pretty easy match. Unless Riku is as strong as, or stronger than Sora (and that’s pretty darn strong), he has no chance of taking down the CT powerhouse that is Frog. There’s also a possibility that Frog might get some minor Square SFF on Riku, so that only puts him in a worse position.

Moltar’s Bracket Says: Frog will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: Riku: 40% - Frog: 60%



Ulti’s Analysis

Thanks to CJayC removing the company cap on Square, a ton of Square characters got into this contest that we probably wouldn't have seen otherwise. Riku is one of those characters, and though he's in a 4-5 match, he's really been given the shaft here. Frog made an amazing run in last year's contest, and though the stats overrate him by a lot, there's no way in hell Riku could have beaten Liquid Snake, Master Chief, then get close to Solid Snake.

However, I don't think Riku is going to suffer a massive SFF meltdown. Kingdom Hearts is a series that usually does pretty well in these things, and Riku is your standard gothic-y badass that all the 13 year olds want to be like, of which there has to be at least one in every game with the Square tag on it.

The result? An easy Frog win, but not a massive SFF affair. Though if there were any justice in the world, Riku would whip the snot's ass. Frog's entire character consists of whacking it to Cyrus's tomb every night while sitting on his fat, lazy ass in his little hole in the ground and having your party do all of his work for him. Cyrus was quite correct when he called Glenn a marshmellow, and let's not even begin to discuss the way Frog speaks. That is not ye olde English.

I try not to be too biased in these things generally, but come on, it's Frog. The snot dangling from my goatee has more character development than Frog, and is more attractive to boot.

Prediction: Frog with 57.57%

Soul’s Analysis

Pfft. I hate matches like this. I never seen Riku in Kingdom Hearts, unless he was Ansem or Goofy. That, of course, is because I only played the game for an hour or so. Other then knowing he was in Kingdom Hearts, I know nothing.

If it wasn't for last years contest, Frog would be another one of those characters. I've seen Frog an entire one time in my playthrough of Chrono Trigger, before the save files got corrupted and I lost everything. So yeah, he's a frog who speaks like Shakespeare. He was also the strongest person in my group.

So, it's a classic Chrono Trigger Vs. Kingdom Hearts match. Great... Anyways, as said before, I know nothing of the two, so I'm going to go to the lovely X-Stats. Frog ranked really high, mostly because of Snake's bombing against him. Even if Snake didn't bomb, Frog would be ranked pretty high. High enough to beat Sora, at least. When you could beat the main character of a game, you can definitely beat the rival of that game.

My prediction: Frog wins with 63.00% of the vote. Total guess; I'm hoping it pulls off.



Outback’s Analysis

Another lackluster 4/5 match. Frog, a strong competitor last year, against Riku from Kingdom Hearts. KHs lead wouldn't even beat Frog, so I don't see why Riku would either.

FROG with 59.98



Inviso’s Analysis

Riku is the badass and in other words, good, character from Kingdom Hearts. Frog is the swordsman from Chrono Trigger. Remember what I said earlier? About Chrono Trigger? Well, it has come to pass. Last year, Frog had two very close encounters with gunmen before falling to Solid Snake, a character that, although he was probably brought down by his picture looking like **** (literally) still did poorly against the amphibian. This year, it’s Square SFF as 3D takes on 2D. Frog will most likely win, as Kingdom Hearts doesn’t get that much respect on Gamefaqs and Frog is from Chrono Trigger, so I guess we’ll just see how it works out. It definitely won’t be a nail biter like Frog’s matches last year. No one is going to touch the 7 vote record for a looooong time.

My Bracket: Frog
My Vote: Riku
My Prediction: Frog with 58.02%

Tnote’s Analysis

One of my favorite characters ever made an amazing splash into the SC2k4, winning his first two matches by less than 200 combined votes, and then followed it up with keeping a Noble-Nine member under 53%. Sadly, Frog did not get a very favorable draw, as he drew a crappy 5-seed, and arguably the strongest character outside of the Clinkeroth.

I liked Kingdom Hearts more than most, but the ridiculous GBA release of CoM will definitely affect Riku’s strength. CoM is a wonderful game, but there are probably many people who did not get the chance to play it because not every PS2 owner has a GBA. Riku was pretty good in KH, but CoM really expands on his character, and I think KH2 will vault him into one of my favorite video game characters. Sadly, he also got a crap draw, as his primary fanbase more than likely overlaps with the Shakespearean Amphibian, and if Aeris/Sora was any indication, this could get really ugly. I think we will not see a doubling, but the end result, much like with Sora, will vastly underestimate the damage Riku could do in this setting against a non-RPG opponent.

Pick: Frog with 62.83%



Vlado’s Analysis

Finally, another interesting one. With Frog's incredible performance last year, it seems rather easy, but there are complications. I think that Solid Snake's horrible picture played an important role in the match that determined Frog's position in the X-Stats, so Frog is probably a bit weaker than the stats suggest. And I think he may have grown a little weaker than last year, though Chrono Trigger characters seem to always perform at a solid level.

Another important question here is whether Riku could assume the role of a Kingdom Hearts Auron and surpass the main character's popularity. My answer to this is "No". I'm certain that Riku will be weaker than Sora and they'll have more of a Crono-Magus relationship than Tidus-Auron, stats-wise. I expect Riku to be around Ryu Hayabusa's level in the stats. Which suggests a rather easy victory for Frog. Anyway, the Kingdom Hearts II hype also shouldn't be ignored. It could make both Sora and Riku a bit stronger, but I don't think it will be a very big factor.

While I expect Frog to be weaker and Kingdom Hearts to be stronger than last year, I think that it will not be enough to close the gap and Frog will take this one without much trouble. I doubt the SFF that will inevitably occur will be big enough to make this into a blowout, though.

Predicted percentage: Frog with 63.73%.

*tags with blood*
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"For the next 15 years, just like the last 15, handheld gaming will be known by one name: Nintendo" - Reggie Fils-Aime

Darnit, yet another day where I completely forgot to make sure my oracle prediction matched this one. DOH!

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RIP: Tnote827 - 4/4/2005
SC2k5 - 5/5 (empty slots in brackets suck)

I have the lowest Frog guess! <3

~*ST*~
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Winner of the Spring 2004 "Best. Game. Ever." Contest
"If my fate is to be destroyed... I must simply laugh!" -Magus

Samus Aran........87.32% 74493
Yuri Hyuga........12.68% 10813
TOTAL VOTES..............85306

96.76% of the brackets called this match correctly.

Samus shows absolute destruction and ownage here. Samus took a huge lead from the start and never looked back. The vote totals might be a bit low from this Contest so far, but when you have to work with a low-grade RPG character like Yuri, you have to take some sacrifices. At least Samus's prediction percentage was high. Though, too many 0 brackets fell on this match.

Today, Riku is putting up quite the surprise. The Crew predicted this to be around a 60-40 affair, but Riku is doing much better. He has over 47% of the vote!

CLOSEST PREDICTIONS

Vlado - 2
Moltar - 1
Tnote - 1
Outback - 1
Ulti - 0
Soul - 0
Inviso - 0

Go Moltar, it's my birthday! I called Samus's match the closest.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Riku vs. Frog - Bracket: Frog - Vote: Frog (4/5)

Zebes Division Round 1 - Match 7 – (3)Ganondorf vs. (6)Yuna

Ganondorf
Game/Series Known From: Legend of Zelda
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 11th (34.72%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 54th (12.10%) Adjusted Value: 10th (32.38%)
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: 12
Seed in 2004: 8
Lost in 2003 to Magus in Round 2
Lost in 2004 to Link in Round 2

Alright! Ganon is back and finally gets a seed he deserves.

Yuna
Game/Series Known From: Final Fantasy X
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 34th (23.66%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: N/A
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: 9
Seed in 2004: N/A
Lost in 2003 to Knuckles in Round 1

Yuna might have been gone last year, but now she’s back. Too bad she didn’t bring Aeris with her.

Funny, in 2003, Ganondorf faced Tidus in Round 1, and now this year, he gets Yuna. Ok, not really funny, but interesting nonetheless. Anyway, Yuna couldn’t beat Knuckles back in 2003. She might be a little stronger now, possibly because of X-2 (which would also explain how Rikku made it), but Ganondorf is still much stronger. Yuna would have to be stronger than Tidus in order to win, and I don’t see that happening. Oh well, it was at least nice to see you back…kinda.

Moltar’s Bracket Says: Ganondorf will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: Ganon: 65% - Yuna: 35%



Ulti’s Analysis

Yuna is back in the contest thanks to the lack of a company cap, but gets completely hosed by going against Ganondorf in the first round. Not that anyone with taste should give a damn, given that Yuna's character was completely destroyed in FFX-2 with her contradicting everything she believed in in FFX with that horrid pre-Vegangun speech. Yuna was such an amazing character in FFX..... although she had.... the worst voice actor.... in the entire..... game! (smile, smile)

But in all seriousness, what happened to Yuna has been a true shame. She goes from being one of the best characters in FFX to being reduced to a teen pop slut in FFX-2, and is stuck going up against Ganondorf for her trouble. Yuna is only projected to score 34.07% on him by 2003 stats, and Ganon has likely gone up 2-3% since then. FFX-2 may help Yuna, but I doubt it will do much if at all.

Prediction: Ganondorf with 67.29%



Soul’s Analysis

The real King finally gets his first match, and it's against none other then FFX/FFX-2 girl Yuna. Before I get on with this match, let me just say that I'm not amused with all these Square characters making it in the contest. Not because I dislike them or anything, it's because I've never played a Square RPG, and have no idea what any of those characters actually do.

With that said, Yuna has had contest exposure before. In 2003, she lost respectfully against Knuckles. So basically, she is a midcarder.

Ganondorf, however, is almost elite. He ranks a little bit lower then Magus in the X-Stats, but some say he should be lower. Others, like myself, believe that he is underrated in the X-Stats. Proof of this is his 41% he got against Sephiroth in the Spring Contest this year.

So we got a midcarder against an almost elitist. No question, really.

My prediction: Ganondorf wins with 69.78% of the vote.Pathetic little fool! Do you realize who you're dealing with? I am Ganondorf and soon I will rule the world!



Outback’s Analysis

I'm sure there were many, many better 3/6 matches Ceej could've made. This is a letdown. Yuna lost to Knuckles. Ganondorf got 40 on Sephiroth. Game, set, match. I'd much rather see Ganondorf as a 2 seed in, say, Sonic, Mega, or Snake's division and see one of the weaker 2s or 3s face Yuna. Maybe Ocelot, Yoshi, Kratos (GoW), or Luigi. Whatever, this sets up a solid 2nd round match in Ganon/Auron.

Ganondorf with 63.34

Inviso’s Analysis

Rather than analyze this match, I’ve made a video of exactly what is going to happen. Let’s watch it shall we? Note, partystar, if you’re reading this, them you’re either going to be disgusted, or really turned on. Meh, screw it, I don’t want to end up writing anything that Moltar would get modded for, so, long story short, Ganondorf rips of Yuna’s clothes with a powerful attack and then has his way with her, despite her pleas for him to stop. In other words, Ganondorf has this match won. I mean, he beat Tidus, the main character of the game that Yuna is famous for. Yuna struggled with Knuckles, while Ganondorf is the second most popular villain on Gamefaqs. The poor little summoner never stood a chance.

My Bracket: Ganondorf Dragmire
My Vote: Yuna
My Prediction: Ganondorf Dragmire with 56.46%

Tnote’s Analysis

Final Fantasy X-2 (subtitled: Ooh how we wish this got an ‘M’ rating), was actually a pretty decent game. I did not like it as much as FFX, but aside from the absence of the sphere grid, I think the return to the active time bar and other assorted changes were all improvements. However, what lacked was a decent plot, and what was there, but really shouldn’t have been, was the latent homosexual references and the incestual lusting by Brother. Yuna goes from completely innocent, naïve summoner to super-uber mega slut, complete with hooker boots and boobie tassels (ok, I made up the tassels, but I bet they were there). But she was hot, and ‘1000 Words’ is probably my favorite video game song ever.

Ganondorf is… a pig. Really, I am unaware of a more uninspiring villain. Last year proved that nobody in this contest leeches off their hero’s fanbase more than this oinker. Sadly, he made the finals in the Spring, and even sadder, is he is going to eliminate two FFX characters in two rounds. I yearn for a Samus doubling, but we will see how things play out before I get ahead of myself. Ganondorf is rather close to Solid Snake in strength, who has no trouble annually dispatching of Knuckles, who defeated Yuna in her only excursion into the contest foray. A doubling seems eminent, no matter how much I may yearn for otherwise.

Pick: Ganondorf with 66.67%



Vlado’s Analysis

Yuna skipped a year, but is now back in the contest. Unfortunately, she will have to make an early exit, as she stands absolutely no chance against Ganondorf, who has not only been one of the most constant performers in the last three years, but also made the final match of the Villain Battle, inevitably losing to Sephiroth, but managing to break 40%. The Final Fantasy X girl's only match so far was against Knuckles, which she lost badly. I don't think she has improved much from there... Which surely means an even more painful loss for her here. I don't think the FFX fans care about her nearly as much as they do for Auron and Tidus. And FFX-2 has surely more hurt than helped her.

More will be said about Ganon as he advances. He has this first battle in the bag. However, in the next round he'll face Auron, a much more popular FFX character who will be the real test for him. But, as we all know, he can only go as far. There's no way Ganondorf overcomes Samus, which means that the division he was put in pretty much restrains him from making something significant in this contest. Probably a payback for the unbelievably easy path he had in the spring.

Predicted percentage: Ganondorf with 65.52%.

tag

retag
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Summer 2005 Contest - 5/6 points
Current Match Prediction: Ganondorf vs. Yuna

Riku.................48.33% 45455
Frog.................51.67% 48604
TOTAL VOTES..............94059

53.88% of the brackets called this match correctly.

Riku put up quite the fight yesterday. Few expected Riku to do so well against Frog. What surprises me the most is that even after that close match, Frog still came out the favorite in this match. Looks like some people do remember his 2004 matches.

Today, Ganondorf is having no troubles beating Yuna. He's a bit low now, but he's also looking to capture the day vote, so let's see how it goes.

CLOSEST PREDICTIONS

Vlado - 2
Ulti - 1
Moltar - 1
Tnote - 1
Outback - 1
Soul - 0
Inviso - 0

The Crew had high hopes for Frog, but Ulti had the lowest Frog pick, so the point is his.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Ganondorf vs. Yuna - Bracket: Ganon - Vote: Ganon (5/6)

Zebes Division Round 1 - Match 8 – (2)Auron vs. (7)Big Boss

Auron
Game/Series Known From: Final Fantasy X
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 20th (28.73%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 12h (27.38%)
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: 8
Seed in 2004: 3
Lost in 2003 to Cloud in Round 2
Lost in 2004 to Sephiroth in the Sweet 16

Auron moves up a seed from last year. Also he won’t face SFF now.

Big Boss
Game/Series Known From: Metal Gear Solid
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: N/A
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: N/A
Seed in 2004: N/A

Look what you did MGS3! You brought Big Boss into the Contest

*This analysis contains spoilers for MGS3. If you haven’t played it and don’t want it ruined…eh, your fault.*

Ok, if you have played MGS3 or at least know a little something about it, you would know that the main character of the game is now Solid Snake, and is Naked Snake. We then find out throughout the game that Naked Snake is really…Big Boss. Now this is where we are going to have to be careful. If people look at Big Boss as a Solid Snake clone, Auron, along with the rest of this division, might be in trouble. This could be bad especially if Big Boss gets at MGS3 Snake-look-a-like picture. However, I doubt Ceej would do that, so I’m expecting an older picture of Big Boss. If that’s the case, and Big Boss and Solid are looked at as two completely different characters, then Auron will win this easy. I’m betting on the latter. It’s hard to guess how the match is going to end up though, so let’s see what the random number machine (AKA my brain) throws out this time!

Moltar’s Bracket Says: Auron will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: Auron: 67% - Big Boss: 33%



Ulti’s Analysis

This match is very difficult to look at, given that we know nothing of how strong MGS3 or its characters can or will be. Big Boss being the only character from the game to make it into the contest --- As a 7 seed, no less! --- gives us somewhat of a clue. While Big Boss has an extremely outside chance of overperforming due to having a standard melted pic from MGS3, but that's a very outside chance. I see Big Boss being around Scorpion's level, perhaps a little higher. Not much more.

Prediction: Auron with 62.89%



Soul’s Analysis

Eh? Another "supposedly" close match? Ha! I laugh at you all for thinking this. This match is really easy once you think about it. Auron is on par with Ganondorf, that is he's nearly elite. Auron has a chance at defeating Solid Snake even.

Big Boss is from the MGS series. I never played this series, so I don't know much about him. I've heard he also goes by Naked Snake. The only argument I've heard for him beating Auron is that he might get a picture similar to Solid Snake. That's it. Well, do you really think voters are that stupid? If the picture looks similar, they won't automatically flock to him and vote him over Auron. Yes, he might be a little bit stronger, but enough to get close to Auron? Wait, are you the same people who thought Shadow the Hedgehog would take down Mario, because he looks like Sonic? Please, anyway you look at it, Auron is a lot stronger than Big Boss. He even has hype going for him, since he will play a significant roll in Kingdom Hearts 2, or so I heard.

This sets up a very interesting match with Auron and Ganondorf next round. Ouch, that's going to be a tough one. Kingdom Hearts 2 hype Vs. Twilight Princess hype.

My prediction: Auron wins with about 65.37%. Big Boss? More like Big BOWNED! Err, wait a second here...
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Ganondorf vs. Yuna - Bracket: Ganon - Vote: Ganon (5/6)

Outback’s Analysis

Now this match could be interesting. Granted, it's probably not going to be close, and Auron will run away with it early. However, it'll give us a look into the strength of MGS3, where Big Boss likely gets most of his strength. If BB does well against Auron, everybody up to Samus better beware of Snake. If not, look for an early Snake exit. I, for one, think Auron will absolutely destroy Big Boss.

Auron with 70.32



Inviso’s Analysis

Big Boss is one of those surprise entries in the contest. Most of the people nomming Metal Gear characters nominated Solid and Liquid Snake, Ocelot, Raiden, and THE Boss, thus leading to some wondering whether Ceej understood that THE boss and BIG Boss were different characters. For some reason, this match has come into question, with people saying Auron could lose if Big Boss received his *SPOILERS FOR MGS3* “Naked Snake” picture. They say this pic looks like Solid Snake, and hence people might be more inclined to vote for him. Well, although it wouldn’t be the first time a picture of Snake skewed results, I highly doubt Auron will lose. Auron is the strongest FFX character in these contests, which is kinda easy given that he’s had Yuna, Sin, and Tidus to compete with thus far, but still, he’s a high tier character. He’ll win for sure.

My Bracket: Auron
My Vote: Auron
My Prediction: Auron with 69.11%



Tnote’s Analysis

Well, I am not terribly familiar the world of Metal Gear Solid, so I am not sure who Big Boss is. I do know that Auron would defeat everyone from the series with the exception of Solid, so that is really all I need to know. Auron is part of one of the more underrated spoilers in gaming history, and one of the major reasons why I liked his character so much. Auron has made it commonplace to defeat his opponents 65/35, and unless he wins the entire tournament, we will finally get to see Auron lose to an opponent who will not SFF him.

Pick: Auron with 65.00%
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Ganondorf vs. Yuna - Bracket: Ganon - Vote: Ganon (5/6)

Vlado’s Analysis

Auron got a 2nd seed this year and I think it's well deserved. He has been kicking a lot of ass in the last 2 years and proved that he's the most popular FFX chracter in the contest, surpassing even the main Tidus. Well, when you're as cool as Auron, that can be expected. While his real test will be the second round battle with Ganondorf, this first match against Big Boss is not one to be overlooked.

Big Boss is a Metal Gear Solid character, which is a guarantee for a solid (no pun intended) performance by itself. Apparently, he's also the main character in the third installment of the series, which is another factor that would make him stronger. Metal Gear Solid fans seem to be very supportive of their characters, which was proven once again by Revolver Ocelot's astonishing performance in the spring. While Liquid Snake's loss to Sephiroth there was embarassing and hard to explain, Ocelot handled himself very well and it's no wonder he's back for another challenge. I expect Big Boss to do well here. Had he faced a weaker second seed such as Luigi, he could have even made an upset. However, with an opponent like Auron, I don't think that's likely.

I believe that Auron is actually stronger than the stats suggest, maybe by 2-3% or even more. In both 2003 and 2004 he was eliminated by the FFVII titans and I don't think the information we got is enough to judge him. This year will provide us with better data on him, that's for sure. If my theory is correct, he may make it past not just Big Boss, but also Ganondorf.

Finally, there's another thing that could hardly be ignored... It's Liquid Snake's horrible performance against Sephiroth. I can only explain it with SFF - apparently, Final Fantasy and Metal Gear share fans, which led to Liquid's embarrassing loss. I'll even go further and say that many Square fans are also Metal Gear fans, which would also explain Frog's respectable loss to Solid Snake last year. If this applies here, too, and I think it will, Auron will win by more than he normally would.

Predicted percentage: Auron with 70.66%.

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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Ganondorf vs. Yuna - Bracket: Ganon - Vote: Ganon (5/6)

Ganondorf...........61.2% 65476
Yuna.....................38.8% 41503
TOTAL VOTES................106979

86.55% of the brackets called this match correctly.

Wow, looks like people noticed the Spring Contest, because Ganon's bracket support was amazing. The match was alot closer though, with Ganon who had a lead of 70%+ at the beginning, and fell under 60% a little later in the match. Also, this match was the first match in the Contest to brak 100K votes! It did so quite easily too. That's my Ganny!

Today, Auron is showing us that Big Boss is not much in Contest strength. Right now, he has 70% of the vote on him.

CLOSEST PREDICTIONS

Outback - 2
Vlado - 2
Ulti - 1
Moltar - 1
Tnote - 1
Soul - 0
Inviso - 0

Outback gets his second point today.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Auron vs. Big Boss - Bracket: Auron - Vote: Boss (6/7)

Gear Division Round 1 - Match 9 – (1)Solid Snake vs. (8)Manny Calavera

Snake
Game/Series Known From: Metal Gear Solid
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: 9th (35.23%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 8th (35.90%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 11th (27.74%) Adjusted Value: 12th (30.82%)
Seed in 2002: 2
Seed in 2003: 1
Seed in 2004: 2
Lost in 2002 to Crono in the Elite 8
Lost in 2003 to Mega Man in the Elite 8
Lost in 2004 to Mega Man in the Elite 8

Hmm, I don’t believe his 2004 value much, but hey, Snake is back again with a 1 seed.

Manny
Game/Series Known From: Grim Fandango
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: N/A
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: N/A
Seed in 2004: N/A

See people, you can get in your favorite obscure character too with just a little help from Board 8

Ceej said that sometimes seeds get based on organized efforts. Well, Shake organized Board 8 to nominate Manny, and Board 8 did. Ceej must have noticed the surprising Manny support and put him in out of the kindness of his own heart. Does this mean Manny stands a chance of winning this match? Hell no, but the sight of Manny making it in this Contest was enough for some people. Congrats Manny, you made the people happy.

Moltar’s Bracket Says: Snake will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: Snake: 87% - Manny: 13%


Ulti’s Analysis

Getting Manny into one of these contests is arguably one of Board 8's best accomplishments, but unfortunately, he's one of the "Happy to be here" entrants. I doubt he'll be as weak as Tanner, but I call it a moral victory for Manny if he manages to break 10%. Hardly anyone know who he is on GF.

Prediction: Snake with 88.97%



Soul’s Analysis

Remind me again why I don't play Grim Fandango? I have got to get that game sometime soon. Manny Calavera looks kickass! On with the analysis.

Well, this match looks to be a blowout. Manny will easily defeat Snake. I mean come on, he's MANNY CALAVERA! >_>

Fine, whatever. Expect Snake to win with a huge blowout. Not enough people have played Grim Fandango, and even less know about Manny Calavera. Snake is part of the noble nine. Basically, it's elite Vs. fodder, or Main Eventer Vs. Jobber. Sorry for the wrestling reference. Hopefully, you won't see many more of those later on. Well, knowing myself, I promise nothing!

Since this analysis is rather short, got to mention a few things: AERIS IS SNUBBED AGAIN! HAHAHA! etc. Oh, and sucks that Shadow didn't make it in this year. He could have caused some havoc if given the right seed, but now we'll never know, until next year.

My prediction: Snake wins with 87.63% of the vote. Manny higher then Tanner? He better be!



Outback’s Analysis

He's the friggin' Grim Reaper! Okay, okay. Snake is gonna win this easily, obviously, and could even hit 90% again for the second year in a row. But Manny, if it's any consolation, in The Chat's "Who would win in a fight contest," you made it to the Elite 8. Good show, Manny!

Snake with 91.20
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Auron vs. Big Boss - Bracket: Auron - Vote: Boss (6/7)

Inviso’s Analysis

First of all, I would like to go on record as to say that one, I have never played, seen, or heard of Grim Fandango, and two, before Shake started rallying for him, I doubt that many people on the board heard of him either. But Shake, unlike me, is a prominent figure on the board, and of course, his character gets in while mine, needless to say, doesn’t (James! JAMES! ;_;) Snake, for the second year in a row, has a very good chance of nailing the blowout of the first round. Manny is just way too cult, and he isn’t even from an RPG, so I think Snake may have the edge over Samus in this one. Snake may not be quite noble nine anymore, but that won’t stop him from beating the **** out of Mister Skeleton. The Nightmare Before Christmas this is not.

My Bracket: Solid Snake
My Vote: Solid Snake
My Prediction: Solid Snake with 88.43%



Tnote’s Analysis

Here I am fellas… arguably the single worst MGS player in the continental US. I am so bad that I had to watch my roommate beat the game, because I could not do it myself. I have recently started MGS3, and already know I am going to have to watch him beat it as well if I want to enjoy the storyline. Fortunately Solid performs a wee bit better in these here contests than I do controlling him. I hate wasting time analyzing blowouts. Until Shake bombarded Board 8 with Grim Fandango propaganda, I had never even heard of this guy. As it is, I still know nothing about him, but have gotten to see pictures of him… no, not those kind of pictures you sicko. Snake will give Samus and Sora a run for biggest blowout of the tourney, and it is not like a Snake thrashing is unprecedented…

Pick: Solid Snake with 90.83%



Vlado’s Analysis

The only true question here is: Will Manny get owned even worse than Tanner? My guess is no, as he has at least a cool looking picture. Anyway, has anyone thought why it was exactly the Solid Snake vs. Tanner match that brought the biggest humiliation in the contest history? Sure, Tanner sucks, but I think the true reason is that Solid Snake barely gets any anti-votes. You can like the other character better, but few actually hate Snake and would vote against him no matter who he faced. Anyway, Grim Fandango is a cult PC game that few really care about, though I've heard it's good. I doubt Manny can even break 10%, though. He'll certainly get beaten worse than Yuri, who is from a PS2 RPG series, after all, and we know well that Samus gets more anti-votes than Snake.

Predicted percentage: Solid Snake with 91.27%.

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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Auron vs. Big Boss - Bracket: Auron - Vote: Boss (6/7)

what do you elite 7 think about crono being the contest champ? I say yes, because If you take a look at these stats.

http://www.freewebs.com/alphadoor/cronoarmy.swf

http://www.freewebs.com/alphadoor/cronoarmypart2.swf

which aren't so indirecting in showing that, crono will win.

*this message was a paid advertisement paid in part by the crono army, paid in other part by tax payers.*
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official CP summoner and Co Leader of the
~*~*~*~CRONO ARMY~*~*~*~*~*~*

tag
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Most wanted game: Zelda: TP

Auron................71.47% 67639
Big Boss...........28.53% 27000
TOTAL VOTES.............94639

76.97% of the brackets called this match correctly.

Looks like Big Boss wasn't that much anyway. He took nearly a quarter of the brackets though, so that's gotta hurt. Auron easily wins the match, breaking 70% on Big Boss in the process.

Today, it looks like Manny has a fanbase! He held his own during the night, and right now, has 17% on Snake. Very good job my bony friend.

CLOSEST PREDICTIONS

Vlado - 3
Outback - 2
Ulti - 1
Moltar - 1
Tnote - 1
Soul - 0
Inviso - 0

Vlado had the highest Auron pick, so he gets the point.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Snake vs. Manny - Bracket: Snake - Vote: Snake (7/8)

tag
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Economic Left/Right: 7.50
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: 0.26

Gear Division Round 1 - Match 10 – (4)Vivi vs. (5)Zelda

Vivi
Game/Series Known From: Final Fantasy IX
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 18th (25.22%)
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: N/A
Seed in 2004: 7
Lost in 2004 to Sephiroth in Round 2

Everyone’s favorite Black Mage is back. After doing well in his first year, can Vivi make more of an impact now?

Zelda
Game/Series Known From: Legend of Zelda
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 19th (30.29%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: N/A
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: 10
Seed in 2004: N/A
Lost in 2003 to Mega Man in Round 2

Zelda! We missed you last year. It’s great to see you back! By the way, while you were back there, did you see Aeris? No? Alright, just checking.

This year’s Round 1 might be the easiest we’ve had yet, but there are still some tough matches in the Sea of Easy. This is one of those matches.

In 2003, Zelda entered the Contest setting for the first time. People were wondering how strong she was compared to Link and Ganondorf. It didn’t take them long to notice that she was right up there. Her first match was against Lara Croft. Zelda won with ease and had about 60% of the brackets on her side. Her next match was a lost cause though, as she had to face Mega Man in the next round. Surprisingly, she didn’t do too bad against the Blue Bomber. She got 39.25% of the vote against Mega Man. Then 2004 rolled along, and Zelda was considered a snub. However, Equivalent Exchange kicked in and we got Vivi. Vivi’s first opponent was DK, and boy did a bunch of people think he was going down. Only 35% of the brackets had him winning there. Vivi won rather comfortably too, receiving 56.47% of the vote. Vivi’s next opponent was Sephiroth, and we knew it was over there. Sephiroth failed to SFF Vivi (at least badly) and the Black Mage grabbed around 30% of the vote.

So now the two meet here in SC2K5, and you want to know who I think will win. Well, Zelda was stronger in 2003 than Vivi was in 2004. However, Vivi might have gotten some SFF from Seph, and we all know how Sephiroth hates numbers. But, in Zelda favor, Twilight Princess in on the horizon, and she may receive a boost from the hype. I mean, it did get her back in the Contest. The safe bet here is Zelda, but Vivi does have a chance for the upset. Many thought Vivi was going to fall to DK, but the Mage proved them wrong. However, Zelda is a whole ‘nother step up from DK.

Moltar’s Bracket Says: Zelda will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: Zelda: 53% - Vivi: 47%



Outback’s Analysis

I've heard people telling me for about 2 or 3 weeks now (or whenever it was that I put Zelda over Snake in my bracket) that I'm crazy, you're overestimating Zelda, etc. Also, I've heard that I shouldn't use stats for everything. I'll let you know that I don't, but I do think that they're a somewhat reliable STARTING POINT for basing picks, and that's what I've done here. I really don't think there's much room for discussion in this match. Vivi may have impressed you guys last contest, but 57% on DK isn't really that much. DK is weak here, and I would not be surprised to see Zelda put up a good 63 or even a doubling before SFF. After all, 40% on Mega Man in a good year for him is better than 30% on Sephiroth in a bad year for him. Zelda wins, no contest.

Zelda with 57.65%
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Snake vs. Manny - Bracket: Snake - Vote: Snake (7/8)

Ulti’s Analysis


This is one of the most interesting matches of the first round, if for the sole reason that we don't have any reliable data on either character. Zelda hasn't been in a contest since 2003, and since this time both Link and Ganon have had increases. We have no clue where Zelda is even if we try to guess. Vivi had a good win over DK last year, then had an SFF loss to Sephiroth in the second round. Because of this, DK was essentially given his 2003 value and Vivi was extrapolated based off of this. So I've heard, at least.

As for who will win, I believe that Zelda will pull it out. Both Link and Ganon have made 3% increases over the past two years, and the only evidence to really disprove this is Alucard. To that, I ask why Alucard absolutely has to be adjusted if Ganon made an increase between Summer 2004 and Spring 2005? It's not impossible. And if you adjust Zelda up 3%, it really doesn't give Vivi much of a chance. Personally, I'd love to know how a boost could help Ganon and Link almost in perfect proportion, but not Zelda. Vivi definitely has a chance to win, but he needs to have been massively underestimated by the 2004 stats to do so. This is one of those evil you know over the evil you don't choices, I suppose.

Prediction: Zelda with 56.35% (just in case it's a blowout, because I can bet the rest of the crew is predicting a close match =p)



Soul’s Analysis

Here comes one of the toughest matches in the contest by some. Who could blame them? This match will be close. No more then 52-48, one way. The question is, who is going to win?

Vivi is from FFIX, one of those ho-hum Final Fantasy's. Even though fans of the Final Fantasy series dislike this game, most agree that Vivi is an awesome character. This was proven when he defeated DK last year and managed to get 30% on Sephiroth, with or without SFF. That's pretty impressive for a character from a hated game.

Zelda, on the other hand, was snubbed during the 2004 contest, along with Aeris, who was later snubbed again this contest. HA! Continuing on, Zelda finished that year with a respectable showing, defeating Lara Croft and getting 40% on Megaman.

Now, who is more impressive you think? If Megaman were to go toe-to-toe with Sephiroth today, all that he would need is more than 40% to make Zelda > Vivi. Believe me, if Bowser could get 40% on Sephiroth, and Ganondorf could get 41% on Sephiroth, why couldn't Megaman, who has proven many times that he is clearly stronger then both Ganondorf and Bowser?

Also, don't forget about something here. Link gained a lot during the last Summer contest. Ganondorf gained a lot during the Spring contest. Why wouldn't Zelda?

My prediction: Princess Zelda wins with 55.54% of the vote. Twilight Princess hype + already being stronger = goodbye Vivi!



Inviso’s Analysis

This is what can be considered the first “toss up” of the contest…even though it’s not that difficult when you really think about it. Vivi is from Final Fantasy IX, and is easily the most popular character from that game. But when you think about it…Kuja’s from that game too…he’s the main villain…and he got he thong wearing ass beat down by Master Hand. By a HAND! If I recall…Zelda’s much more popular than a hand…but then again, Vivi is much more popular than Kuja. It comes down to the fact that Zelda is in the title of every single one of her games, and she’s the female lead in each one, despite getting captured each time.(although OoT shouldn’t count because Ganondorf used hacks to crystallize her from his Castle far far away) Zelda also has the hype of Twilight Princess working in her favor, as the game is supposedly going to have a much bigger role for her. In short, Princess that uses magic>little black mage that uses magic.

My Bracket: Princess Zelda
My Vote: Princess Zelda
My Prediction: Princess Zelda with 55.03%

Tnote’s Analysis

Now here is a fairly good match on the surface. Vivi dominated Donkey Kong last year, and after a 12-month hiatus, Zelda makes a return appearance after putting up an impressive showing on Mega Man back in 2k3. I had run an intricit analysis of this match-up going through Donkey Kong, but for some reason I deleted my spreadsheet that had all of my pre-contest calculations, so you will have to take my word for it. I believe it came out to something like the Princess had a bit over a 55/45 advantage on Vivi, and when you take into account Vivi has nothing going for him since 2k4, while the Princess has an announced SSBO and the newest LoZ game possibly named after her, I think this match-up will sadly never be close.

Pick: Zelda with 58.27%



Vlado’s Analysis

Along with Tommy vs. Kefka, this is the match of the first round. Vivi kicked Donkey Kong's ass with ease last year, with a margin of over 10,000 votes. Zelda didn't participate last year, but now she's back, with the Twilight Princess hype helping her even more. Heck, she'll get many votes even for the sole reason that she's the titular character of her series. Even without all these factors, by just looking at the stats, we can see that Zelda has the advantage... However, there's one important thing that's mising there. Vivi lost to Sephiroth. There was certainly SFF at play there. I'm absolutely sure that Vivi is stronger than the X-Stats suggest. How much stronger, though? I can only speculate. What Vivi certainly does have is the BMF (Black Mage Factor), which I believe played a major role in his owning of Donkey Kong, as not that many know him as a character, as FFIX is not exactly the most popular Final Fantasy.

Zelda almost doubled Lara Croft in 2003, then got schooled by Mega Man. She did exactly as expected there and placed high in the X-Stats, above the likes of Auron and Alucard. I think she'll only have gotten stronger, as Nintendo's obviously on the rise and with the aforementioned TP hype. Will that be enough to stay above Vivi's actual strength? I believe so, even if with a little. Nintendo has shown its power in the contest, with the Ganon vs. Yuna match being the one to pay the most attention to here. While Vivi is certainly stronger than Yuna and Zelda is certainly weaker than Ganon, I believe the Nintendo character will once again win.

Predicted percentage: Zelda with 51.36%.

tag

Such overhwhelming support for Zelda...

~*ST*~
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Winner of the Spring 2004 "Best. Game. Ever." Contest
"If my fate is to be destroyed... I must simply laugh!" -Magus

It's deserved too. =P
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Snake vs. Manny - Bracket: Snake - Vote: Snake (7/8)

Close the polls now! I want a W!

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RIP: Tnote827 - 4/4/2005
SC2k5 - 9/9 (empty slots in brackets suck)

Solid Snake.................84.09% 77063
Manny Calavera.............15.91% 14576
TOTAL VOTES.....................91639

97.98% of the brackets called this match correctly.

Wow, that's like everybody but zero brackets and a couple of favorites. Nice job Snake. He also got 84% on Manny, which is good too is Manny is around Guybrush in strength.

Today, people thought the Crew was crazy with high Zelda picks, but it seems they are paying off, and Zelda is delivering quite the beat down to the Black Mage.

CLOSEST PREDICTIONS

Vlado - 3
Moltar - 2
Outback - 2
Ulti - 1
Tnote - 1
Soul - 0
Inviso - 0

Surprisingly, I had the lowest Snake pick, even though it was about 3% over. Yay!
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Vivi vs. Zelda- Bracket: Zelda - Vote: Zelda (8/9)

Hmm... shouldn't Moltar be posting the next set of analyses sometime soon?
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"If I had a dollar for every time Spongebob annoyed me, I'd have one dollar. He's just one unceasing continuity of annoyingness." -my friend

Gear Division Round 1 - Match 11 – (3)Kratos vs. (6)Alucard

Kratos
Game/Series Known From: God of War
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: N/A
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: N/A
Seed in 2004: N/A

Kratos surely raked in those noms. He lands a 3-seed in his first Contest.

Alucard
Game/Series Known From: Castlevania
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: 26th (22.70%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 22nd (27.56%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 59th (10.37%) Adjusted Value: 19th (27.74%)
Seed in 2002: 6
Seed in 2003: 6
Seed in 2004: 9
Lost in 2002 to Cloud in the Sweet 16
Lost in 2003 to Sephiroth in the Sweet 16
Lost in 2004 to Ganondorf in Round 1

Another Contest vet is back. Alucard still can’t get a high seed, but at least he can make it in the Contest year after year, unlike a certain flower girl.

Another newbie trap match. Bracket newbies are going to see Kratos from God of War, a game that just came out and is popular with the casuals, vs. Alucard from the more cult Castlevania series. Poor casuals, they’re brackets are going to look so bad this year thanks to traps like these. Oh well, only better placings for us vets. I surely am not crying over that.

Anyway, Kratos would have to be darn strong in order to take down Alucard. Now, he is strong in his game, beating up gods and stuff, but Contest strength =/= game strength…though that would be interesting. I mean, Conker would have destroyed Yoshi.

~*Yoshi vs. Conker*~

Yoshi: Yoshi! *licks Conker*

Conker: What the ****? I don’t do that ****, Yosh. *fires bullets at Yoshi, killing him*



Kefka would have murdered Pac-Man…

~*Kefka vs. Pac-Man*~

Pac-Man: Wakka Wakka Wakka…*eats up dots*

Kefka: I HATE HATE HATE HATE YOU! *kills Pac-Man with the sand from his boots*



And Gordon would SO beat KOS-MOS…

~*Gordon vs. KOS-MOS*~

Gordon: Hold on a minute, I was never in a match with KO-

*KOS-MOS fires thousands of bullets, grenades, and any other thing that goes boom at Gordon*



Oh wait, Gordon Freeman never wins!

Moltar’s Bracket Says: Alucard will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: Kratos: 41% - Alucard: 59%



Ulti’s Analysis

To the board, this match seems relatively obvious, and it pretty much is. Kratos is from a recent action hit that has had rave reviews all over the internet despite relatively low sales; reminds me of Viewtiful Joe's plight last year, actually.

However, while Alucard will likely win with ease due to him being stronger than Dante (and I highly doubt that Kratos will be stronger than Dante), Kratos could surprise with him being so recent. Alucard failing to escape the 55-56% range would not surprise me in the least.

Prediction: Alucard with 56.03%



Inviso’s Analysis

This match is all in accordance to the plan. Alucard has been in ever contest, and although he may not do well in terms of the number of rounds he goes through, he makes up for it in the x-stats. Kratos is a contest newbie this time around, hot off the hype of his new God of War game, heralded to be the best game for the Playstation 2 thus far. Kratos may be strong in his game, and the game itself may be popular, but here on Gamefaqs, games like Castlevania are worshipped like demi-Gods. God of War is no Driv3r (Oooh, they made it cool by having a number within a word) but it won’t be enough to push Kratos over Alucard, even though Kratos would kicked Alucard’s monkey ass in a real fight.

My Bracket: Alucard
My Vote: Kratos (God of War)
My Prediction: Alucard with 65.89%

Soul’s Analysis

This is another match where it's being hyped to be a close one, but really, it isn't.

Kratos, I'm predicting, is going to be the next Viewtiful Joe. A character with no past contest history and no clue on where he would rank. Looking like Viewtiful Joe already... In case you didn't notice, Kratos is from God of War, a relatively new PS2 game. It has sold a lot, I'm sure. Kratos is somewhat known, I guess, although I've never played his game.

Alucard, on the other hand, has been in all the Summer Contests. He has proven that he is a very strong competitor in these things. In 2002, he surprised a lot of people with his win over Tails, and followed up with a huge win over Duke Nukem. He followed up by getting 30% on Cloud Strife. Pretty impressive. In 2003, he went on to defeat both Bomberman and Kirby, before bowing out to Sephiroth. Of course, we all know what happened in 2004, so I won't even go there.

Take the safe bet people, you won't regret it. Alucard is top of the midcarders. It will take quite a performance by Kratos to win this match.

My prediction: Alucard wins with 62.40% of the vote. Alucard gets a little bit of revenge after his loss to Ganondorf in Round 1 last year.



Outback’s Analysis

Another bland first round match. Kratos will make this look closer than many people think, mainly because his new release will bring some fans to the table, and his high side should get him some bracket support.

Alucard with 56.78%



Tnote’s Analysis

God of War is one kick ass game, but sadly I think the majority of the voting pool will not have had the chance to play it. Kratos will not pull a Viewtiful Joe here and tank, but I think it is silly to think he will have enough support to take out a proven vet like Alucard, another of the many characters who cheat us gamers by not making more appearances in current-gen games. I see Kratos as having a ceiling somewhere around 2k3 Tommy Vercetti, which is not quite enough to make a run at Alucard. He should be able to keep the match respectable, and ultimately rank towards the top of the new entrants, but a first round exit is immanent.

Pick: Alucard with 58.27%



Vlado’s Analysis

Okay, here we go! It's Alucard's first match! His win against Kratos is out of any doubt, as it's all a part of the plan. Anyway, Kratos is from a new PS2 game that has been quite successful lately. However, by what I see, people have pretty much played it and moved on. If the nominations took place right now, I doubt he'd get more than a 5th seed. CJ, the hero of an even more popular recent PS2 game, lost to one of the weakest links in contest history, Ness. I think that was the final proof that was needed. Kratos stands no chance here. I believe he will be around Sam Fisher's level in strength.

Alucard is a well-established contest veteran that made the last 16 in 2002 and 2003, only to get screwed by an immensely unfair seeding in 2004, where he lost in the first round to Ganondorf. He's a very strong contestant and I believe that he can make the Sweet 16 this year, too. Personally, I think his first task is a walk in the park. Want another interesting fact? Alucard has actually been getting stronger in the stats each year. Despite losing in Round 1, last year's SFF-adjusted X-Stats suggest that he was over 2% stronger than in 2003. I believe he's much like Crono in this aspect - more and more people hear about his excellent game, play it, love it and vote for him. I hope this pattern continues and he's even stronger this year. That would certainly provide us with even more entertainment than what Alucard is usually capable of.

Predicted percentage: Alucard with 73.18%.

Hmm... shouldn't Moltar be posting the next set of analyses sometime soon?

Scary how you posted that as I was organizing the write-ups.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Vivi vs. Zelda- Bracket: Zelda - Vote: Zelda (8/9)

It's an omen! We must sacrifice ourselves immediately!
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"If I had a dollar for every time Spongebob annoyed me, I'd have one dollar. He's just one unceasing continuity of annoyingness." -my friend

Vivi...............40.44% 42324
Zelda..............59.56% 62347
TOTAL VOTES..............104671

76.81% of the brackets called this match correctly.

Wow, Zelda received some major bracket-backing. I mean, I figured it would be high when 65% picked DK to win, but nearly 77%? That's as much people that picked Auron over the much weaker Big Boss! Anyway, this match was hyped and supposed to be close, but Zelda took the lead and never looked back. Zelda ran away with the vote until 2 PM, then Vivi slowly chopped percentage away for the rest of the day.

Today, Kratos has a little more than 41% on Alucard and is rising. Decent performance from the God of War. Very decent indeed.

CLOSEST PREDICTIONS

Vlado - 3
Tnote - 2
Moltar - 2
Outback - 2
Ulti - 1
Soul - 0
Inviso - 0

People thought the Crew was picking too high for this match, but now you can see they were right. Go Crew! But go Tnote the most, since he had the highest.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Kratos vs. Alucard - Bracket: Alucard - Vote: Alucard (9/10)

My Alucard pick is the lowest, and with the way Kratos is gaining, I wouldn't be surprised if he broke 45%.

~*ST*~
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Winner of the Spring 2004 "Best. Game. Ever." Contest
"If my fate is to be destroyed... I must simply laugh!" -Magus

Gear Division Round 1 - Match 12 – (2)Sora vs. (7)Agent 47

Sora
Game/Series Known From: Kingdom Hearts
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 39th (21.88%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 13th (26.97%)
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: 6
Seed in 2004: 6
Lost in 2003 to Aeris in Round 1
Lost in 2004 to Samus in the Sweet 16

Sora made quite the leap from 2003 to 2004. Think he made another big jump from last year to now?

Agent 47
Game/Series Known From: Hitman
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: N/A
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: N/A
Seed in 2004: N/A

Not as cool as HK-47, but WAAAAAAAAY cooler than your average generic Soldier 47.

Well, looks like Sora got a lucky draw in the Contest. His first opponent is Agent 007…wait, no. Agent 47 I mean, you know, that thing for Hitman!

Wait, I don’t even know what Agent 47 is, but I do know Sora will destroy him/her/it. Go Neo-Tanner go! Let’s see if you can keep yourself over 20%! I have faith!

Moltar’s Bracket Says: Sora will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: Sora: 76% - Agent 47: 24%



Ulti’s Analysis

.....Agent WHO?!

Sora will get a rather high percentage in this match, and it really isn't going to look right. Imagine Sora breaking 80% on someone <_<

Prediction: Sora with 84.94%



Soul’s Analysis

Well folks, expect this match to be really close.

Sora shocked almost everyone, not including me, last year when he won his fourpack. Yes, he was SFFed by Aeris in 2003. Yes, he was overlooked for a long time. Yes, he did defeat a ninja with a key. But now, he's facing his toughest competition yet.

Neo Tanner 47 is from a very awesome game called Hitman. I think. This is his first year in the contest.

So, after looking at all the evidence, it seems to me that Sora has just a slight edge. Just slightly. Oh, and blah blah 47 thing blah blah.

My prediction: Sora wins with 91.37% of the vote. Closest match evar, but the kid with the key moves on, luckily. >_>



Outback’s Analysis

Is there really anything to analyze here? I think not. Sora's just plain not strong enough to get 80% on Agent 47, who is not going to be any "Neo-Tanner" or anything of the sort.

Sora with 78.88
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Kratos vs. Alucard - Bracket: Alucard - Vote: Alucard (9/10)

Inviso’s Analysis

At last we come to the match between Sora and the character dubbed simply, “Neo-Tanner.” As you may recall last contest, Tanner was the character that got almost less than 5% of the vote against Solid Snake, who is the weakest of the noble nine. Is Agent 47 really fit to be dubbed Neo-Tanner? Well, he is from a mainstream game that isn’t all that popular, but unlike Driv3r, Hitman actually has fans, and a fanbase, no matter how small, is better than none at all. Case in point, Manny Calavera. Anyway, Sora has this one in the bag. Kingdom Hearts us a Square RPG and does have SOME fans, despite it being rather weak. Sora will not be able to blow out 47 like Snake blew out Tanner though. It’s basically a combination of Agent 47 not being that weak, and Sora just not being that strong.

My Bracket: Sora
My Vote: Sora
My Prediction: Sora with 73.71%



Tnote’s Analysis

WHO??? You are telling me we do not get to see Aeris, who incidentally DOUBLED Sora, but we get to see freakin’ Agent 47, who is going to get sextupled by the same Sora? I guess it is impossible to ever clear the bracket of all fodder without turning this into Squaretendo, but I can think of about 500 characters who would absolutely pummel Agent 47, including the Nibelheim Innkeeper, Crono’s Mom and probably even Tanner. Fortunately CjayC redeemed himself with a fairly awesome second round match-up, but this division has way too much fodder.

Pick: Sora with 84.27%



Vlado’s Analysis

Alright, we have another chance for a huge blowout here. However, it's more than clear that Sora will get his fair share of anti-votes, as he's no Snake. Agent 47 comes from the Hitman series. His games have appeared on all platforms - the three current-gen consoles, as well as PC. I believe he has much more fans that Manny Calavera or even Yuri Hyuga. All that should result in a rather respectful loss for him. I must admit that I thought he'd be Neo-Tanner when I first saw the bracket, but I don't think so anymore. While he'll lose for sure, I think he won't be humiliated too badly. He looks cool and is facing a kid, which wins him the picture votes. When estimating his strength, I believe he'll be around JC Denton's level, even a little above it.

His opponent is Sora, who shocked many with his big win against Ryu Hayabusa last year. I still claim its cause was mostly due to Ryu being weak, rather than Sora being that strong, though. Even his appearance in the Sweet 16 didn't earn him a spot in the Top 20 in the stats last year. Sora failed to double HK-47, a character who, while immensely cool, had just one game to draw from. That proved two things - Sora is not really strong and Sora gets a lot of anti-votes. He's a rather lame, kiddy-looking Disney character and the latter is not surprising. This year, he'll have the Kingdom Hearts II hype going for him, as well, but I don't think it will help him all that much. I'm not going to take Riku's incredible performance against Frog into account, either, I believe that was mostly due to Riku being the "cooler" Kingdom Hearts contestant and that his strength will actually prove to be quite close to Sora's. The SFF was also in Riku's favour on that day.

Predicted percentage: Sora with 78.61%.

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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Kratos vs. Alucard - Bracket: Alucard - Vote: Alucard (9/10)

Kratos.............44.48% 40446
Alucard...........55.52% 50482
TOTAL VOTES............90928

51.31% of the brackets called this match correctly.

Kratos is a beast! Not only did he shave almost 5% off of Alucard during the day with a massive day vote, but he also took almost half the brackets down with him! Kratos, along with Riku, are two new characters who have looked very impressive so far. I wonder how the other newbies will perform.

Today, Sora has about 71% on 47. Looks like Sora reall isn't strong enough to get a tripling, but I wouldn't put it against him in for his match against Alucard.

CLOSEST PREDICTIONS

Vlado - 3
Ulti - 2
Tnote - 2
Moltar - 2
Outback - 2
Soul - 0
Inviso - 0

Ulti had the lowest Alucard pick, so the point is his. Good job!
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Sora vs. Agent 47 - Bracket: Sora - Vote: Sora (10/11)

Dream Division Round 1 - Match 13 – (1)Kirby vs. (8)Cecil

Kirby
Game/Series Known From: Kirby
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: 17th (25.54%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 25th (26.34%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 30th (20.62%) Adjusted Value: 22nd (26.61%)
Seed in 2002: 14
Seed in 2003: 3
Seed in 2004: 5
Lost in 2002 to Jill in Round 1
Lost in 2003 to Alucard in Round 2
Lost in 2004 to Squall in the Round 2

Kirby can get so close to make it to Round 3, but falls short every time. This time he’s a 1 seed though, so…yay?

Cecil
Game/Series Known From: Final Fantasy IV
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: N/A
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: N/A
Seed in 2004: N/A

Cecil joins the Contest for his first time. Will he join the ranks of Cloud, Squall and Tidus as a strong FF hero?

“Kirby vs. some Final Fantasy hero guy not named Cloud, Squall or Tidus? Easy choice!”

No, BAD BRACKET-MAKER PERSON! What is your name, child?

“I’m Billy! Billy the Average Bracketmaker!”

Ok Billy, now I know you want to go put Kirby as the winner of this match in an instant because he is the 1-seed of the division, and facing a FF Hero not named Cloud, Squall or Tidus.

“That’s right! Kirby will crush that guy 80-20!”

Woah there Billy, let’s not get carried away with ourselves now. Kirby is a pretty decent competitor in these Contests, but you can’t underestimate Cecil like that. Cecil might be the hero of one of the less-popular Final Fantasy games, but remember, this is GameFAQs. FF4 still is somewhat popular here. Cecil could very well upset Kirby.

“Oh no! Now I don’t know what to do! Help me!!!”

Oh, that’s alright Little Billy. Cecil would have to be quite the shocker in strength to upset Kirby. Kirby should win the match, but expect Cecil to put up Ramza-like numbers on him. Ramza was the lead character in FFT, which is a bit more popular on GameFAQs than FF4, but one could argue that Cecil is a more popular hero than Ramza was, so it will be interesting to see how this turns out. Also, let’s not forget Kirby has had Canvas Curse come out recently, one of the biggest games on the DS, this could also help out the Puffball a bit.

“Thanks Mister, now I know what to do!”

And knowing is only half the battle, my child.

Moltar’s Bracket Says: Kirby will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: Kirby: 62% - Cecil: 38%



Ulti’s Analysis

Cecil is another lower tier Square character that got in due to their being no company cap in this contest, but unfortunately, he gets the shaft by being an 8 seed in his first ever match. And if CJayC is true to form, Cecil might get stuck with the Amano pic we saw on the character introduction page. It'll be a moral victory if Cecil can somehow beat Ramza's score of 42.34%, but somehow I doubt he'll come close. Final Fantasy 4 isn't nearly as well-known as FFT on GameFAQs and isn't held in nearly the same regard. Cecil will be lucky to avoid a doubling, especially with the match picture I think he'll get. He also has to deal with Canvas Curse recently coming out in Kirby's favor.

Prediction: Kirby with 67.24%



Tnote’s Analysis

A few people think this has good upset potential, and I cannot discredit them, given the success Final Fantasy has enjoyed here at GameFAQs. However, I have never played FFIV (V?), so I cannot hop on the Cecil Bandwagon. However, you need to have a lot going for you to overthrow a one-seed, and I cannot see Cecil possessing such momentum. All this being said, Cecil could potentially suffer from a crappy picture, but no matter what I will be shocked if this one goes more than 60/40 in favor of everyone’s favorite swallower.

Pick: Kirby with 58.27%

Soul’s Analysis

We kick off the Dream division (AKA Nightmare Division*) with a rather easy match. Kirby returns with a bang by snatching a 1 seed over Magus, Ganondorf and even Crono. Cecil, yet another Final Fantasy character, debuts as an 8 seed.

Cecil is from FFIV (4 for you people who dislike Roman Numerals). I've never played it, and I rarely have heard about it. In fact, for the longest time I thought the series went from 3/6 to 7, and just skipped 4 and 5. Since I know very little about this game, I'm guessing that Cecil is the main hero.

One thing that's good about this contest is that we'll see the strength of almost every Final Fantasy game here. As of right now, Final Fantasy 4 is barely talked about, and I'm betting that it's hardly known to the hardcore FF7+ fans of the series. So, I'm thinking that Kirby could look a lot stronger then he/she/it actually is.

My prediction: Kirby wins with 75.00%. Right down the middle with this one. (^'-')> Hi! <('-'^)

*Nightmare Division courtesy of Wylvane.



Outback’s Analysis

Another 1/8 match. I've seen a few people saying that this could be interesting, but, quite honestly, they're crazy. Kirby beat Ramza with 57.66, and I can't even see Cecil at Ramza's level, and that, coupled with the supposed Nintendo boost we've seen this year, will get Kirby over 60%.

Kirby with 62.22%



Inviso’s Analysis

While I was writing this up, I started sing the “Pup Named Scooby Doo” theme song, only using Kirby instead of Scooby. Kirby dirby, Kirby dirby doo, Kirby dirby, Kirby dirby doo. Anyway, Kirby’s a one seed, much to the anger of ertyu, because as we all know…Kirby es dum. Anyway, Kirby’s first match is an easy one. The pink puffball is taking on Cecil, the star of Final Fantasy IV. Kirby has spawned the numerous emoticons worldwide and is Metool’s hero. He’s been classified as one of the cutest characters of all time, and is also one of the board’s favorite characters. Meanwhile, Cecil is from a Final Fantasy game that A. is not 3D, thus losing it popularity and B. is not FFVI, thus losing it even more popularity. Cecil just doesn’t have the power of other Final Fantasy characters and really shouldn’t have taken another spot in the contest to add to Square’s many representatives. The Final Fantasy name will keep him from suffering that badly, but Kirby has this in the bag.

My Bracket: Kirby
My Vote: Kirby
My Prediction: Kirby with 69.11%

Vlado’s Analysis

We have an interesting match at hand here. Well... It would've been interesting, if we didn't already know how badly old school Final Fantasies do in GameFAQs contests... Kefka is their flagship, and even he once again proved to be extremely weak with his loss against Diablo in the spring. I'm absolutely certain that Cecil will be weaker than Kefka, he's from a more obscure Final Fantasy and, despite being the main, he's hardly the most memorable character in his own game. It's a damn miracle Cecil managed to actually make it, as I didn't really see any support for him during the nomination stage. He's from a Final Fantasy, but I doubt most Final Fantasy fans would even know that... Leading me to believe that he would be very weak, probably around Laharl's level, if not worse.

Kirby showed some growth in 2004, compared to the previous two years and I think he'll have gotten even stronger, even if we just take Nintendo's significant increase into account. Despite everything, I think Kirby was seriously overseeded in this division and that he's certainly nowhere near Bowser or Ryu. In fact, I think this will be Kirby's last win in the tourney, as Tidus is a far better recognized Final Fantasy protagonist than Cecil. If there's any justice in the world, Tidus will defeat Kirby, and with a margin that proves that Shadow the Hedgehog > Kirby. However, in this particular match, Kirby will have it easy.

Predicted percentage: Kirby with 72.33%.

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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Sora vs. Agent 47 - Bracket: Sora - Vote: Sora (10/11)

>_>

91%?!?!

What the hell was I doing when I came up with that number!
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"ertyu is actually a language. For example, 'dum' is ertyunese for 'godly'." - Topaz Kitsune
*Waiting for Guru winner's sig*

Probably some illegal Canadian drugs.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Sora vs. Agent 47 - Bracket: Sora - Vote: Sora (10/11)

Sora.....................70.73% 62348
Agent 47................29.27% 25796
TOTAL VOTES..................88144

83.68% of the brackets called this match correctly.

47 doesn't end up being the Neo-Tanner we all expected, and manages 30% on Sora. Sora also had a decent bracket percentage. Not much more to say, but the vote totals were pretty bad here.

Today, Kirby is owning the junk out of Cecil. Most expected Kirby with around 60%, and instead he has 75%! He's TRIPLING a Final Fantasy lead character! Tidus should be shaking in his boost right now.

CLOSEST PREDICTIONS

Vlado - 3
Ulti - 2
Tnote - 2
Moltar - 2
Outback - 2
Inviso - 1
Soul - 0

Inviso wins her first point with the lowest Sora pick.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Kirby vs. Cecil - Bracket: Kirby - Vote: Kirby (11/12)

tag

;_; Cecil

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SC2K5 - 12/13 points, Tomorrow: Tidus

“That’s right! Kirby will crush that guy 80-20!”

Woah there Billy, let’s not get carried away with ourselves now. Kirby is a pretty decent competitor in these Contests, but you can’t underestimate Cecil like that. Cecil might be the hero of one of the less-popular Final Fantasy games, but remember, this is GameFAQs. FF4 still is somewhat popular here. Cecil could very well upset Kirby.

*looks at poll results*

XD
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Chun-Li > Bowser book it - lol_internet
Vote for Kirby in SC2K5!

>.>

Hopefully my later advice for Billy will be right. He owned me this time though.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Kirby vs. Cecil - Bracket: Kirby - Vote: Kirby (11/12)

I think you mean the King of all Cosmos should be shaking in fear of Kirby (> ' ')>.

I'm not very sure on Tidus > Kirby now...unless Tidus blows KoaC the **** out tomorrow.
~~~
Trivia XV: Dragostea Din Tei
http://www.audioscrobbler.com/user/cokes311/

Well good! A little uncertainty is good around here. I can understand why you don't want to lose your bracket, but if the contest was obvious, then there would be thousands of people tied for first place.

And matches like these gives some of us Kirby fans hope. GO KIRBY! <(^_^)>

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VIVA LA REVOLUTION!
Don't ask which, just go with it.

Dream Division Round 1 - Match 14 – (4)Tidus vs. (5)King of all Cosmos

Tidus
Game/Series Known From: Final Fantasy X
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: 11th (33.80%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 13th (34.25%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 20th (22.82%) Adjusted Value: 24th (25.35%)
Seed in 2002: 8
Seed in 2003: 5
Seed in 2004: 8
Lost in 2002 to Sonic in Round 2
Lost in 2003 to Ganondorf in Round 1
Lost in 2004 to Mega Man in the Round 2

He’s strong, and has potential to go far, but always gets stuck against tough opponents early.

King of all Cosmos
Game/Series Known From: Katamari Damacy
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: N/A
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: N/A
Seed in 2004: N/A

Hmm, I knew KD was big, but I didn’t expect to actually see a KD representative in the Contest.

Wow, more newbie vs. vet goodness. These new guys are just crashing and burning, eh? I mean, do you really think the King of all Cosmos is strong enough to take down a beast like Tidus? Not even with his awesome guitar could he stop Tidus. Not even with his most powerful and biggest Katamari could he beat Tidus! Not even with the drugs the creators of this game were using are powerful enough to take down Tidus! And those drugs have to have been pretty darn strong.

Anyways, Tidus wins. The 5-seed upsets 4-seed streak is C-C-C-C-COMBO BROKEN’D!!!

Moltar’s Bracket Says: Tidus will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: Tidus: 76% - King: 24%



Ulti’s Analysis

If there were any justice in the world, The King would win this match with 95% of the vote. Unfortunately, Katamari Damacy is the exact opposite of well-known, and the most powerful force in the universe will suffer greatly as a result. Tidus may suffer from a few anti-votes at the hands of a character who got in on the backbone of Board 8 alone, but it won't be much to make a difference once the board vote wears off. Tidus may actually manage to break 80%, strange as that sounds.

Prediction: Tidus with 78.24%



Soul’s Analysis

Grr! If this analysis looks likes it is just a ripping of King of all Cosmos, it's because I despise Katamari Damacy and all it's glory.

Tidus is a rather strange character in these contests. After a strong year in 2002, where he got 41% against Sonic, he was out in round 1 in the 2003 contest, courtesy of Ganondorf. But, the main point here is that because of his close match with Ganon, and Ganon's close match with Magus, those three were ranked really high and near each other. As seen with the Frog/Chief/Liquid trifecta, this usually causes a problem for the weakest of the group. As with Liquid, Tidus took a fall last year after he bombed against Megaman.

King of all Cosmos is new to the contest. He is going to be fodder. Heh, that makes me happy somehow.

Even though I hate RPGs, I hope Tidus tears King of all Cosmos a new one. And I promise that this will be the last match with any bias in it.

My prediction: Tidus wins with 79.89% of the vote. *Gets rolled over by a katamari*



Outback’s Analysis

Katamari Damacy. Most of Board 8 has played it, but what about the casual voter? I believe we're going to see the same thing here as we saw yesterday - a nintendo character obliterating one of the more obscure square characters. A very similar day here.

Tidus with 76.55%
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Kirby vs. Cecil - Bracket: Kirby - Vote: Kirby (11/12)

Inviso’s Analysis

Okay…riiiiiiiight. Tidus is…a mid tier…okay; KoaC is really freaking me out. I haven’t even played Katamari Damacy, but I certainly am not buying it for him. I’m buying it to roll over stuff and pick it up, because that is very funny. Anyway, KoaC is the highest seeded true fodder character. He’s from a game that’s not exactly the most popular thing ever and he’s taking on Tidus, a character that is pretty strong. KoaC really only got as high a seed as he did because of the board, and there’s really no need to analyze this match too much, because he’s freaking me out. Tidus will get to show whatever strength he has in this match, because this will determine how well he does against Kirby.

My Bracket: Tidus
My Vote: Tidus
My Prediction: Tidus with 74.06%



Tnote’s Analysis

Yup… another character I had never heard of. How the King got a 5 seed, while Knuckles solicited a 6, is unnerving, but that is neither here nor there. Tidus is the always under-appreciated lead from FFX, my pick for the best current-gen RPG. He may look like Meg Ryan, but that does not stop him from performing admirably in this contest setting. I am very anxious for his second round match-up, and hopefully the King can take solace with a bottle of liquor when he gets tripled by Tee-dus.

Pick: Tidus with 75.83%



Vlado’s Analysis

Heh, the King with a 5th seed. Sure is a pleasant surprise, and his opponent is someone he can easily avoid being blown out by, thanks to the inevitable anti-votes Tidus will get. Katamari Damacy is an innovative and rather successful PS2 game by Namco and I give it a lot of credit, for being one of the few games that present something new and original in today's videogame world, full of sequels and rehashes. Naturally, the King will get the votes of about all the fans of his game, but they won't be all that much. He'll be very weak, but we shouldn't forget the picture factor, which saved Manny from getting completely owned by Snake. Provided the King gets a nice pic (and he more than likely will), he can get a respectable result against one of the two true favourites to win this division. I think that, with a good picture, and the Tidus anti-votes in mind, the King can place even above Sam Fisher's level.

Tidus beat Shadow the Hedgehog last year and that says enough. It's a proof by itself that there's not nearly as much Tidus hate as there used to be in the past. When's the last time you heard a Meg Ryan joke? That's right. They are hardly around anymore. While there will inevitably be some anti-votes, I think Tidus will easily break 70% here. Pathetic for a 4/5 seed match, isn't it? Well, at least it brings the Katamari Damacy fans the pleasure of seeing their character in the contest. As for Tidus, I think he and Bowser will determine who wins this division.

Tidus' extremely poor performance against Mega Man last year, which placed him quite low in the X-Stats, also deserves a mention. I believe it is one of the events that are simply hard to explain and I find it impossible for him to have really dropped so much. In fact, I believe that he's constantly getting stronger, as it's out of doubt that FFX keeps gaining new fans every day, even if it's at a rate not as big as FFVII's.

Predicted percentage: Tidus with 73.14%.

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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Kirby vs. Cecil - Bracket: Kirby - Vote: Kirby (11/12)

Tidus with 80%.
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149/300 Battle Trophies collected in Star Ocean 3
Supporter of Squall Leonhart in the Summer 2005 Character Contest

From: The Real Truth | Posted: 7/31/2005 12:25:04 PM | Message Detail
Tidus with 80%.

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A E OUTBACK OWNS ME

Tidus with 65%. Just you wait >_>
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WWEGSB Hardcore Legend Masa
"Masa, everytime I talk to you, my urge for hot pockets rises. Damn you" - Linky.

Tidus with 0%. Just you all wait.
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No, DNEA! You must not give up so quickly! Think about your love! Your hopes! Your dreams!
Think about the possible three-way man sex orgy, dammit! - Seijun

Billy would probably pick Tidus at 75/80%.

I've learned to trust in Billy.
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I can't think of anything to put here, but I can't just leave it blank, can I?

tag'd
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"AntiJuggalo is quite a Christian...IN BED!" - Aeon
You mean frigid, timid and apologetic afterwards?-Renmauza

Tagging, because I'm sick of searching for this topic every time and I don't feel like adding it to my browser's favorites list.


...What the hell was I thinking when I decided that the King would beat Tidus? ;_; Picking Cecil over Kirby screwed over my bracket up until R4 anyway...that'll teach me not to automatically pick FF characters if there's any doubt of the opposition's strength. And I was doing so well up until now, too.
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Imagination is more important than knowledge.

tagging
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"Run, run, or you'll be well done!"
~Kefka, Final Fantasy 6~

Kirby...............75.21% 67556
Cecil...............24.79% 22267
TOTAL VOTES.............89823

87.53% of the brackets called this match correctly.

Wow, Kirby managed to hold the tripling. Looks like we definitely overestimated Cecil and FF4. Goes to show you how much casuals care for old-school FF games. Kirby also took a ton of brackets, but not as much as the other 1 seeds though.

Today, you should just leave the predictions to us guys. Tidus with 80% or Tidus with 65%? Nah. Tidus might have had a hard time with the board vote, but he quickly broke away. Now he has 73%+ on King and...falling?

CLOSEST PREDICTIONS

Vlado - 3
Ulti - 2
Tnote - 2
Moltar - 2
Outback - 2
Soul - 1
Inviso - 1

A crazy Soul pick pays off! He was actually pretty close to the final result, while the rest of us were way off.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Tidus vs. King of all Cosmos - Bracket: Tidus - Vote: King (12/13)

Um, no Bowser/Chun-li predictions?

Tommorrow, laptop being a ***** and won't work :(
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It's MOOOOOOLLLLLTTTAAAARRRR!!!!

[This message was deleted at the request of the original poster]

1 more day guys...1 more day.

I've learned something from this though...have a back-up guy to post the write-ups when I can't.
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It's MOOOOOOLLLLLTTTAAAARRRR!!!!

Well, I can post mine if you want me to. :P
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*** Support Tifa Lockheart in the Summer Contest 2005 ***
Thanks to everyone who helped her get in!

No cheating Moltar. >_>

Ha! I knew one of those crazy picks would pay off eventually.
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"ertyu is actually a language. For example, 'dum' is ertyunese for 'godly'." - Topaz Kitsune
*Waiting for Guru winner's sig*

I hope I went the lowest with my Al Bhed hottie <3

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RIP: Tnote827 - 4/4/2005
SC2k5 - 15/15 (empty slots in brackets suck)

Dream Division Round 1 - Match 15 – (3)Bowser vs. (6)Chun-Li

Bowser
Game/Series Known From: Super Mario
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 13th (30.97%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 31st (20.41%) Adjusted Value: 18th (28.88%)
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: 5
Seed in 2004: 7
Lost in 2003 to Cloud in the Sweet 16
Lost in 2004 to Mario in Round 2

Bowser might have impressed in the Spring Contest, but can he bring it over here?

Chun-Li
Game/Series Known From: Street Fighter
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: N/A
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: N/A
Seed in 2004: N/A

My favorite Chun-Li nickname that I’ve heard is Thunder Thighs. My least favorite is Chunners…eww.

More newbie vs. veteran goodness. Too bad for Chun-Li though. She had potential to do some damage in the Contest. That VGV poll during the nominations probably gave her a great push, and she made it in. However, due to her unfortunate draw, she gets Bowser in Round 1. Now, Ken and Bison aren’t as strong as Bowser, and Ryu is just about equal to him. If you think Chun-Li is going to be as strong as Ryu, you have some problems. Bowser wins with ease, but Chun-Li should avoid getting blown to oblivion.

Moltar’s Bracket Says: Bowser will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: Bowser: 61% - Chun-Li: 39%



Ulti’s Analysis

Bowser is fresh off of his mammoth Spring Contest performance, and like Ganon, he's stuck with a 3 seed in a very difficult fourpack. He'll likely get by Chun-Li with ease, but how easily he handles Thunder Thighs will tell us a lot about how well he'll do against Ryu in the second round. I truly believe that Ryu is the only character who can stand in Bowser's way of the Final Four, and Bowser needs to come out swinging if he wants to get past him. But more on that in the second round. For now, he just has to focus on the bye that he's been given. Chun-Li is awesome, as well as the single most influential fighting game female out there. Unfortunately, she gets shafted in the seeding and is basically stuck with an auto loss in her very first match. Hopefully she gets it a little better in the future.

As for the percentage to watch in this match, it's 33.92%. That's what M. Bison is projected to score on Bowser according to Spring 2005 stats. Chun will likely outperform this number (the Street Fighter popularity ladder is Ryu, Ken, Chun, and Akuma/Bison, in that order). But if Chun manages to vastly outperform Bison's expected value, Bowser's odds of getting out of the second round are very slim and it may mean that Spring 2005 was more screwed up than many of us thought. If she breaks 40%, you can practically give Ryu the division. This match will tell us a lot about just how screwed up the Spring 2005
Contest really was.

Prediction: Bowser with 63.35%. I think that Chun will outperform Bison, but not by more than a percent or two.



Soul’s Analysis

The real king makes his return to the Summer Contest after a shocking performance in Spring. Bowser was expected to make it to Sephiroth and get around 35% before bowing out. Not only did he do that, he got over 40% on Sephy! He actually did better then Mario did on Sephiroth. This could mean that Sephiroth fell, harshly, or that Bowser gained. I'm guessing it's a bit of both.

Chun Li makes her debut. She's from Street Fighter, the main fighter series on GameFAQs. Street Fighter isn't new to the contest. Ryu and Ken Masters has both been in past tournies and have performed pretty well. Ryu has been consistant throughout the years, placing in the top 20 in all of the contests. The question is, can Chun Li match Ryu's numbers?

No, she can't. Take a peak at the past results, and you will someone who is more known then Chun Li and stars in Street Fighter, Ken Masters. Ken has been in the 2002 and 2003 contests. Surprisingly, he performed really well in 2002, although losing to Samus in the first round. In 2003 though, he bombed against Sonic, and was placed at number 40 in the X-Stats. I'm expecting Chun Li to be around Ken's level in this contest. She will perform decently, but decently will not defeat the King Koopa, Bowser!

My prediction: Bowser wins with 65.74%. *Insert kickass Bowser haiku here*



Outback’s Analysis

While this match will not be in question at all, people are either overestimating Bowser or underestimating Chun-Li. Street Fighter is strong on this site, and thunder thighs will keep up the tradition, keeping Bowser under 60%.

Bowser with 57.11%



Inviso’s Analysis

CHUNNERS! That beings said, we have Bowser, the third strongest villain on Gamefaqs, against an untested Chun-Li, who could easily be the second strongest Street Fighter character. When we look at it though…fighting games are not all that strong on this site. Ryu, Chun-Li, and Jin Kazama are the only fighting reps in the entire contest, and two of them are the lower seeds. Bowser on the other hand, as much as it pains me to say this, is a gaming legend. He’s the villain of the most well known video game series of all time. *shudders* I can’t believe I actually had to say that. Sadly enough, poor Chunners is nothing more than a first round exit from the contest. Better luck next time girl.

My Bracket: Bowser Koopa
My Vote: Chun-Li
My Prediction: Bowser with 68.27%



Tnote’s Analysis

Finally an interesting match-up! Woohoo! Well, sort of. Chun Li cannot possibly be as strong as Ryu, who is predicted to give Bowser a helluva match. However, I personally believe she will perform better than both Ken and M. Bison, so this should not be a laugher. As a sidenote, I had such a crush on the actress who played Chun Li in the Street Fighter movie, until I got older, and realized what a horrible movie it is. Van Damme still kicks ass, and Zangief is even latently homosexual in the cinema. Bowser shouldn’t crack 60%, which is more than can be said for any of the laughers that precede it.

Pick: Bowser with 58.27%

Vlado’s Analysis

Chun Li gets to make her debut this year... I wonder who nominated her. Another of the strange entries, that I saw absolutely no board support of. Of course, she certainly deserves to be here, as she's practically the first female heroine in the fighting genre. And I believe that she'll do respectably against Bowser, as the Street Fighter fans seem to be a strong, dedicated community. Just look at how well Bison did in the spring. And I'm certain that Chun Li is stronger than Bison. She may even be stronger than Ken, who we've already seen participate. However, she had a tough first round draw... Bowser is the most likely winner of this division and he managed to break 40% on Sephiroth this spring. No matter how we look at it, poor Chun Li stands no chance. I think she'll be around KOS-MOS' level, though. Which will prevent Bowser from getting a win too big.

Bowser's performance in the spring showed that he has gotten stronger. His win against Revolver Ocelot was quite impressive, as well as the aforementioned breaking of the 40% barrier against Sephy. He has everything on his side to win this division - Nintendo has shown growth this year, Nintendo is beating Square left and right in the contest so far (should he face Tidus), and he's much more recognized than Kirby (should he face him, instead). But, it's early to analyze that yet. Bowser certainly has the toughest first round opponent, compared to Kirby, Tidus and Ryu, but a comfortable win against Chun Li may well remove all doubts on whether he'd take the Dream division.

Predicted percentage: Bowser with 60.34%.

Tidus..........................72.54% 73408
King of All Cosmos......27.46% 27787
TOTAL VOTES.....................101195

85.46% of the brackets called this match correctly.

The King does a little better than I expected, or Tidus does worse...whichever it was, Tidus still wins pretty easily. The match also broke 100K! Many of the brackets got the match correctly, but we still lost 100 perfects...depressing.

CLOSEST PREDICTIONS

Vlado - 4
Ulti - 2
Tnote - 2
Moltar - 2
Outback - 2
Soul - 1
Inviso - 1

Vlado had the lowest Tidus pick, so the point is his.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Ryu vs. Rikku - Bracket: Ryu - Vote: Ryu (14/15)

Dream Division Round 1 - Match 16 – (2)Ryu vs. (7)Rikku

Ryu
Game/Series Known From: Street Fighter
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: 10th (34.62%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 18th (30.69%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 9th (29.84%)
Seed in 2002: 4
Seed in 2003: 5
Seed in 2004: 9
Lost in 2002 to Samus in Round 2
Lost in 2003 to Snake in the Sweet 16
Lost in 2004 to Sonic in Round 2

Ryu is pretty strong, not top-tier, but darn close. Samus, Snake and Sonic all couldn’t break 60% on him.

Rikku
Game/Series Known From: Final Fantasy X
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: N/A
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: N/A
Seed in 2004: N/A

What’s this, an FFX party? We have Tidus and Auron. Then Yuna comes back and brings along Rikku with her.

Rikku is another character in the Contest who could have done some damage somewhere else in the bracket, but instead is just going to be Ryu’s punching bag for Round 1. I wonder if Rikku is going to turn out stronger than Yuna

On a side-note, while Ryu is getting through to Round 2, Chun-Li won’t. So your Street Fighter dream match doesn’t look like it’s going to become a reality. Then again, lots of dream matches in the past have failed big time and became huge SFF matches that made statisticians cry. We don’t want to bring you back to Magus/Crono, Mario/Bowser, and the hardest one to watch out of them all, Link/Ganondorf. *shudders* Then again, the only successful match like that was Cloud/Sephiroth, where it looked like neither got hit hard with the SFF.

Anyway, let’s end this now, before I really start going off-track and end up somewhere I don’t want to be…like that building by the abandoned warehouse where the strange man took me…Oh God…

Moltar’s Bracket Says: Ryu will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: Ryu: 67% - Rikku: 33%



Ulti’s Analysis

One match after we get a good idea of where Bowser truly lies, we'll get a similar match for Ryu as well. The only difference is that there isn't much to discuss about how strong Ryu actually is. He's been unbelievably consistent in these contests, and the only question in this match is whether or not Rikku will break 40% on him. If you go by Summer 2003, Yuna is projected to get 38.55% on Ryu, and Yuna faced Knuckles. Knuckles is the most consistent character we've ever seen in these things, so Yuna's 2003 value is likely dead on. For Rikku to break 40% on Ryu, she has to hope that FFX-2 did wonders for her strength level and that she's almost even with Yuna in the first place. FFX-2 may help, but I doubt that Rikku is anywhere near Yuna at all. I think she'll be lucky if she breaks 35%.

Prediction: Ryu with 67.35%
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Ryu vs. Rikku - Bracket: Ryu - Vote: Ryu (14/15)

Soul’s Analysis

Half way through the first round folks. This shall continue one of the most interesting four packs in this contest.

Ryu is the most known fighting character of all time. He comes from the legendary series known as Street Fighter. Of course, you already knew that. Everyone knows that. Ryu has always done well in the contest. He's finished in the top 20 all three times that he's competed. The thing with Ryu, as said in MMX's site, is that he's always had bad luck in the contests. It is easy to see where he will lose in every contest. Of course, with someone of equal power waiting for him next round, Ryu will finally break that curse. Of course, he still has to get through Rikku.

Rikku, on the other hand, is one of the female leads from FFX and FFX-2. We all know that FFX performs pretty well in the contest. By not playing FFX, I have no idea if she is popular enough to be on Auron's level. I'm going to take a wild guess and say she performs around Yuna's level. Now with that said, Yuna lost to Knuckles, who would lose pretty badly to Ryu anyway. Even if Rikku is more popular then Yuna, she would have to be on Auron's level of popularity to defeat Ryu.

My prediction: Ryu wins with 63.19% of the vote. Ryu Vs. Bowser? OH HELL YEAH!


Billy’s Analysis

Ryu rocks! Rikku is good too, and this is GameFAQs, so I think it will be close and Ryu wins with 55.71%!



Inviso’s Analysis

And right after Chun-Li’s unfortunate defeat, we have Ryu, the STRONGEST fighting game character in the contest. He’s the only fighter to make it into all four summer contests, and he’s also won at least one match every time. This time around, he faces Rikku, the second weakest FFX character we’ve seen in the contests thus far. Tidus and Yuna are the main male and female lead, Auron is the most popular, thus leaving Rikku a few rungs ahead of Sin. All that being said, Rikku’s probably not much of a force. Then again, Ryu, in all honesty, isn’t either. Rikku, I feel, can perform well in this match, and Ryu’s gonna need a high percentage if he stands any chance at beating Bowser next round. And one more addition to this analysis. With Yuna being anally violated by Ganondorf, and Rikku being beaten up by Ryu, imdapartystar will most likely make at least two topic using the words, Yuna, Rikku, and the emoticon ;_;. That’s kind of a little side prediction.

My Bracket: Ryu (Street Fighter)
My Vote: Rikku
My Prediction: Ryu (Street Fighter) with 66.73%



Tnote’s Analysis

I am very interested to see how much weaker, if any, Rikku is than Yuna. Ryu has been the model of consistency every year, and in any of those years, he would be expected to beat Yuna. So there is no chance for an upset here, but that does not mean it will not be close. KOS-MOS kept Ryu to under 63%, so that is definitely the ceiling for what Mr. Haaaadoken himself can slap up on the sexy stealer. He has also slapped up 54% on Dante, whom I would assume would be able to handle Rikku in this contest setting. In my mind, Rikku is closer to Dante than KOS-MOS, so I think she may be able to steal an update or two, in route to a fairly decent performance.

Pick: Ryu with 57.83%




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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Ryu vs. Rikku - Bracket: Ryu - Vote: Ryu (14/15)

Vlado’s Analysis

This one of the matches I like to call "n00b traps". While I have utmost respect for about everyone on GameFAQs, including new people, you can only call this match wrong if you're very poorly informed on the actual state of things in these contests. While Rikku is a very popular FFX and FFX-2 character, she doesn't have anywhere near the fanbase to give her any chance here. We saw how Yuna did against Ganon and Rikku is certainly even weaker than her. Of course, Ryu is not as strong as Ganon, but the difference is not that big as to give Rikku any chance here. Insterestingly enough, this is Rikku's debut in the contest. It's certain that her popularity is well past its prime, but its this year that she could make it. Funny how that works, as she would've done better, had this match taken place a couple of years ago. I imagine Rikku to be around Kefka's level, and Kefka placed under Bison in the spring X-Stats. Ryu is significantly stronger than Bison, so there. The winner is clear.

Ryu is one of the most solid contestants in the contest history. He always achieves great results and is yet to fall under 30% in the X-Stats. He certainly deserves to win at least 2 matches every year, but, the circumstances are against him this time, as he'll have to face Bowser in Round 2. However, should he win there, he's quite likely to even take the division. Street Fighter fans deserve admiration. They support their characters tirelessly, brining them respectable results and making them into forces to be reckoned with. Heck, even Bison did so well in the spring, and he's not nearly as popular as Ryu. Ryu is the fighting genre icon and to have him lose against Rikku is just wrong. I doubt many have made this mistake.

Predicted percentage: Ryu with 63.91%.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Ryu vs. Rikku - Bracket: Ryu - Vote: Ryu (14/15)

Bowser.............65.9% 66227
Chun Li.............34.1% 34269
TOTAL VOTES.............100496

88.07% of the brackets called this match correctly.

Pure Bowser ownage here. We expected Chun-Li to be stronger than that, but instead, she puts on an Ocelot-like performance on King Koopa. Another 100K breaker, and it looks like it's becoming a trend. Very nice bracket support for Bowser as well.

Today, Rikku is doing better than most expected. 45% on Ryu is darn impressive.

CLOSEST PREDICTIONS

Vlado - 4
Soul - 2
Ulti - 2
Tnote - 2
Moltar - 2
Outback - 2
Inviso - 1

Soul calls the match dangerously close. Good job.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Ryu vs. Rikku - Bracket: Ryu - Vote: Ryu (14/15)

LMAO, Billy wins!

Whoamg my pick won?!? That's freaking awesome!
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This is not a sig, just felt like writing something down here.

Flood Division Round 1 - Match 17 – (1)Master Chief vs. (8)CATS

Master Chief
Game/Series Known From: Halo
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 26th (26.15%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 15th (26.96%) Adjusted Value: 14th (29.96%)
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: 3
Seed in 2004: 3
Lost in 2003 to Aeris in Round 2
Lost in 2004 to Frog in Round 2

Oh Chief…you always seem to get overseeded. I wonder if Halo 2 will help you out any this year.

CATS
Game/Series Known From: Zero Wing
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: 47th (13.30%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 56th (13.52%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 53rd (12.17%)
Seed in 2002: 13
Seed in 2003: 16
Seed in 2004: 16
Lost in 2002 to Ryu in Round 1
Lost in 2003 to Cloud in Round 1
Lost in 2004 to Link in Round 1

Oh CATS…you’re a tradition we just can’t let go of. Some of us…don’t want to let go.

Sometimes, a GameFAQs match occurs that is so special, so unique, you just can’t have a regular GameFAQs match. It needs something bigger…more important. This is why instead of a regular match, Master Chief and CATS will face each other in……………….A JOKE-OFF!

In one corner, we have the 1-seed of this division, from Halo, Master Chief! *boo, boo, go blow Bill Gates*

In the other corner, we have the 8-seed of this division, from Zero Wing, CATS! *yay, yay, have my children*

Let the Joke-off, begin!

CATS: I are the greatest! Master Chief, you are loser!

Master Chief: Hey CATS, where’d you learn English? It’s about as bad as a Tomb Raider game.

Crowd: OOOOOOOHHHHH!

CATS: You know, if me paint you orange, you are Samus. You like Metroid tenticle, don’t you?

Master Chief: Why don’t you go get a franchise that has sold over 10 million copies of its games, then you can insult me.

CATS: Why don’t you become big worldwide fad and get own video with you. People love me, people think CATS are funny.

Master Chief: You’re funny because you’re nothing but a joke.

Ok guys, chill. The judges have listened in and given their opinions, and they have decided that the winner is, just by a hair, Master Chief! *boo, boo, will the judge in the middle sleep with me*

Let’s have a word with these guys, first, CATS.

CATS: Me should have win. All your base are belong to CATS!

And you, Master Chief.

Master Chief: I’m just that deadly. Now excuse me, I’m going to go single-handedly sell another system.

Well, that’s right folks. Master Chief has beaten CATS, but you guys expected that anyway, right? Yeah, you did.

Moltar’s Bracket Says: Master Chief will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: Master Chief: 81% - CATS: 19%



Ulti’s Analysis

Someone in the stats topic hypothesized that CJayC used face pics for this round only so that CATS could get his face pic in this match. Somehow I doubt that, though it does bring up an interesting point. In the Spring Contest, CATS did better than many expected him to do and was given the AYB face pic that everyone loves rather than that eggplant crap that we've seen in the past.

This won't help him to actually win, and with Halo 2's release he'll probably do worse than what the 2004 stats put him at, anyway. But CATS will still have his standard 2 second lead before eventually going under, and that's all that matters.

Prediction: Chief with 77.24%



Outback’s Analysis

ALL YOUR BASE ARE BELONG TO US!!!

MC with 84.55

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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Ryu vs. Rikku - Bracket: Ryu - Vote: Ryu (14/15)

Soul’s Analysis

http://zerowingrhapsody.ytmnd.com/

I'm sure you've all heard CATS' famous lines already. I mean, as of right now, the CATS topics must be piling in. After looking at the board for a while, I bet you new guys are thinking that CATS could actually take down Master Chief!

Don't be fooled. It happens every year. CATS is a contest joke. He will always perform bad in the contests, and will always lose (unless he faces Gordon Freeman or Tanner). Believe me, Master Chief is not Freeman or Tanner. Plus, with Halo 2 coming out since the last contest, and the "XBox Hate" winding down, Master Chief should have increased a bit. But, after seeing CJ and Lloyd underperform in my eyes, anything can happen.

My prediction: Master Chief wins with 83.58% of the vote. What else needs to be said?



Inviso’s Analysis

In 2002…CATS was beaten by Ryu as a 13 seed. In 2003…CATS was beaten by Cloud as a 16 seed. In 2004…CATS was beaten by Link as a 16 seed. In the Spring Contest…CATS was beaten by Ansem as a 5 seed, the highest seed he’ll EVER get. And now, he’s facing Master Chief of Halo fame, as an 8 seed. Ever since Zero Wing came out in America, CATS has been famous and the biggest internet fad of all time, simply due to the terrible translation of the game. He was a joke…and the joke isn’t funny anymore. CATS will never win a match, at least, not as long as he’s put against characters that have any sort of fanbase whatsoever. Master Chief ended up being a top 16 character in last summer’s x-stats, and now he has a new game, Halo 2 out for the Xbox, and it has sold extremely well. Halo has quickly become the biggest franchise of this generation, and the Chief will have an easy match.

My Bracket: Master Chief
My Vote: Master Chief
My Prediction: Master Chief with 81.61%



Tnote’s Analysis

CATS proved many of us wrong in the Spring, that he does not have a ‘ceiling’ of votes, and actually had Ansem on his heels until the morning. But the Kingdom Hearts day vote kicked in – even for the Darkness – and with it went everyone’s favorite intergalactic pirate’s best chance at a contest W. Master Chief took part in one of, if not the, greatest match in GameFAQs contest history. Over 90,000 votes were cast, and when the smoke cleared, the Shakesperean Amphibian had seven more votes… legal or otherwise. The fact of the matter is that CATS is no Frog, and with the addition of Halo 2 to the Chief’s resume, this one should be ugly. CATS almost avoided a quadrupling at the hands of Hadoken Ryu, but that was back when CATS’ core voters made a much larger impact because of the sub-60k voting poll. Add on 30k votes, while having the Chief be eerily close to the fireballer, and I think this one will end with a similar result.

Pick: Master Chief with 78.27%
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Ryu vs. Rikku - Bracket: Ryu - Vote: Ryu (14/15)

Vlado’s Analysis


The correct spelling is Cats, not CATS. The Zero Wing guidebook says so. Anyway, Cats is everyone's favourite. There are few who hate him, but I doubt they're able to fully comprehend the immense amounts of fun he brings to his supporters every time he shows up in these contests. And this year was a special one, as this will be his second match. In the spring, he faced Ansem and had the lead for over 5 hours in what I claim to be the best match in the GameFAQs contest history. It was certainly the most entertaining for me, and I hadn't slept for 24 hours, but I never went to bed until he lost the lead. Cats is awesome. It's as simple as that. Sure, he'll lose, but he'll still lead at least for the first few minutes, and I won't miss on those few minutes of entertainment.

Cats' good performance against Ansem crushed the myth that he had a cap on his votes that he could never break. In the X-Stats he placed 15th over awesome, popular characters such as Dr. Robotnik, Sin and Albert Wesker and that's an achievement by itself. What can he do against Master Chief, though? Not much, that's for sure. However, Xbox is not exactly liked on GameFAQs and that'll surely help Cats not get totally owned.

Master Chief has an easy, predictable path in this tournament. He'll win his first two matches with ease, and then inevitably lose to Crono. He can't do better than that, he can't do worse, either. With or without the supposed Halo 2 increase, compared to his 2004 performance, he doesn't stand even a remote chance against Crono.

Predicted percentage: Master Chief with 78.19%

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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Ryu vs. Rikku - Bracket: Ryu - Vote: Ryu (14/15)

One hour left in the match, and Billy's guess is currently .01% off.

...Okay, he needs to be a constant predictor from now on.
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I can't think of anything to put here, but I can't just leave it blank, can I?

Yeah, Outback didn't get an analysis in, so Billy had to play back-up.

It's like that guy is psychic or something!
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Ryu vs. Rikku - Bracket: Ryu - Vote: Ryu (14/15)

Thanks for the kind words gentlemen. I really though that my pick would be a good one. Thankfully, it paid off for me.
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This is not a sig, just felt like writing something down here.

You've got an excellent chance of nailing the percentage smack-dab in the bleedin' NOSE.

Trés ******* bien, and a "Bravo!" to boot.

Ryu.....................55.72% 59210
Rikku..................44.28% 47054
TOTAL VOTES...............106264

74.98% of the brackets called this match correctly.

So 1/4th of the brackets had Rikku winning. That means her great performance today was mostly her strength today, which is good to see. New guys who aren't fodder are good. Ryu fails to break 56% on her, so he isn't looking too hot for his match next Round.

Today, CATS held Chief around 60% in the first 30 minutes, but now, a rocket has taken off, and that rocket is Master Chief. He's above 65% now (which is still kind embarrassiong) and rising.

CLOSEST PREDICTIONS

Vlado - 4
Tnote - 3
Soul - 2
Ulti - 2
Moltar - 2
Outback - 2
Inviso - 1

Billy's guess was good...too good...like it was written during the match, so Tnote gets the point.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Master Chief vs. CATS - Bracket: MC - Vote: CATS (15/16)

Flood Division Round 1 - Match 18 – (4)Donkey Kong vs. (5)Sam Fisher

Donkey Kong
Game/Series Known From: Donkey Kong
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: 46th (13.51%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 29th (25.34%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 25th (21.96%)
Seed in 2002: 4
Seed in 2003: 6
Seed in 2004: 10
Lost in 2002 to Mario in the Sweet 16
Lost in 2003 to Vercetti in Round 2
Lost in 2004 to Vivi in Round 1

Hey, if you lose in Round 2 this year, you’ll make it to the Sweet 16 again in 2006! I heart patterns!

Sam Fisher
Game/Series Known From: Splinter Cell
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 35th (23.57%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 47th (15.03%)
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: 4
Seed in 2004: 7
Lost in 2003 to Magus in Round 1
Lost in 2004 to Samus in Round 2

Yeah, the drastic drop in 2004 was because he had to face a Samus on roids.

Wow, two characters that do next to nothing in these Contests, and yet still get a crapload of noms and decent seeding. Anyway, this is a somwhat-debatable match, and in my contract, it says I have to analyze these.

DK’s bad rank in 2002 can be blamed by the first large case of SFF we have witnessed. Unfortunately, it is not the last either. In 2003, these two turned out pretty close in strength. DK barely lost to Vercetti, while Magus “upset” Sam in Round 1. Sam’s numbers might be a little inflated thanks to bracket support, higher seed, and casuals not knowing who in the hell Magus was. In 2004 however, Samus made this match clear. DK put up decent numbers on Vivi, but went down in the end (taking 65% of the brackets with him), while Sam continued the GFNW streak, only to get killed by Samus. The kind of drop Sam faced was called “losing popularity”, or “over-rated in the 2003 stats”. Anyway, this match has been made clear now.

“But Moltar!” You scream, “What about Chaos Theory?” What about Chaos Theory? One successful game isn’t going to boost up a weak character like Fisher to DK level. Both characters might be on the decline, but DK’s looking like he has some gas left in his tank.

Moltar’s Bracket Says: DK will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: DK: 60% - Fisher: 40%



Ulti’s Analysis

God, could you possibly get more boring than this? This will be like watching flies screw.

Seriously, I don't even feel like giving this match the attention that it doesn't deserve. Sorry, Crew :(

Prediction: Donkey Kong with 66.66%



Soul’s Analysis

H-Here we go!

So they're finally here, performing for you!
If you know the words you can join in too.
Put your hands together if you want to clap,
As we take you through funky rap! HUH!

DK! Donkey Kong!

He's the leader of the bunch, you know him well.
He's finally back, to kick some tail!
His coconut gun can fire in spurts,
If he shoots you, it's gonna hurt!
He's bigger! Faster! And stronger too!
He's the first member of the DK crew! HUH!

If that's not enough proof for a DK win, then you're looking too hard into this contest.

My prediction: DK wins with 54.76% of the vote. DK always performed bad, but he should take this one rather easily.



Outback’s Analysis

Not much to see here. Splinter Cell has no hold here, while DK at least has SSBM. Not even close here.

DK with 62.22
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Master Chief vs. CATS - Bracket: MC - Vote: CATS (15/16)

Inviso’s Analysis

Ahhh…another Nintendo match that kills me to analyze. This time, we have the weakest Mario character (Don’t tell me that Donkey Kong is his own series. He’s always going to be a Mario character) against the man that struggled with Gordon Freeman. Now, Donkey Kong has always been weak as hell in these contests, losing to Vivi, Tommy Vercetti, having trouble with Aya Brea, as a game, struggling with Duck Hunt. But then again, his opponent isn’t that impressive either. Sam was doubled by Magus and then went on to struggle with Gordon Freeman before being blown out by Samus. Now…it seems like Donkey Kong has this in the bag, but then again…to get doubled by Magus isn’t that bad a deal. After all, Magus is one of the top 12 characters in this contest…and Samus greatly increased last year, as did Gordon perhaps, with the hype of Metroid Prime 2 and Half-Life 2. It’s a match between two characters that most likely won’t do all that well, but someone has to win. Vyse vs. Laharl anyone?

My Bracket: Sam Fisher
My Vote: Sam Fisher
My Prediction: Donkey Kong with 59.34%



Tnote’s Analysis

Sam kept alive the longest run joke of the contest, GFNW. Donkey Kong got his fat, hairy parasite-ridden ass whipped by The black mage, who got his inanimate rear whipped by Zelda. Donkey Kong broke 60% on the VFL himself, while Sam barely cracked 55% on the biggest loser GameFAQs has ever seen. Well, technically CATS would be bigger, but that’s besides the point. Fisher has gotten another crappy Splinter Cell game, but does anyone care? God I hope not.

Pick: Donkey Kong with 58.27%



Vlado’s Analysis

I wish I could say that Sam Fisher has a chance... But, unfortunately, I can't. Nintendo has been on a huge rise this contest and I think it'll be enough to provide Donkey Kong with an easy win against Sam. In the 2003 X-Stats, these two were quite close, but it seems Sam dropped quite badly in 2004, which placed him a lot behind DK, despite him winning a round and the ape getting schooled by Vivi in the first. Sam has probably increased a little, compared to last year, but I doubt that'll be enough for him to give DK a really close match. Donkey Kong will take this one, and then fall to Master Chief in an even clearer match. Really, with the exception of the next match, this is a very boring division.

Predicted percentage: Donkey Kong with 64.95%

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Master Chief vs. CATS - Bracket: MC - Vote: CATS (15/16)

Master Chief.............68.83% 65022
CATS.......................31.17% 29446
TOTAL VOTES.....................94468

92.2% of the brackets called this match correctly.

And Chief fails to break 69% on CATS. Could CATS actually be a decent competitor now? Or does Master Chief just stink that much and Halo 2 did nothing for him. Oh well, a moral victory for CATS.

Today, DK is owning the life out of Fisher. He started up with over 80% of the vote, then hung around 70% for a bit. Now he's at 67%. D-K, DONKEY KONG!

CLOSEST PREDICTIONS

Vlado - 4
Ulti - 3
Tnote - 3
Soul - 2
Moltar - 2
Outback - 2
Inviso - 1

We all overestimated Chief...but Ulti did so the least.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Donkey Kong vs. Sam Fisher - Bracket: DK - Vote: DK (16/17)

Flood Division Round 1 - Match 19 – (3)Kefka vs. (6)Tommy Vercetti

Kefka
Game/Series Known From: Final Fantasy VI
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 52nd (16.08%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 35th (19.09%) Adjusted Value: 34th (21.21%)
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: 12
Seed in 2004: 7
Lost in 2003 to Crono in Round 2
Lost in 2004 to Knuckles in Round 1

Kefka is back and with another seeding boost. Go clown.

Vercetti
Game/Series Known From: Grand Theft Auto: Vice City
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 27th (25.58%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 26th (21.75%) Adjusted Value: 29th (24.17%)
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: 3
Seed in 2004: 5
Lost in 2003 to Mega Man in the Sweet 16
Lost in 2004 to Zero in Round 2

Vercetti is also back with another seed drop. Go Hawaiian shirt.

Well…if I had to pick my Halo/Starcraft or Ridley/Diablo match for this Contest, it would have to be this one. (By that I mean most disputed and hard to call Round 1 match) On one hand, we have Kefka, who has proven several times that he is weak, and he takes on Vercetti, who is a fading GTA star. Lettuce begin analyzing, cause this match needs it bad.

First, let’s look at some Contest History on the two. They both made their debut in 2003. That glorious year when Final Fantasy characters performed like they were on some performance-enhancing substance. Kefka’s first match was against Pac-Man, and boy, we remember how that went. Kefka was given an unrecognizable Lettuce pic, and Pac-Man took advantage of that. The match ended up extremely close, with Kefka winning by only 1773 votes. Kefka then went on to get a creepy face-pic while Crono looked on in all his badassery. Needless to say, Crono gave Kefka a good ol’ SFF beat down and just missed breaking 80% on him. Kefka was a joke. Vercetti, on the other hand, had a much better year. He had received a 3-seed, and a countless amount of casuals had him winning the whole thing (same with Master Chief). Round 1 put him against Kite. No troubles there, but him barely being able to break 65% on a character like that meant he had no shot at winning. His next match was against DK in another classic match. These two went at it for the day. It finally took the evening vote for Vercetti to barely pull away for the win. Up next in Vercetti’s path was Mega Man, and that’s where it all ended for him. Vercetti got doubled there, and the casuals cried for days.

Fast-forward to 2004 now. You know, the one with the predictible bracket and one of the ugliest looking divisions we have ever seen. Yeah! Kefka and Vercetti were both in it too; Kefka with a higher seed, Vercetti a lower one. This time, they were both in the same division. Unfortunately, it was Mega’s division. Boy, do I hate that division. Kefka had to face Knuckles in Round 1. Even after his horrible performance last year, a lot of brackets still had him winning the match. Nearly 57% of the brackets had Kefka winning this match. Kefka did look impressive early on, but Knuckles caught up fast and ran with that Sega day vote. In the end, Knuckles won with over 57%. Vercetti had a slightly better year. First he had to face Max Payne. Now we all know how weak Payne is, but Vercetti made Payne actually look…..good. Vercetti failed to break 62% on Max, and then went on to face Zero in Round 2. Goodbye Vercetti. Zero won the match with ease, yet Zero also failed to break 62% on Vercetti. Of course, it’s blurry from there on out because Zero then faced Mega, who went on to face Link and messed everything up.

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Donkey Kong vs. Sam Fisher - Bracket: DK - Vote: DK (16/17)

Now let’s take a little side-story with Kefka as we go into the Spring Contest 2005. I usually wouldn’t bring up the Spring Contest in a Summer Contest analysis, but this match is special. Kefka was given a 1 seed in his division, perfectly titled the “Ruin Division”. Now, we all thought Kefka wasn’t deserving of the 1 seed, but he had such an easy path, he wouldn’t get upset until the 3rd Round. Kefka first beat Mithos, but failed to break 64% on him. Of course, this could mean that Mithos was a lot stronger than we had expected, seeing has how Lloyd and Kratos both got into the Summer Contest. They both received good seeds, but it depends on their Contest Strength. Hopefully I’ll remember to edit some of that information in when the matches pass. Next round, Kefka got his angel sprite in his match against Wesker. That helped him out and Kefka broke 70% on Wesker. He was now looking pretty good to take out Diablo, but that just wasn’t happening. Kefka lost to Diablo with about 46% of the vote. In the end, Kefka ended up with being projected to get 26.73% on Seph. Using those stats, this puts Kefka at 22.99% on 2003 Link, a 2.5% boost up from his extrapolated numbers, and a .24% boost from his Adjusted numbers. Using the 2004 Un-Adjusted stats (because so far this Contest has shown than 20XXDF is non-existant), this puts Kefka right below Tails, who is right below…*surprise surprise* Vercetti!

So, right now the match is predicted to play out in a 51-49% affair. If Kefka can keep up his trend and receive another boost, it might just put him over Vercetti. He only needs another small boost according to the stats, and Kefka’s been getting plenty of Contest experience since his horrible debut in 2003. Vercetti also took a drop in 2004. Luckily for him, San Andreas might give him a much-needed boost, but I doubt it. It’s kinda like saying Geno would get a boost from another Super Mario game, or Link would get a boost from Soul Calibur 3. Vercetti wasn’t in San Andreas at all, so that might hurt his Contest appearance. To make things worse for him, Carl, the star of SA made it in, and bombed against Ness. Carl might be less recognizable than Vercetti, but that’s still not good to have on his resume. Ness is right above an un-adjusted Kefka, but remember, Kefka has boosted since then.

A final thing to look at is the Contest so far. Most of this was written long before the Contest started, so I’ve just updated some things. So far in this Contest, we’ve seen higher vote totals for the big 2 companies, Nintendo and Square. Matches with those two companies break 100K, but matches like Lloyd/Wesker can’t break 85K. This is another good sign for Kefka, as he is Square born and raised. Also, I said before, CJ bombed against Ness, but if Vercetti is stronger than CJ, then it makes no difference. It’s still interesting to point out. In the match picture, Kefka received a further back shot of his pic against Diablo, while Vercetti didn’t get the Hawaiian shirt. Can Vercetti still perform up to par without the Hawaiian shirt?

So yeah, I’m going for the upset. I’m taking Kefka over Vercetti. Combine another Kefka rise with a another Vercetti drop and it could happen. FF6 was once the second biggest FF on the site, and now it is getting some more exposure with Kefka, and now Terra making the Contest. Vice City is a huge game, but FF6 is bigger here (check the Game Contest stats for proof). Now I was on the wrong end of both Halo/Starcraft and Ridley/Diablo, but this time I went with the upset pick, so I hope it pays off now!

Moltar’s Bracket Says: Kefka will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: Kefka: 51% - Vercetti: 49%
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Donkey Kong vs. Sam Fisher - Bracket: DK - Vote: DK (16/17)

Ulti’s Analysis

This is the only match in the entire division that will actually be exciting, if for no other reason than the fact that the board has hyped this match to high heaven. CJ's bombing against Ness has probably caused many a Vercetti fan to lose their faith in his chances, too.

Personally, I think Vercetti will win with relative ease. The big argument for Kefka is that despite Vercetti being stronger in the stats, the GTA fans would abandon Vercetti for CJ come this contest. I don't know about anyone else, but that's about the most ridiculous theory I've heard in awhile. It's on par with saying that Cloud and Squall will be forgotten by their fans once Final Fantasy 12 comes out. Give me a break.

Besides, go look at Ness/CJ for a minute. Those GTA fans sure did back up their new hero, eh? Of course, here's where all of the "But Kefka did so well in the villain contest!1!!" crap comes into play.

First of all, he was in three matches. He performed like crap in the first, was given a horribly unfair picture advantage in the second, and got his ass kicked by Diablo after taking a 300 vote lead to start the poll in a match in which he was the overwhelming favorite to win. Secondly, if you take Kefka's Spring 2005 number and plug it into the 2004 stats, he goes up by a whopping 0.24%.

Massive increase, that. Kefka will probably take the early vote and give the board a four hour boner, then Vercetti will proceed to do what Diablo did. Kefka may do well because of bracket voting, but look at what that did for him against Diablo. Squadoosh.

Prediction: Vercetti with 55.65%



Soul’s Analysis

All joking aside, this is probably the toughest match in the first round, in my opinion. Out of the entire bracket, I only had to change two matches, this one being one of them (Other one being Vincent > Dante).

Both competitors have been in the contest before. Both competitors have been somewhat of a disappointment in the past. Tommy Vercetti always had the edge over Kefka though. In 2003, Vercetti finished 27 places higher then Kefka. In 2004, with GTA: Vice City wearing off, Vercetti finished only 5 spaces ahead of Kefka. Of course, those who only look at the stats will choose Vercetti easily.

Guess again. There's a number of factors that can take place in this match.

1. Will CJ be stronger then Vercetti? If this is true, then Vercetti must have fallen way off the radar.
2. What picture will Kefka get? If he doesn't get his lettuce picture, Vercetti could be in grave danger.
3. Was Kefka's performance in the Spring contest a fluke? With the Spring Results being disregarded so far, there is nothing to show that Kefka has gained.

As you can tell, this match is not so easy. The main thing here will be Kefka's picture. I know most people tend to think that pictures do not matter, and I agree with them, for the most part. There are only 2 competitors where the pictures has made an impact: Snake against Frog, and Kefka against anybody. The proof is that he broke 70% against Wesker in SpC2K5 when he had his angel picture.

Basically, if Kefka gets his angel picture, he has a great shot at "upsetting" Vercetti. If not, then Vercetti has to hope that he didn't lose enough popularity through the years. Basically, this is the first coin flip matches in the bracket, and definitely not the last.

My prediction: Vercetti wins with 50.56% of the vote. As said with Lloyd, congratulations to the winner, you move on to face Crono next round!

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Donkey Kong vs. Sam Fisher - Bracket: DK - Vote: DK (16/17)

Outback’s Analysis

Two jobbers. And yet, we still have the potential for the greatest match in the contest as of yet. Kefka looked strong in the Spring Contest, but those numbers are unreliable. Tommy is no strong competitor either, but he still has had semi-solid showings in the last couple of contests. His strength really is only in question because of CJ's bomb job against Ness. Really, everything points to TV winning. For example:

Kefka 42.54% 35220
Knuckles the Echidna 57.46% 47578
TOTAL VOTES 82798

Knuckles is a midcarder at best, and Kefka struggled to get more than 40 percent.

Tommy Vercetti 38.16% 30775
Zero 61.84% 49875
TOTAL VOTES 80650

Meanwhile, Tommy did a mere 4% worse against Zero, a MUCH stronger opponent then Knuckles. Tommy will win in a close one, but will carry the lead throughout the day, similar to Tidus v. Shadow of last year.

Tommy Vercetti with 51.11%



Inviso’s Analysis

According to Slowflake’s contest stats…this match is supposed to be the closest match of the first round, and is one of the two closest matches of the entire contest. Kefka has been quite weak so far. In 2003, he barely beat Pac Man, before he was completely obliterated by Crono. In 2004, he was beaten soundly by Knuckles. And last spring, he actually won two matches, one against Mithos, a cult RPG character that he failed to double, and another against Albert Wesker, who ended up being one of the lowest characters in the contest, after barely beating a cult character of his own. And after that, Kefka was sent home by Diablo. Tommy hasn’t exactly been that strong either. In 2003, he failed to double a .Hack character before struggling with DONKEY KONG, and then was beaten soundly by Megaman. In 2004, he failed to double Max Payne, and then was beaten by Zero. So now, these two weaklings face off. Now…Kefka can win only if Pac Man is strong than Donkey Kong, and Tommy can win only if Donkey Kong is stronger than Pac Man. It’s gonna be close.

My Bracket: Tommy Vercetti
My Vote: Kefka Palazzo
My Prediction: Tommy Vercetti with 51.23%



Tnote’s Analysis

On paper, the best match of the first round. However, I have a theory regarding Vercetti, which in a nutshell is that he will decrease in contest strength each year. The basis for this belief stems from the fact that GTA is constantly cranking out new games in the series, and as each successive game comes along, its fanbase will care just a bit less about previous titles. Now we have already seen that this does not mean the fanbase will like the characters in the new games, but I just believe that Vercetti, while one of my favorite characters ever (mainly do to the voicing talents of the best actor in Hollywood), is not memorable enough to maintain his peak popularity do to the high saturation of GTA in the market. Additionally, he will be getting no favors from the San Andreas scandal that has broken in the past week, which may mar what otherwise could have been a classic.

Kefka will most likely be getting his lettuce clown picture, which is probably only outdone by Meta-Cecil that got tripled by Kirby. I fail to see why CjayC does not let us submit pictures, but that is neither here nor there. What we do know is that Angel Kefka is significantly stronger than Lettuce Kefka, unless of course you want to believe that Mithos>Lloyd. Kefka wins, but it will neither be exciting nor impressive.

Pick: Kefka with 52.83%


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Donkey Kong vs. Sam Fisher - Bracket: DK - Vote: DK (16/17)

Vlado’s Analysis

This is it. The Flood division's real showdown. It comes in Round 1 and is between two characters that are absolutely sure to get crushed in the next round. But, it can ruin a good number of brackets. At first, I had Kefka winning in my bracket, but I then remembered how he made me lose my spot on the leaderboard on the spring, where I picked him to beat Diablo simply out of hope that he'd prove he wasn't that weak, after clearly knowing Diablo was the favourite... Well, that pick didn't pay off. The board also favours Vercetti and, at the end, I decided to change. I'll be veru happy to lose a point here, though.

Carl Johnson flopped really badly against Ness. The terrible picture and his name being fully written on the poll, instead of just using his initials, influenced the match a lot. If it wasn't for those, he would have probably won. But yeah, the only point me and most of the board lost so far came from that match. So... What does that tell us of Vercetti's chances? They're smaller now? Not really, I'd say. Obviously, the GTA fans prefer Vercetti and that's quite normal. The GameFAQs visitors prefer a sophisticated Italian gangster like him over the ghetto representative that is CJ. I think Tommy will inevitably have dropped a little since last year, but that'll likely still leave him over Kefka's level.

Kefka got stronger in the spring contest. Heck, had his angel picture been used against Diablo, I'm sure we would have also seen him in the Final Four, a place he well deserves. He crushed Wesker so badly with it that we now have another stats paradox - Mithos is stronger than Lloyd. Kefka's popularity has been increasing with every next appearance in the contest. He's a lot like Crono here, except he's much weaker to begin with. Right now, I think he will be very close to Vercetti's level, but I still think that it won't be enough and he will, sadly, lose this match.

Predicted percentage: Tommy Vercetti with 51.75%
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Donkey Kong vs. Sam Fisher - Bracket: DK - Vote: DK (16/17)

after clearly knowing Diablo was the favourite...

...huh? Kefka was. Over RIDLEY, no less.
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SC2K5 status - Points: 016/017 - Matches: 16/17 - Rank: 00981/33793 - Today: DK - Tomorrow: Vercetti

was given a horribly unfair picture DISadvantage in the second

Fixed.

And glad to see I'm the only one predicting a blowout.

~*ST*~
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Winner of the Spring 2004 "Best. Game. Ever." Contest
"If my fate is to be destroyed... I must simply laugh!" -Magus

And glad to see I'm the only one predicting a blowout.

Heh, I'm also expecting Vercetti to win with about 55%. Vercetti is pretty close to Knuckles in strength.
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Summer 2005 Contest - 16/18 points
Current Match Prediction: Kefka vs. Tommy Vercetti

Donkey Kong...........64.76% 56433
Sam Fisher.............35.24% 30708
TOTAL VOTES.....................87141

71.08% of the brackets called this match correctly.

Fisher might have owned the day and night vote, but he didn't own the total vote. DK beats Fisher quite easily, doing only 1% less than what his 2004 numbers predicted. Fisher did manage to take out 29% of the brackets though. Vote totals for this match are sad.

Today, Kefka took the lead from the start, but Tommy is hot on his tail. Kefka peaked at about 1,100 votes, but now is down to around 800. Here's hoping that the clown can hold.

CLOSEST PREDICTIONS

Vlado - 5
Ulti - 3
Tnote - 3
Soul - 2
Moltar - 2
Outback - 2
Inviso - 1

Ulti looked like he was going to get the point, but it fell into Vlado territory.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Kefka vs. Tommy V. - Bracket: Kefka - Vote: Kefka (17/18)

Needing to tag this...
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if you breed a female aipom with a male kakuna, the baby will be an aipom - Y2JosHBKs_Edge

You know what's hilarious? I could get a perfect first round, and not even be in the top half of these standings. God I love Board 8!

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RIP: Tnote827 - 4/4/2005
SC2k5 - 18/18 (empty slots in brackets suck)

Come on Tommy!
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"ertyu is actually a language. For example, 'dum' is ertyunese for 'godly'." - Topaz Kitsune
*Waiting for Guru winner's sig*

Soul, you misspelled Kefka.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Kefka vs. Tommy V. - Bracket: Kefka - Vote: Kefka (17/18)

Flood Division Round 1 - Match 20 – (2)Crono vs. (7)Zidane

Crono
Game/Series Known From: Chrono Trigger
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: 7th (37.43%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 6th (38.14%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 6th (37.18%)
Seed in 2002: 5
Seed in 2003: 4
Seed in 2004: 3
Lost in 2002 to Mario in the Final 4
Lost in 2003 to Mario in the Elite 8
Lost in 2004 to Link in the Elite 8

Crono is strong and consistent. That’s the thing I like about him. He’s also mute, has a sword and looks like a DBZ character. I guess that’s what everyone else likes about him.

Zidane
Game/Series Known From: Final Fantasy IX
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: N/A
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: N/A
Seed in 2004: N/A

Not quite a Black Mage, but still a Final Fantasy IX character.

>.> <.< *DUN DUN DUN*

It’s time for another episode of….CONSPIRIACY THEATHER

Yeah, yeah, it’s me again. This contest is full of conspiracies. There’s so much in fact, it would take me a year to type out all of them. Instead, I’ll just tell you some, and soon, you’ll open your eyes to the rest. You’ll be able to see past the thin wool blanket CJay laid over your eyes. You’ll see past that wool to see the truth behind the lies. Crono vs. Zidane sounds like a Square vs. Square match to me. SFF? Oh yes. Not only does Crono get to SFF his opponent here, but if Kefka makes it out of Round 1, we’ll be seeing a re-match between Crono and Kefka, resulting in Kefka getting SFFed again. Speaking of SFF rematches, if Magus makes it out of his division, and Crono makes it out here, they’ll meet in the Elite 8. You remember how that went last time, and it’s all looking to happen again.

But do you really think that’s it? Ha, you’d be a fool to think it was. Look at what the divisional finals are looking to be. Master Chief vs. Crono. Can you say “Master Chief vs. Frog?” CJayC is obviously trying to get up some kind of MC/Chrono Trigger rivalry. What he plans to do with it? I have not discovered yet. Now, if you haven’t thought Crono’s path through the Contest was fixed enough, this final piece of news will open your eyes. Crono is expected to make it to the Finals, but who awaits him on the other side? Either Samus, or Mario. That’s right, we could be seeing Mario vs. Crono 4 in the Finals of the Contest. Congrats Ceej, you might have tried to thrown us off with no Snake/Knux match, or no FFX/Sonic matches this year, but I can still see right through you…

And that, concludes today’s episode of….CONSPIRACY THEATER

Aliens don’t exist? Who do you think is REALLY running the US? Bush and the governement? They aren’t smart enough for that. Men from Mars? Much more likely.

*DUN DUN DUN*

Another newbie vs. vet match! Will they ever end? This time, Crono takes on Zidane. Zidane would have to be much stronger than Vivi to win this match, and I don’t see that happening. The red-headed wonder wins easily.

Moltar’s Bracket Says: Crono will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: Crono: 78% - Zidane: 22%
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Kefka vs. Tommy V. - Bracket: Kefka - Vote: Kefka (17/18)

Ulti’s Analysis

In the four first round matches in the Flood Division, three of them absolutely suck. One is CATS in his standard fodder spot, one is an SFF affair, one is two old earthworms ****ing, and one is Kefka/Vercetti.

The company cap being removed was nice, but it's caused a lot of the new Square characters to be given the shaft without really being tested. Take Crono/Zidane. Zidane is a character capable of winning a match given decent seeding, but in this contest he was stuck facing Crono in the very first round.

Then again, given Kuja's total bombing in the Spring and Vivi's complete destruction at the hands of Zelda, I highly doubt Zidane will be able to get around the SFF enough for him to actually do anything noteworthy in this match. He MAY not suffer to the extreme that Kefka did due to how far away FF9 is from CT, but that's a big if statement. Kuja and Vivi really don't give me any hope that Zidane will do anything other than turn around and take it hard for 24 hours straight in this match. Kuja is expected to get just under 16% on Crono before SFF. Zidane may be lucky to break 20% in this match.

Prediction: Crono with 83.32%



Soul’s Analysis

Zidane is from Final Fantasy 9. He is the main protagonist. That's right, Vivi is the supporting character for FF9, and manages to be more popular then Zidane.

Crono is from, well, you know. He always does well. You also know that. In fact, he has a great shot to win this contest. You know that. Crono is going to destroy Zidane. Well, umm, maybe, maybe not. Although FF9 is not as popular as other FFs, Zidane could still be pretty strong in the contest.

Of course, it doesn't matter if Zidane is strong enough. Crono will win this match, no matter how strong Zidane is.

My prediction: Crono wins with 70.41% of the vote. Now on to the Devil Division!



Outback’s Analysis

http://www.gamefaqs.com/shared/sum05/b20.jpg

gg

Crono with 74.55%



Inviso’s Analysis

What the crap? Crono has once again been denied a one seed, while Master Chief, Dante, and Kirby all got ones. That just doesn’t make sense. Crono is expected to make final 4 and perhaps final 2 and even go on to win the non-championship bracket. After finally managing to beat Mario and making the first ever beating of a character that you’ve already lost to, Crono has proven to be a big force in the contest. Zidane is his opponent…and Zidane is not Vivi. FFIX is a weak FF game, and Zidane really doesn’t have much of a chance against NON-Square characters, let alone a fellow Square character, from Chrono Trigger, that happens to be noble nine. Poor little tail boy. He loses and FFIX has absolutely no respect for the second contest in a row. After all, if your main villain loses to a hand, then Crono should be able to do so much more.

My Bracket: Crono
My Vote: Zidane Tribal
My Prediction: Crono with 78.94%



Tnote’s Analysis

I hate you CjayC. You take my favorite Final Fantasy protagonist, and you pit him against a character that will SFF to hell and back. Final Fantasy IX receives far too much hate around here, especially given how awesome the mechanics are. Sure, load times suck, but the story is fetch, Kuja is a ridiculously awesome villain, and Vivi is probably the most developed sidekick in the FF series (not including Delita). Sure, he does not hold a candle to either Magus or Frog, which in itself explains how this match will play out. Crono will be making his run to Sephiroth, and it begins here with an utter thrashing of Mr. Tribal.

Pick: Crono with 74.83%
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Kefka vs. Tommy V. - Bracket: Kefka - Vote: Kefka (17/18)

Vlado’s Analysis

I have just started Final Fantasy IX and I really like Zidane. He's about the exact opposite of Cloud and Squall, he's very cheerful and optimistic. Anyway, I'm supposed to analyze his chances here. Well, quite frankly, his chances are non-existent. Crono is, in my humble opinion, the most likely winner of this contest, now that Cloud, Sephiroth and Link are gone. Zidane can do really well, he could even reach Vivi's level if he's lucky, but even that will be far from enough to give Crono the slightest trouble.

I think there won't be much SFF in this match, as FFIX fans really stick to their characters. But, we saw how Kuja did in the spring... FFIX is not strong enough to battle even the weakest characters with casual appeal. Crono has everything on his side - he's one of the strongest in the contest, he has the "cool" factor out of these two and Zidane is a mere debutant, who was given absolutely no chance in this contest just by being put here. I think this match will put Zidane slightly below Kefka's level in the X-Stats. He deserves better and I really hope he'll return next year.

Predicted percentage: Crono with 72.47%

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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Kefka vs. Tommy V. - Bracket: Kefka - Vote: Kefka (17/18)

Kefka..........................48.86% 47920
Tommy Vercetti............51.14% 50165
TOTAL VOTES........................98085

37.66% of the brackets called this match correctly.

What a day... Alright, shorthand for you. Kefka takes lead early. Leads for about 3/4ths of the day. We see Vercetti making some odd stalls at around the x00 vote totals "We called them barriers" The two go 50-50 for awhile, with Kefka making more odd surges once in a while. Kefka then finally makes a suspiciously huge jump (as easy to see as StarCraft's in it's match with SSBM), and Ceej steps in. He removes 1800 votes from Kefka by a guy named George Romero. Vercetti makes a late surge thanks to China, and in the end wins by over 2,200 votes. This would have been damn close if nothing was done, but oh well. 5 minute updates are also back....boo.

Today, Crono is pulling the tripling on Zidane. Nothing too surprising.

CLOSEST PREDICTIONS

Vlado - 5
Outback - 3
Ulti - 3
Tnote - 3
Soul - 2
Moltar - 2
Inviso - 1

Outback is winnar!
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Crono vs. Zidane - Bracket: Crono - Vote: Crono (17/19)

Devil Division Round 1 - Match 21 – (1)Dante vs. (8)Terra

Dante
Game/Series Known From: Devil May Cry
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: 18th (25.02%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 21th (28.23%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 17th (25.49%)
Seed in 2002: 4
Seed in 2003: 4
Seed in 2004: 4
Lost in 2002 to Crono in Round 2
Lost in 2003 to Ryu in Round 2
Lost in 2004 to Sonic in the Sweet 16

Dante got a one seed? That’s a surprise. I mean, even after three straight 4 seeds?

Terra
Game/Series Known From: Final Fantasy VI
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: N/A
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: N/A
Seed in 2004: N/A

Another new FF star steps up to the plate. She however, has a chance to succeed.

Oh, I could just blow off this match. 1 vs 8? No chance for the upset here. But, I didn’t say that when Starcraft was around. I gave Starcraft a chance and dammit, I’m going to give Terra one as well.

Dante is a nice definition of mid-carder in this Contest. Not weak enough to fall in Round 1, but will most likely collapse in Round 2. We however, have no clue about Terra’s strength. She’s a Contest newbie, a 8-seed, and a female to boot. (C’mon, how many elite females have we got around here? Samus.) So if that’s the case, then why are so many people giving her a chance? I’ll show you why.

22.99%. If you don’t remember that percentage from a couple analyses back, I’ll refresh your memory. That is Kefka’s Spring 2005 extrapolated percentage on Link. Convert Spring Kefka into the 2004 Adjusted Stats, and look where he falls.

Dante 25.49%
Tidus 25.35%
Vivi 25.22%
Yoshi 25.22%
Shadow the Hedgehog 24.94%
Knuckles 24.94%
Tommy Vercetti 24.17%
Kefka 22.99%

“But Moltar!” You scream, “What does that have to do with anything?” Well, look at other hero:villain ratios. Mario to Bowser, Crono to Magus, Solid to Liquid, Link to Ganon. What do they all have in common? The hero is much stronger than the villain. The only case thus far that go against this is Cloud to Sephiroth, and that’s because FF7 is so big, both characters can have separate fanbases here at GameFAQs. If this pattern continues, Terra could likely beat Dante. She would only have to be 2.5% higher in the stats then Kefka for it to work, and hero/villain gaps are usually much larger than that.

However, here’s where I believe the flawed logic comes in. If Terra were to be that strong, she’d be near top-tier. If she ends up 5% higher than Kefka, she ranks around Alucard and Bowser. If she ends up 7% higher, she ends up right under Snake and above the Frog/Chief/Liquid trio. 10%? Why hello there Magus and Sonic. Do I see Terra-Kefka working out like a Cloud-Sephiroth or, to a slightly bigger extent, Crono-Magus (no-SFF)? No, I honestly don’t. When I think of top-tier FF heroes, I think of Cloud, Squall and Tidus. I don’t think of others like Cecil, Zidane or Terra, they’re more lower class to me. Hell, the only FF6 characters I knew before I came to GameFAQs were Kefka and Ultros. We all know Ultros is weak while Kefka is a bit above him. We’ve also seen Cecil bomb against Kirby, and Kefka lose to Vercetti. I see Terra ranking below Kefka, and Dante beating her with ease. Kefka (Spring 2005) would be projected to get 45% on Dante, just in case you’re wondering.

Moltar’s Bracket Says: Dante will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: Dante: 61% - Terra: 39%
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Crono vs. Zidane - Bracket: Crono - Vote: Crono (17/19)

Ulti’s Analysis

Ah, the Devil Division. Possibly the hardest division in the contest. It kicks off with a match that seems obvious, but isn't. Standard 1-8 blowout, right?

Eh, maybe not. To greatly shorten an extended argument, a lot of people think that Terra can win due to the general hero:villain relationship. Kefka is projected to score 41.62% on Dante in the 2004 stats, and most hero:villain relationships are much farther away than 58.5-41.5. It's a good argument, but the issue with it is that I believe Terra functions a bit differently.

Even among the most hardcore FF6 fans, no one can decide on who the most popular character is. FF6 also functions differently from most RPGs in that even though Terra is the main character, not all of the attention is focused on her. It's split very evenly among almost 20 characters, and there are several long times in the game where Terra is not even in the party. Terra also suffers from not being a popular archetype; she is a girl who doesn't act like a slut nor does she act strong until very late in the game. She's just... kinda there, and most of the game is spent watching her tell of her past until she overcomes it. This may work for FF6 fans, but in the eyes of a casual voter, I doubt they'll appreciate Terra's character enough for her hero:villain gap with Kefka to be very large. Terra also has to worry about Dante just having gotten DMC3 under his belt, which lessens her already dim upset chances.



.....or you could just take one look at Kirby/Cecil, realize that Terra will not be getting a sprite in her match pic and use some common sense. If she does anything other than get her ass whipped, I'll honestly be stunned. Cecil, Ultros, and Kefka all bombed like hell in their first contest appearances. Terra will likely be no different.

Prediction: Dante with 58.01%



Soul’s Analysis


The hardest division kicks off with one of the weakest 1 seeds ever. Dante, although badass and one of my personal favorites, does not deserve a 1 seed in this contest. I guess he was mass-nominated so we can get a Kirby Vs. Dante match. Maybe next year folks. Maybe next year...

As said before, this is the hardest division to predict, as only two matches are for certain who the winner will be. Those two being Magus > Knuckles (sadly) and Squall > Geno (sadly). This would probably be the easiest hard match to predict in this division.

Terra is the main character from Final Fantasy 6, and will most likely be no push over. Dante is a midcarder, who will most likely receive a boost from Devil May Cry 3. Dante has the experience going for him and he has had a new game come out since the last contest. So on paper, he should be able to beat Terra quite handily.

That could be the case, although, Terra is one of those new characters who potentially can be pretty strong. And if she does manage to be pretty strong, she could be able to beat Dante. I mean, she is the only protagonist from Final Fantasy 6 in the contest, so she would be able to get most of the fanbase votes...

Well, the only other character from FFVI who was in this contest was none other then Kefka. Kefka has basically defined underperformance in these contests. With almost losing to Pac-man and getting humiliated by Crono, he has become an absolute joke. In fact, I bet most of the vets from Board 8 would think of Kefka anytime they see some lettuce.

So, the only indication of what Terra would get in this contest is from Kefka. That is not comforting, to say the least.

My prediction: Dante wins with 63.72% of the vote. DMC3 = PS2 Game of the Year. Remember that.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Crono vs. Zidane - Bracket: Crono - Vote: Crono (17/19)

Outback’s Analysis

A couple of brave souls around here have actually picked Terra to win this match. However, FFVI is just not that strong, characterwise. First, Kefka is extremely weak compared to the power of his game. Second, Terra is only ARGUABLY the main character, and might not get the same support that other FF leads get. Thirdly, people who know neither Dante or Terra will most likely vote for Dante, and Fourthly, Dante has DMC 3, which should give him at least a little increase.

Dante with 58.32



Inviso’s Analysis

Dante is a one seed…which balances out ertyu’s hatred for Kirby’s one seed. And yet, even with that one seed, Dante is the one seed most likely to lose in the first round. This isn’t to say that he WILL lose. It’s just a combination of his weakness and Terra’s strength. Anyway, Terra’s from FFVI, which as a game, has proven to be strong, but its characters thus far have lost to Knuckles, Diablo, Crono, and have struggled with Pac Man and Mithos. Terra will definitely get a boost not only from being Final Fantasy, but from being from Final Fantasy VI, but this definitely won’t be an upset of any kind. Devil May Cry 3 came out recently and gets a lot of praise, plus Dante is just more mainstream. So, sorry Terra. Try again next year maybe.

My Bracket: Dante Sparda
My Vote: Dante Sparda
My Prediction: Dante Sparda with 58.96%







Tnote’s Analysis

Kirby – 75%
Cecil – 25%

Whoa… what was that sound? Ooh yeah, it was the Terra bandwagon careening into a tree, bursting into flames and then erupting into a mushroom cloud. Not saying they are attached at the hip, but after seeing how poorly Kefka, Ultros and now Cecil have performed, I think we need to just accept that fact that 32-bit FF characters just are not cut out for popularity. The large cast will not help Terra, as it is difficult to fall in love with any one character in FFVI because there are just too many to keep track of.

I finally picked up DMC, and while I may be adding ‘worst DMC player in the Midwest’ to my already illustrious ‘worst MGS player in the Midwest,’ it is no fault of Mr. Sparda. The opening scene in DMC is freakin’ amazing, and has kept my interest despite my many attempts to die with reckless abandon. Dante has to keep alive his streak of ‘worst character to win at least one match in every contest’ and will have no trouble here. Dante is a bit weaker than Kirby, and Terra should be a bit stronger than Cecil (and has to have a significantly better picture). Probably will not reach a doubling, but it will be close.

Dante with 65.83%



Vlado’s Analysis


It's rather hilarious that some people think Terra has a shot here... I mean, get serious. A year ago, I thought Terra was a better FFVI representative in the contest than Kefka, but I don't think she's even as strong as he is now. The villain contest certainly helped him, and I'm sure that the stats will prove that Kefka is stronger than Terra, though they'll probably be fairly close.

No matter how we look at this, Dante has it. He was a good deal stronger than Kefka last summer, and Devil May Cry 3 came out since then. He will only have gotten stronger, I think he can even be above Sora in this year's stats and could come close to Auron. Anyway, the real test for him will be the battle against Vincent in Round 2, which will be a reality check for the FFVII character, after his easy first round match against Kerrigan.

Terra... Well, not much to say about her. She's my favourite out of the playable characters in FFVI and I think her appearance here is well deserved. But, her chances are non-existent. We saw how Cecil did against Kirby, and we all know that Dante > Kirby, as ertyu's teachings say. Sure, Terra will be stronger than Cecil, but, the most she can do here is avoid getting doubled. I expect her to be near Ness' level.

Dante with 64.36%

32-bit FF characters just are not cut out for popularity.

I'm well aware that's a mistake, but it's just flat-out hilarious.
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SC2K5 status - Points: 018/019 - Matches: 18/19 - Rank: 00149/33793 - Today: Crono - Tomorrow: Dante*
*w/ account on the line

tag
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http://tinypic.com/9bj249.jpg | My game collection: http://users.ign.com/collection/MailedFission

Crono..................76.72% 74580
Zidane................23.28% 22636
TOTAL VOTES...............97216

89.87% of the brackets called this match correctly.

After the craziness of Kefka/Vercetti, this match was quite ignored. It wasn't anything special or unexpected though. Crono easily tripled Zidane, like most thought. Shame Crono couldn't get 90% of the brackets on his side though.

Today, Dante is owning Terra's face hard. Could it be the power of Danta, or is Terra just that weak?

CLOSEST PREDICTIONS

Vlado - 5
Moltar - 3
Outback - 3
Ulti - 3
Tnote - 3
Soul - 2
Inviso - 1

Alright, a point for me! I call this match the closest.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Dante vs. Terra - Bracket: Dante - Vote: Dante (18/20)

Devil Division Round 1 - Match 22 – (4)Sarah Kerrigan vs. (5)Vincent Valentine

Kerrigan
Game/Series Known From: Sratcraft
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: N/A
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: N/A
Seed in 2004: N/A

Kerrigan finally gets in a Contest, thanks to Board 8 and some outside support.

Vincent
Game/Series Known From: Final Fantasy VII
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: N/A
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: N/A
Seed in 2004: N/A

Vincent also finally gets in the Contest, thanks to Heroic Mario’s flavor of the week.

Oh, the fun in the Devil Division never ends. From one controversial, highly debated match to another. Two characters that got massive board support this year go at each other.

“Kerrigan vs. Vincent? This is going to some easy points for me! Kerrigan all the way!”

Billy, hold on a minute. Are you sure you want to go with Kerrigan?

“Yep! Kerrigan = Starcraft = Blizzard, while Vincent is nothing but an optional character!”

Wow, I’ve heard that argument a bunch, but never without typos, butchered words, extra exclamtion marks and proper grammar before. You’re right on some things though. Kerrigan is from Starcraft, which was made by Blizzard. Blizzard does have quite the legacy in these Contests too, with Starcraft in 2004 and Diablo last Spring. Vincent is also an optional character in FF7. But do you really think Kerrigan will be as strong as Starcraft?

“Well…um…”

Most people who play Starcraft play for the multi-player, which Kerrigan isn’t a big part of. Now, I’ve never played Starcraft before, so I don’t know how important Kerrigan is in the main story, so I don’t want to say too much before I look like a fool. While Starcraft is big on this site, there’s a bigger game, and it’s called Final Fantasy 7. The biggest game on this site. Vincent might be an optional character in the game, but c’mon. This is GameFAQs! I’m willing to bet over 90% of the people who come here and have played FF7 fully know who Vincent is, and have either gotten him or heard of him.

“So…what does this mean?”

It means, Billy, while Kerrigan might be from Starcraft, which was strong. Games =/= characters. Kerrigan won’t be as strong as Starcraft. Then again, Vincent won’t be as strong as FF7, but we already know 3 FF7 characters are strong. Cloud and Seph have only lost to Link, and Aeris has lost only to Snake and Sonic, in pretty close matches as well. Will Vincent be as strong as Aeris? Probably not. But he won’t be weaker by a lot either.

“Thanks Moltar, now I know what to do!”

And knowing is only half the battle, my child.

Moltar’s Bracket Says: Vincent will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: Kerrigan: 35% - Vincent: 65%



Outback’s Analysis

I really know absolutely nothing about this match. Neither does anybody else. Don't let them tell you that they do. Because they don't. I'm guessing that Vincent's FFVII ties will get him over Kerrigan, despite how strong StarCraft is at rallying (and cheating, for that matter).

Vincent with 56.44%

Ulti’s Analysis

Of all the debates first round matches, this is one of the biggest n00b traps. Slap BLIZZARD on anything, and people are automatically scared of it due to Starcraft and Diablo's performances.

I could make a long writeup detailing how Diablo is far more popular than Kerrigan due to him having the same name as his game, or due to his series being more popular than Starcraft in America, or due to him appearing in Diablo multiplayer while Kerrigan is nowhere to be seen in Brood War multiplayer, but I doubt anyone would listen. People are picking Kerrigan left and right, and are completely forgetting about common sense.

Kerrigan would not only have to be more popular than Diablo to have a chance at beating Vincent, but she would have to be able to beat him with over 60% of the vote. I highly doubt that she could do such a thing, and the people saying that Vincent isn't popular or well-known are out of their damned minds and completely out of tune with the FF7 fanbase. While I believe that this contest will prove Tifa > Aeris > Vincent to a degree, Vincent isn't nearly far down enough to be threatened in this match. I'd be stunned if Kerrigan did so much as break 40% on him. I'm dead serious.

Prediction: Vincent with 62.45%



Soul’s Analysis

Just before we get to this bracket buster, I'll just give off a few facts:

1. Starcraft shocked the hell out of everyone in the first Spring Contest but lost to SSBM.
2. FF7 won the Spring Contest.

Now that that is said, I would like to never hear people assume that Kerrigan will win just because of that contest.

Ok, so we're on the verge of seeing probably the best match of this contest, or a big flop. Basically, it's the fans of two very popular games on GameFAQs. Of course, FF7 is more popular by a longshot, but Kerrigan is the main character from Starcraft, while Vincent isn't. Vincent is actually optional.

I'm going to tell you my pick right now. Vincent is going to win.

1. As said before, the FF7 fans will back anything from their game. Sure, he won't be at Cloud's or Seph's levels of popularity, but to think he will be significantly weaker then Aeris is a big mistake. He will perform around Aeris' level, book it.

2. B.Net voters are a myth. It's completely fictional and should never be used as a point for Starcraft/Starcraft characters to win. The maximum voters from B.Net will be 100, and I seriously doubt it's going to be that high. Think about it for a second here. You're playing Starcraft with your friends online. Some kid comes to your game and tells you to vote in a online poll from a website you've rarely heard of. What would you do? Stop the game and vote or continue playing?

3. Vincent's optional status does not matter. At all. Seriously people, this is GameFAQs we're talking about here. People come here and stay here to find out these types of things. Are you seriously telling me that a game that's been out for 8 years and has been in the top 50 FAQs pages for as long as it came out that people won't know who Vincent is? Please, stop kidding yourself.

Basically, I'm going all in with the FF7 fanbase. It should be a great match no matter what the outcome.

My prediction: Vincent Valentine wins with 50.24% of the vote.

Inviso’s Analysis

In 2004, Starcraft was perhaps the biggest upset of contest history. It, as a 16 seed, beat Halo, Kingdom Hearts, and Wind Waker, before being taken down by Super Smash Brothers: Melee, in a close match. One year later, Diablo, as a lowly 7 seed, managed to make the final four by going through Ridley, M. Bison, and Kefka. Now, after two contests, I’ve learned not to underestimate the power of Blizzard. Kerrigan is the biggest and most well known character from Starcraft. She’s an easy lock for round t…wait a minute…her opponent…is from Final Fantasy VII. In case you didn’t already know, FFVII is the biggest game of Gamefaqs, bigger than Ocarina of Time, bigger than Counter Strike, bigger than Diablo. Hence the dilemma. You see, Vincent is not a required character in the game, but he is relatively popular. He even has his own game coming out soon. So it’s him against the vote rallying power of Blizzard, and in theory, this match could go either way.

My Bracket: Sarah Kerrigan
My Vote: Vincent Valentine
My Prediction: Vincent Valentine with 57.45%



Tnote’s Analysis

Kerrigan will get walloped. Yeah, you read that right. She can have as many vote-stuffing Koreans as she wants, a crappy villain with basically no semblance of likability or badassness will prove to be nothing more than fodder in this contest. If Vincent does not break 60% on this clown, he has no shot at Dante next round. Kerrigan will prove to be much less popular than Diablo, and I think the almost-not-playable Vincent would dispose of the devil (not the possibly crying one) with little difficulty.

I do not think that Vincent will not be horribly strong in this contest year, but I do believe he should able to make a run at Dante, which does make him well above fodder, but below the lofty expectations some have set for Square’s newest poster boy. After he gets his Dirge of Cerebus title he should be knocking on the door of top 15 material, but until then I expect him to flutter right around the top half of the second third of the 67 characters, and once this contest ends, we can finally set up the correct inequality, which I have always known to be Cloud>Sephiroth>Aeris>=Tifa>Vincent>everyone else.

Pick: Vincent with 60.83%

Vlado’s Analysis

So much controversy and stuff... All for nothing. Seriously, I can't understand why people think this will be close... I guess everyone's psyched because of StarCraft's excellent performance last spring and Diablo's (easily predictable) wins in the villain contest. Well, get this: Kerrigan is not Diablo. She will not come even close to his popularity. And hell, Vincent would even beat Diablo without much trouble. So, get this. This match won't be nearly as exciting as people expect it to. I don't expect Kerrigan to have the lead even in the very beginning. Vincent will lead all through the match and win in a convincing fashion.

Anyway, let's look at each character's chances. Kerrigan will rely solely on StarCraft fans, AND those who actually know of her existence. We know more than well that people play StarCraft for the multiplayer, and even some hardcore fans aren't familiar with Kerrigan. So, she won't get anywhere near the support StarCraft got. Sure, she'll also get some anti-FFVII votes, and some bracket votes (since there will inevitably be not-so-bright people who will have picked her), but those will be far from enough for her to do anything. I don't know whether vote rallying will come into play for her or not, so the percentage is not really easy to predict, but I'd say she can't break 45% even WITH vote rallying. I expect her to be about as strong as Viewtiful Joe, probably a little stronger.

Vincent is expected to do a lot in this tournament and the first match is but a means to measure his actual strength. His win is out of doubt and, should he double Kerrigan, I think we'll be in for something really impressive from him. People are really pathetic when they try to defend their choice sometimes. I've seen people say that Vincent wouldn't get anywhere near the full FFVII support, since he's an optional character. Seriously, do you know ANYONE who's a FFVII fan and DOESN'T know about Vincent?! That's right, such people DON'T exist. And if they do, they sure as hell don't visit GameFAQs. Yes, GameFAQs. Anyway, I expect Vincent to not only win this, but also upset Dante in the second round. Though, when you think about it, it won't really be an upset. I think Vincent will be stronger than Aeris was, and that he and Tifa will be quite close in this year's stats. I still hope Tifa does better than him, of course. I believe Vincent can be around Squall's level, with some luck he can even be above it. Which makes him VERY strong, and I'd say Magus has a reason to be really worried.

Predicted percentage: Vincent with 65.75%.

I'm not liking all of this love for Vincent. Here's hoping that thousands of Koreans mysteriously hear about the contest and vote in extremely large numbers.
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Like Darth Maul, the bastard child of Michael Flatley and Hellboy. -trancer1

I'm not liking all of this love for Vincent. Here's hoping that thousands of Koreans mysteriously hear about the contest and vote in extremely large numbers.

We're fully expecting that, and we know that those votes will be the only thing she got, plus some board 8 love obviously.

With vote totals in excess of 90k, or even 100k for popular Square chars, Kerrigan will need much more than that to avoid a doubling.

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Reserved for the winner of the SC2K5 Guru Challenge.

Oh, Kerrigan never stood any real chance. And her match pic was the final nail in the coffin.

I fully expect a doubling now.
---
Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Dante vs. Terra - Bracket: Dante - Vote: Dante (18/20)

Ouch with all the Kerrigan hate...Soul is the only one of you with a soul. I hope tomorrow shows he's also the only one of you with a clue.
---
Hail to the Queen of Blades.

After looking at Kerrigan's pic, she isn't breaking 40% tomorrow.
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Summer 2005 Contest - 19/21 points
Current Match Prediction: Sarah Kerrigan vs. Vincent Valentine

Dammit. I made a post in the stats topic last night and hinted that I wanted to change my Kerrigan pick for this topic to 70%. If I were to do that, would it piss off anyone else?

I suppose I'd have to ask Vlado, since he was the only one with enough sense to go high. BRB.

~*ST*~
---
Winner of the Spring 2004 "Best. Game. Ever." Contest
"If my fate is to be destroyed... I must simply laugh!" -Magus

Bah, he's not on AIM. Assuming everyone else agrees, I want to change my pick to Vicnent winning with 70.01%.

~*ST*~
---
Winner of the Spring 2004 "Best. Game. Ever." Contest
"If my fate is to be destroyed... I must simply laugh!" -Magus

I think 70% is a bit too high for Vincent, but he'll definitely break 60%.
---
Summer 2005 Contest - 19/21 points
Current Match Prediction: Sarah Kerrigan vs. Vincent Valentine

I don't think predictions should be allowed to be changed after they're posted. If you were allowed to change, then someone else would want to change, etc. Plus, all of the predictions were done before we could see the picture, so it wouldn't be fair.
---
*** Support Tifa Lockheart in the Summer Contest 2005 ***
Thanks to everyone who helped her get in!

Alright, no big deal. Though this isn't a recent thing, as I did post that I wanted to change in the stats topic last night. Oh wellz.

~*ST*~
---
Winner of the Spring 2004 "Best. Game. Ever." Contest
"If my fate is to be destroyed... I must simply laugh!" -Magus

I think Moltar should have the final say on this, however. At any rate, not everyone would get the chance to change, so I just don't think it would be right.
---
*** Support Tifa Lockheart in the Summer Contest 2005 ***
Thanks to everyone who helped her get in!

Vincent with 63%, yeah I'm just throwing that out there.
---
149/300 Battle Trophies collected in Star Ocean 3
Supporter of Squall Leonhart in the Summer 2005 Character Contest

At any rate, not everyone would get the chance to change, so I just don't think it would be right.

Exactly, so don't even worry about it.

~*ST*~
---
Winner of the Spring 2004 "Best. Game. Ever." Contest
"If my fate is to be destroyed... I must simply laugh!" -Magus

IDK...this might be the review crew pick's "CJ" of the devil division.

The theory was, "CJ=GTA! CJ=hot coffee! CJ=softcore pornography!!!1111fordfocus!!!1"

That was my theory too, and yet we watch Ness win out. I feel that not only will Kerrigan defeat Vincent, but she will go on to claim the division title. However, this division is pretty darn weak, and I'm certain that any of these guys will get trounced by the Flood Division.
---
"I ish the Weedle...who shall evolve to Beedrill, and kick Butterfree's arse!"

Magus is in the top 10 of every contest he's been in. Squall is usually 13th. Dante and Vincent should not be too far off. Knuckles is a bit under Dante.

This division is stacked with strong characters.
---
"ertyu is actually a language. For example, 'dum' is ertyunese for 'godly'." - Topaz Kitsune
*Waiting for Guru winner's sig*

You guys WAY overestimated Kerrigan's strength

---
...he loves dancing, on the other hand. What is art if not... girls in skin-tight, translucent outfits heaving and grinding onstage? - Lava

I think Moltar should have the final say on this, however. At any rate, not everyone would get the chance to change, so I just don't think it would be right.

I didn't want to change it either. He asked me if he could change it right after I posted, and I was skeptical, so I told him he could post it in the topic. Think of it as a moral victory though!

You guys WAY overestimated Kerrigan's strength

Along with 98% of the board. At least none of us had her winning, because that would be just embarassing.
---
Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Kerrigan vs. Vincent - Bracket: Vincent - Vote: Vincent (19/21)

Dante..................71.5% 69379
Terra..................28.5% 27652
TOTAL VOTES................97031

88.33% of the brackets called this match correctly.

Wow, we actually thought Terra would perform decently, and instead she gets blown out by Dante. No one really DOES care about old-school FF characters. Dante also had a crapload of brackets on his side.

Today, Kerrigan also shows that Games =/= characters. People might like StarCraft, but Kerrigan is getting owned.

CLOSEST PREDICTIONS

Vlado - 5
Tnote - 4
Moltar - 3
Outback - 3
Ulti - 3
Soul - 2
Inviso - 1

Tnote had the highest Dante pick, and gets the point.
---
Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Kerrigan vs. Vincent - Bracket: Vincent - Vote: Vincent (19/21)

Tag
---
SSBM. Rock rock on!

Well, looks like EVERYONE overestimated Kerrigan (me more then others >.<). Oh well, 3 points lost in the first round so far. Let's just hope Dante can beat Vincent to keep me from losing any more points.
---
Like Darth Maul, the bastard child of Michael Flatley and Hellboy. -trancer1

Devil Division Round 1 - Match 23 – (3)Magus vs. (6)Knuckles the Echinda

Magus
Game/Series Known From: Chrono Trigger
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 9th (34.93%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 22nd (22.47%) Adjusted Value:9th (32.57%)
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: 13
Seed in 2004: 6
Lost in 2003 to Link in the Sweet 16
Lost in 2004 to Crono in Round 2

Magus finally gets the seed he deserves. I mean, 9th ranked in the Contest clearly doesn’t deserve a 13.

Knuckles
Game/Series Known From: Sonic
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: 15th (27.68%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 24th (26.47%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 24th (22.44%) Adjusted Value: 28th (24.94%)
Seed in 2002: 7
Seed in 2003: 8
Seed in 2004: 10
Lost in 2002 to Snake in Round 2
Lost in 2003 to Snake in Round 2
Lost in 2004 to Snake in Round 2

Knuckles not facing Snake in Round 2? Oh, it got worse my friend.

What was it Ceej? Was it the gliding? Was it the stealing your emeralds? Was it the emerald hunting stages? What was it that made you want Knuckles to suffer year after year in these Contests? The first 3 years he gets Snake in Round 2, and now he has Magus right off the bat? Wow, the Sonic team as a whole is looking bad. Robotnik bombing in the Spring, no Shadow, no Tails, Knuckles out early. At least Sonic is looking to get far.

Anyway, this match should be closer than most people are going to expect, but Magus should have no worries losing here. The Black Wind howls through.

Moltar’s Bracket Says: Magus will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: Magus: 59% - Knuckles: 41%



Ulti’s Analysis

It's a foregone conclusion that Magus will win this match, but the true purpose of this match will be to FINALLY see whether or not Magus is overrated by the stats. Long story short, a few Squall fans are skewing the stats in Squall's favor in every way imaginable to prove that Squall will be able to defeat Magus in the second round, when they have to do little more than state that Squall is a new Square hero while Magus is an old Square side character. But more on that when the time comes.

As for Magus/Knuckles, if Magus wants to validate his 2003 strength, he needs to break 62% in this match. If he wants to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that he can and will beat Squall, he needs to break 59% or more. That's a lot of room for error, but not much if you go by the 2003 stats (Squall's strongest year).

The sad thing about all of this is that Knuckles is my favorite Sonic character. It sucks to see him out in the first round for the first time ever, though if I HAD to pick a character that Magus was going to lose prematurely to, I'd pick Knuckles. Knux is awesome. Unfortunately, one of my favorites has to go out in their very first match.

Prediction: Magus with 63.25% (I know I'll likely overshoot this, but it's MAGUS; would you expect anything less from me? =p)



Soul’s Analysis

This match makes baby Jesus cry. Not only does Knuckles get out in the first round for the first time, he gets out by Magus. Now, I'm not bashing Magus because I actually think he's a pretty good character, but it's freaking Knuckles! Yeah, ok, I'm a Knux fanboy and I hate the fact that he was placed in an unwinnable place. I'll get over it in a year or two, so don't worry.

Anyways, back onto the match. As said earlier, there is no way that Knuckles could win. Magus is just too powerful to overcome. Magus defeated Ganondorf. Magus could possibly beat Solid Snake. Knuckles, well, can get 40% on Snake.

My prediction: Magus wins with 61.34% of the vote. Are you happy Magus fans? ARE YOU?!? *cries in a corner*



Outback’s Analysis

I hate Chrono Trigger.

Magus with 62.33%

Inviso’s Analysis

God, CJayC just finds more and more ways to screw Knuckles every year. Putting him against Yuna, and giving him the lower seed against Kefka, just to have him face Snake in the second round three times in a row. And now he’s not even going to get to win a single match. He’s facing Magus, who, in my last analysis, I said was top 12 material. He’s sadly going to have his way with poor Knuckles. Sonic’s gonna be the only character with any hopes of representing the Sonic series this time around, since Ceej snubbed both Shadow AND Tails, and gave Knuckles the equivalent of a 12 seed in the regular contest. How is it that Knuckles has gone from a 7 seed, to and 8 seed, to a 10 seed, to a 12 seed, after having never lost in the first round…EVER? It’s just not right. Hopefully the red echidna can hold his own and avoid ending up like Gordon in 2003.

My Bracket: Magus Zeal
My Vote: Knuckles the Echidna
My Prediction: Magus Zeal with 62.77%



Tnote’s Analysis

Barring a miracle, Knuckles will finally lose to a character who is not Solid Snake. Barring a statistical upset, Magus will be getting plastered for the second straight year in the SFF fest against Crono. The day vote actually will be fun to watch, as Knuckles is THE king of the day vote, and Chrono Trigger characters have always had trouble ‘winning’ the day vote. Look for Magus to jump out to 60%+ out of the gate, only to have Knuckles shave 5% off of it during the middle 12 hours. Magus will finish strong, and ultimately dispose of the echidna in yet another boring match. Bring on Luigi/KOS-MOS!!

Pick: Magus with 58.27%



Vlado’s Analysis

Magus vs. Knuckles the Echidna

This is a really cool division, isn't it? We have 5 Square characters, and just one of them will be really weak (Geno). Every indication points at 3 of them making it to Round 2 and 2 of them actually meeting in the finals. Knuckles had a bad draw here... In EACH other division, his chances of winning Round 1 would have been much bigger with his 6th seed. So, we'll lose one of the strong contestants here, while losers such as Lloyd Irving and Tommy Vercetti made it to Round 2... Oh well.

Knux is a contest veteran with quite some scalps hanging on his waist. In 2002, he obliterated Akira Yuki, in 2003, he owned Yuna in a pretty good style and in 2004, he beat Kefka. Solid Snake is his bane, though. In all three contests, Knuckles had to face him and, inevitably, lose. Well, this time at least he gets to lose against another opponent. And Magus is quite close to Snake's strength, so we can expect a rather similar result. To reiterate, it's a shame Knuckles will lose so early.

Magus is the favourite to win this division to everyone who's at least somewhat familiar with the X-Stats. Dante's a laughable top seed, almost as laughable as Kirby, and Squall has proven to be weaker than Magus. I think that Magus will have gotten even stronger than the previous years, as Chrono Trigger seems to constantly rise in popularity. And this time he's not facing Crono until Round 4 and this gives him a chance to truly shine, getting three wins. This will be the first one and this one is certain. His match against Squall will be somewhat of a test, the one against Vincent shouldn't be all that harder, but I think exactly Vincent's the one who can stop him, should the FFVII character live up to his potential in this contest. Anyway, Magus has this.

Predicted percentage: Magus with 62.30%.

I'm still crying over here, btw. This match is so horribly wrong on all accounts!
---
"ertyu is actually a language. For example, 'dum' is ertyunese for 'godly'." - Topaz Kitsune
*Waiting for Guru winner's sig*

The Analysis Crew got

PWNED! by Knux
---
Got DS?

More like Magus got PWNED! by Knux.

And I am loving every second of it.
---
Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Magus vs. Knuckles - Bracket: Magus - Vote: Knuckles (20/22)

Can somebody here explain this travesty?
---
"Let's mosey"
Summer Contest Score: 20/22, Predicted Winner: Crono

Can somebody here explain this travesty?

GameFAQs finally acquired good taste, because the better character is winning.

>.> *runs from Magus fans*
---
Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Magus vs. Knuckles - Bracket: Magus - Vote: Knuckles (20/22)

I honestly can't. It makes no sense, and no stats indicated it even remotely possible. I could understand 55/45, but this is just crazy. How the hell has Knuckles become so strong? Or has Magus just gotten much weaker? What could the reason be?
---
*** Support Tifa Lockheart in the Summer Contest 2005 ***
Thanks to everyone who helped her get in!

I think we won't fully know the answer until Knux vs. Squall or Sonic vs. Luigi/Tifa
---
"Let's mosey"
Summer Contest Score: 20/22, Predicted Winner: Crono

One must wait until the end of the day before passing judgment.
---
No

Even if Magus wins, it won't be anywhere near 55/45. So this is a bizarre match no matter how you look at it.
---
*** Support Tifa Lockheart in the Summer Contest 2005 ***
Thanks to everyone who helped her get in!

And of course, the Frog and Crono matches. I have my theories, but they seem totally out-of-left field.
---
If you like the Contests, visit: www.rpgdl.com
Fanfiction Project (FFP): http://boards.gamefaqs.com/gfaqs/genmessage.php?board=8&topic=22391968

[This message was deleted at the request of the original poster]

I'm surprised that Knuckles has this many votes to begin with, let alone be leading Magus. Considering CT is one of the more popular pre-FF7 era RPGs, and Magus being the really cool villain in that game, I'd think Magus could easily have taken 60 on Knuckles...

Although to be fair, I was never a Sonic fan, so I wouldn't know how many of them exist :(

Hopefully Magus can pull through in the second half of the day, but it's not a big deal since I never made a bracket XD
---
No

The day isn't over, wait and see.

Let's see if Knux wins, or if Magus gets the expected votes. We'll just need to see.

---
VIVA LA REVOLUTION!
Don't ask which, just go with it.

You know, we've never really seen Knuckles in action. Snake always kills him second round. Knuckles could just be this strrong.

---
SC2k5: 21/22 (Curse you Ness!)
Today: Magus vs. Knuckles

You know, I've never read a single one of these topics until today. An upset is always just so freaking hilarious.
---
There may no be I in "team", but there's one in "win."

tag

Oh these analysis get funnier everyday something surprising happens.
---
"I dont know what I am talking about? I know more about gaming than 90 percent of the users on the internet." -xmagxus

I have Knux going to the quarter-finals in my bracket :D

Which, if I'm not mistaken, Magus could've very well done.
---
"Disperse, loyal battle monkeys! Do my bidding and bust a cap!" - Zetta
(Select)

Yay for me ignoring the "experts" and having Knux win the division. :)
---
This sig does not change until the Chicago Bears make the playoffs *started 6/14/2005*

Wow... I, as well as the Contest Crew, severely overestimated Magus and underestimated Knux...
---
Married to PepsiPlunge June 01, 2005: HERO'S PLUNGE

Sarah Kerrigan...................21% 21058
Vincent Valentine...............79% 79200
TOTAL VOTES..........................100258

75.77% of the brackets called this match correctly.

Well, it's hard to believe this match got any debate. Vincent destroys Kerrigan like she was Gordon Freeman. Kerrigan took out 25% of the brackets, but damn. Vincent looks like a beast. Also, the match broke 100K!

Today, the greatest upset in GameFAQs history is happening. Very, very few expected Knuckles to actually beat Magus, but it looks like it's going to happen. Could Knuckles very well take the division?

CLOSEST PREDICTIONS

Vlado - 6
Tnote - 4
Moltar - 3
Outback - 3
Ulti - 3
Soul - 2
Inviso - 1

Vlado had the highest Vincent pick, even though he was off by like, 13%.
---
Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Magus vs. Knuckles - Bracket: Magus - Vote: Knuckles (20/22)

This is NOT the biggest upset in contest history. I direct your attention towards Spyro vs Morrigan, SC2K2. That was a blowout which defied all logic.

---
...he loves dancing, on the other hand. What is art if not... girls in skin-tight, translucent outfits heaving and grinding onstage? - Lava

Well, I'll amend my last post. This may bust more brackets, but it still won't take the top spot in my book.

---
...he loves dancing, on the other hand. What is art if not... girls in skin-tight, translucent outfits heaving and grinding onstage? - Lava

Yeah, I guess I should have said "one of"

Still, it's an amazing one. No one in the BOP, Oracle or Guru had Knuckles winning. And the only brackets I know with Knux winning are favorites.
---
Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Magus vs. Knuckles - Bracket: Magus - Vote: Knuckles (20/22)

I can't believe I haven't TAGged this yet...
---
A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger. -Proverbs 15:1

Devil Division Round 1 - Match 24 – (2)Squall vs. (7)Geno

Squall
Game/Series Known From: Final Fantasy VIII
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: 20th (24.36%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 16th (31.72%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 19th (22.92%) Adjusted Value:17th (29.58%)
Seed in 2002: 15
Seed in 2003: 6
Seed in 2004: 4
Lost in 2002 to Sonic in Round 1
Lost in 2003 to Samus in the Sweet 16
Lost in 2004 to Cloud in the Sweet 16

From 15th seeded, to 2nd seeded. Also, look at that jump from 2002 to 2003 in his strength. Looks cool.

Geno
Game/Series Known From: Super Mario RPG
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: N/A
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: N/A
Seed in 2004: N/A

Newcomer Geno has made the Contest after years of whining. Now you finally get to see him get squashed!

Well…yeah. Another one of these matches. Hmm…I don’t have anything witty or clever to say either, so-NO ONE EXPECTS SOUL CALIBUR 2 QUOTES PUT TOGETHER TO SOUND WRONG!

I've been waiting for this day for too long!
Are you ready?
Well then, let us dance!
You're a feisty one!
I had more fun than I thought I would!
You still want more?
Haha. This rod will be your doom!
Taste my pain!
AHHHHHHGH!!!
Resisting only prolongs the suffering.

Squall wins, now excuse me, but Taki on Cassandra action is calling.

Moltar’s Bracket Says: Squall will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: Squall: 71% - Geno: 29%



Ulti’s Analysis

In the entire Devil Division, this is the only match that sucks. It's an SFF affair, and Squall will likely SFF Geno's ass into oblivion. This is like the polar opposite of the Flood Division; every match but one division in the Flood Division sucks, yet every match but one in the Devil Division is awesome. Strange and ironic that it will end the same way.

By the way, should Squall SFF Geno into oblivion, his chances against Magus will look awesome as he will prove that he'll be able to SFF a secondary Square character from a popular SNES title.

Prediction: Squall with 71.17%



Soul’s Analysis

Squall is the main hero from FF8. Geno is a sidekick to Mario in Super Mario RPG.

Squall has made every Summer Contest, and has proven that he is very powerful. Geno has never made a contest.

I'm going to make this short and sweet. Geno has no chance to survive make his time.

My prediction: Squall wins with 75.87% of the vote. SUPER MARIO RPG LOST?!?!?!??!?!111!1



Outback’s Analysis

I have no idea what's going on, so the only reason I'll be analyzing the rest of the way is to make me feel better about my picks. Tomorrow is a lose-lose situation, either Geno loses or I lose a point in my bracket.

=(

Squall with 66.67%
---
Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Magus vs. Knuckles - Bracket: Magus - Vote: Knuckles (20/22)

Inviso’s Analysis

In this match, we have Squall Leonhart, who was not snubbed this year (to those of you who understand that, thank you for reading my failed 2006 contest boardfic) up against Geno, from the cult Super Mario RPG. Now, I realize that Street Fighter 2 is pretty popular and SMRPG beat it, but it had Mario in the title, and hence, it was going to win no matter what. Geno on the other hand…is not Mario. He’s not even close. People who’ve never actually played Geno will not know who he is. People who go to Gamefaqs will definitely know Squall, be it for bad reasons or good. He’s been in contests before, is from a relatively popular Final Fantasy game, and made a guest appearance as both an ally, and a boss in Kingdom Hearts. Basically, he’s Final Fantasy, he’s going to win. Geno’s Nintendo fanbase basically only comes from the fact that his game is Super MARIO RPG…and that won’t be mentioned in the actual poll. Meanwhile, his Square fanbase will be too buys voting for Squall to care.

My Bracket: Squall Leonhart
My Vote: Squall Leonhart
My Prediction: Squall Leonhart with 84.15%




Tnote’s Analysis

Squall Leonhart vs. Geno

Yet another very boring potential SFF fest. Geno, like Zidane, has been clamored for for a number of summers now, and his ultimate inclusion comes at the hands of another Square character. I wish Geno would have drawn a character like Vercetti or DK, because many might be inclined to take Geno. But I know better. His thrashing at the hands of Squall will be attributed to some RPG SFF, when realistically it should be attributed to his cannon-fodder status. Homeboy probably has issues with Ansem.

Squall made quite the splash a few years ago, when I was merely following the contest and not frequenting the boards. Even I, the front-page bracketeer, was screaming ‘OMGWTFBBQ over Luigi!?!’ But now I know better, and if Squall slapped up 60% on TJF Jill, he should have no difficulty doubling Geno.

Pick: Squall with 68.27%



Vlado’s Analysis

Okay... Who the hell nominated Geno?! I don't think we needed to see him here. Sure, he's a fun character and most SMRPG fans like him, but he'll get owned really badly here. When I think of Geno I can't help remembering his first round match of The RPG Character Contest (which took place on Board 8), where he was a top seed and faced the 16th seed Ramza. Even bracket voting couldn't save him from losing there, and it was a hilarious sight to see, especially since I was one of the two or three to predict Ramza would win. Anyway, Geno will be very weak here. He'll get owned badly, probably not as badly as Yuri Hyuga, but I still don't see a chance of him avoiding a tripling. Even with the expected Squall anti-votes, that have been becoming less and less every next contest. I believe Geno will be one of the weakest this contest, I'm pretty sure he'll place below Cats in the X-Stats, especially after Cats' impressive performance against Master Chief. SMRPG beat Street Fighter II, but Geno will be FAR from his game's popularity.

Squall can't really do much in this contest, can he? Sure, he'll get a nice, big win against Geno, but that's it. I doubt many are foolish enough to think he'd beat Magus, though I've seen some on the board... Well, their loss. Squall will most likely have kept his 2004 level, I doubt he'll have increased or dropped with more than half a percent. He'll win this one with ease, but I don't see him going anywhere after that.

Predicted percentage: Squall with 80.22%.

---
Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Magus vs. Knuckles - Bracket: Magus - Vote: Knuckles (20/22)

tag
---
http://tinypic.com/9bj249.jpg | My game collection: http://users.ign.com/collection/MailedFission

By the way, should Squall SFF Geno into oblivion, his chances against Magus will look awesome as he will prove that he'll be able to SFF a secondary Square character from a popular SNES title.

Let's all give this a big, ol' Hindsight LOL!

---
...he loves dancing, on the other hand. What is art if not... girls in skin-tight, translucent outfits heaving and grinding onstage? - Lava

"That was a blowout which defied all logic."

Duh, TJF!
---
Summer Contest Score: 21/22
Today's Pick: Magus (but voting for Knux! ^_^)

Knuckles > Devil Division > Board 8
---
Summer 2005 Contest - 20/23 points
Current Match Prediction: Squall Leonhart vs. Geno

Crappy Metal Gear Solid parody below; MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS!







*Magus stands in front of the extrapolated standings*

Magus: Okay, all I have to do is throw this in... *pulls out a wrench*

Magus: *does so*

*alarm goes off*

*Codec rings*

Schala: Hahahahaha! Thank you, Magus! You've sealed your own fate!

Magus: What the hell do you mean?!

Crono: Magus! Schala was found dead in Zeal Palace today! Apparently someone jumped on her head, causing her to explode and release a small animal. I think it was a squirrel or something... Lucca's still looking at it...

Magus: Since when the hell can you talk?!

Crono: *completely ignores question* Anyway, Magus, this whole time you've been talking to...

Schala: *removes hair band, allowing "her" hair to fall*

Knuckles: Me! And I thank you once again!

Magus: Damn! The red dreadlocks should have been an indication!

*Magus escapes from the death trap and confronts Knuckles*

Magus: Knuckles! Why did you pose as my sister?!

Knuckles: All the better to manipulate you. I needed support in order to beat you, but I couldn't get an adequate supply thanks to previous contest results, so I needed someone to throw a wrench into the extrapolated standings. Who better than you, the one whom I shall destroy? Ahahahahaha!

Magus: What do you want?!

Knuckles: I've been held back by Solid ****head for three years running. This was going to be the year in which I would finally prove to the world that I could defeat him. But the Great Bracketmaker was fed up with my failure. He reduced me to the level of apparent fodder. The only reason I'm in this contest is for your statistics. They were planning to use my downfall to gauge your net gain or loss in strength. You stole my chance for revenge! But now I shall rise up beyond my extrapolated ranking and turn organized contest data into unadulterated chaos! Solid Snake is nothing! I will surpass him! I will destroy him!

*Knuckles goes Super using the chaos emeralds*

Magus: Well, ****.

*Knuckles is about to rip Magus in half*

*Melchoir leaps in and saves Magus*

Melchoir: Ah! My back!

Magus: Old Man Melchoir!

Melchoir: There's a name I haven't heard in a while. It certainly sounds better than Tidus.

Magus: But you called yourself Deepthroat earlier...

Melchoir: I know that. I'm just saying that Tidus is an unusual name to have. I mean, what kind of parent names-

Magus: Melchoir!

Melchoir: Oh, right. Tell you what. I'll stop him from moving.

Magus: Melchoir!

*Knuckles uses the Super Emeralds to go Hyper*

Melchoir: Well, ****. *dies*

*Codec rings*

Crono: Magus, bad news. A popular vote back here is leaning toward destroying everything within a half-mile raidus of you and Knuckles.

Magus: What? A poll among the staff?

Crono: Actually it's the Poll of the Day at GameFAQs.

Magus: ...

Crono: That's my line, you bastard! Now- *sounds of a struggle* Take your hands off me! I didn't kidnap the goddamn princess!

Lucca: Oh my God! Magus!

Magus: What happened?

Lucca: Crono, he-

Frog: I'm in charge now! It's time to resort to the only way to resolve any problem: massive bombing! Have fun in hell!

*A giant frog comes out of the sky, nearly killing Magus and badly hurting Knuckles*

Magus: Must... save... data... *contacts Lucca*

Lucca's Codec Frequency: Hello. No one is available to take your call. Please leave your name and number at the tone.

Magus: ****. *dies*

Knuckles: Squall, I'm coming for you!!!

Later...

CATS: Yes, sir. Entire unit wiped out was. Standings fail to predict starting to correctly. Square characters die soon. All part of your master plan Alucard make some time. Ha ha ha ha! *hangs up phone*


5 seconds later...

Gordan Freeman: So, does this mean...

Leon Kennedy: No, you still die.
---
"If I had a dollar for every time Spongebob annoyed me, I'd have one dollar. He's just one unceasing continuity of annoyingness." -my friend

Magus...........................49.14% 50153
Knuckles the Echidna...........50.86% 51909
TOTAL VOTES......................102062

35.08%of the brackets called this match correctly.

An upset no one saw coming? An upset that which no guru, oracle or BOP picked? An upset so big that hasn't been witnessed since Squall/Luigi. This is it. Knuckles defeated Magus. It was close, but he did it. 35% of the brackets had it correct to, and I'm assuming they are mostly favorites. Good job GameFAQs.

Today, Squall is tripling the SMRPG star, and that's pretty much it...yep.

CLOSEST PREDICTIONS

Vlado - 6
Tnote - 4
Moltar - 3
Outback - 3
Ulti - 3
Soul - 2
Inviso - 1

No points today because no one called the winner correctly. Shame on us.
---
Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Squall vs. Geno - Bracket: Squall - Vote: Geno (20/23)

XD
---
You got stoned

Doctor Clarinet wins.
---
Everyone has the right to be wrong.
25th/125 in the Guru Rankings.

"Strange and ironic that it will end the same way."

ECKS DEE'd
---
HaloKiller: Gamefaqs user who got owned in the span of two posts.

I find it interesting that in the UNADJUSTED 2k4 stats, Magus and Knuckles were .03% off. If you account for voter base changing, Its easy to see where Knuckles came from.

Magus didnt get SFFed by Crono after all. I mean, Cloud and Sephy dont get SFF'd, and Crono and Magus is a similar case. and the .03% diff, in the unadjusted stats could easily change into a Knuckles victory.
---
Happiliy married to Wiggumfan267 on Valentines day, 2005. "My Father? You mean my Dad?" Fei Fong Wong

I love doing these analysis, so Im going to start doing these things...for the rest of the contest >_>;

Now If only someone can tell me how to bold letters...

KoolAidShoto's Analysis for Tommorow

Sonic(Sonic the Hedgehog series)
vs
Jin Kazama(Tekken Series)

Now, this is a pretty simple one to start off on eh? Jin Kazama isnt even that popular in the Tekken world anymore thanks to his combat changes after T4, so this is definately NOT gonna be any kind of upset. His dad, a arguebaly more popular character, got beat in 2k2 and has yet to make an encore apperence. Sonic is Top Tier in this contest, and looking out how good Knucks did(even though its going against my bracket, I voted for knucks and Im glad he won ^_^), people are spectlating how well Sonic is gonna do against Mega Man. In all reality, I have no idea why anyone even needs to speclate this one. Two blowouts in two days. This is just a tes to see how high off the diving board Sonic is gonna go towards Mega Man.

KoolAidShoto's prediction - 68.45 percent(he needs it to have any chance against MM)
---
HaloKiller: Gamefaqs user who got owned in the span of two posts.

I find it interesting that in the UNADJUSTED 2k4 stats, Magus and Knuckles were .03% off. If you account for voter base changing, Its easy to see where Knuckles came from.

You could also use Magus's matches against Fisher and Luca to show that Knuckles was closer to him that we thought. The hints were all there, but no one picked up on them.

And it's good to see other people posting here for a change. =D
---
Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Squall vs. Geno - Bracket: Squall - Vote: Geno (20/23)

From: Doctor Clarinet | Posted: 8/11/2005 2:09:04 AM | Message Detail
Later...
CATS: Yes, sir. Entire unit wiped out was. Standings fail to predict starting to correctly. Square characters die soon. All part of your master plan Alucard make some time. Ha ha ha ha! *hangs up phone*

5 seconds later...
Gordan Freeman: So, does this mean...
Leon Kennedy: No, you still die.

That was the funniest thing I've seen in weeks. Thank you, good Doctor.

I'm one of the 5% of the people who picked Knuckles, that wern't trying to do a favorites bracket *is happy*

Cloud over Link still remains as the biggest upset ever.

~*ST*~
---
Winner of the Spring 2004 "Best. Game. Ever." Contest
"If my fate is to be destroyed... I must simply laugh!" -Magus

As said before, if Knux keeps up his winning streak, then my zero bracket will look better then my perfect bracket.
---
"ertyu is actually a language. For example, 'dum' is ertyunese for 'godly'." - Topaz Kitsune
*Waiting for Guru winner's sig*

Cloud over Link still remains as the biggest upset ever.

What?!
---
*** Support Tifa Lockheart in the Summer Contest 2005 ***
Thanks to everyone who helped her get in!

He means the lowest bracket support. Only 9% or something like that had Cloud winning.
---
"Let's mosey"
Summer Contest Score: 20/22, Predicted Winner: Crono

Heh. I'm glad that some people enjoyed my little parody. Just keep in mind that I was half asleep when I wrote it.

And, even in terms of general statistics, Cloud beating Link in 2003 was the biggest upset. In 2002, Cloud lost to Mario. Mario proceeded to get pulverized by Link in the finals.

So, I assumed that Cloud was about as strong as Mario, who was much weaker than Link.

Then 2003 came along. The influence of Kingdom Hearts was apparent. Squall beating Luigi was the first big shocker to me. Then Cloud beat Sonic by a much greater margin than I had anticipated. I went into denial, saying that Link could also have done that to Sonic. Sonic was clearly weaker than he was in 2002 (since his only "major" release since that contest was Sonic Adventure DX). Or so I thought. The next day, Sephiroth beat Mario much more soundly than I had expected. It made it seem as though Sephiroth was as strong as Link. But I rested easy, thinking that Sephiroth was stronger than Cloud. I mean, Sephiroth did better against Link than Mario did, right? And Mario, even without Planet Gamecube's help, was about as strong as Cloud, right?

I remember when I saw the poll that day. All I could say was "Holy. Crap."
---
"If I had a dollar for every time Spongebob annoyed me, I'd have one dollar. He's just one unceasing continuity of annoyingness." -my friend

CJ: PWNED
Magus: PWNED

You're next, Tifa and Yoshi!
---
"Disperse, loyal battle monkeys! Do my bidding and bust a cap!" - Zetta
(Select)

Chaos Division Round 1 - Match 25 – (1)Sonic vs. (8)Jin Kazama

Sonic
Game/Series Known From: Sonic
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: 5th (41.05%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 10th (34.92%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 7th (33.56%)
Seed in 2002: 1
Seed in 2003: 2
Seed in 2004: 1
Lost in 2002 to Samus in the Sweet 16
Lost in 2003 to Cloud in the Elite 8
Lost in 2004 to Samus in the Elite 8

Sonic once again gets enough noms to be a 1-seed. Yet you people don’t nominate Shadow with him…I swear.

Jin
Game/Series Known From: Tekken
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: N/A
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: N/A
Seed in 2004: N/A

Oh boy…I wonder which group banded together and nominated this guy.

Some traditions just don’t end. Ever since 2003, Sonic has had to take on a fighting game character in Round 1. First it was Ken, then Terry, and now Jin. Sonic is like…the fighting game character killer.

Jin is probably going to turn out the weakest of the fighters. I mean, at least people knew who Terry and Ken were. This guy just walked into the Contest field from out of nowhere.

Moltar’s Bracket Says: Sonic will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: Sonic: 83% - Jin: 17%



Ulti’s Analysis

(Special note from Ulti: due to me having to take care of a bunch of wedding stuff, my analyses are going to be very lax and short until the end of August, possibly even later. Sorry in advance.)

The only point of this match is to see if Jin is stronger than Terry Bogard. I doubt that he is.

Prediction: Sonic with 87.15%



Soul’s Analysis

Blue Streak, speeds by.
Sonic the Hedgehog!
Too fast for the naked eye.
Sonic the Hedgehog!

As you can tell, this is an obvious match from the get go, and doesn't need much analysis. When people wonder "who the hell you are and why are you in this contest", it doesn't bode well for your chances of
winning. Then, match that up with facing Sonic, one of the strongest in this contest.

Basically, you're screwed. Jin Kazama, meet the contest. Don't let the door hit you on your way out.

My prediction: Sonic wins with 81.23% of the vote. Sonic Vs. Megaman sure looks to be good right about now...



MasterMage’s Analysis

Sonic vs Jin. I'd say that this match is an obvious call from the get go, but after what's happened so far, I'll avoid saying anything is certain. Still, Sonic should easily destroy Jin. Kazama is from the Tekken series, a member of the fighting genre. What this basically translates to, is that Jin will be just as disrespected as every other fighting game character not from Street Fighter. To give a point of reference, Kayuza Mishima weighed in at getting 14% against Link in 2K2. I don't see why Jin should be too different. Sonic wins easily... As easily as anyone can win this year.

Projected winner: Sonic with 80.73%
---
Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Squall vs. Geno - Bracket: Squall - Vote: Geno (20/23)

Inviso’s Analysis

Finally, we’re back to the one seeds that DESERVE one seeds. His opponent is Jin Kazama, the third and final fighting game representative in the contest. Jin has had a recent game out Tekken 5, which, like quite a few of the more mainstream characters in the contest, has gotten very good reviews. But good reviews aren’t going to help him. Kazuya Mishima, Jin’s father, couldn’t go anywhere in 2002, and like father like son, Jin won’t either. Sonic though, has not been that strong recently, and is even the second weakest of the noble nine. Jin has the potential to avoid a blowout, but he’s definitely going to get at least a doubling.

My Bracket: Sonic the Hedgehog
My Vote: Jin Kazama
My Prediction: Sonic the Hedgehog with 69.14%



Tnote’s Analysis

Sonic got to face a niche fighting character last year who I shockingly have actually heard of, and performed the sweet, sweet quadrupling. This year, he draws a fighting character I have never heard of. I will be floored if Jin>Terry.

Pick: Sonic with 84.83%



Vlado’s Analysis

Let me be honest with you here. I don't know who the hell Jin Kazama is. While I enjoy the fighting genre, Tekken is one of the series I know the least about. But that doesn't really matter here, does it? First, props to the Tekken fans for being able to get their favourite in the contest. I, of course, would have enjoyed seeing Ling Xiaoyu here, instead, but oh well. Anyway, my lack of knowledge about Tekken will not prevent me from analysing Jin's chances, or lack thereof, in this tourney.

A quick look at the past contests tells you one thing - Street Fighter characters are the only fighting game ones that have any chance of doing good. Yeah, Scorpion is an exception, but he faced such ridiculous opposition on his way to Link in 2002, that it's not even worth commenting on. And, as he faced Link, he couldn't even avoid getting tripled. Pathetic. I doubt Jin will make an exception, and the name of his opponent isn't helping his cause much. He'll get the support of the Tekken fans... And that's about it. Sure, there will be some Sonic anti-voters, but they won't be many. And, with Knuckles' shocking win against Magus, people surely expect a lot from him and, especially, Sonic now. I expect Jin to be quite weak, around Terry Bogard's level, at most.

I don't think I must say anything about Sonic yet... This match will not even tell us anything about him. The bout against Diablo is the first that will give us an idea of his strength this year.

Predicted percentage: Sonic the Hedgehog with 81.12%.
---
Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Squall vs. Geno - Bracket: Squall - Vote: Geno (20/23)

Squall Leonhart..........74.84% 74412
Geno........................25.16% 25022
TOTAL VOTES......................99434

89.12% of the brackets called this match correctly.

Even a great bracket percentage couldn't help 3 perfects falling off the leaderboard after this match. Geno avoids getting tripled, but doesn't do much more than that. Squall wins this match easily.

Today, Sonic is dissappointing a little against Jin. He's rapidly increasing his percentage at the moment though, so let's see if he can end up with something better.

CLOSEST PREDICTIONS

Vlado - 6
Tnote - 4
Soul - 3
Moltar - 3
Outback - 3
Ulti - 3
Inviso - 1

Soul makes a nice Squall pick and gets the point.
---
Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Sonic vs, Jin - Bracket: Sonic - Vote: Sonic (21/24)

I want to see Kratos Aurion win, for many reasons.

1. If he loses, I cannot win the contest.
2. I'll be elminated from the Guru contest, when I'm in 11th place.
3. I'll move up to 3rd palce in the Guru contest if he wins.
4. I like him better.
5. I want all of your Diablo>Kratos predictions to be screwed over.
6. I want lots of brackets to be screwed over even more.

---
SC2k5: 21/23
Today: Squall vs. Geno

Well, sorry, but there's no way he wins. Unless Diablo has dropped like mad for a couple of months, which I find unlikely.
---
*** Support Tifa Lockheart in the Summer Contest 2005 ***
Thanks to everyone who helped her get in!

Chaos Division Round 1 - Match 26 – (4)Kratos Aurion vs. (5)Diablo

Kratos
Game/Series Known From: Tales of Symphonia
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: N/A
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: N/A
Seed in 2004: N/A

Lloyd got in with a 2 seed, but the ToS fans spread the love to Kratos as well, and he gets a 4.

Diablo
Game/Series Known From: Diablo
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: N/A
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: N/A
Seed in 2004: N/A

Alright Diablo, you might have owned in the Spring Contest, but this is the big league now.

http://www.gamefaqs.com/poll/index.html?poll=1997 – Kefka/Mithos
http://www.gamefaqs.com/poll/index.html?poll=2015 – Kefka/Diablo

More Spring Contest polls! Yay! I less than 3 recent polls that make my analyzing job so much easier. As you can see in the polls, Mithos scored over 36% on Kefka. Kefka then went on to lose to Diablo with nearly 46%. So, Diablo > Kefka > Mithos.

“But Moltar!” You scream, “What does that have to do with Kratos?” Mithos and Kratos are from the same game. Mithos is the villain, while Kratos…uh….yeah. All logic points to Kratos being stronger than Mithos, but strong enough to take out Diablo? I’m not sure.

Diablo would get around 66% on Mithos using the stats. If you like 2004 numbers, Diablo is about 8.5% higher than Mithos. That’s pretty of room for Kratos to make up, but he can do it. Unfortunately for him though, I see Lloyd ranking right around Knuckles (just over Spring Diablo). But hey, when Lloyd/Wesker rolls around, I’ll have even more to say about this, since we have so much info about the relationships between Mithos, Kefka, Wesker and Diablo. For now, I’ll just say that Diablo will win.

Remember when I said I’d have more to say after Lloyd/Wesker rolls around? I do. Lloyd won’t be ranking anywhere around Knuckles, because Knuckles is a winner, while Lloyd can only get 55% on Wesker. That puts Lloyd way below Kefka, Mithos, and most importantly, Diablo. Kratos is going to need to hope that the ToS fans prefer him a lot more than Lloyd, because this could be ugly.

Moltar’s Bracket Says: Diablo will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: Kratos: 40% - Diablo: 60%



Ulti’s Analysis

(Special note from Ulti: due to me having to take care of a bunch of wedding stuff, my analyses are going to be very lax and short until the end of August, possibly even later. Sorry in advance.)

Given Lloyd's bombing against Wesker, I doubt Kratos has a chance in this even if he is stronger than Lloyd is. The board just overestimated TOS, I suppose.

Prediction: Diablo with 58.88%



Soul’s Analysis

Kratos Aurion is from Tales of Symphonia, an RPG for the Gamecube. Diablo is from the Diablo series on the PC.

This match looks somewhat tough on paper. But, it actually isn't. Basically, Diablo would beat Wesker with around 65%+ (If Kefka's pic had anything to do with his win over Wesker). Lloyd, the main hero from ToS, only got 54% on him. Kratos would be weaker or on par with Lloyd. Since Diablo could beat Lloyd, he's going to beat Kratos.

Diablo 2 also got a new patch out recently, so expect a boost from him. He also his kickass picture. Diablo is going to win.

My prediction: Diablo wins with 68.56% of the vote. Not even death can save you from me! - Diablo.



Outback’s Analysis

1. http://www.gamefaqs.com/poll/index.html?poll=2069

2. http://www.gamefaqs.com/poll/index.html?poll=2015

3. http://www.gamefaqs.com/poll/index.html?poll=2009

I know this isn't a valid analysis, but I didn't want to write anything.

Diablo with 54.67%

Inviso’s Analysis

Ah, the badass of Tales of Symphonia is here. That’s like being a little kid at Neverland Ranch. It just doesn’t belong there. Kratos is from ToS, which again, is a cult RPG that managed to get two characters in based solely on the fact that it’s new, it’s on the Gamecube, and Board 8 loves it. His opponent is Diablo, who made final 4 of the spring villains contest, after triumphing over Kefka. The best way to explain how this match is going to go is by using that contest as an example. Kefka beat Mithos, the ToS villain, he may not have been able to double Mithos, but he still got about 10% higher (that is…they’re both about 10% away from the 50% mark). Diablo then went on to beat Kefka. Now, Kratos would have to be able to make up those 10% in order to beat Diablo, and that’s something I just don’t think he could do, since Kratos IS still cult. The match will be closer than Kefka vs. Mithos, but Diablo will still win.

My Bracket: Diablo
My Vote: Diablo
My Prediction: Diablo with 56.52%



Tnote’s Analysis

Diablo handled Kefka, who broke 60% on the Tales of Symphonia villain, a villain who has an actual personality and character, unlike Lavos or Sin. Kratos would be very hard pressed to be enough ahead of his game’s villain to pull in more votes than the Lord of Terror. If you put any worth into the Lloyd/Wesker match, in relation to the Kefka/Wesker match (which I personally do not), there is not a scenario in the world that would give Kratos a prayer of upending Diablo. Angel Kefka obliterated Wesker far more than Clown Kefka would have, however there is not enough contest strength in Wesker to lead me to believe Lloyd is strong enough to give Kratos a shot at Diablo. Yeah, try comprehending that.

Pick: Diablo with 55.83%



Vlado’s Analysis

Well, especially after Lloyd's match, I doubt there are many who are still not sure about the winner here. One can be absolutely sure that Lloyd is stronger than Kratos, as the main character of his game, unless they have a Tidus-Auron relationship stats-wise, and even Tidus and Auron are quite close lately, though Auron is and will surely always stay the more popular one. Well, as we saw, Lloyd is just a bit stronger than Wesker, and Kratos will be below Lloyd's level. That tells me that Kratos would be around Wesker's level, however, the stats we have on Wesker so far are flawed, due to his unrealistic loss to Kefka in the spring.

So, I can only guess what Kratos' level will really be, but I can sure as hell say that he's not coming anywhere close to beating Diablo. Sure, Blizzard took a huge hit when Kerrigan got obliterated by Vincent, but, seriously, who didn't see that coming? Sure, I didn't expect such a huge margin, but I did expect Vincent to win with ease. Simply because Kerrigan is not anywhere near as popular as her game, or even Diablo.

He, however, proved that he's a force to be reckoned with in the spring. He won three matches, against Ridley, M. Bison and Kefka, all three being weak, but still not fodder opponents. He then lost to Ganondorf, but avoided getting doubled, and proved that it wasn't just the weakness of his opponents so far that got him to the semis. While he'll stand absolutely no chance against Sonic, I believe he'll still be around his level from the spring - more than enough to beat Kratos.

Predicted percentage: Diablo with 62.15%.

No offense intended, but I must ask...why is Inviso on the crew? I'll wager it has much more to do with being a woman than with being a good analysist.
---
"Siiiiiinging in the rain, I'm siiiiiiiiinging in the rain!"

She actually won the analysis crew competition last contest.
---
*** Support Tifa Lockheart in the Summer Contest 2005 ***
Thanks to everyone who helped her get in!

Not questioning her due to lack of victories, it's just that I don't see her post in the S&D topics too often, was wondering how she got onto the crew in the first place?
---
"Siiiiiinging in the rain, I'm siiiiiiiiinging in the rain!"

I don't post there, either. She knows more than enough about the contest, trust me.
---
*** Support Tifa Lockheart in the Summer Contest 2005 ***
Thanks to everyone who helped her get in!

It was a 4-way tie last contest. Inviso, Outback, Moltar and I all got the same thing. We were all invited back this year.
---
"ertyu is actually a language. For example, 'dum' is ertyunese for 'godly'." - Topaz Kitsune
*Waiting for Guru winner's sig*

I see.
---
"Siiiiiinging in the rain, I'm siiiiiiiiinging in the rain!"

Did you actually read her write-ups here, btw?
---
*** Support Tifa Lockheart in the Summer Contest 2005 ***
Thanks to everyone who helped her get in!

Did you actually read her write-ups here, btw?

Like the one where she said that Sonic deserved a one seed, then predicted he would pull in 69% against Jin?
---
"All pretty girls are a trap, a pretty trap, and men expect them to be."
MasterMage119

Your point? Jin is a newcomer.
---
*** Support Tifa Lockheart in the Summer Contest 2005 ***
Thanks to everyone who helped her get in!

Yes, I did. She justifies her pick well enough, and then predicts a crazy, far-fetched %

>_>
---
"Siiiiiinging in the rain, I'm siiiiiiiiinging in the rain!"

I don't see anything all that far-fetched.
---
*** Support Tifa Lockheart in the Summer Contest 2005 ***
Thanks to everyone who helped her get in!

From: Vlado | Posted: 8/12/2005 9:31:58 PM | Message Detail
Your point? Jin is a newcomer.

A newcomer from a fighting game that practically no one on this site cares about.
---
Summer 2005 Contest - 22/25 points
Current Match Prediction: Kratos Aurion vs. Diablo

Far-fetched? Please, nothing beats my crazy predictions. I mean, 91% for Sora over 47? I still have no clue how those numbers popped up there.
---
"ertyu is actually a language. For example, 'dum' is ertyunese for 'godly'." - Topaz Kitsune
*Waiting for Guru winner's sig*

You can come out of "defender" mode, nobody is attacking Inviso >_> I just asked the question out of curiosity, as I hadn't seen her around much, and find her predictions questionable. But if she finished on top last year, she obviously deserves her spot.
---
"Siiiiiinging in the rain, I'm siiiiiiiiinging in the rain!"

A newcomer from a fighting game that practically no one on this site cares about.

Morrigan beat Spyro and stuff.
---
*** Support Tifa Lockheart in the Summer Contest 2005 ***
Thanks to everyone who helped her get in!

Morrigan beat Spyro and stuff.

See: Scorpion vs. Kazuya Mishima.
---
Summer 2005 Contest - 22/25 points
Current Match Prediction: Kratos Aurion vs. Diablo

Hadn't seen her around much? She's easily one of the most active people on the board. You probably just don't open the topics where she posts.
---
*** Support Tifa Lockheart in the Summer Contest 2005 ***
Thanks to everyone who helped her get in!

Because Scorpion is an RPG character, right?
---
*** Support Tifa Lockheart in the Summer Contest 2005 ***
Thanks to everyone who helped her get in!

Because Scorpion is an RPG character, right?

You know that a character sucks in this contest when SCORPION can break 70% on him.
---
Summer 2005 Contest - 22/25 points
Current Match Prediction: Kratos Aurion vs. Diablo

From: TheKoolAidShoto


Now If only someone can tell me how to bold letters...


type in <b> to start, and then put </b> at the end of whatever you want bolded.

It's so easy to speak when all is said and done, isn't it? By your logic, I bet you would have predicted 85 or so percent in Sonic's favour. Well, as you can see, you would have been farther from the truth than she is now.
---
*** Support Tifa Lockheart in the Summer Contest 2005 ***
Thanks to everyone who helped her get in!

It's so easy to speak when all is said and done, isn't it? By your logic, I bet you would have predicted 85 or so percent in Sonic's favour. Well, as you can see, you would have been farther from the truth than she is now.

No, I actually had around the 83% range, making him close in strength to Terry Bogard. It's about 7% off, which is about how far Inviso was off. But a 69% is insane. That would place Jin about 7% away from Dante, which is above (or near) the VFL.
---
Summer 2005 Contest - 22/25 points
Current Match Prediction: Kratos Aurion vs. Diablo

*84% range
---
Summer 2005 Contest - 22/25 points
Current Match Prediction: Kratos Aurion vs. Diablo

It's how close you are that counts.
---
*** Support Tifa Lockheart in the Summer Contest 2005 ***
Thanks to everyone who helped her get in!

I've been pretty close quite a few times, someone else is always closer though >_>. Plus, the Sonic pic was actually decent. If I'd adjusted it after Knuckles' win, then I'd probably be getting a point right now.
---
"Nobody knows the trouble I've seen. Nobody knows but Jesus."-Grif
"Shut the hell up Grif!"-Church

Why is it better to overestimate a character rather than underestimate Draco? If we're both wrong by about the same percent, how come your prediction is any more logical than mine?
---
"Nobody knows the trouble I've seen. Nobody knows but Jesus."-Grif
"Shut the hell up Grif!"-Church

Why is it better to overestimate a character rather than underestimate Draco? If we're both wrong by about the same percent, how come your prediction is any more logical than mine?

Because 69% puts Jin above the VFL.
---
Summer 2005 Contest - 22/25 points
Current Match Prediction: Kratos Aurion vs. Diablo

VFL?
---
"Nobody knows the trouble I've seen. Nobody knows but Jesus."-Grif
"Shut the hell up Grif!"-Church

Vyse fodder line.
---
Summer 2005 Contest - 22/25 points
Current Match Prediction: Kratos Aurion vs. Diablo

Why would Jin, a character from a popular fighting game, be lower than a cult RPG character?
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"Nobody knows the trouble I've seen. Nobody knows but Jesus."-Grif
"Shut the hell up Grif!"-Church

TAG.
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It's pitch black except for the light!

Because fighting games AREN'T popular here. And Kazuya is WAY below the line.
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Squall Leonhart's Road to the Summer Contest 2005 Championship
Round 1: (2) Squall Leonhart 74412 (74.84%), (7) Geno 25022 (25.16%)

From: Inviso | Posted: 8/12/2005 10:11:37 PM | Message Detail
Why would Jin, a character from a popular fighting game, be lower than a cult RPG character?

*looks at Wesker, Gordon Freeman, and other characters from popular games that have fallen below the VFL*
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Summer 2005 Contest - 22/25 points
Current Match Prediction: Kratos Aurion vs. Diablo

So Jin is? Jin's more popular to Tekken than Kazuya is.
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"Nobody knows the trouble I've seen. Nobody knows but Jesus."-Grif
"Shut the hell up Grif!"-Church

Jin definitely is. The only fighting series to produce characters above that line are Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat. Beyond that, people here just don't care about fighting games.
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Squall Leonhart's Road to the Summer Contest 2005 Championship
Round 1: (2) Squall Leonhart 74412 (74.84%), (7) Geno 25022 (25.16%)

Fine. I predicted to low. But you put Jin as being on the level with Terry Bogard. No one gives a **** about SNK. Tekken at least had a new game out.
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"Nobody knows the trouble I've seen. Nobody knows but Jesus."-Grif
"Shut the hell up Grif!"-Church

Well, Kazuya is weaker than Terry Bogard. I chose that percentage because I thought Jin wouldn't be that much stronger than Kazuya.
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Summer 2005 Contest - 22/25 points
Current Match Prediction: Kratos Aurion vs. Diablo

Well I chose my percentage because Sonic seemed to be getting weaker, plus Jin was a main character in the newest Tekken game, not to mention how he was better than Kazuya. Note that I didn't write these writeups in the past few days. I did them all before the contest started. The original writeup had the sentence "Sonic is the only character from his series with any chance at advancing in the contest" Hmm...that sounds a bit wrong, doesn't it?
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"Nobody knows the trouble I've seen. Nobody knows but Jesus."-Grif
"Shut the hell up Grif!"-Church

Inviso's prediction isn't actually bad at all. I mean, 7% off in a match with an untested character? Besides, she's low, but still closer than others...
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Gotta’ short between the earphones, Wringing my hands in dismay, A more efficient maniac with two feet in the grave.

Heh, my Diablo percentage is 64.35% in the oracle challenge. I don't think it's gonna hold up too well. I have a feeling Diablo's gonna bomb tomorrow.
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Summer 2005 Contest - 22/25 points
Current Match Prediction: Kratos Aurion vs. Diablo

And what reason what he bomb?
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"I dont know what I am talking about? I know more about gaming than 90 percent of the users on the internet." -xmagxus

*would, even.
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"I dont know what I am talking about? I know more about gaming than 90 percent of the users on the internet." -xmagxus

Sonic the Hedgehog...........76.15% 69317
Jin Kazama...................23.85% 21715
TOTAL VOTES......................91032

92.1% of the brackets called this match correctly.

Kinda unimpressive performance for the Blue Blur. I mean, he failed to do much with the day vote, had poor vote totals, and a weak prediction percentage for being...Sonic. Jin was underestimated by most, but eh, I'm still putting the blame on Sonic.

Today, Kratos is doing better than I predicted, which is good. Seems like it's going to end up Kratos > Lloyd > Mithos. Now we need to get Zelos in!

CLOSEST PREDICTIONS

Vlado - 6
Tnote - 4
Soul - 3
Moltar - 3
Outback - 3
Ulti - 3
MasterMage - 1
Inviso - 1

The one time Mage guest writes for us, he gets the point. Maybe he should pick up on that. >.>
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Kratos vs. Diablo - Bracket: Diablo - Vote: Kratos (22/25)

Heh, Kratos Aurion > Ridley.

I think Tifa will break 70% tomorrow.
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Summer 2005 Contest - 22/25 points
Current Match Prediction: Kratos Aurion vs. Diablo

I get the feeling Tifa won't meet up to expectations, but she'll still win.
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Eating peasants like popcorn
Common, Talib Kweli, Mos Def, De La Soul, Kanye West = Kings of Hip Hop

Go Vlado!
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All my base are belong to CATS !!
Member of the CATS army!

Chaos Division Round 1 - Match 27 – (3)Tifa Lockhart vs. (6)Vyse

Tifa
Game/Series Known From: Final Fantasy VII
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: N/A
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: N/A
Seed in 2004: N/A

If bra size equaled strength at GameFAQs, we’d have a top contender here.

Vyse
Game/Series Known From: Skies of Arcadia
Extrapolated Rank in 2002: N/A
Extrapolated Rank in 2003: 43rd (19.05%)
Extrapolated Rank in 2004: 39th (17.92%)
Seed in 2002: N/A
Seed in 2003: 11
Seed in 2004: 8
Lost in 2003 to Donkey Kong in Round 1
Lost in 2004 to Cloud in Round 2

Some characters…just don’t deserve it. Vyse is one of them.

One of the hardest matches to watch last year was Vyse vs. Laharl. Two characters who didn’t deserve to make it to Round 2 went at it, and one advanced. That was Vyse. In Round 2, Cloud beat the life out of him. Now he gets Cloud’s ***** in Round 1. So yes, this is one of those rare cases with the newbie will beat the vet, but only because the vet is a weakling.

Thanks for your time, now you can go back to ogling those dirty pictures of Tifa.

Moltar’s Bracket Says: Tifa will win.

Moltar’s Prediction is: Tifa: 73% - Vyse: 27%



Ulti’s Analysis

(Special note from Ulti: due to me having to take care of a bunch of wedding stuff, my analyses are going to be very lax and short until the end of August, possibly even later. Sorry in advance.)

*looks at Vincent/Kerrigan*

Yeah, this one is over. All this will do is tell us how strong Vincent may be.

Prediction: Tifa with 72.22%



Soul’s Analysis

Vyse is from Skies of Arcadia. If you said "Wtf is Skies of Arcadia?", you're not alone.

Basically, Vyse has been in the contest since 2003, and many people still don't know who he is. That's the problem with cult characters I guess...

Tifa is from Final Fantasy 7. Game Over Vyse. You were all there during the Vincent/Kerrigan match. You know how well FF7 does.

Yeah, that's all my proof on why Tifa will win. Short and sweet.

My prediction: Tifa wins with 71.32% of the vote. BOOOOORIIIIING!



Outback’s Analysis

I don't think Tifa is going to be anywhere near Vincent, and, as such, she won't even scratch Sonic.

Tifa with 65.47%



Inviso’s Analysis

First off, after losing to Donkey Kong in 2003, and then being thoroughly owned by Cloud in 2004, why is Vyse even back in the contest? No matter, he’s facing Tifa, from Final Fantasy VII. The first two years of the contest, Aeris Gainesborough was quite a strong competitor, making it to the sweet sixteen not once, but twice. Tifa is assumed to be even stronger than Aeris, given the fact that she is an even more important part of FFVII, due to her being in the game for a longer period, and being more essential to Cloud. She may not be as strong as Cloud or Sephiroth, but I see no reason as to why she shouldn’t be able to join the ranks of Zero and Snake as one of the contest’s second strongest group of characters.

My Bracket: Tifa Lockheart
My Vote: Tifa Lockheart
My Prediction: Tifa Lockheart with 75.68%
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Kratos vs. Diablo - Bracket: Diablo - Vote: Kratos (22/25)

Tnote’s Analysis

Donkey Kong slapped up 60%+ on Vyse, who has been appointed the threshold between fodder and, well, non-fodder. I suspect there are very few people here who believe Tifa would lose in a match to Donkey Kong. Transitively, the floor I have set for Tifa is Donkey Kong’s performance. The ceiling clearly falls somewhere below Cloud. Where in between is the money question, and I personally think she should have little trouble with a doubling.

Pick: Tifa with 68.27%



Vlado’s Analysis

Aah... The match I've been expecting. My favourite character of all time, Tifa, is finally making her debut in the Summer Contest, and I'm proud to have helped her make it in. Unfortunately, her opponent in the first round is Vyse, another character I really like, and I haven't even played his game, I've based my preference for him solely on what I've read and heard of him and Skies of Arcadia.

Tifa has this, in short. We saw that Vincent will certainly be one of the strongest in the tournament. Sure, Kerrigan is weak, but, as ExThaNemesis said, no matter who you face, scoring 80% is impressive by itself. I still believe that Tifa will be stronger than Vincent, even if most would say otherwise after his win. The only thing that could stop her from doing better than him would be the so-called "sexist vote", a phenomenon that I strongly believe exists, even if it does sound a bit ridiculous, even to me.

I think Tifa will place very high in the stats. She can even come close to Crono's level, in case Chrono Trigger has indeed dropped in popularity, as Frog's struggle against Riku and Magus' loss against Knuckles suggest. She can even beat Sonic and Rockman and make the Final Four, if she really manages to unite the most part of the FFVII fanbase around her like Vincent seems to have. She has the chance to write contest history, and I really hope she doesn't miss it.

Now some words about Vyse... Well, he has a loyal fanbase that gets him in the contest every year. Last year, he even won a match, defeating Laharl, which was another proof that he has some dedicated fans. Surely, Tifa won't beat him as badly as Cloud this last year, but I doubt that he has gotten any stronger than he was in 2004. He will be somewhere around that level again and won't be able to really give Tifa any trouble.

Predicted percentage: Tifa Lockheart with 72.59%.

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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Kratos vs. Diablo - Bracket: Diablo - Vote: Kratos (22/25)

Tag
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DEFENCE, DEFENCE
"Alas, history is nothing but a lie agreed upon" - Napoleon Bonaparte.

Tomorrow can't come soon enough.
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Eating peasants like popcorn
Common, Talib Kweli, Mos Def, De La Soul, Kanye West = Kings of Hip Hop

Tifa was always my favorite in FFVII...I'm interested to see how she does compared to Vincent.
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All I get are flames and " HA HA HA YOUR GRAMPS DIED". My life is miserable... - DSWOW64

Vlado, please stop speaking for and defending Inviso. Please, for the love of all that is good and holy, stop. She is a smart individual -- she can do such things, herself.

~*The Metal Gear Master*~
---<3---
The Author of Metal Gear Solid: Dawn of the Concealed
Women come and go, but Metal Gear is forever.

Since Aeris is expected to get nearly 71% on Vyse, looks like most of the crew consider Tifa to be stronger than her.

Btw, I wonder who will be off by more at the end of tomorrow, outback or Inviso.

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Reserved for the winner of the SC2K5 Guru Challenge.

Bumpizzled
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Eating peasants like popcorn
Common, Talib Kweli, Mos Def, De La Soul, Kanye West = Kings of Hip Hop

I'd say outback is off by most, since I'm closest ATM.
---
"Nobody knows the trouble I've seen. Nobody knows but Jesus."-Grif
"Shut the hell up Grif!"-Church

Kratos Aurion............43.24% 37162
Diablo.......................56.76% 48783
TOTAL VOTES......................85945

78.74% of the brackets called this match correctly.

You'd think the typo would get fixed, but meh. Kratos performs better than most people expect and does better on Diablo than Ridley did. Nice job Mr. Judgement. Also, it seems alot of people payed attention to Diablo's Spring Contest performance, because he had almost 80% of the brackets on his side.

Today, Tifa is destroying Vyse. I mean, like Seph or Samus would detroy Vyse. If she can keep this up, Luigi will be nothing and Sonic better watch his back.

CLOSEST PREDICTIONS

Vlado - 6
Tnote - 4
Soul - 3
Moltar - 3
Outback - 3
Ulti - 3
Inviso - 2
MasterMage - 1

Inviso makes a very nice Diablo pick and gets the point.
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Moltar's Comics - http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Moltar
Tifa vs. Vyse - Bracket: Tifa - Vote: Tifa (23/26)

GO MASTERMAGE!

>_>
~~~
Trivia XV: Dragostea Din Tei
http://www.audioscrobbler.com/user/cokes311/

From: jkmill550 | Posted: 8/13/2005 10:21:10 PM | Message Detail
Go Vlado!

Heh, thanks! It's always good to know you have a supporter!
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*** Support Tifa Lockheart in the Summer Contest 2005 ***
Thanks to everyone who helped her get in!

Wow, if I kept my original 78% I would have won this match. >_<
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"ertyu is actually a language. For example, 'dum' is ertyunese for 'godly'." - Topaz Kitsune
*Waiting for Guru winner's sig*

Hey I have Bowser over Snake and Ulti you have it too.But how did you chose it anyway?I think me I chose it by accident...
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GameFaqs is NOT the place to go for relationship advice.Nobody here gets any action unless it is their right or left hand.Including me.~Dawn and Dusk~

Man, I'm starting to feel sorry for Vyse now.
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Eating peasants like popcorn
Common, Talib Kweli, Mos Def, De La Soul, Kanye West = Kings of Hip Hop