GameFAQsContests.com

Minor Knuckles upset hype disappeared almost immediately as Solid Snake controlled the match from the start. The writeup treats the result as confirmation that Snake belonged among the contest's serious contenders.

Snake comfortably beat Knuckles in the first rematch in Character Battle history, producing little suspense because the same matchup had already ended decisively the year before. The writeup treats Knuckles as another stepping stone toward Snake's eventual Mega Man test.

Solid Snake beat Knuckles yet again, but the writeup is mostly exasperated that the same second-round pairing kept recurring. Knuckles looked better than in their earlier meetings, leaving open whether he improved or Snake declined.

Snake quickly dismantled a Zelda upset bandwagon that had grown from mismatched old statistics and concern over his ugly picture. The writeup treats the match as another example of Board 8 talking itself into a close contest that never materialized.

Snake crushed Squall in a match that had drawn meaningful upset discussion beforehand. The writeup calls it the first clear sign that Snake had made a major leap in strength during this contest.

Snake advanced easily, while Riku reversed his opening-round loss to Ryu Hayabusa and took the other spot. The writeup treats the reversal as another example of how unreliable direct comparisons could become in the four-way format.

Snake delivered another statement performance, while Zero and Vivi fought a much more entertaining battle for the second advancing spot. Zero survived, but Vivi's late resistance made the race memorable.

Snake again started poorly with the board vote before recovering into a solid win. The writeup finds Fox a difficult measuring stick because so many of his prior losses involved Nintendo overlap.

Snake crushed Alucard and Bayonetta in a match with almost no suspense. The performance later became important because Snake was one of the few Noble Nine members still looking consistently dominant.