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EVO2K11 – The Excitement….

Posted on July 20, 2011 by jon

I go to events multiple times per year and while they are all fun, they are nothing compared to EVO2k. I can easily say that it is the funnest and most exciting gaming event in the United States and truly competes with major sports championships. The crowd is roaring, the gaming celebrities are in full effect, the booths have cool stuff to do, but that description cannot fully give the event justice. One of the real reasons EVO is so exciting is the fighting community. EVO brings everyone together for a crazy weekend in Vegas and the energy is electric. I want to keep writing more about EVO, but I cannot fully express what it is. If you have not booked your place at the RIO for the weekend of July 29th, DO IT or you may forever regret the best gaming event USA has to offer.

Posted in: Uncategorized

PAX East 2011

Posted on March 25, 2011 by jon

What can I say about PAX East? I’ve been attending PAX events for the last few years and I can easily say that it is one of the best cons I’ve ever attended. If you have never been, let me explain the absolute madness. The reality is that the gaming industry spares no expense in making this a fun and exciting event. From the sexy ladies to the new game releases, you kind of wish it was your day job. And that’s even before it’s open to the public. When the doors do open to the public…it’s like something out of Lovecraft.

We started our week by setting up our booth with Mad Catz/Tritton and GUNNAR Optiks. It’s crazy to see the convention being built. It starts with a simple concrete slab, and over time something amazing is erected (both there, and in my pants). It’s a phenomenal feat of hard work and planning that generally gets overlooked, but being a part of it makes it even more special. The cool thing is that, as an exhibitor, you get to walk the floor and check out all the booths before the convention opens. I was able to check out LA Noir, Star Wars, Call of Juarez and more. WWE Smash 2011 was actually being featured in our booth, so my new game fix was easily cured.

Once the show began, people were filing in by the 1000′s and I can’t believe how many orange cones people were wearing. It was comical to look at and I seriously wanted to wear one, but orange pylons don’t go well with my skin tone. I’m not one of those italians. Anyway, we started Friday with a Halo Reach tourney and raffles. We then ventured in Call of Duty: Black Ops on Saturday and Marvel vs. Capcom on Sunday. Pro player Neighbor from Triggers Down ended up winning the Halo Reach Tourney, while we had a couple future Pros take down Call of Duty: Black Ops and Marvel vs. Capcom on Sunday. We also had charity events and the Guiness World Record Holder for Tetris, Triforce, made an appearance.

There were tons of celebrity gamers and TV stars that were hanging out in our booth. Hastr0 from Envyious, Halo Pro Biitersweet and Neighbor, Coach Bravo from Triggers Down, UGC Faye Mata, StarSlay3r, Prod1gy X, the Justin Wong (yes I said “the”) G4 TV’s Adam Sessler and Leah Michelle and last but not least, the president of Galaxy4Gamers, Mike Casazza. Yea, Mike Casazza, that guy. Great guy and all, but he really needs to stop emulating Charlie Sheen. He’s even starting to speak in the third person now.

But any ways, what made the event even better was Gamers Outreach, RadioActive Nerd, SFX360 and Justin.TV all made an appearance. A few of us made it out to the Gamers Gone Wild party and I left part of my liver in Boston. All I can say is that Gamers Gone Wild parties get out of control and I wish I could explain what happened inside, but the legality of it all is still questionable, so I’ll let your imagination fill in the gaps. The glorious, glorious gaps.

So, in conclusion, PAX East is off the chart and kicked my ass. Not only did PAX give us thousands of new members, but it gave me the flu too. What more can be said?

Posted in: Uncategorized

Gamers make faster decisions than nongamers, just as accurate

Posted on September 14, 2010 by jon

When set loose on this task, both groups performed equally well in terms of accuracy, but the gamers produced the response more quickly than their peers….

This article by John Timmer was originally published on September 14, 2010 on arstechnica.com.
View the original article

Gamers make faster decisions than nongamers, just as accurate

by John Timmer

Halo Reach

There’s a significant controversy over the value of games that are designed to improve people’s mental faculties, as some studies have indicated that brain training only helps prepare you for similar tasks, while others indicate that general improvements are possible. But there turns out to be a type of game that is known to boost a variety of skills, from decision making to tracking multiple objects: standard action games. A study, released today by Current Biology attempts to explain how these video games can produce such wide-ranging improvements.

The authors of the study argue that the root of all these tasks involves making a probabilistic inference, where complete information is missing, so people have to make a best guess based on known odds. Video gaming, in their view, increases the efficiency at which people can process the odds and make an accurate decision—gamers simply can do more with less. As a result, any task of this sort sees benefits.

The work started with two sets of subjects, gamers and non-gamers. Both were shown a screen that had a set of randomly moving dots, and asked to determine whether there was any coherent motion, meaning that, despite the apparent randomness, the dots had a tendency to head in a single direction. The participants had to decide when they had seen enough motion to make a decision, and they also had to pick an accurate direction. The former involves a probability judgement: have you seen enough to know that you can detect a trend?

When set loose on this task, both groups performed equally well in terms of accuracy, but the gamers produced the response more quickly than their peers. The same thing happened when the test was switched to a similar task based on tonal differences, indicating the success of gamers wasn’t simply the result of their focus on visual cues.

Of course, as the authors note, this doesn’t demonstrate causation: “It could also be the case that are individuals who have been born with improved abilities at performing probabilistic inferences.” To rule this out, they took the non-gamers and gave them 50 hours of training and practice on action games (a control group learned to play slower-paced games). After the training, the same sort of pattern emerged, with the action gamers displaying an enhanced decision time.

The other issue they controlled for was twitchiness—gamers might get the task done more quickly simply because they could hit the key required to complete it faster. To eliminate this possibility, they showed the random motion (or played the tone) for fixed periods of time, and then let the subjects provide an answer at their leisure. When the time allowed for the test was short, gamers were more accurate than their peers. Overall, this supports the conclusion that they can do more with less information.

How might this actually work on the biological level? The authors favor a model where there’s a two-part system for judging probabilities: one part registers the relevant information, then transfers it to a second that integrates the information and makes a probability judgment. They argue that gaming enhances the connection between the two, allowing more information to be transferred per unit time. With the additional info, the part of the brain that performs the evaluation can do so more quickly.

Why should gaming exercise this bit of the brain? In short, because action games place a premium on variety and novelty. “Unlike standard learning paradigms, which have a highly specific solution,” they argue, “there is no such specific solution in action video games because situations are rarely, if ever, repeated.”

The last question they address is why, if this sort of sped-up evaluation is so useful for a variety of tasks, aren’t we all born with the abilities of gamers? Here, they claim to have information that they’ve not yet published, which indicates that shuffling too much information to the evaluation center actually overloads it, leading to poor performance. We’ll have to see if that paper ever makes it to press before evaluating whether that’s the case.

In the meantime, you’ve got one more excuse to go out and buy Halo: Reach.

Posted in: Benefits of Gaming, Gaming Articles, Gaming News, Uncategorized, Video Games
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Galaxy4Gamers In the News

Posted on August 16, 2010 by jon

The growing popularity of online gaming competitions is good news for gaming. Players can now play for more than just pride when they play online with their Xbox 360 or Playstation 3. Playing video games for money is now easier than ever with sites like Galaxy4Gamers. The result is a fast growing community of competitive gamers that is generating a buzz in the gaming world. Several gaming news shows and podcasts recently sat down with GalaxyGamers President Michael Casazza to discuss why Galaxy4Gamers is a leader in online competitive gaming.

The Adrenaline Vault

http://www.avaultpodcast.com/ (Podcast)
http://www.avault.com/news/podcast-news/michael-casazza-podcast-episode-93/
http://www.examiner.com/x-23266-Rochester-Video-Game-Industry-Examiner~y2010m8d9-Michael-Casazza-on-the-Avault-Podcast

This Week In…

http://gamewikipedia.com/this-week-in-video-games-6/

KokuGamer

http://kokugamer.com/2010/08/06/pixel-apocalypse-podcast-ep-1-interview-with-michael-casazza/
http://pixelapocalypse.com/2010/08/asp-the-end-pixel-apocalypse-podcast-ep-1-the-begining/

Gaming Evolution

http://gamingevolution.info/?id=10859
http://www.todaygamenews.com/ps3-news/gaming-evolution-galaxy4gamers-interview.html
http://n4g.com/news/580640/gaming-evolution-galaxy4gamers-interview

Radioactive Nerd

http://www.radioactivenerd.com/?p=595

Posted in: Gaming Articles, Gaming News, Interviews and Podcasts, Video Games
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A Place Where Ms. Pac-Man Still Has a Home (New York Times)

Posted on August 11, 2010 by jon

It is Friday night at the Chinatown Fair video arcade, one of the last of the traditional arcades left in the city. Inside, its hot and sweaty and the walls are blood-red. Amid the kids and the trash-talking and chaos, an older Chinese man stands quietly in the corner playing Jr. Pac-Man…

This New York Times article by Kabir Chibber was originally published on August 4, 2010 on nytimes.com.
View the original article

A Place Where Ms. Pac-Man Still Has a Home

by Kabir Chibber New York Times

Inside Chinatown Fair Arcade
Michael Nagle for The New York Times

WALKING down the southern end of Mott Street — a stretch lined with cheap-toy traps and Chinese restaurants of varying quality — is a fairly unremarkable experience until the sidewalk is suddenly packed with grungy and very loud teenagers and young adults loitering in front of a prominent "No Loitering" sign.

The tourists who make it this far — almost to Chatham Square — will find themselves tiptoeing around the pierced and the eyelinered, around the goths and the hip-hoppers. The biggest of the group turns to his friend and says, "He literally picks up his own life bar and beats you to death with it, son!" Around here, the talk inevitably turns to games.

It is Friday night at the Chinatown Fair video arcade, one of the last of the traditional arcades left in the city. Inside, it’s hot and sweaty and the walls are blood-red. Amid the kids and the trash-talking and chaos, an older Chinese man stands quietly in the corner playing Jr. Pac-Man.

Inside Chinatown Fair Arcade
Michael Nagle for The New York Times

"Friday is the night, it’s packed,"says Travis ("Just Travis"), 30, a dreadlocked paralegal who lives in Harlem and said he has been a regular at Chinatown Fair for seven years.
"It’s an old arcade, more for the hard-core gamers," he says above the sounds of punches, kicks and car crashes coming from the machines. "Everyone here kind of knows each other. Kids come here from all over the city." When he was younger and lived in the Bronx with his parents, Travis says, he traveled an hour and half to get to Chinatown Fair "to train."

In 2005, there were 44 licensed video game arcades in New York, according to the Department of Consumer Affairs; today, 23 survive. With the expansion of interactive online gaming, video game action has largely shifted to the home.

"Arcades are an anachronism now," says Danny Frank, a spokesman for the Amusement and Music Owners Association of New York. "They exist only in shopping malls."

Chinatown Fair has become a center for all the outcasts in the city to bond over their shared love for a good 20-punch combo and "old school" games that more popular arcades don’t stock anymore — the classic Street Fighter II from 1991 and King of Fighters 1996, for example, as well as Ms Pac-Man and Time Crisis.

Travis facilitates an introduction to one of the best gamers in the arcade, Yipes, aka Michael Mendoza, a chubby 23-year-old from Washington Heights with a wispy goatee and a bushy afro-ponytail sticking out under his beanie. "The competition is real good,"says Yipes. "I would say it is the best in Manhattan. And it’s a good hangout. You got games, the people, cheap food around the corner."

Yipes, who wears baggy jeans and has wooden crosses slung around his neck, points out the various factions that make up the arcade. "You have your DDR clique," he says, referring to the sweat-soaked boys and girls who favor the game Dance Dance Revolution, as well as "your racers, your fighters." Indeed, most of the teenage males were huddled around a stack of the newer Street Fighter IV machines.

Yipes says he is going to a games tournament in New Jersey the next day and can’t stay long, but a few minutes later, he’s furiously playing Marvel vs. Capcom 2. A sign above the game says: "Play at your own risk — no refunds."

Gaming Inside Chinatown Fair Arcade
Michael Nagle for The New York Times

One person is recording video of the fights in the games to post on YouTube. The players take the games seriously, but the mood is usually more about camaraderie than cut-throat competition. Benjamin Valle, 19, a college student from the Bronx, explains that rather than the usual arcade policy where the winner keeps playing, most players at Chinatown Fair stay on for a maximum of three or four games. "Usually, you run out of money by then anyway," he adds.

Several employees identified a Pakistani man in his 70s named Samuel as the owner. He says he has been in the business for almost 30 years but then refuses to talk any further, saying he is too busy. Samuel, his thin hair combed over as he leans on a metal cane, is an incongruous sight in a place filled with such youthful energy. At one point a tiny girl rushing toward the dance machines almost knocks him over, without even looking back. Like a tortoise, he centers himself and moves on to his next task.

On Fridays and Saturdays, the arcade stays open until 2 a.m. After midnight, there are more kids with backpacks outside and even more copious smoking.

Sanford Kelly, 22, from the Bronx, looks relaxed in thick glasses and an all-black ensemble. "I’m basically the best guy on the East Coast right now," he says.

Mr. Kelly is a professional gamer; he lives off the earnings of playing (and winning) in tournaments across the country. He is talking to a white-haired man in a Harlem Globetrotters jersey, Jake Morris. Mr. Morris’s son, another hard-core gamer named Lincoln (a k a Dragon), is around the corner by the Bowery avoiding his dad. Mr. Morris, 57, says he had heard that Mr. Kelly was blacklisted from a recent tournament, apparently because he had won so many times that others felt it wouldn"t be a fair fight.

"I read that on the blogs," he says, sympathetically.

A few days later, Mr. Kelly was sitting in Chinatown Fair in the late afternoon, taking on all comers. The arcade is much quieter by day, mostly attracting students from the neighborhood. "It’s certainly different from Friday nights," Mr. Kelly said dismissively, typing into his mobile phone and looking unimpressed. He says he likes to help the younger players improve. "They call me Sanford Sensei," he says.

Inside Chinatown Fair Arcade
Michael Nagle for The New York Times

Behind Mr. Kelly, a girl asked her friend if he was going to play. He looked hesitant. "I haven’t played in, like, a week and a half."

Despite its appeal to the hard-core faithful, Chinatown Fair has been feeling the industry’s pain. Travis says that a tournament at the arcade was recently canceled because of low turnout.

"Now, you can play a million people from all around the world," he says. "For me, it’s not the same as playing face-to-face. The young’uns may not care, but I do."

Back outside, Yipes is smoking a cigarette in the hot summer air. "Last of a dying breed," he says, looking up at the faded sign of the arcade. "It’s not sad, it’s a reality."

A version of this article appeared in print on August 5, 2010, on page E1 of the New York edition.

Posted in: Arcade, Gaming Articles, Gaming News, Video Game Tournaments, Video Games
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Parental Excuses

Posted on July 23, 2010 by jon

by Alex Dang

G4G Blog Contributor

For the last decade, there”s been huge philosophical and practical discussion surrounding video game violence and aggression in kids. The link only made sense – and since the connection has been made, dozens of studies have come to light that both accost and defend video games. With so many sources saying so many things, it can be a confusing time for parents right now.

The hypothesis that violent video games stem aggression in children is further complicated by the idea that these games act as /substitutes/ for pent-up violence — that is, that those who are prone to commit violent acts are able to realize their actions in the virtual world, rather than the real — and some studies support this. Whether or not one”s actions within a video game effect their real-world actions is still up for debate, however the effect of video games is not as obvious as suggested. It”s more likely that the aggression in children is effected by a complex combination of issues, where video games are only small cogs in a much bigger machine.

Regardless of the outcome of this debate, ultimately responsibility must lie with the parents. Turning to the government to censor cultural material like video games is never the right answer – more often than not, such censorship produces more social problems than they”re intended to fix. Watch what your kids are watching. Know what your kids are playing. Instill responsibility, sensibility, and understanding in your kids. Whether or not your children is effected by violence or pornography is still up in the air; their level-headed sensibilities are something you can control. Stop spouting excuses and start being real parents. Thanks.

If you”re interested in this subject, there”s tons of articles on the web that can lead you the right way. Google is a powerful tool. But give yourself some credit, read more than one article, check your sources, and be inquisitive. If you don”t want your kids to be easily manipulated by media, then you need to take the first step.

We value all feedback. Please post comments to the blog entries and let us know how you feel about what Alex has to say.

Posted in: Video Games
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Ode to Nintendo

Posted on July 1, 2010 by jon

by Alex Dang

G4G Blog Contributor

No need to hide it, I’m a fan of Nintendo and I’m not afraid to say it. I love their consistency, their originality, their conceptually ground-breaking work, and most importantly, I love that they actually love me back. Yeah, that’s right, Nintendo loves me back. Microsoft likes me, Sony tolerates me, but sure enough, Nintendo really does love me. And this shines through time and time again throughout their franchises, and if you’ve been paying attention at all within the last couple of weeks, you definitely understand what I mean. So why is it such a faux paux in cyber gaming culture to voice this love? What, just because I’d prefer a game of Pikmin over Call of Duty, I’m no longer a "hardcore" gamer? What the hell does that even mean?
Nintendo Entertainment System

Now, as both a college student and someone whom considers himself a "gamer," it’s pretty much compulsory to have an XBox 360. In fact, in my house, me and my roommates have three. We’re stocked with the standard games, the Halo series, Call of Duty, Gears of War, and assorted sports games. These games, and in extension, this console, does what it’s supposed to, and it does so pretty well. But what about Wii and the DS I have sitting in my room? Sure, I don’t touch either of them enough (albeit I carry my DS in my backpack at all times) when compared to how much time I spend on any one of the 360′s sitting around the house, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing.

When I’m in the mood to turn on my Wii or pull out my DS, however, I have to prepare myself for something I usually don’t get out of any other game — actually, pure enjoyment. That’s not to say that all games on the 360 aren’t "enjoyable," (in fact, the XBL Arcade games are incredible) but more often than not, the games become work. They become ever-lasting grinds, looking for that next experience point, looking to make up for that last mistake. Sure, I’m looking for a game to constantly challenge me, to urge me to move forward — but at the same time, I don’t want to be a farmer. I don’t want to be a slave to the game. I want to be challenged and to actually have fun in the process — what a shocker.

Nintendo’s newest iterations of the Nintendo DS (3DS), Kid Icarus, Mario, Zelda, Donkey Kong, Kirby, Goldeneye, and Metroid are looking to answer that call. For anyone who hasn’t heard yet (why haven’t you?), Nintendo is bringing all these games back. Each of these stand-alone franchises have come to define some portion of my childhood, with each memory rush producing more nostalgia and giddiness than the last. It’s these feelings of nostalgia that make Nintendo so successful — where everything else fails, the relationship they’ve developed with their audience keeps them afloat, and when everything goes right, that audience comes back to reward the company (me included) ten-fold. For instance, Sony saw major success with the Playstation 2 at the turn of the decade, proverbially dominating Nintendo’s GameCube.

But how did Nintendo survive the beating, let alone come to thrive? They did so by catering to those who knew Nintendo best, taking franchises that have been with [us] since childhood, re-imagined them to allow for them to mature with us (rather then remain as relics of the past) and most important, they’ve left them open and accessible to newer, younger audiences. So all you game developers out there, this is for you: Be original. And should you strike gold, and create something truly innovative, fun, and accessible — please, don’t milk it. Enjoy it, let it age, grow, and if your lucky, it’ll maintain some level of cultural relevance. Once you’ve got that, you’ve got an audience hooked for life.

Posted in: Video Games
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Galaxy4Gamers Welcomes Virgin Resurgence

Posted on June 8, 2010 by jon

Leading online gaming community reacts to news that Richard Branson is entering industry.

LOS ANGELES, California (June 7, 2010) – Galaxy4Gamers, a leading video game tournament website, is excited to hear Sir Richard Branson and Virgin have acquired World Gaming to reenter the online gaming industry.

Galaxy4Gamers’s CEO, Chris Doe, thinks Virgin’s move into the niche market of online skill-based video game tournament is an extremely positive sign for the industry and professional gaming in general. “Gaming for real cash is still a relatively new concept here in the US, especially online where cheating remains a big deterrent. Richard Branson’s entrance into the industry will provide professional video gamers some long overdue attention and establish more credibility and standards to the sport.”

Regarding competing against the newly formed Virgin Gaming, Doe continues “Obviously competing against a conglomerate with endless resources can be daunting, but we are up to the challenge and are confident in our product and direction. In the past year, we were able to match all the core functionality of the leading competitors, as well as release industry first products, such as Beat-A-ProTM challenges, in-person and online LAN promoter platforms and most importantly industry leading anti-cheating streaming measures.”

Finally, Doe concludes by saying “The industry needs a media magnet like Branson to help shape its future, I look forward to seeing what the Virgin team comes up with.”

For additional information, please visit galaxy4gamers.com.

About Galaxy4Gamers.com:

Galaxy4Gamers (G4G) is a gaming website which allows video gamers to compete in competitions and tournaments for real money on dozens of leading titles for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Wii. G4G was built by gamers for gamers, with the goal to promote professional video gaming. G4G’s services include an automated result verification system, a secure banking portal, an advanced custom player rating system, team gaming, free roll tournaments, 24-hour customer service, prompt withdrawal services, immediate gaming dispute resolution services, robust social networking, live game play streaming and video play back for all users and events. Additionally, Galaxy4Gamers is the only gaming website to offer Beat-A-ProTM weekly challenges, where gamers around the world can compete against professional gamers for high stakes odds.

Posted in: Gaming News, Video Games
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Search for G4G’s Madden NFL 11 Pro Sponsorship

Posted on May 28, 2010 by jon

Madden 11 Pro SponsorshipLos Angeles, CA – Competitive video gaming community Galaxy4Gamers (G4G) announces Madden NFL 2010 as the newest addition to their exclusive Beat-A-ProTM Challenges. It will feature professional gamer Isaiah “The Playbook” Williams from Empire Arcadia. G4G’s exciting Beat-A-ProTM Challenges are the first and only events where gamers can practice and play with world famous professionals, chat live, make new friends, and win cash and prizes from sponsors. With all Beat-A-ProTM events streaming live on G4G even spectators can join in on the fun. A saved recording of each challenge provides players with the footage to showcase their gaming talent and be recognized for their skills.

All winners will earn entry into the Beat-A-ProTM Madden 2011 Pro Sponsorship Tournament beginning August 1st 2010. The tournament will be limited to the first 32 entrants. The top eight players will all earn cash and prizes. The tournament champion will become G4G’s Beat-A-ProTM Madden 11 Sponsored Pro and paid by G4G to take on Madden 11 challengers.

Check out the Madden 2010 Beat-A-ProTM details

- Chance to play Isaiah “The Playbook” Williams
- Starts May 18th, 2010
- Sessions on FIRST and THIRD Wednesday of every month
- 6pm -8pm PST
- Must be 18 or older to enter
- Winners qualify to compete to become G4G’s Beat-A-ProTM Madden 11 Sponsored Pro

“We are taking professional gaming to a whole new level by integrating a virtual arcade and live-streaming with playback into one slick interface,” says Chris Doe, Galaxy4Gamers CEO. “This platform provides gamers with a real way to make money from their skills, and gives up-and-coming gamers a chance to make their mark competing against the best. If you’re looking to take your gaming skills to the next level, this is the place to build your resume, train with champions, and showcase your talent. Anyone can tune in and watch the exciting live video streams.” Visithttp://www.galaxy4gamers.com/beat-a-pro for more information.

About Galaxy4Gamers:

Galaxy4Gamers.com (G4G) is a competitive video gaming community featuring a robust platform for users to showcase their talents, win money, and gain respect playing their favorite video games. Gamers challenge each other online in head-to-head and multiplayer tournaments, on all the hottest gaming titles using Xbox 360, Playstation 3, and Nintendo Wii. G4G’s services include an automated result verification system, secure banking portal, custom player rating system, clan gaming, free roll tournaments, 24 hour customer service, prompt withdrawal services, immediate gaming dispute resolution services, advanced live chat, message and mail functionality, and exclusive Beat-A- ProTM challenges. G4G is the only competitive video gaming site with live streaming and play back for all users and events. For more information, visit us at www.galaxy4gamers.com.

Posted in: Gaming News
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Diehard GameFAN Interviews Galaxy4Gamers Beat A Pro Gamers

Posted on May 27, 2010 by jon

This article is taken from Diehard Gamefan.

Interview With Galaxy4Gamers Pros on Competitive Gaming

By D.J. Tatsujin – April 22, 2010 | Email the author

Galaxy 4 Gamers (G4G) started its push for competitive gaming for online console gamers back in 2008 but, recently, it has added on a new cast of players for gamers to clash with. Adding in a star-studded cast of pros, the site is asking gamers who think they can tackle the top tier of games such as Street Fighter IV and Guitar Hero to partake in “Beat the Pro” challenges. The premise is simple: A pot is established as the pro begins his or her gameplay and each time a pro defeats a gamer, more cash is added to the pot. Obviously, if a gamer finally succeeds in toppling a pro, they win the competitive jackpot. Unfortunately, this won’t be a walk in the park as G4G has enlisted some pretty heavy guns to fend off gamers eager to grab the cash.

Recently, Diehard GameFAN was able to get some insight from four the site’s established pros – Ciji “StarSlay3r” Thornton, Robert “Prod1gy X” Paz, Justin Wong (“JWong”) and Alex Valle.

StarSlay3r is most known for her expertise in Guitar Hero and a competitive drive that saw her participating in the inaugural seasons of World Cyber Games’ Ultimate Gamer and The Tester, but she still has plenty of time to wreck faces in a number of popular fighting games such as Street Fighter IV as well. Prod1gy X actually won runner-up honors in the aforementioned WCG Ultimate Gamer show and while he is also a pro at Guitar Hero and DJ Hero, he also likes to partake in first-person shooting competitions including Halo, Gears of War and Call of Duty. Justin Wong can be considered the number one Street Fighter IV player in the U.S., taking top honors at GameStop’s launch tournament of the game and second place in 2009′s EVO 2K tournament, but he also dominates in titles such as Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike (finishing first in the 2v2 tournament at EVO this year) and Marvel Vs. Capcom 2. Alex Valle is also one of the more famous fighting game competitors in major tournaments, receiving very respectable top eight finishes in the Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix and SFIII:3rd Strike 2v2 tournament at EVO this year and formerly holding honors such as the U.S. champion in Street Fighter Alpha 3.

These four pros took the time out of their schedule to describe how they got into gaming, how they prepared for competitive gaming and more:

DHGF: What initially drew you toward the game which you are now a certified pro at?

StarSlay3r: I initially was drawn toward Guitar Hero due to the fact that I had previously been playing a similar rhythm game called Guitar Freaks since 1999. The first time I played Guitar Hero was at a GameStop and I five-starred one of the hardest songs my first try so I knew this was a game I wanted to invest some time into perfecting.

Prod1gy X: I have been playing Guitar Hero since the day it came out. It’s a great competitive game and really fun to watch. I use to be in a band so when I picked this game up, it was pretty easy to play and I was into expert in no time. At this point, DJ Hero is my number one game of all. Hitting top 10 in all of the DJ Hero setlists made me realize I am a top player and I can take this to a pro level.

JWong: I have been playing fighting games since I was 12. I chose fighting games because I love the idea of playing against a human opponent and the best type of competitive games to do that is a fighting game such as Street Fighter, Tekken or any related games that goes under fighting games.

Alex Valle: The popularity of the Street Fighter series has always driven me to compete. With the release of Street Fighter IV, it was only natural for me to display my years of tournament experience to the competitive scene.

DHGF: What made you decide you wanted to become a professional at the title?

StarSlay3r: I competed in a series of video game tournaments known as the Midnight Gaming Championship in Dallas, Tx., in 2006, and during this time, I was competing against some of the best players in the nation, which was an inspiration to do better. After getting to top 16 for Texas state finals I knew that if I tried harder and dedicated more time into learning the game more in depth, I could step my game up to the next level. After making it to National top 10 finals at CPL in Texas for Guitar Hero II and being beat by a top-three nationally-ranked player was when I really started to kick my training into overdrive and compete for the professional gamer title.

Prod1gy X: I have to have the love for the game. If I play a game for hours just for training and I do not want to play anymore … that tells me I am really not into it. I like to pick each game from different genres so that I can maintain that high expertise and continue on to any other FPS or music games.

JWong: Well, I never chose this road. One day it just happened. I went to tournaments just because it was really fun playing new competition and meeting new people and then eventually I realized I did it every single weekend and said to myself, “Might as well try to become professional.”

Alex Valle: Street Fighter has been my strongest competitive video game ever since the ’90s and it’s about time companies like G4G are taking notice of the talented players. It was only a matter of time before our scene gets noticed and I felt inclined to prove myself on the mainstream as a true professional cyberathlete.

DHGF: What is your training like for your title?

StarSlay3r: Training for Guitar Hero used to be 50-60 hour weeks, which consisted of about three or so hours a week of watching YouTube videos to determine the best star paths and techniques for solos, reading star paths on scorehero.com, practising solos in practice mode, repeatedly playing songs over and over until I full-comboed the song and online versus mode against every opponent that would accept the challenge. Since I had this type of training for two years, I now only have to play about five hours a week or so to maintain my skills.

Prod1gy X: There are different methods of training in games. Some games have training modes that work great for your advantage to get better and so I highly suggest you take that advantage and get better. Practice makes perfect. You cannot give up if it’s too hard because eventually you will get it. For DJ Hero, I would play each song over and over until I get it. It’s as simple as that.

JWong: I use to play everyday for at least six hrs just practising and honing my skills. Now I don’t really practice (even though I should). I am older now and I am usually behind a computer answering e-mails, doing Street Fighter IV lessons, doing the Beat a Pro by G4G or talking to potential business partners.

Alex Valle: Great question. Street Fighter is a game of reaction time, physical execution and strategy. You need to master all of these elements in order to compete with the next player or you won’t stand a chance. In my youth, I used to spend eight to 12 hours daily to develop a unique, aggressive style. Bringing new and exciting elements are needed to win national tournaments. Today, I use my talents to train others worldwide, which is also a good form of training for me.

DHGF: What is your overall opinion on competitive/professional gaming?

StarSlay3r: Competitive and professional gaming is not as easy as it may seem. You must be extremely dedicated and determined to succeed in order to be successful in the field, but I love the challenge. I am happy to see that G4G enables players from all over to come and compete against the top players in this fashion because this is the best way to level up your game and take it to the professional level.

Prod1gy X: Its a very hard industry to get by in and the reason why I say that is because not many people are driven to take on the role of leadership and dedication. You need to understand the value of who you are and what you can make of it in this industry. The best advice on this … “Never give up.”

JWong: I feel that it isn’t there yet, but, eventually, it will be and I hope to be a part of that era.

Alex Valle: I believe competitive gaming is the next sports generation. There are millions of gamers out there that have exceptional skill that not many people in the world can achieve. The main difference from real sports and video games is that you can compete at any age with minimal physical requirements.

DHGF: Is there any advice you would give to anyone looking to play a game competitively?

StarSlay3r: Ensure that you have a lot of spare time on your hands before deciding to tackle a game on the competitive level because being a top player means spending many hours practising and perfecting your skills. Make sure to hunt out players that are better than you and practice with them because playing against the best will help you since you will not only see how your skills compare to a top player’s, but often times, they will give you tips/tricks/advice on your gameplay and can let you know where you went wrong and what you were doing right. Stay dedicated! Pro/competitive gaming is a lot of hard work, but it definitely pays off when you’re taking that top three ranking check to the bank.

Prod1gy X: Practice, practice, practice. Take that risk and travel to these events and get yourself noticed. All you need is the passion for gaming and dedication.

JWong: Practice makes perfect, network to get some sparring partners and travel to events and participate in online events to gain that experience you need.

Alex Valle: If you feel you deserve recognition for being the best athlete in the world, let your game do the talking!

Now that you know a little bit more about some of G4G’s pros, if you think you have what it takes to beat them, you can head over to G4G’s official page for rules and details.

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