Tournament upsets are possibly the most exciting aspect f the FGC. When an unknown or lesser know player makes their way towards the top, people can’t help but stop and watch, hoping that they might witness something amazing happen. While he didn’t manage to claim the overall title, we did catch up with BigD after his fourth-place finish, to chat about the tournament, his character choice, and what it feels like to be the underdog in his matches.

You play low-mid tier, tell us the thought process behind that, is it just so you can say you got fourth at EVO with a low tier character?

There’re a few different reasons, first and foremost, Ivy is the character I’ve been playing since the beginning, she was definitely way worse when the game first came out, but it fit my playstyle, I liked how she played and I wasn’t really interested in finding someone else at the time because I just meshed with the character. Fast forward almost a year later, she got the buffs that really made her move up in the tier list. She’s still not great but she’s a very solid character. Basically, the point is I didn’t want to have to relearn a character, I was very content with Ivy, very content with her gameplay, and when she got the buffs there was no reason to switch.

When it comes to low tier, would you say that this proves tiers are wrong? You got fourth place at EVO with this character.

I would say to a certain extent that tier lists can be used only as a crutch in certain circumstances. Basically, what I mean by that, a character can be considered not great on paper, but if you master that character and have solid fundamentals, you can make any character work. Especially in a game like Injustice 2 that’s actually really balanced, characters like that can shine, and there’s no telling what other characters can get fourth at EVO or win a Major. It’s basically up to the player. If you end up spending most of your time looking for the best character and trying to do it that way, a lot of times you’re just not going to succeed.

A lot of people call you a Cinderella story, you medalled two years ago here, if I recall, so tell me your thoughts on that.

I’m going to say yes, because two years ago in 2016 I got fourth place in MKX at EVO. Last year when Injustice was relatively new, I wasn’t really playing it a lot, I came here to have a good time and ended up getting 25^th, or 17^th, or something like that, so it wasn’t like a great placing or anything, and then I went off the grid, didn’t really play that much, I barely play enough as it is, and now I came here this weekend with the intention of just having a vacation and seeing everyone, because I haven’t travelled in a very long time and I’m really close with a lot of guys in the scene. For some reason I was just playing really well, I put HoneyBee in the losers, which no-one saw coming, I reverse 3-0’d WhiteBoy, which no-one saw coming, I reverse 3-0’d Gross to make top 8, which no-one saw coming, so yeah, I think that makes it a Cinderella story. Nobody had me in their fantasy top 8 bracket, not a single person, and that’s fine, it is what it is. People consider me a Dark Horse because they know based on my past that I’ve been doing this since 2012, so my fundamentals are always going to be solid, but match-up knowledge is a huge thing in this game which obviously I don’t have. So, I was definitely in peoples picks to cause upsets, I don’t think I was in there to make top 8 at EVO, which makes it feel even better.

That being said, you mentioned earlier that you generally play shooters, and this is a very different kind of game. Is there anything mentality wise that you translate to fighting games?

I would say yes. Especially for someone like me who comes from a Counter-Strike background and even now PUBG, I’m a big fan of that, in stressful situations, staying calm is a huge deal. And that’s when you’re playing at home on your computer, when you’re playing on stage in front of tons of people with thousands watching, you have to keep your nerves under control. So that’s something that I think you can take from pretty much any game, so I’ll say that shooters have some synergy with that. But I have a fighting game background, I’ve been doing fighting games since 2012.

Would you say that you’re better at fighting games than shooters?

Absolutely. (Laughs) Unfortunately, but absolutely.

So, you play Ivy. If I wanted to play Ivy, how would I become good with her?

Have good execution and very, very, very solid fundamentals. That’s really what that character is based on. If you can master that then you can play that character at the highest level.

Since you were the relatively unknown coming into this, do you have any tips or thoughts on that? Going from zero to hero?

My advice to people that may be under the radar, that maybe a lot of people don’t know about them, is to stay calm and enjoy yourself, play your game, and understand that just because someone doesn’t think you can make it, doesn’t mean that you can’t. That’s all your own mentality that you have to come up with.

When it comes to pro, if someone wants to become a pro in the fighting scene, if you had one major tip to give to them, what would it be.

Don’t get discouraged when you lose. That’s probably the biggest thing I could tell someone. Losing sucks, we all know it sucks, but it’s a part of the process of becoming a winner. You have to deal with the salt, you have to deal with the losses and heartbreaks, because eventually you’ll reach the point where you want to be.

Are there any other characters you play other than Ivy?

I have a few back-up characters that I play for fun, but I was just feeling it with all Ivy for this weekend. I didn’t want to play any other character, just stick with my guns.

If there was that one character you would want to train on, who would that be?

Sub-Zero for sure. I’m a Mortal Kombat fanboy, so that is like the perfect character for me.

You said you played MKX.

Yeah, that’s where people know me from.

We’re expecting to hear news on new games, like Mortal Kombat 11. Do you think we’re going to hear anything soon?

I would love for Mortal Kombat 11 to be announced. I have been waiting and waiting, it’s inevitable, it’s a matter of time, and it can’t come soon enough. That’s the only way I can describe that. And when it comes back I’ll be back in full force, that’s for sure.

If Mortal Kombat 11 comes out, do you see Injustice 2 being pushed aside?

That’s a big conversation that goes on with the community, because, as the NRS team we are known to move on from one thing to the next. Whatever is shiny and new is what we gravitate towards, so when MK9 was out that was great, when Injustice 1 came out, MK9 fell off, when MKX came out, Injustice was gone, when Injustice 2 came out, MKX hung in there for a bit, but eventually died out. It’s unfortunate, but if I was a betting man I’d say MK11 would probably take over the starlight, but we’ll wait and see. I would like to see the two coexist.

Last question. You’re unsponsored, you’re not on a team, you kicked the asses of a bunch of people that were on teams.

I like playing for myself, it’s one of those things that makes the success story better, when you see Noble, you see Echo Fox, and then you just see some guys name, just by himself in this room full of sponsored professionals. It’s a good feeling when you actually beat those guys.

When it comes to being on a team, do you have any thoughts on if someone were to approach you for a team?

I’m definitely open to the idea, it’s really a matter of finding an offer and seeing if that’s something that I think would be a good idea.  I’m definitely open minded to it.

Can’t argue with that. For now, you’ll just be the guy that made fourth place with no team.

Sounds good to me.

For more coverage from EVO 2018, check out our interview with Tokido as he talks about Street Fighter 5 and being the defending EVO champion, or check out our interview with SonicFox ahead of his bout with GO1 in the Twin Galaxies Fight Club.