MarkMan Discusses EVO 2018, Tekken, Soul Caliber VI and Razer Sticks

Mark "MarkMan" Julio is one of the most recognizable faces in the fighting game community, as the veteran of the scene is currently the Global Business Development Manager for the Evolution Championship Series (EVO), Tekken Brand and Community Adviser, Consultant and Fighting Game Community Lead for Razer and the business manager for Echo Fox fighting game legend Justin Wong. 

Twin Galaxies was able to sit down and speak with MarkMan at EVO 2018 and get his thoughts on the biggest fighting game event for 2018, what titles he is excited to watch and be apart of during EVO 2018 and his recent work with Razer and its fighting game technology. 

TG: What has been the positives for EVO 2018 coming into the event this weekend as opposed to last year?

MarkMan: "EVO 2018 has actually been a fun adventure so far. We were looking at the numbers going into the event and so far everything has gone up across the board. We have seen more and more entrants. We actually have two new games this year that both broke over 1,000 entries. That actually made us really excited to be able to gear it towards those two specific audiences in BlazBlue Cross Tag Battle that definitely brought a lot of interest and of course Dragon Ball FighterZ. Everyone has been looking at that game under the microscope and a lot people have been playing it. It has a great international scene, which is something I am super excited for, but aside from all of the competitors here at EVO, everyone already knows that EVO is the world's biggest fighting game event and tournament."

"The convention side of EVO is huge. There are so many people coming here and buying tickets to experience it. We have a record number of booths by publishing partners this year showcasing new titles and new content that they have for their games. It is just a really exciting time to be a fighting game fan because the focus on fighting games is much more than it has been in the past."

TG: What are the games that you are the most excited for at EVO 2018?

MarkMan: "For this event and the games that are here for the tournament and event, I am a big Tekken guy, so I can't wait to see how Tekken is going to turn out. It is the biggest Tekken tournament in history with over 1,500 entrants, so I can not wait to see how that is going to play out. I'll be doing commentary for that throughout the weekend, so I am excited to have my front row seat.

"Aside from that, with upcoming games, it is a really good time with Soul Caliber VI coming out, and I am super excited. We talked about Soul Caliber in the past, and I just can't wait to see how that game is going to shape out. October is when the game is going to be releasing, and I am really excited to see what Bandai Namco is going to do. You know EVO is known for having all of the world premiere announcements now, so I am looking forward to Championship Sunday where I am sure we are going to see some stuff we haven't seen before."

TG: Could you tell us a little more about that Marvel vs Capcom: Infinite Razer stick that you consulted on?

MarkMan: "I work with Razer as the fighting game lead and community lead for Razer when it comes to fighting games. The Marvel vs Capcom: Infinite stick was something that we had been working on for awhile. It actually took awhile for it to hit the market, but we are very happy with that collaboration. We actually worked with our designers and outsourced a lot of the artwork to create not only a nice throwback to Marvel Infinite fans but also Marvel vs Capcom fans in general. You guys can see the reference in the artwork that it is a throwback to the original MVC and one of the key art posters they had for the game. I just think that it is really cool. I mean obviously there are still a lot of people who play Marvel. I mean it is not one of the main titles here at this event, but there is still a fan base that we still want to cater to and show them some form of love."

"Speaking of Razer sticks here, we actually have the prototype of one of the new ones here that I have been showing off for the first time ever. I guess this is the next evolution of the Razer Panthera, and I just have it on display for people to check out if they want to. It is something that is a work in progress still."

TG: What are some of the new features of the prototype Razer stick that you are showing off at EVO 2018?

MarkMan: "It is a complete different body casing. I think the main thing that people are going to take away from this is that we are using Razer micro switches for the buttons, and that is really the newest thing about it. We think that the precision and durability on these is above and beyond what is out there on the market, and we want people to pay attention to it. They are the same micro switches that we use in the Razer keyboards. We are currently focused on the platform where fighting games lay in the competitive space for the stick, which is currently the PS4." 

(cover photo courtesy of Mark Julio)