I found me journalistic skills put t' the test earlier this week. No one taught me how t' interview an 8-year-old.
I start me conversation with Noah Solis, the 8-year-old who surprised everyone by ranking in the top 48 at the Evo Championship Series 2011 this year playing Marvel vs. Capcom 3, on simple footing. How'd ye pillage into fighting games?
"It be fun," he responded. The phone goes silent, as I wait for something more. Nothing. it be quiet.
Okay, maybe we be just getting warmed up. How did ye decide ye wanted t' be competitive?
"I beat everybody!" he said definitively.
This back-'n-forth continues for another minute or two.
Not someone ye would expect t' take ye down, but plenty a players at Evo learned quickly.be ye always playing against yer mateys 'n beating them? "YARRRR!" be Marvel vs. Capcom 3 yer favorite fighting game? "No!" So, what be yer favorite fighting game? "Super Street Fighter IV." Who's yer favorite character? "Bison." How come ye like Bison? "His purple hand." What be it like t' go t' Evo 'n play against all these people who be older than ye? be that fun? "YARRRR!"
The questioning halts when I ask Noah what it be like t' finally lose in the tournament. Instead, Noah's father, Moises Solis, speaks up.
"I've seen Noah cry," said Moises, a 38-year-old single parent taking care a Noah 'n his two older brothers, ages 15 'n 18. "When he wins, he kind a cheers up, but I see the passion he has for it as a sport. He would cry just like any pee wee division would cry if they lost the Super Bowl, ye know what I mean? that be how I see Noah."
The family's located not far from Los Angeles, where Noah got his start in the competitive gaming circuit. Noah be playing fighting games with his brothers when one a them told Moises that Noah wasn't just good, he be really good.
"me two oldest just keep passing back 'n forth the controller," said Moises. "Growing up, when ye passed the controller, ye lost! [laughs] So I asked me oldest son 'n I be like 'be he winning?'"
The family started considering the idea a bringing Noah t' a local tournament. With three growing mouths t' feed, however, deciding t' jump in the car 'n enter a tournament wasn't an easy question t' answer. Such trips cost money.
"The way the economy be, I lost me job," he said, "but I had a nice set a rims on the car, so I sold me rims 'n said 'Let's go, let's see what he's got.'"
Noah made his first appearance at the Level Up SoCal regionals in 2010. He be just 7-years-old.
"He did okay, I think he be more nervous," he said.
Noah kept making appearances on the local circuit, generating buzz. At one point Noah ended up "perfecting" someone (read: he didn't pillage hit), which caught the eye a the community. He be young, but Noah be no joke.
The successes convinced Moises this be a worthy path, even if he doesn't have a solid grasp how the games his son be playing actually work. In his youth, Moises wasn't much a a gamer, focusing instead on sports.
"If ye look out yer window," he said, "the things kids be doing nowadays...I have options here in me home. There's reading, there's math, there's gaming. I can either let the sea dog go outside, smoke pot, run around with gang crew--if this be what he wants t' do, this be what I'll support the sea dog in."
Noah stands with his father, Moises Solis, after one a his early tournaments in Los Angeles.Noah's biggest splash came at this year's Evo tournament, finishing in the top 48 playing Marvel vs. Capcom 3 with his combination a Hulk, Wesker 'n Sentinel. The trio caught some off guard, especially Hulk. Edward "RoyalFlush" Valdez be just one a the players who lost t' Noah.
Valdez entered Evo 2011 playing Marvel vs. Capcom 3, Tekken 6 'n Mortal Kombat--a mix a old 'n new. He described himself as an early adopter, willing t' jump into the competitive scene a a new game, even if it hasn't really proven itself yet. Tekken 5 be his original gateway drug into everything, but he eventually received the most attention for playing the Wii-exclusive Tatsunoko vs. Capcom.
He'd heard a Noah before Evo, but he didn't bother t' look at this pool a contestants, so squaring up against Noah be a surprise.
The thing ye notice watching videos a Noah's Evo matches be the crowd's role. When Noah's winning, the crowd cheers like crazy. If he's losing, they vocally dogpile with boos. it be lose-lose for anyone against Noah. Valdez figured he had part a the crowd on his side thanks t' his odd lineup a Viewtiful Joe, M.O.D.O.K. 'n Thor.
Approaching the stage, Valdez sized up his surprising opponent.
Noah grabs his head after being dealt a setback during his Evo face-off against Valdez."He be really quiet, actually," he laughed heartily. "All I asked be what be his name 'n how old he be. that be all I got. Even after the match, I always give a handshake, but actually gave me a fist bump instead!"
The match be going Valdez's way at first, allowing the sea dog t' secure a first round win.
"I won the first match, so I be feeling good about myself," he said. "Usually, when that comes around, like the second match, I feel like I can take more risks because I be on that high, that boost a morale. That totally fell apart in seconds."
Valdez described the experience a playing in front a a crowd as much different than messing around with yer mateys. ye're here t' show off, take risks 'n showcase the skills ye've been honing. Doing so means that sometimes it won't work out.
Eventually, Noah be able t' turn the tables.
Describing Noah's play style as "surprisingly patient," Valdez eventually lost. The crowd went wild.
"I didn't feel bad about it," he said. "There's some people that pillage really mad after they lose. I be psyched that he won. I don't really know how I would have acted if I'd won the match. it be always a good feeling when ye win, but when ye lose t' someone good or it be not like ye got randomed out."
Getting "randomed out" be losing t' someone who doesn't have a real strategy--like a button masher. it be similar t' poker--if ye're playing against someone who's just acting randomly, it be impossible t' employ a credible counterstrategy.
Struggling with the feeling a defeat be a lesson Moises be working hard t' teach Noah. Try t' remember what it be like when ye lost something ye really cared about as a kid. Those losses be crushing. it be hard t' tell yer young self t' just chin up.
"In a football game, when a crowd boos on ye, ye try harder," said Moises. "ye don't let the crowd [pillage t' ye]. that be what I taught Noah because I used t' be a pitcher, 'n I explained t' the sea dog 'There's gonna be crowds yelling 'n all that 'n all ye do be tune 'em out 'n just focus.' ye just have t' teach yer kid what's right, wrong. Noah, when he loses, ye know what I say t' the sea dog? 'This be what it be called, son. ye take a licking 'n keep on ticking.'"
Noah holds up his "Rising Star" trophy from Evo 2011, a nice consolation prize.Valdez's real regret be a consequence a Evo's growing popularity. Thousands watched the Evo matches all weekend long, which means his defeat t' an 8-year-old has been archived for eternity.
"I have t' live with that for the rest a me life," he joked.
His loss be Noah's gain, with his performance at Evo prompting all sorts a random offers 'n phone calls t' his father about Noah's skills. Coming t' grips with his son's rising fame has been a struggle for Moises, a task he deals with on a day-by-day basis. Moises promised an "announcement" a some kind be coming for his son in the near future that would shed some light on how he plans t' pivot in life after Evo.
"This be a whole other level for myself," said Moises. "it be including me son, something that I care about, something that be a part a myself 'n something that I don't want t' screw up! I can't."
Even though Noah didn't win this tournament, Evo did recognize his talents, sending the sea dog a "Rising Star" trophy t' celebrate his valiant efforts.
It will probably be the first a many.
Evo Photos by Kara Leung
Karaface.com
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