Dr. Chaos Interview

So what's up people? We got a special treat today, I was able to get ahold of Dr. Chaos, and get an interview in with him. For those of you who don't know, Dr. Chaos is one of the most/more famous Ken players in Street Fighter 4, and has made quite a name for himself in the tournament scene. But without rambling on, let's get into it.



Q: So first things first: Who are you, where are you from, and what do you do?

A: My handle is Dr.chaos real name Brandon. I am from Philadelphia, Pa. And im currently a part time student/part time worker and part time sf4 player lol.

Q: Where did the name "Dr. Chaos" come from, exactly?

A: In my freshman year of Highschool my friend used to always go around doing silly stuff and say he just claim he is the Evil Dr.Chaos. When coming up for a handle I just thought about that and ran with it. He told me its from southpark but I don't watch that show so I have no idea about the actual Dr.chaos

Q: What was the first fighting game that you played? What got you into the competitive scene?

A: One of the Sf2 incarnations not sure which one though, most likely CE or HF though. I used to play on kaillera a lot and would play a lot of Mvc1 and other older Vs. game series. But these were all old games that no one competed in anymore. I was decent in them but the offline scene for them was dead. when University Pinball (local arcade) got SF4 I just decided to play. A couple months later there was an arcade tourney I got like 9th in then @ NEC9 in December I got 4th and one thing led to another and I soon became a tournament attender/player

Q: Was there anybody in particular that inspired you to become competitive with Street Fighter?

A: Well this guy “Godja” taught me how to wave dash in mvc that ignited my initial competitive spirit. Most likely the Daigo parry got me liking the actual “SF” series and wanting to become a competitive player, because I was more of Vs game series and always considered the SF series not as exciting because of no air combos and other madness only possible in those games lol.

Q: Do you play other games besides fighting games, or no?

A: Yeah, I play a lot of other capcom games. I’m a big fan of the RE series, Mega Man X 1-5 and Devil may cry. Rpgs are among my favorite too. I enjoy a good fps every once in awhile too.

Q: And now, for the question that everybody wants to know. There's so many better characters in Street Fighter 4. Why Ken? What made you want to play a lower-tier character? And more importantly, why did you stick with him? Did you feel that you saw some untapped potential in the character?

A: When I first started playing SF4 in the arcade I had no idea Ken was a lower tier character then others. I just picked him cause he was similar to his 3s self and that was the first SF I learned to play and actually knew what I was doing. I stuck with Ken probably cause I like his playstyle and think he does pretty good against most of the cast, and it is a satisfying feeling winning with him. Right now I play more Akuma and Sagat then Ken though. Although when I was put into losers @ winter brawl I used Ken to bring me back to Top 8.

Q: As a Ken player, what would you say are some of Ken's biggest challenges to overcome during a fight?

A: Ken just starts to struggle against characters that can do more damage then him. Or ones that have real good zoning game. Unfortunately, usually the big damage guys are the great zoning ones. Its hard for Ken to make a comeback but not impossible. His worst match ups are probably Zangief and Sagat. Akuma can be tough also if he knocks you down, but that’s pretty much a given if he knocks down anyone lol.

Q: Have you had any bad tournament experiences? What are some of your most memorable moments from past tournaments?

A: My worst experience would have to be going straight to losers first round of Semis at Evo. And going 1-2 at 8 on the Break one night. Most memorable moments was probably putting Gootecks in losers @ East coast Throwdown and defeating Keno to qualify out of pools at Evo.

Q: What goes through your mind during a tournament match? What would you say for people who get upset or flustered really easily, and does that happen to you at all?

A: I try to concentrate on just winning, and maximizing every combo opportunity I get. I try to make everything 2-0 because I hate the 1-1 situation. Sometimes I play with my headphones on to zone out. However, if it’s a hype match sometimes I like to listen to other people shouting and yelling stuff. For people who get upset/flustered they should just take a deep breath and play there best, and never give up. There is always a chance to come back no matter how bleak the situation looks. And try making a tournament playlist on your ipod/mp3 device, and listen to that while you play. Also try and pick your favorite stage that usually helps. I love playing on Drive In at night that stage always brings me good luck(most of the time)

Q: Who do you feel is your best competition?

A: Champion ship mode lol.

Q: On average, how much time do you spend practicing a week? And what exactly does it entail? Do you just strictly play, or do you go online and do research, as well?

A: I play sf4 off and on but usually I just go into Champ mode and play those guys. Its probably not a good idea but its fun. I probably play sf4 atleast 2-3 hours a day. I don’t do a lot of researching, or training mode practice.

Q: Moving forward, what are your thoughts on Super Street Fighter 4? What do you think about the new additions to the roster so far, and who do you think should be nerfed/buffed?

A: Im thinking SSF4 will be good, it looks like they adjusted most of the issues wrong with SF4 trades, damage, invincibility moves. As long as they adjusted Kens walk speed, sweep and fierce srk I will be a happy camper. His new ultra looks a little corny so I may just use Ultra 1 but I will have to wait until it comes out to actually know. In SSF4 I will most likely not be using 1 strict main character but mess around with a little bit of everyone. But the 3 main ones I want to be using are Ken, Adon and Akuma.

Q: What would you say to newcomers onto the tournament scene, or people who are interested in being competitive with Street Fighter, or Video Games in general?

A: Don’t let your first impression of everyone get to you. Most people can come off as jerks in the fighting game community (or atleast EC) but deep down everyone is cool (usually) lol. Also don’t give up just keep practicing until you can beat people you couldn’t before or place higher then you normally couldn’t. If that doesn’t work don’t be afraid to switch characters and learn someone else. Some characters aren’t for everyone.

Q: What would you say are some necessary qualities of a great SF player

A: Just being smart, creative and able to keep your cool.

Q: In closing, where do you see the Fighting Game Commmunity going from here? Do you see it going more mainstream, and possibly even televised? And how do you think the
community as a whole has changed over the years?

A: Well I have only been active in the offline community for about 1 year even though my Srk join date is 2005, I’m more like an 09er lol. But every tournament I go to, I see more and more new faces even though I am sort of a new face myself. I can see fighting games being televised and becoming more mainstream. Whether or not it would be best of the fighting game community I have no idea. I hope for the best though.

Alright, that about wraps it up! Any other final words that you would like to say to the readers?

A: Thanks for reading the interview. Hoped you guys enjoyed it ^_^