Evo 2024 starts Friday July 19th, kicking off a weekend full of one of the most intense fighting game competitions in the world. This year over 10,000 players will participate in a host of games, making this the largest Evo ever while also setting the record for the largest esports tournament.
Evo has been getting bigger and bigger, with participation bolstered by the release of new versions of the tournament’s most popular games. Street Fighter 6 made its Evo debut last year, and boasted the largest number of entrants in the franchise’s history. This year both Mortal Kombat 1 and Tekken 8 will make their first Evo appearances. In addition to those heavy hitters, Evo 2024’s other featured games include Guilty Gear Strive, Gran Blue Fantasy Versus: Rising, Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike, King of Fighters XV, and Under Night In Birth II Sys: Celes. (Listen… I don’t understand either but it’s an anime fighting game and those make for excellent watching.)
Here’s a breakdown of all the featured games and their number of participants.
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Image: EVO
Competition kicks off at 10 AM PT/ 1 PM ET across Evo’s seven Twitch channels. Some games like King of Fighters XV and Mortal Kombat 1 will have their grand finals on Saturday July 20th, while the bigger tournaments like Street Fighter 6 and Tekken 8 will conclude on Sunday. You can see the full schedule of events here.
In addition to the featured games, Evo 2024 will also host community showcase tournaments featuring games that are much beloved but don’t necessarily have the popularity of the big guys like Street Fighter and Tekken. There are over 17 tournaments featuring games like Skull Girls, Dragon Ball Fighter Z, Soul Caliber VI, and Killer Instinct. While these games won’t be broadcast on the main Evo channels, you can check out the community showcase watch guide here to see when and where to watch these tournaments.
It’s never been a better time to be a fighting game fan. The crowds at events like Evo are large and loud and the action is easy to understand — something other esports like League of Legends and Overwatch 2 cannot claim. Even if you’re not big into fighting games or esports in general, Evo is still one of the most entertaining events to watch.