“When I was a child, we used to have an arcade center in front of my house. So coming back from school, I used to go to the arcade center with my cousins and my brothers and my schoolmates.”
Evo Las Vegas 2024 is in full swing with the TEKKEN 8 competition heating up! Among the competitors is none other than Red Bull eSports player Arslan "Arslan Ash" Siddique. He sat down with esports.gg for an exclusive interview!
Arslan Ash defends his crown at Evo Las Vegas 2024
After battling it out on the first day of Evo Las Vegas 2024, Arslan Ash advanced to the next round, bringing him that much closer to TEKKEN World Tour Finals 2024. There, only the best of the best get to gather for the conclusion of the TWT 2024 circuit. In his interview with esports.gg, Arslan Ash revealed his thoughts about Evo Las Vegas so far and how he hopes to defend the crown as the TWT 2023 champion. To him, being focused on his own gameplay above all else is the path to victory.
"'I'm not the kind of guy who is like, 'He beat me, I want to beat him, I want to fight him.' I just want my part to be very easy," Arslan Ash told esports.gg. "I wish the other top players get eliminated so at least I can win."
The player then shared his practice routine, noting that he practiced extensively in Pakistan and dedicated seven to eight hours daily before entering tournaments.
"In Pakistan, I'm the only one representing it, so I practice a lot. If there's a tournament like Evo, like two, three weeks before, I just play like seven or eight hours every day and train hard, learn matchups. This is my way of training," he said. He then revealed that he has a bootcamp there where he practices with various players and experiments with different characters in TEKKEN 8 to keep himself and his community sharp.
The impact of Red Bull Gaming: From Pakistan to across the globe
It also means a lot to Arslan Ash that he gets to compete at Evo Las Vegas 2024 and various other tournaments such as DreamHack Dallas and CEO 2024 as a player from Pakistan's fighting game community (FGC). He told esports.gg about his first trip to Evo in the states back in 2019, recalling how back then, he didn't have a sponsor and faced numerous challenges.
"I never thought that I would make it this far. I'm so happy I have come this far," Arslan Ash said. "I remember the first time I went to Evo USA in 2019. I was unsponsored, I was just drinking water on the stage, and there was like no support. And I didn't know what to do. I stayed in a very bad hotel, and I got food poisoning and everything you could possibly think of. I didn't know English. But a lot of things have changed. Now, when I come Evo, everyone recognizes me. I drink Red Bull here. So everything has changed. I'm so blessed. I'm so happy."
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The difference between offline and online TEKKEN 8
When asked about Pakistan's FGC and his memories of where it all started, Arslan Ash reminisced about the old arcades where he used to play video games with his cousins, brothers, and schoolmates.
"When I was a child, we used to have an arcade center in front of my house. So coming back from school, I used to go to the arcade center with my cousins and my brothers and my schoolmates. So that was how I started playing video games."
He continued, noting how in Japan, arcades still exist, but they are not as popular as they once were. Arslan Ash also noted that the trend has shifted more towards online gaming. In the past, the online scene wasn't as developed, so players had to travel to arcades to play fighting games offline. This was a global trend, including in the U.S., but now the focus has shifted. Despite this, he still prefers in-person events the most. There are advantages and disadvantages, however.
"I think it's better because I think Pakistan is the only country that has the best offline scene in TEKKEN 8 and TEKKEN overall," he told esports.gg. "Other scenes — they have good online. But we have both an advantage and disadvantage. The disadvantage that we have is that we cannot play with a lot of different characters. In offline, you cannot gather that much people because they live far away, they cannot come daily to play. When you play online, you find a lot of different players, you get to play with a lot of different characters and learn a lot of different matches."
He continued, noting how offline practice is also more serious to him as it involves sharing thoughts and strategies. He believes this focus on offline practice is a key reason why Pakistan's scene is strong and successful with the TEKKEN franchise.
Arslan Ash talks TEKKEN 8 patch 1.05
The Red Bull eSports player shared his thoughts about the latest version of TEKKEN 8 as well, noting how it didn't really affect his strategy going into Evo Las Vegas 2024. He added that he's happy about the updates as they've made aggressive and defensive playstyles more balanced. However, there can be a few more changes to make everything just right.
"In the beginning, I was asking for nerfs and balance changes. And then finally, they listened to those things, and I think the game is going in a very good direction right now. We just need more fixing like — I think the chip damage needs to be nerfed and stuff like that. But overall, I'm so happy the game is now good for both defensive and offensive players," Arslan Ash said, adding that he hopes Jun gets a buff simply because he likes her.
As for parting words, Arslan Ash thanked the community and his supporters.
"I want to say thanks to everyone who will be reading this article — that I really appreciate your support and I do read your comments and messages on my socials. So, yeah. Keep supporting me. I will just keep doing my best."
That's all for now. Stick around on esports.gg for more interviews, news, and updates across the FGC!
