Arc System Works is looking to kick off the new year with a bang next month with the Arc System Work Fighting Game Award 2017. The second installment of this now-yearly event will feature two double-elimination, eight-player tournaments in both BlazBlue: Central Fiction and Guilty Gear Xrd REV 2, with each lineup being filled by a collection of past champions from various events throughout the past year.

To give fans a better look at these 16 competitors, ASW has released a pair of “Entries’ introduction” videos, showcasing the players and their characters for each game — as well as interviewing them about their thoughts for the upcoming battles. For those of who don’t speak Japanese, you can see English subtitles of the interviews by turning on closed captions. It’s also great to see some of these players going about their daily lives outside of the games, with a style of presentation very reminiscent of New Japan Pro Wrestling’s pre-match video packages. You can catch both videos below, along with the full list of participants and first-round brackets.

BlazBlue: Central Fiction:

“He Who Devours Everything” Monster/iGS|Kaibutsukun (Izanami, Nine The Phantom, Ragna the Bloodedge) – Co-Champion of Braver’s Rebel 2017

“Sakura Slayer” Cyclops Osaka|Fenrich (Jin Kisaragi) – Co-Champion of Toushinsai 2017

“The Azure Blade” Iwashi (Ragna the Bloodedge) – Co-Champion of Toushinsai 2017

“Green Devil” iGS| Konbanwan Gackt Desu/Film (Hakumen) – Co-Champion of Braver’s Rebel 2017

“The Dancing Dragon” Meister (Lambda-11) – Gateway to BlazBlue Champion

“Master of the Marionette” Grover (Carl Clover) – Highest-placing American player at Evo 2017, tied for 9th

“Pioneer of Mix-Ups” Matoi (Kokonoe) – Online Qualifier A

“The Divine Kabuki Artist” BE|Dora (Bang Shisigami, Mu-12) – Online Qualifier B

Guilty Gear Xrd REV 2

“The Super Ninja” Samitto (Chip Zanuff) – Pre-Evo Japan: 賽 [sài] Champion

“The Leader of Naniwa” Omito (Johnny) – Evo 2017 Champion

“The Indomitable” Nage (Faust) – GodsGarden #12 Champion

“Wings of Talent” Ruki (Dizzy) – Co-Champion of Toushinsai 2017

“Tyrant of Darkness” Digital Hearts|Ogawa (Zato-1) – Co-Champion of Toushinsai 2017

“The Furioso” Daru (I-No) – Co-Champion of Toushinsai 2017

“Super Fingers” Takehara (Ramlethal Valentine) – Online Qualifier A

“Invisible Thunder Thrust” Rion (Ky Kiske) – Online Qualifier B

The Arc System Works Fighting Game Award 2017 will take place on January 13th, 2018 at the e-sports SQUARE in Akihabara. You can find more details about the event in our previous coverage. You can also catch all of the action at either twitch.tv/arcsystemworks, with English commentary, or on Nico Nico Douga. Who do you believe will take the crown in both games? Give us your picks in the comments below.

Source: arcsystemworks