In Third Person

"I Got Next" is a documentary about the fighting game scene. Filmed during the Sinsation tournament earlier this year, its goal as a movie is to cover the scene and the people behind competitive fighting games. I watched the short version of the film at www.igotnextmovie.com. A longer version of the movie is due out this winter, with footage from Evo 2009.

After seeing "The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters", my hopes were high for this one. What made that movie so special wasn't the game, but the people stories behind the games. While the story was fudged a bit for the sake of entertainment, it ultimately became a video game version of Rocky with a clear protagonist and antagonist.

From what I've begun to learn about the fighting game scene, there is definitely enough of a people story there for a film. After watching a few tournaments online, listening to podcasts and playing a ton of Street Fighter IV myself, I was really psyched to learn more about the pros that drive this scene. Did it succeed? From what I saw, I felt the documentary left a lot to be desired.

Before I begin to criticize, I must preface by saying that the two movies are very different productions. The King of Kong was a fairly big venture, while I Got Next is basically a one-man project. Also, unlike King of Kong, which had a clear story and progression that occured over a long period of time, the majority of material for I Got Next was cobbled together mainly during a tournament that spanned only a few days. Considering the limitations holding back I Got Next, Ian Cofino did a pretty good job with what he had.

Maybe it's just me, but I really felt like it could have gone so much further. With the exception of Gootecks and the East vs. West thing, I felt like the film only scratched the surface of the guys they spotlighted for the film and the scene that holds all these guys together. I was watching it, warming up to the film, and then it abruptly ended without really satisfying any quenches I had for what the film was talking about.

If you're a fighting game fan, I still think it's worth a watch to get a glimpse of the pro scene you may be oblivious to. There's a lot more going on to Street Fighter than what happens on XBOX Live or PSN. Here's to hoping though that the next cut of I Got Next goes a little more in-depth.