Growing up I've always enjoyed games that never made gender an issue. The games where you boot up and an old friendly professor asks an innocent question that millions of players have seen at least once. "Are you a boy or a girl?" Pokemon Crystal was the first Pokemon game I've ever played and when I was presented with the option, nine-year-old me chose Kris. Kris was the "official" name for the Pokemon Trainer girl much like Gold is the official name for the boy and Silver for their rival.
Regardless of my decision, it wouldn't have any effect on the pacing of the story. I'd battle the same trainers, have the same opportunities to catch the same Pokemon, and earn the same badges. Choosing a gender was purely a choice of preference. When Professor Oak asked who you were, he invited you on the same journey as the next trainer sitting across from you.
Of course, depending on the game there "May" be an advantage in using the female trainer as the Ruby and Sapphire games prefer the girl over the boy for several time saves. Regardless, over the years the number of games that allowed players to be who they wanted to be increased. In recent games like Cyberpunk 2077, you could do much more as well. So, what does any of this have to deal with a local Tekken tournament held every month in Brooklyn? Fighting games have a lot more to deal with gender identity than most realize and as someone who is experiencing this firsthand, I'll allow myself to explain the best I can.
June's New York City Tekken's monthly tournament was held in BrookLAN, a place that has been the host of events in the past. Unfortunately, the original plan of having world-renowned fighting game player Arslan Ash fell through but it didn't diminish the competitive flames of those who arrived. As is the case every month, regulars from the tri-state area including New Jersey and Pennsylvania come out to support. From PA's ace, Ty, to local favorites including Stride and Jersey's own PepperBeefTooSpicy, potential Tekken World Tour points were on the line, especially before CEO and following Combo Breaker weekend.
There was a lot of personal rummaging that was taking place during Combo Breaker aside from the awesome community tournaments. For the longest time, I've always found myself in fighting game characters as an extension of who I am. Obviously, I couldn't be a fit wrestler wearing a jaguar mask or a taekwondo expert, but I could play these characters that represented me outside of reality. One of my first it characters was King from Art Of Fighting however I would be introduced to her in Capcom VS SNK 2. It was the first time I saw a character who defied what I considered the "gender norm."
She wore her hair cut short, a dress shirt and suit pants, and a brutal fighting style that felt just as damaging as anyone else utilizing it. Ivy's second costume from Soul Calibur is another example of an outfit that exhibited that same energy.
Recently, Street Fighter 6 knocked it out of the park in terms of character representation in terms of player connection. I realized no matter the genre I always gravitated towards the women characters. It's not weird for someone to relate to a character regardless of gender, but I knew when I saw certain characters, I was that person.
Here is the beginning of one of my major loves in fighting games, Christie Monteiro in Tekken 4. I first played this game at a random arcade at the Poconos resort. I was a kid, I didn't care about the resort more so there was an arcade that had the latest game which was yet to release on consoles.
Like many who began with Tekken 3, Eddy Gordo was the childhood superhero in pressing a mass array of buttons and praying something works. Tekken 4 was the same with Christie, but not for me. She moved gracefully, exhibiting a playful confidence that very few characters had at the time. Tekken 5 made me love her more, largely due to her cutscenes in story mode against formidable foes like Bruce Irving. She became a huge part of my identity to the point where I'd settle for using her original counterpart in a game where she isn't a playable character.
Last year's EVO was a memorable one as Guilty Gear Strive won the hearts of many. Characters like Bridget and Testament were considered trans and non-binary inspirations for many players. It would be this sense of inclusion that would reflect just how accepting the fighting game community is, here in New York.
This editor has been non-binary for as long as they can remember and part of what made me determine this was my ability to explore things about myself. If I read a novel and felt a character represented me in ways I never thought before, it'd be no different from characters in a video game. I'm not sure when I realized that I was transfemme but it was because of the support of my peers that allowed me to come out.
June's Tekken Monthly was the first public event I dressed as femme presenting and my peers, the same guys and gals and enbys I've grown with over the year, were incredibly chill about it. Having safe spaces, even if it's a local where you meet up once a month, is severely underrated and it was amazing how much I felt like myself.
I've seen a meme a while back on social media that trans people get a "buff" in fighting games when they come out publicly and I suppose I felt the same effect. My movements were clean, I wasn't open to making as many mistakes, and any I made was taken with a level head. My results didn't matter, it was like mentally removing the weights like Rock Lee vs Gaara. Perhaps the buff is removing the mental block by being one's self.
Final results concluded with NYC Tekken's own Love&Care Laundromats sponsored Fear Of Silence winning first place and top four earning those much coveted Tekken World Tour points. With CEO mere days away and EVO awaiting in the sinful Vegas Summer, the North American circuit ramps up! In closing, the best part of the tournament wasn't what took place during it, but what happened after.
I fought against who I consider my tournament wall, RunItBackEddie. He has been the standard on what I consider a strong player is like and he has ended many runs of mine. Something changed when I played against him alongside fellow Hwoarang specialist WinnieCommittee, and it was that I took each mistake as a learning monument. I didn't mind losing if everything else was working out in my favor. I simply lost to the better player this time around but I played the best I could and didn't put myself down for making mistakes.
While I may have been one or two sets away from top 8 (again), the feeling of a player you look up to send you a congratulatory message is what makes all of this worth it. In the end, as a transfemme non-binary all I'd ever want is somewhere where I'd feel loved. Thankfully, in my peers and in my job, I feel this. Never stop being yourselves gamers.