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PerfectLegend: Interview with a 3-Time Evo Champ

 

Fighting games are back and are bigger than ever. Streams, tournaments, sponsorships, and large cash pots which include money from the developer of that game shows just how mainstreams fighting games are becoming.
PerfectLegend is no novice when it comes to fighting games, having been part of the scene for many years. However, many of us are able to see and know who he is for the first time because of the large jumps the Fighting Game Community has made.
Come with me as I ask this 3-Time Evolution Fighting Game Champion about his thoughts, approaches he takes on his games, and ultimately what has driven him to become one of the best players in the world.

Really? Twice? Who is this guy?

My first introduction to who PerfectLegend was first came during the opening months of Mortal Kombat. He made himself out to be a pretty dominant force, but also his character was notoriously broken (Justin Wong had previously taken the Mortal Kombat Nationals with Kung Lao).
Me not really caring for Mortal Kombat in combination with the character allowed me to easily dismiss the finals for Evolution 2011, however he forced me to acknowledge his presence by turning around and winning the very next year in the same game with the same character that was nerfed…I was astonished by it. Reaching out to him, he agreed to do an interview with me. I was hype for the opportunity to speak with the dominant force in the Mortal Kombat scene and inquire as to what makes him tick.

The Interview

In the interview I wanted to ask questions that pertained to his training method, thoughts about the longevity of Mortal Kombat, and other miscellaneous things that has to do with himself and his visions on the Fighting Game Community. This interview is 20 questions long and I hope that you all enjoy it! (Oh, also, give my FaceBook a like if you would, thought I would throw that in there, lol.).

 

  1. So tell me, how did you come to be known by “PerfectLegend”? What made you go with this name?

    Well, I wanted the name Legend since I used it in a game I used to play called “Earth’s Special Forces” but Legend was taken. Perfect Legend showed up in the generator because of it and I chose that, lol. I thought it was cool since I am a big fan of DBZ (Dragonball Z) and the reason I had Legend as a name was because of the Legendary Super Saiya-jin (Broly), but since Perfect Legend came up I’m like, “Wow, that’s like Perfect Cell” so I just picked it, lol.

  2. Haha! I must say that I was not expecting that. I was thinking more along the lines of you aiming to be a “Perfect Legend”. Do you prefer people to call you by your handle or by your real name, Carl White?Lol, yeah. I wish I had more of an epic story to tell you 🙁 . It doesn’t matter to me what I am called , but it’s kind of odd to call me Perfect Legend if we are in a restaurant or something, lol.  I will say I do kind of live up to my name and have an almost perfect rushdown when I play. I try to play as much like a robot as possible when I make player reads.

  3. You are a two-time Evolution champion for Mortal Kombat. Did you ever think you would manage to become the champ once? Let alone twice?

    I’m also a Evo champ for Dead or Alive 4 but not a lot of people know that because streams weren’t available back then 🙁 . As far as Mortal Kombat goes, I got to a point in Mortal Kombat where I felt like I was the strongest player and that the only way I could lose is if I didn’t fully know a match up, the setups lag, or I had to be majorly out of practice. I went into the tournament both times with the confidence that I am the strongest player in the world.

  4. It is very true, many people did not know you are a three-time Evo Champion because fighting games did not have many streams back then. But, since these were streamed worldwide, do you feel that these were your greatest successes as a fighting gamer?

    Well, I rank Evo wins as the pinnacle of my success overall as a fighting gamer. It’s something every player wants to win at least once in their time as a player. It is like winning the Superbowl or NBA Finals, so I hold winning Evo at the very highest of my accomplishments.

  5. Tell me, what drives you to be a competitive fighting gamer? What do you love about it so much?

    What drives me to be a competitive fighting game player is the endless amount of players I can play against. I love the struggle between two minds to overcome one another and show who has the superior mind. It’s a big ego trip for me to be honest. I love being able to out-think my opponent and coming out on top. When someone makes a good read I know that player is thinking, “Oh my God! I am so much smarter than you!” and this is what brings the hype in tournaments for the viewers. It’s the same thing as crossing someone over in basketball.

  6. With this in mind, it makes sense why you would want to be the top player. When was the last time you felt overwhelmed when faced with someone in competition?

    Whenever I am learning a new game that I am not entirely accustomed to yet and I play it in tournament to force myself to learn faster, I feel overwhelmed because I still have no idea what is going on or what I should be doing.

  7. Many people consider Mortal Kombat to be passed its time, what newer games are you considering playing competitively?

    I think Mortal Kombat has a few more years left. The core game of MK has evolved between players a lot and it’s still very fun to play, so I hope people still give it their attention. As far as the other games, I have been playing Dead or Alive 5 as it is my first competitive love afterall. I am also getting back into Street Fighter 4 while simultaneously playing TEKKEN and Marvel on the side.

  8. The reason I said that is because I hardly see any more news, tournaments, or streams for Mortal Kombat around. What is the possibility you think of it being at next years Evolution? Plan on becoming the Dead or Alive 5 Champion if that is present and not MK? 

    There are still streams but not as frequent. I think MK still has life in it but when Injustice: Gods Among Us releases I think everyone will dedicate their time to that since I know NetherRealm Studios is pushing really big for it to be apart of the Evolution circuit. I of course, will be going out for the Dead or Alive 5 World Championship if it is at Evo. I would love that.

  9. You are a sponsored, are you not? Tell me, who are you sponsored by and how do you like the partnership?

    I am not at all sponsored. Sponsorships are good though, nothing beats a good sponsorship.

  10. What is the best way to get in contact with you should someone be interested in talking to you about a sponsorship?

    The best way to contact me is through my e-mail which is perfectlegend@gmail.com and also I can be contacted via twitter as well twitter.com/perfectlegend (@perfectlegend) and again on facebook.com/perfectlegend.

  11. Tell me about your training regimen, how do you prepare for tournaments?

    I try to learn everything I can about the game and my character. First understanding the core mind game in a match and all of my — and my opponents — basic options. Then I move onto match-ups. Once I have match-ups down I practice combos to make sure I can hit them whenever I want.

  12. A lot of people work on their character and combos and then move onto match-ups last. Do you feel that by learning match-ups early in the lifespan of a game leads to a better chance of success later on?Assuming I already know the game, I just go on to match-ups; but if it is a new game, learning your combos is very critical because you have to know how to get damage in the most common situations. Match-ups is just as, if not more important, especially for later down the road.

  13. Of all competitors you have played with, who has helped you the most in developing your skill? 

    JOP, Tom Brady, Justin Wong, Alex Valle as people to look up to and have given me advice over the years. As far as people I have competed against are all of the greats in the games and I am pretty sure people will be shocked to hear this but:In DOA I give credit to Blackmamba, Master, Offbeat Ninja, Ryujin, NinjaCW for pushing me to my limits and beyond. Without good competition and obstacles, you can’t become a great player.

    In MK there is CDJr, Reo, Pig of the Hut without them I wouldn’t have gotten the fire to want to dominate. For a year I dealt with hella shit talk and decided to come out of my slumber and show just how powerful I am; With that said, thank you for poking the lion with a stick.

  14. Of all competitors you have fought in competition, which matches stand out the most in your memory as being “Great”?

    All of my Evolution grand finals matches I felt were very great.In DOA, coming all the way back from losers bracket to win the whole tournament against the very stacked competition, all of these players are still on top to this day: Black Mamba, Rikuto, Master, King, Tom Brady, JustOwnin and HighGuy.

    In Mortal Kombat I dealt with a year of people saying I am not that good and it was just Kung Lao, and I won’t be able to win after the nerfs but I ended up silencing everyone and winning MK back-to-back. I think was a great moment in fighting game history because no one or not many people have ever done that.

  15. Do you sometimes feel overwhelmed by the expectations of spectators and your sponsors whenever you play?

    I used to actually get really hype and then my nerves would get to me but nowadays I don’t feel anything and its more like, “ehhh I’ve been here before”. So it’s not as much of an “awe” factor for me, it comes with experience.
  16. I see. Since you are now so use to being on the center stage are you ever worried that the love for being there will soon be gone?I am not at all worried about the love for fighting games being there, it will never fade The hype fighting games bring is very unique and it is not a feeling that can be reproduced.
  17. Have you ever considered giving up professional fighting games in favor of something else?I have thought about it in the past I wanted to pursue a career in dancing and actually wanted to take vocal lessons because I really wanted to be a singer. However, I am much better at fighting games than I am at dancing or singing, haha.

  18. You know, you really should get RedRapper to do a song and you could dance and sing in the background. That would be awesome. What do you think? 

    Let me be serious here; I am the worst singer in the world but I am maybe average at dancing so it would be cool to dance to a track, lol.

  19. Tell me, do you have any future plans or ambitions within the Fighting Game Community or any that can be achieved through it? 

    My future plans for the FGC is to push it into greater heights. I want competitive fighting games to be acknowledged by the world similar to how Starcraft is acknowledged by South Korea. I want it to be like that, but everywhere in the world. My ambitions is to try to become the strongest player that I can ever become and that is a never ending journey because there is always something new to learn. I hope to always put on a good show with my high speed play style that I have apparently become very known for over the years.

  20. What is the one piece of advice you can give anyone aspiring to be a champion in their game of choice? 

    No matter how much you lose, take all of your losses and learn from it. All of the salt you accumulate will be gone when you finally break through and become great.

The Verdict

 

Lots of interesting things came to my mind after going through this interview with “PerfectLegend” Carl White. I had no idea he was not sponsored, especially have three Evolution wins, the most of which are recent back-to-back in the same game, which is a rare achievement. No idea he knew how to dance and was going to seriously undertake in a career doing it, nor did I know he would definitely show up to show out if Dead or Alive 5 is on the Evolution 2013 bracket.

From this interview I can also tell that he is a very proud player who puts in a lot of hard work in order to win, but also that he is probably at his best when people are openly thinking he does not have what it takes and he happens to prove them wrong (Though, no idea why people said that because even a bad player with a top tier character cannot possibly win a Evolution Final). I hope that you all enjoyed this interview and gathered as much from it as I did about Carl “PerfectLegend” White and his views on fighting games and his ambitions for the future as a 3-Time Evolution Fighting Game Champion.

Thank you for reading, Sayonara!

PerfectLegend’s Contact Information
facebook.com/perfectlegend

perfectlegend@gmail.com

RoK the Reaper’s Contact Information
facebook.com/rokthereaper


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About The Author


RoK the Reaper
A serious gamer & hardcore otaku who loves anything gaming, anime, or manga! I hope to bring you the best content for these subjects I love in the form of news, reviews, interviews, and in-depth editorials! さよなら!

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