"EVO means purpose" - Rick Thiher discusses EVO 2024, the history and meaning of the event, 3rd Strike and more (Exclusive)

Before the EVO 2024 official announcement, I spoke to Rick Thiher, also known as “The Hadou”. Rick is the General Manager of EVO and has a long history in the world of fighting games. From setting up events in his garage to working for Twitch and finally being the GM of the Evolution Championship Series, he’s put in a ton of work to ensure fighting game fans have something to look forward to every year.

There are few moments in the year more exciting than watching Grand Finals of your favorite game - the best of the best clashing, demonstrating skill and cunning the likes of which some of us can only dream.

Unfortunately, my audio was corrupted from our original chat, so we had to set something else up later. We spoke about a wide variety of topics concerning EVO 2024. From the games on the list to DragonBall FighterZ not being included on the main stage, the history of the event, and much more, it was such a pleasure to chat with Rick Thiher again about the most exciting fighting game tournament of the year.

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Rick Thiher, AKA “The Hadou” on EVO 2024

Q. First, thanks for taking the time to chat with us! I really appreciate it. Could you introduce yourself and your role within the EVO Tournament series to our audience?

Rick Thiher: Rick Thiher. General Manager, Evo.

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Q. You have such a long history in the fighting game scene. How does it feel to go from setting up locals in your garage to being in charge of EVO itself?

Rick Thiher: It’s daunting, humbling, and exciting. Pun intended, it feels like an evolution of hobbies, jobs, and aspirations have converged into an opportunity to give back to the people, games, and organizations that inspire me.

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Q. What does EVO mean to you and to the fighting game community at large, do you think?

Rick Thiher: For me, Evo means purpose. For the Fighting Game Community at large, I think Evo represents a rallying point. The event, and the brand itself, is where we celebrate the competitors, games, and history, powering where the genre has been and where it is going - and, importantly, do so together.

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Q. Now, we know exactly what games are going to be held at EVO 2024 this year, and it's really a who's who of big fighting games in 2024. Other than the sheer popularity of games, what goes into deciding the main games?

Rick Thiher: Each year, Evo is trying to showcase a sampler of the fighting game community. The fighting game genre possesses so many great games that having focus points helps players and fans appreciate the genre. So, each year, we’re trying to offer a focused gathering of active player bases, subgenres, publishers, developers, and their shared histories for everyone to converge through.

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Q. On that note, this year, we won't see Dragon Ball FighterZ on the main stage. I assume it will have a side tournament somewhere on the venue, but do you think DBFZ has fallen off, and if so, why?

Rick Thiher: I don’t think it’s fair to say a game with an active player base like Dragon Ball FighterZ has fallen off, particularly when the title is coming to a new generation of consoles with updated graphics and rollback netcode in the near future. After over a half-decade in Evo’s lineup, I think it’s simply a mature sibling watching the younger generation have their turn on the sticks.

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Q. What's interesting to me is that a few of these games are the next iteration of games in their franchise: Tekken 8, Mortal Kombat, and, I guess, Under Night, technically? How familiar with these titles are you personally? Is there one you're more excited about seeing live?

Rick Thiher: I’m playing all of them. One of the ongoing joys in my life is investing time in every fighting game available to me (even if I don’t have the bandwidth to become a competitive threat in them).

For the latest titles, I’m particularly interested in seeing how Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising develops as its precursor released into the challenging early years of the pandemic. We’re only just now seeing the kind of excitement its growing player base produces when gathered together.

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Q. EVO 2023 was frankly, a record-shattering titan in the fighting games scene. It was so awesome to see so many people show up and watch - online and offline. Is there any pressure to break the records you've already set?

Rick Thiher: We’re following the same ambition we had in 2023: run the most engaging and entertaining tournament convention we can. I don’t feel heightened pressure to break the records we set last year, as fans set these records based on a myriad of factors that Evo is happy to take part in and be part of but doesn’t singularly control.

It would certainly be cool to say we ran the biggest fighting game tournament of all time two years in a row, though.

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Q. There are also some pretty great changes coming to the venue this year. Would you care to highlight some of your favorites?

Rick Thiher: The move to the recently opened West Hall at the Las Vegas Convention Center has let us have an all-inclusive ticket and show floor for Evo again. For many years now, the tournament finals have been split between two presentations, one in the Mandalay Bay Exhibit Halls and one in the Michelob Ultra Arena.

Being able to bring all of Evo’s tournaments back to one stage, including access to an expanded show floor open for all three of the event days, harkens back to the attendee experience Evo initially exploded from. I’m very excited that we could build an arena in the West Hall and create a modern version of that.

Beyond that, expanding the Arcade Stick museum, establishing a traditional art gallery, and having featured artists for the show this year are personal favorites. There is so much history in fighting games with peripherals and art that it’s satisfying to be able to help those creations carry forward through time.

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Q. I know you can't talk about this, but I wouldn't be doing my job if I didn't try. Can we expect some major announcements this year? Perhaps something more about Dragon Ball Sparking Zero?

Announcements at Evo have certainly become part of the annual event experience, haven’t they? We’ll have to find out together this July!

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Q. I have to admit, I was crazy excited to see Street Fighter III: Third Strike on the main stage. The game has created some of the most insane EVO moments of all time, so it's deserving. But what led to that instead of MVC2, CVS2, or one of the other great retro titles?

Rick Thiher: We’ve talked a bit about history in some questions thus far, and history is part of what drove 3rd Strike into the lineup this year. 2024 is the 20th Anniversary of Moment 37 and the 25th Anniversary of 3rd Strike itself. For a title so important to Evo’s history, it seemed mandatory to feature it during these anniversaries.

Beyond just history, though, it is also how active 3rd Strike has continued to be worldwide. From the Jazzy Circuit here in the States to the annual celebration that Cooperation Cup has become in Japan, on through to the endless pockets of players and online competitions 3rd Strike is still seeing, it now made sense.

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Q. What's the thing you look forward to the most in EVO 2024? What's going to get people up out of their seats the most?

Rick Thiher: I’m looking forward to seeing which players validate years of effort and persistence. Creating an opportunity for them to stand under the lights and say they’ve cemented a legacy is one of the key things that keeps me motivated during the year.

What’s going to get people out of their seats the most? Pretty much always the Finals right before those Champions are crowned. Sharing in the spirit of competition is an unrivaled experience, and it’s why Evo’s returned with another event this July.

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EVO 2024 takes place from July 19 through July 21, 2024. Taking place two weeks before the normal date, it will also feature some of the hottest fighting games on the EVO 2024 main stage.