KO3 Format and Qualification Discussion

[Simpsons99]

Well I have said before I think people should have to qualify again. Why? Because if you are one of the top 12 scores then during the "qualifying" period of 10.5 months you will qualify again. I agree that certain people will get automatic invites and that is what golf does. but this needs to have the same mentality as qualifying for the nfl playoffs. Baltimore won the super bowl but if they go 4-12 next year they don't get to the go to the playoffs.

For KO3:

1. Last year Winner
2. Current WR Holder (Arcade and Mame)
3. Billy
4. Steve

Honestly that is it. Afterwards its the Top 7 -9 (for 12 or 14 people) scores from the end of KO2 to 6 weeks prior to KO3 get a dedicate machine. Same should apply for the wildcard machines. If there will be 4 WC machines then the top 8 scores get to do the WC and after the first day its cut down to 4 WC so each gets a dedicated machine for day 2.

Why? This makes it interesting to know that anything could happen. You have to stay active to get to participate and being on the "bubble" will force you to keep pushing. You want to stop sandbagging? Then you have to submit your highest score period. No holding back. If you get caught doing that then your banned from any KO in the future. This prevents getting a 1.08 score that puts you in 12th place but then getting a 1.27 later and just holding onto it. You need to submit it BEFORE someone beats your 1.08.  If you don't then sorry it won't be allowed to submit after someone breaks your 1.08 score if it was recorded PRIOR to them submitting their score.  [ Think the now infamous Billygate ] Keep playing and producing if you want to go again. Otherwise stay home and watch. I really don't understand why people don't like this idea. Top 12 on the TG scoreboard should not be the only grounds for who gets to go but I understand its a TGI event and that maybe the only thing they go by. Still its not hard at all to do what John is suggesting or what I am.

Basically the top scorers are going to put up top scores and qualify year after year if they want to. nuff' said.

I like this idea.. I allso feel it should be this way too keep people playing.

Seems like your top players play DK For like 3 months out of the year...  Not putting Vincent and Dean in this group there playing DK Year around .

Love to keep the event fresh!

[Xermon54]

Yeah, this would be a good formula. I would enjoy the idea of: 6 weeks prior the Kong Off, people needs to put a X game to participate to the Kong Off.

However, this can be a little bit awkward, depending on the situation.

Like personally, if I don't have the record by then, and if for some reason I can't play on my arcade machine (or even on MAME), and I end up not getting invited because of that, even if I did a 1.15m+ score few months before, I wouldn't be very happy! lol.

Things like that could happen to everyone. For example, If something bad happens in your life (family problems/work/etc), and you don't want to play Donkey Kong because of that (but still want to go play at the Kong Off 3), but end up not getting invited because some sh*t happened in your life and you didn't put a score good enough to participate to the Kong Off 3, even if your personal best is very high, and even if you ranked very high at the last Kong Off's... that would be disappointing.

Obviously, I don't think this kind of thing will happen to someone, but if something like that happens (someone's DK machine breaks, if a MAME player's computer breaks and he can't play on MAME before the Kong Off, you are too busy at work, etc), then I think we would need to take into consideration that.

For example, if Hank doesn't have the record before the Kong Off 3, and he end up not having the energy/time to play enough Donkey Kong to qualify 6 weeks prior the Kong Off 3, then he would go to the Kong Off 3, without participating, just because " he didn't qualify before the Kong Off 3 " despite the fact that he broke the DK record 5 times, was the champion for 2 years, and was the champion in the first Kong Off. That just can't happen, lol. That would be the most ironic thing that could ever happen at the Kong Off, lol.

Personally, if I couldn't participate because I didn't qualify for one of these reasons, it would be way too awkward for me and I would probably not come to the Kong Off.


Ultimately, I think that this formula would be a very good formula. But since DK is a very close and friendly community, we will never be able to apply this formula if, for example, Dean, Hank, me (I don't want to sound cocky by saying myself though!), can't officially qualify because of one of the reasons mentioned above.

Hank: If I can't qualify, please, save my honor, and do a shirtless entrance... I have to keep the tradition! lol.

[danman123456]

I understand what your saying Vince but 10.5 months is a long time. It's not just 6 weeks. Its anytime from KO2 - 6 weeks prior to the next Kong-Off so your 1.15 score would indeed count. You guys keep putting up million point scores in one weekend I think you could/would find the motivation to put up a huge score if it meant you wouldn't be attending the next KO and you really want to go.

I feel I can speak for this objectively since I have almost no chance of making it as a contestant at this time.

Your forgetting the rationale that Current WR holders should be attending so Hank and Dean are in by default right now. Jeff is in because he won last year and Steve and Billy because they should be there.

I would say that scores attained at the Kong-Off should also apply as the "current" years scores then. If you put up a 1,100,000 at KO2 then that score counts towards next year for the KO3. If somehow 12 people get higher than 1.14 million+ and break the world record in the process don't you think its "Fair" to have them participate versus anyone else ? I understand how silly and unlikely that concept is but if 14 people game out of nowhere and did that then they should be the ones competing.  I think the point is all the past performances are great but do the professional gaming leagues give you an automatic bye or make you compete and win your way back in? AFAIK this is what they do. It's just like I said. You won the Super Bowl/World Series/NBA Championship/Stanley Cup/whatever. This doesn't automatically mean you get to play in the Super Bowl/etc/etc again next year. You gotta earn it year after year. I really don't think you or Hank or Dean or Dave or any of the current top players would have the slightest problem doing this. If you can't find the time to do it almost a year how can you find the time to go to the KO3.

[Xermon54]

Oh, fk. I thought you said "It starts 6 weeks before the Kong Off", but you said:"From Kong Off 2 to 6 weeks before the Kong Off". My bad, I didn't understand, lol. But yeah, I would prefer that formula (like that, people would need to play throughout the year to "deserve" a spot, and 11.5 months is obviously enough!).

My bad for the big misinterpretation, I thought your idea was only to have 6 weeks to do it (6 weeks before Kong Off 3).

Now, I do agree with it Dan ;-). Having to "regain" a place within 11 months, year after year, is a good way to make people have to play, which is a good thing, like you said.

[craighiphopfish]

Don't forget the 2up!  Maybe the overflow can participate there!  Or the lower tier players like myself!!!  Kidding of course.

[konghusker]

I like the way it is set up now.  I don't think anybody wants to travel to Denver just to be eliminated the first day or so.  It would be more exciting to see a bracket field, but who wants to be eliminated after only 1-2 matches.  I think they should up the # of true contestants to 15, taking the top 15 registered scores of 1 million or more to qualify.  Wild card machines were very frustrating to play on, and with all the players, each player only got about 3-4 starts per day.  I think they either need to add 3 more machines to the true field, or reduce the wild card machines and have a score cutoff to qualify for that as well.  I do like high score wins at the end of the weekend though.  Ultimately I would like to see the million pts to get in, and have up to 15 machines for the top 15 players registered, while still providing some wildcard machines with a  cutoff to play on wildcard as well.  In the end, remember the whole idea of the kong off is to pit the top players in the world against each other for one weekend of battling it out with one player coming out on top.  Any player above 1million could potentially win, as we all know that the million pt games aren't every weekend, and this alone makes it anybody's game to win.

[danman123456]

Yeah top 15 would be fine with me as well. Whatever they could accommodate would be awesome. If they could do 20 more power to the event!!

My "eliminated" first day was for the wildcard machines only. Why? Because I think giving the "wildcard" players a full day on a dedicated machine gives them the best chance for success.

Here is the scenarios I would think would be great if you have 4 wildcard machines.

1. You allow up to 8 Wildcard players (Top 8 scores submitted)
2. You just have these 8 people rotate to the next available machine or you block it off to a set amount of time.

Time Based:
1. Assuming Day One is 12pm - 8pm here is the layout.
2 Based on score rankings #5,6,7,8 get to play for 4 hours period. 12pm - 4pm. This way they can restart, etc, whatever but whatever their highest score is at 4pm sharp is the score they get to submit to day two. They must immediately kill off any remaining men at 4pm.
3. Then the #1,2,3,4 scorers get to play. They get to go 2nd to see what scores they need to beat. This is the "advantage" you get by having a higher submitted score.
5. Same scenario you play from 4pm - 8pm and kill off any guys you have at 8pm. Highest score submitted for day 2.

"Start" Based:
1. Assuming Day One is 12pm - 8pm
2. Based on score rankings you have #1,2,3,4 start playing at Noon. No restarts allowed.
3. Once someone dies #5 takes there spot and starts playing. Same goes for #6, #7, #8. You get 10 minutes to show up for your "turn". If you miss it then you are skipped over.
4. In this scenario it is likely that #1, #2 ranked players will most certainly get at least one more "start" then the others but I would concede that this is the privileged of having a higher ranked score. You do this until the "last" coin drop time frame.

I think the start based scenario is better as time based would have people just not bothering to try again at say 3:30pm knowing they could not put up a score worth a dang. Plus this rewards people who have a "higher" submitted score.

Submitted is the key word here. I think it is somewhat easy to confirm the scores and doesn't necessarily have to be TG verified (Course that would be up to them). Just show an INP file or a twitch/youtube video and that should be good enough for the Wildcard machines.

Perhaps even an honor system? Everyone in the "community" generally knows what peoples high scores are anyway.

Wow long post

[LMDAVE]

Looks like the KO3 entry requirements are up in the new TG:


We are proud to announce that “The Kong Off 3” will be held this coming November 15th, 16th, and 17th 2013. This year’s event will return to “The 1up” in Denver, Colorado.

We have increased the amount of machines available for play as well as the prize purse! The KO3 will feature at least 20 DK Machines and over $4500 in cash for the winners.

The Top 12 Twin Galaxies players will qualify to play on their own machine. The format for the “Wild Card” will be released shortly, but we can tell you that a minimum of 8 machines have been dedicated to this division.

Hotel and travel information will be released shortly.

This year’s event is completely free and attendance/capacity will be first come first serve.

Stay tuned to TwinGalaxies.com for more information.

GAME ON!!!

[konghusker]

That's great.  I was hoping though that the dedicated machines would be a higher #, as I think it would make for better competition.  Everybody over 1 million should be in for sure I think, leaving the rest of the machines for wildcard.

[mikegmi2]

That's great.  I was hoping though that the dedicated machines would be a higher #, as I think it would make for better competition.  Everybody over 1 million should be in for sure I think, leaving the rest of the machines for wildcard.

Ultimately it's up to Twin Galaxies, but there are several factors to think about when deciding the format of the Kong Off.

This is their 'flagship' event, and a good way to get people interested/involved in Twin Galaxies.  The more wild card machines there are, the more spots there are for "new" and "up and coming" players to play/compete.

Less wild card machines means you are shutting out the general public...and turning an 'open to the public' competition into more of a come-watch-the-top-10-Twin-Galaxies-scoreboard-officially-ranked-Donkey-Kong-players, 'spectacle'. 

Something else to consider is the fact that John and Eric are putting on these Wild Card online tournaments now...which seem to be gaining popularity.  The first one was a great success, and the second...now that it is open to the general public, will probably have more than double the amount of competitors the first one had...if not triple.  The people playing in these may very well also want to try their luck at the KO3...and that'll only be possible if there are more Wild Card machines.

If they want to shut out the general public, and hinder any sort of growth the Kong Off might potentially get...remove wild card machines and just make them dedicated machines...but if they want to expand and grow interest in this event...more wild card machines is the smarter move.

It may be an apples/oranges comparison, but the world series of poker didn't get where it is by only inviting the top 10 players in the world.

[LMDAVE]

Less wild card machines means you are shutting out the general public...and turning an 'open to the public' competition into more of a come-watch-the-top-10-Twin-Galaxies-scoreboard-officially-ranked-Donkey-Kong-players, 'spectacle'.

The Kong Off was never suppose to be an "open-to-the-public" competition, but an event having the top players in the world go at it. But, KO2 allowed more wildcard players, and KO3 is double the wildcard capacity from KO2. So, it appears to be moving in that direction.

That's the difference between KO1 and KO2. For KO1 it was a huge thing to be one of the players, KO2 it got diluted and made qualifying not that big of a deal. It looks like KO3 will be more diluted with it increasing the wildcard machines to 8. So being one of the 12 that puts up a score instead of just entry money doesn't stand out as much as an accomplishment. I'm still a believer that if you want in you need to put up the score and qualify instead of just $30 entry money. But I'm looking at it from my standpoint since I already qualified twice.

[Simpsons99]

Less wild card machines means you are shutting out the general public...and turning an 'open to the public' competition into more of a come-watch-the-top-10-Twin-Galaxies-scoreboard-officially-ranked-Donkey-Kong-players, 'spectacle'.

The Kong Off was never suppose to be an "open-to-the-public" competition, but an event having the top players in the world go at it. But, KO2 allowed more wildcard players, and KO3 is double the wildcard capacity from KO2. So, it appears to be moving in that direction.

That's the difference between KO1 and KO2. For KO1 it was a huge thing to be one of the players, KO2 it got diluted and made qualifying not that big of a deal. It looks like KO3 will be more diluted with it increasing the wildcard machines to 8. So being one of the 12 that puts up a score instead of just entry money doesn't stand out as much as an accomplishment. I'm still a believer that if you want in you need to put up the score and qualify instead of just $30 entry money. But I'm looking at it from my standpoint since I already qualified twice.

I agree with what Dave is saying.. KO1  Was about those DK Players that made the event .  KO2  Had the last Min  Wild Card Players added..   In which for me was a very cool thing ..  That i could play in  a KO  Event ..   But it was sooo last min added there was no way i could make the event .


The one thing about Making the Event and not being a Wild Card player is   You get your Own DK Machine for the hole event.. Not having to sharing it with many people and getting less time for games.

Hard for me to come to a KO Event thinking i might get 5 games maybe in the hole Event...  Sure i want to meet everyone...   But there has to be a main goal there!

[Xermon54]

Like Jourdan said, there will be AT LEAST 20 machines.

I think it would be the best if there are 16 machines for 16 official participants, and 8 machines for wild card players. That would be insane, lol.

[Simpsons99]

Like Jourdan said, there will be AT LEAST 20 machines.

I think it would be the best if there are 16 machines for 16 official participants, and 8 machines for wild card players. That would be insane, lol.

The hole arcade would be DK Machines then....  I'm sure they will do it becouse they can sell the machines.

[marinomitch13]

$4500 for the 'winners'. I wonder if this is possibly alluding to the 2nd and 3rd place prizes (if there are those), or if it is maybe also about something having to do with D2K.

I agree with Vince, 16 main machines and 8 wildcard machines sounds good. I bet Jourdan will still be buying any DK machine he can get his hands on up until close to the actual competition.