John “Kodorin” Ko is one of the premier Marth players on the Rosnica Super Smash Bros competitive scene right now. Although the 21-year-old has been around for years, even ranking in the top 100 at one point, he’s really made a name for himself in the online era Crowd prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic and the arrival of better online gameplay for the title thanks to a return network code to client Slippi.
SFAT vs KoDoRiN – Gauntlet: Bracket 4 R2 – Smash Summit 11 | Fox vs. Marth
Kodorin made it to the national team Crowd invitational tournament and the first in-person major tournament since the start of the pandemic, Smash Summit 11. Summit 11 is the latest in the Summit series, invitational tournaments that invite the best of the best based on high rankings. Other players can join the roster by being voted in or qualifying through a preliminary tournament, as Kodorin did.
At the Summit, Kodorin competed against all-star pros such as Plup, Zain, Mango, Hungrybox and more. Kodorin won ninth place in the event, which is a significant result considering how many experienced veterans he competed against. After he got home, I caught up with him to talk about him Crowd the journey, the learning process and the Summit experience.
When did you start playing? Crowd competitive?
Like everyone, I played Crowd since it was published. In a competitive sense CrowdI’ve known him since the documentary came out in 2013. I went to my first tournament three years later, in November 2016. Then I stopped until the following year because I didn’t have a car to get to local events, so I didn’t really see the point.
2017 came, when I turned 17, got my driver’s license and could really travel, so I decided it was time. I’ve been playing seriously for about four and a half years now.
You jumped in so late compared to other high level competitors. How did you get so good so fast?
At first I was like any other Smasher. I’m not talented and anyone who played with me during my early years knows that I don’t have any special qualities. What motivated me was asking a lot of questions. Basically, I was always asking how to keep moving forward. I ended up finding good resources like PPMD’s Smashboards thread, where he would answer questions for free. I have asked hundreds of things there over the years. I would apply whatever he answered and over time it started to pay off, thanks to it giving me pointers on where to improve.
My defining trait of improvement
Most players will stop progressing even though they have been playing longer or [had] more talented than me because they never have good direction. They stay where they are, while I kept changing my plans and trying new things. I consider this to be a key feature of my progress.
Would you say that having a teacher is important when it comes to learning?
Of course! CrowdIt’s a really hard game to start with, especially when you’re trying to improve yourself. I don’t think I would be where I am if I had tried to improve myself.
Speaking of your game plans, many notice how your Marth differs from the others. How would you describe your playing style?
I take more of a zoning approach, but it can be a bit erratic at times. I like to set up my zones, make my opponent respect my space, and then manipulate them with that. Then there is time [when] I will read my opponent’s soul from that wall. Other times they read won’t even come from the walls. At times I’ll just turn off randomly, but it’s not very consistent.
never forget these tips pic.twitter.com/ImYvDmxG3h
— John Ko (@KoDoRiNSSB) July 12, 2021
For example, many people know me from my win over Plup, where I got a random read off the shield. It’s not exactly normal or rational, but I had a feeling he wasn’t playing his best and was a little nervous, so I just went for that heavy read. Occasionally I’ll go a little crazy after sensing my opponent’s soul, but only if I really need to risk it.
Did those matches at the Summit open your eyes to the flaws in your style?
Definitely! I could improve in so many areas and talking to tons of top players for feedback helped me find direction. Especially having quicker decision-making, quicker execution, making my offensive and defensive rhythm more subtle, things like that.
Who was your toughest opponent during the competition?
As for personal matches, the one that destroyed me the most was Plup. It’s very fast, but at the same time I only played it once in casual when I had very little sleep because I had to go to the Summit very early. That may be a small factor, but all in all, Plup is an amazing player. He destroyed me too [the] tournament group with his secondary, so he stands out.
Mango and Zain were definitely the next toughest opponents for me.
Netplay’s results are very controversial for Smash and the fighting game communities in general. Do you feel like your online grind has helped in this offline environment?
Netplay results should be taken with a grain of salt, but to say they don’t matter is usually ego-defence. If you have the right setup, good internet, monitors and all, I don’t see much reason why netplay is bad. Yes, there is instability and some drawbacks, but that’s also the case with LAN. People complained that main stream TV on the Summit had a bit of lag compared to other CRTSs.
Not to mention that CRT is naturally uglier, so chasing the technology is a bit more difficult. Don’t misunderstand though; Overall, I enjoy the CRT. I’m not a Slippy kid. Some people forgot that I was ranked in the top 100 in 2019, so I know what it’s like to compete both online and LAN for a long time. I think both are fine as long as the internet is stable. Reversion is usually always legitimate because it doesn’t mess with the underlying premise Crowd, which is execution.
Some crazy stock ngl pic.twitter.com/l7UZb2qeCH
— John Ko (@KoDoRiNSSB) April 7, 2021
I’d say that all the drop backs and LAN results probably come from the comfort of your own home. Some people are more nervous online, like HBox, because it takes LAN more seriously. Then there are some who play better online because they can’t handle the nerves live. I usually find differences between the two [have] do more with the environment than the game itself.
Which do you prefer, monitor or CRT?
Well, there was a little secret at the Summit where everyone was asking this, and you’d be surprised, but most of the top players actually said monitor. Not optimized for offline Crowd still only, but it’s great [he laughs]. I didn’t feel the difference with the CRT. It wasn’t better, but it wasn’t worse either.
Did you feel like everyone had to readjust to offline at the Summit after so many online events?
To be honest, they all played a little worse compared to the internet. Not only because of the return to the first tournament, but also because of the roles. It was literally the biggest prize pool of all time, so who wouldn’t be a little nervous? I think everyone’s gameplay has been affected to some extent. Maybe HBox and his Jigglypuff were buffered, but that’s about it.
I know you talked about how important it is not to focus on your results. Can you elaborate on that?
Focusing on results is not productive. I always say that the process is what produces the result. People can focus on getting an A+ on a test all they want, but if they don’t study, how are they going to get that A+? It is much more productive to focus on your entries to actually win in the end.
Where do you see yourself after the Summit?
I’m not entirely sure myself, but I am sure of a few things. I want to do Crowd full time. I’m taking steps to achieve this with streaming and working on YouTube more often and making sure I can pull in decent numbers to make this sustainable.
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More importantly, I try to improve every day. I want to be the best. One day I will be the best. To do that, I have to go to tournaments, practice every day and keep asking questions. You’ll likely see me on SoCal majors and domestics. I signed up for Riptide, Genesis, and I might even be at the next Summit. Who knows?
Smash fans will want to keep an eye on Kodorin to see where he goes next on the scene with the return of offline tournaments. You can follow him further TwitterTwitch, where he streams regularly, and YouTube, where he constantly uploads unique content about Crowdincluding gameplay tips.
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Source: newstars.edu.vn