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Ken Hoang

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Ken Hoang
Born (1985-10-10) October 10, 1985 (age 38)
Westminster, CA
Ken Hoang
Current team
TeamEl Chocolate Diablo
GamesSuper Smash Bros. Melee
LeaguesMajor League Gaming
Evolution Championship Series
StatusInactive
Personal information
Nickname(s)SephirothKen
Born (1985-10-10) October 10, 1985 (age 38)

Ken "Kenny" Hoang (born October 10, 1985) is a Vietnamese American professional electronic sports player who plays Super Smash Bros. Melee and has earned $50,000+ USD doing so.

Hoang is the 2004-2005 national champion of Major League Gaming, the 2007 international champion of EVO World Finals,[1][2] and was the highest ranked Super Smash Bros. Melee player in the United States. He was also the world champion for several years, having defeated reputable players from around the globe, including top Japanese players such as Aniki, Captain Jack, Masashi, Bombsoldier, Korius, and Mikael in the summer of 2005 and 2006.[3] In the competitive gaming community, he is known simply as "Ken" or by his gamer tag "SephirothKen".

Ken possesses the highest major tournament win-to-loss ratio of any Super Smash Brothers Melee player from 2003 to 2007.[4] His three years of dominance earned him the nickname "The King of Smash" within the community.[5] His primary character in the game is Marth, and his secondary is Fox. He received minor television coverage in MTV's True Life: I'm a Professional Gamer, and received further coverage in the fall of 2006 after MLG arrived on cable television.[6]

Ken was one of the contestants in Survivor: Gabon,[7] which premiered September 25, 2008 on CBS.[8]

Gaming

Ken started playing Super Smash Bros. when it was released for the Nintendo 64, but never competed in a major tournament for the game. When Super Smash Bros. Melee was released for the Nintendo GameCube, Ken initially did not enjoy it, but the game grew on him after a period of a few months. By the time he attended his first tournament, he already built up a reputation in his town as the best Smash player. This tournament differed from most later Super Smash Brothers Melee tournaments in that matches were free-for-all matches between four players rather than a 1 vs 1 match. The other players teamed up against Ken to eliminate him.[9]

In 2003, Ken competed in his first major tournament, part of the Tournament Go (TG) series, one of the first major Super Smash Brothers Melee tournament series. In this, the fourth installment of the tournament series, Ken won the singles (1 vs 1) tournament and lost in the doubles (2 vs 2) tournament to the winners of the first two TG tournaments.[9][10]

Seven months later, in August 2003, Ken attended and won TG5. This was the first tournament where he partnered with Isai "Isaiah" Alvarado (otherwise known as "Malva00") for doubles. Their victory in the doubles tournament started a two-and-a-half year winning streak. They won every doubles tournament they entered until MLG Chicago in July 2006, where they were defeated by Azen and Chillindude829 in the finals and received second place. However, they reclaimed their title later that year in August at MLG Orlando where they defeated Azen and Chillindude829 6-3 in the finals.[11]

For the next two years, Ken continued to win nearly every competition he entered. The worst loss he ever garnered in his competitive career was in August 2004 at TG6 where he placed 9th out of approximately 128 competitors.

Although he is currently inactive, he was regarded as one of the top players long after his departure from the tournament scene.[12] In September 2006, Ken was nominated in "The Dangerous Five" as one of "The World's Most Dangerous Gamers" by Electronic Gaming Monthly, in which he was called "The Duper" for his fast, smart, and aggressive play.[13]

Notable Tournament placings

Note: These are only major tournaments which include professional and amateur tournaments with 60 or more players. This list does not represent the number of tournaments Ken has attended in total.

2003

  • 1st - Tournament Go 4 (TG4) ($900)
  • 1st - SoCal Inland Empire SSB:M
  • 1st - Tournament Go 5 (TG5) ($1000)

2004

  • 1st - Game Over ($650)
  • 1st - The 0-C (Zero Challenge) ($650)
  • 1st - MELEE-FC ($500)
  • 9th - Tournament Go 6 (TG6)
  • 1st - Major League Gaming (MLG) 2004 Season Finals New York ($2000)
  • 1st - MLG 2004 Season points

2005

  • 2nd - MOAST 3 ($400)
  • 1st - MLG 2005 (Season OpenerTournament) DC ($1000)
  • 1st - MLG 2005 (Season Tournament) San Francisco ($500)
  • 2nd - MLG 2005 (West Coast Regionals) Los Angeles ($1000)
  • 1st - MLG 2005 (East Coast Regionals) Atlanta ($2000)
  • 1st - MLG 2005 (Central Regionals) Chicago ($2000)
  • 1st - MLG 2005 Season Finals New York ($5000)[5]
  • 1st - MLG 2005 Season points leader
  • 1st - Jack Garden Tournament (JGT) (Japan)
  • 1st - Getting Schooled 2 ($800)
  • 1st - MELEE-FC3 ($800)

2006

  • 1st - Champ Combo: NorCal Edition ($400)
  • 1st - Champ Combo: Yayuhzzz Edition ($400)
  • 1st - 0-C2 (Zero Challenge 2) ($1200)
  • 2nd - MLG 2006 (Season Tournament) New York ($1200)
  • 1st - MLG 2006 (Season Tournament) Dallas ($2000)
  • 1st - MLG 2006 (Season Tournament) Anaheim ($2000)
  • 1st - MLG 2006 (Season Tournament) Chicago ($2000)
  • 5th - MLG 2006 (Season Tournament) Orlando ($300)
  • 7th - MLG 2006 (Season Playoffs) New York ($375)
  • 1st - NCT2: The Big One ($1080)
  • 3rd - MLG 2006 (National Championships Singles) Las Vegas ($3000)
  • 1st - MLG 2006 (National Championships Doubles) Las Vegas ($5000) per team member
  • 1st - MLG 2006 Season points leader ($4000)

2007

  • 4th - 0-C3 (Zero Challenge 3)
  • 1st - EVO World 2007 ($5000)

2008

  • 2nd - EVO World 2008

Personal life

Ken currently attends CSULB working on his BFA in Illustration and looks forward to spending time drawing and has expressed interest in working for Wizards of the Coast and Nintendo.

In August 2008 it was announced that Ken would be appearing in the latest series of Survivor on the American television network CBS. He has openly stated that he believes himself to be the underdog but hopes that this will garner popular support.[7]

Survivor: Gabon

Ken was chosen to join the Fang tribe in the first episode when Danny (GC) Brown picked him. This was on the underdog tribe, attending seven out of the eight pre-merge Tribal Councils. He formed an early bond with fellow Fang castaway Michelle Chase,[14] who ended up being the first person voted off. During the second Tribal Council, Ken was a target for elimination by Gillian Larson, but was spared as the rest of the tribe saw Gillian as the weaker player. In episode three Ken single-handedly won the first Immunity Challenge for Fang, in which his puzzle-solving skills were pitted against physics teacher Bob Crowley of the Kota tribe. Though Kota was in the lead at the end of the first section of the challenge, which allowed Bob a head start in solving his puzzle, Ken solved the puzzle first and saved his tribe from Tribal Council.

Ken made the merge and was in the merged tribe, named Nobag, a phrase he coined himself.[15] Ken was the fifth place finisher, and sixth member of the jury. He voted for Susie Smith in the final Tribal Council, who placed second.[16]

References

  1. ^ "MLG Interview with Ken". Major League Gaming. 2007-09-05. Retrieved 2012-05-19.
  2. ^ Campbell, Sean (2006-05-29). "Are they worth fighting for?". Got Frag. Retrieved 2008-03-03.
  3. ^ Alphazealot (2007-11-22). "Smash Pro Profiles from 2006". Major League Gaming. Retrieved 2008-03-03.
  4. ^ CAMILLE DODERO (2006-11-21). "The next action sport". The Phoenix. Retrieved 2008-03-03.
  5. ^ a b Sean Campbell (2006-05-29). "Are They Worth Fighting For?". GotFrag DPAD. Retrieved 2008-03-03.
  6. ^ Pro video gaming comes to cable TV
  7. ^ a b "CBS.com, Ken Hoang bio". Retrieved 20012-05-19. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  8. ^ "What We’re Watching This Fall". AsianWeek. Retrieved on 2008-09-15.
  9. ^ a b "The King of Smash: MLG Interviews Ken". Major League Gaming. 2006-01-04. Retrieved 2012-05-19.
  10. ^ KishPrime (2005-05). "MELEE-FC: Where it all began". MELEE-FC. Retrieved 2008-03-03. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  11. ^ "MLG Chicago Smash Wrap-Up". Major League Gaming. 2006-07-31. Retrieved 2012-05-19.
  12. ^ "MLG Interview with Ken". Major League Gaming. 2007-09-05. Retrieved 2012-05-19.
  13. ^ "The World's Most Dangerous Gamers". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 208. October 2006. pp. 52–53.
  14. ^ "Want to See the Elephant Dung?". Survivor: Gabon. 2008-09-25. CBS. {{cite episode}}: Unknown parameter |serieslink= ignored (|series-link= suggested) (help)
  15. ^ "The Brains Behind Everything". Survivor: Gabon. 2008-11-13. CBS. {{cite episode}}: Unknown parameter |serieslink= ignored (|series-link= suggested) (help)
  16. ^ "Reunion". Survivor: Gabon. 2008-12-14. CBS. {{cite episode}}: Unknown parameter |serieslink= ignored (|series-link= suggested) (help)
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