It’s being called another “EVO Moment” for the books. BlindWarriorSven, a completely blind Street Fighter pro player, rocks the EVO 2023 crowd by competing on the main stage and winning his Street Fighter 6 matchup against fellow player EternalPancake.
EVO 2023 Crowd Erupts After BlindWarriorSven’s 2-1 Victory
Sven chose E. Honda, a drastic change from the Ken he used to play in SF5, and quickly secured the first match against EternalPancake’s Luke with a flashy level three super. The second match went to Pancake as he punished Sven with anti-airs and low mixups.
It was 1-1 in a best-of-three, and losing wasn’t an option for the blind professional. Sven kept the pressure going, punishing Pancake with Drive Impacts and corner carries. Though he was one round away from victory, Sven was in a tough spot after his Honda was forced into a corner, one hit away from losing the round. He struggled to break through Luke’s blocks until one hit-confirm flipped the tables completely, allowing Sven to combo into Honda’s critical art super before securing the round with a final headbutt.
BlindWarriorSven not only won the set, but the hearts of the EVO 2023 crowd. It’s a testament not only to Sven’s raw skill but the incredible accessibility features in Street Fighter 6; features that Sven helped make possible by providing invaluable feedback to Capcom during the game’s beta stages.
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Though Sven was eventually eliminated from the tournament, his inspirational journey and jubilant presence have impacted the fighting game community in ways that can’t be overstated.
“I am also a blind fighting game player and it was inspiring to hear you up there on the main stage”, writes Twitter user KidVision. Another user, onehand, states, “I play with one hand so not blind but seeing you was inspiring”.
“This is an EVO moment from the beginning to end. Good play, good sportsmanship, and good people. Shout out to EternalPancake for respecting his opponent and shout out to BlindWarriorSven for showing the world why he deserves it”, writes YouTube commenter OLDirty_Kungfu.
You can catch BlindWarriorSven in action on his Twitch channel, where he regularly streams Street Fighter 6 and shows the world what it means to defy the odds.
