Tier Whores
A popular buzz term that comes up a lot in the fighting game scene is the term “Tier Whore.” It’s basically and expression or negative label for a player that only competes with top tier characters (the best characters in the game.) Players can receive a lot of negativity from spectators for being label as a tier whore, so much so that it can even lead to them permanently changing their character, or in some rare cases, a character even getting banned from competitive play.
Personally I don’t understand why professional players get hassled for this. We have to remember that these people are playing to win and often times for large sums of money. This is their career. unless a character is broken, and needs to be banned because it’s clearly unfair, why wouldn’t you want to choose the best character?
Now I understand the gripe a lot of fans has with seeing the same characters fight over and over again in matches, and the matches can become boring. However not every player is playing to please the fans. There are some players that choose low tier characters and receive great fan supports because they purposely take on the role of the underdog. I understand how fun these players can be to watch and upsets do happen. However, most players who main lower tier characters understand that their chances of winning a major tournament are not high. In terms of statistics, its the top tier characters that win the majority of the tournaments and therefore people are going to pick them. Maybe a good idea would be to try having some “low tier character only” tournaments in order to give those fan favorite characters that you never see used, a chance to shine.Â
