Top Japanese KOF Player Switches To Street Fighter 6

It is no secret that Street Fighter 6 has really taken off in Japan and is one of the most popular games in the country. This is evidenced by the mammoth views each Street Fighter 6 stream gets with Street Fighter League averaging about 500,000 views per episode (on YouTube only). 

But something else that has been happening is that players from other games in Japan are focusing on Street Fighter 6 as their game of choice. 

The latest player to make the transition is King of Fighters player, Laggia. Laggia is a well-known name within the scene and was even the SNK World Championship winner defeating Evo Winner Xiao Hai and fellow countryman, M, to seal the victory. But then he disappeared for a bit and it was later revealed that he has been grinding Street Fighter 6 and was the winner of the Nagoya Oja License Challenge Tour Round 1. This is a tournament that promotes fighting games in Japan and the top 2 are recommended for JeSU licenses. 

JeSU is the Japanese Esports Union which is the governing body for esports in the country. Any player with a license becomes a recognized pro player and is able to be picked up by teams, sponsors and so on. 

Street Fighter League Japan provides players with a steady way of earning income and has a large fanbase which can be a springboard for success on Twitch and in many other ways. Due to this, getting a spot on SFL Japan or even just being a pro in Street Fighter 6 comes with advantages. It is also reported that King Of Fighters does not have a JeSU license and this might be one of the reasons for the switch. 

Other players that were well known for other games but seem to have made the switch to Street Fighter 6 include Go1 who was well-known for DBFZ but is mostly an SF6 player now. The likes of Fenrich and Kei.B were also anime fighter players but compete in SF6. 

It'll be interesting to see if more players make that switch in the coming months.