As someone who lives on the outskirts of the Greater Toronto Area and works in the downtown core, I can comfortably say that the board game fans in the city are spoiled relative to those everyone else outside. Board games are booming in Toronto, with stores and cafes popping up everywhere to support a rabid fan base. Meanwhile, just outside of the city limits, your options for buying games or playing games in public venues is far more sparse, albeit growing.
This is by no means a comprehensive list, but I wanted to highlight a few places that are notable to me. Here’s a few places that I think are worth talking about!
Kingston was a long way from home, but the road trip was certainly worth it! By the end of the tournament, I was crowned the victor, earning a sweet Street Fighter V gi, a free movie pass and a spot in the Canadian finals at the end of the month!
Heading into this tournament, I was really nervous. So much so, that the waiters at the restaurant Steff and I were at just before the tournament asked me if I was okay due to how visibly shaken I was. Though I’ve never won a tournament before, I really wanted to do well at this one. We came from too far away for me to just lay an egg.
The theatre setup was awesome. Six slick gaming booths along with a commentator’s booth lined the front. It was surreal to see Street Fighter V on the big screen, though I spent most of my time playing the game on an Asus monitor below.
Despite the extended warm-up period we got, my jitters carried into my first match. It was a scatterbrained match where I couldn’t get a feel for my opponent. Luckily for me, I was able to win the set 2-0.
Didn’t really feel comfortable until the grand finals match. Facing off against a solid Vega player, I got into a comfortable zone and did what my Rashid does best. When the smoke cleared, I came away with the title!
From here, the next step is to compete with 31 other Street Fighter V competitors from across the country at the end of the month. The road hasn’t been easy and it’s only going to get tougher. For now though, I’m going to relish this first tournament victory before prepping for the biggest tourney of my life to-date!
In Third Person 