Aside from the official tournaments, there is also a "BYOC" ("bring your own console") area in which many different games are played and side tournaments are held.ġ996–2003: Tournament beginnings and re-branding ī3: Battle by the Bay was organized by Tom "inkblot" Cannon, Tony "Ponder" Cannon, Joey "MrWizard" Cuellar, and Seth "S-Kill" Killian, and held in the Golfland arcade hall in Sunnyvale, California.
During the transition to games on the seventh generation consoles, most games were played on a PlayStation 3, though Evo 2014 ran most games on the Xbox 360. Originally the tournament used arcade cabinets, but in 2004 the decision was made to move all games over to their console versions, to a large amount of controversy. Over time, the tournament grew, recording over one thousand participants in 2009. The event changed its name to Evolution Championship Series, or EVO for short, in 2002. The event eventually moved to its recurring venue in the Las Vegas Valley. The tournament started as "Battle by the Bay", a 40-man Super Street Fighter II Turbo and Street Fighter Alpha 2 tournament in 1996 in Sunnyvale, California. History Įvo was founded by Tom Cannon, also known for his work on, a fighting game website. As of 2021, the event is jointly owned by Sony Interactive Entertainment and the Endeavor esports venture RTS. It has been held at various venues across the Las Vegas Valley since 2005. Every successive tournament has seen an increase of attendees. The first Evolution was originally held as a Super Street Fighter II Turbo and Street Fighter Alpha 2 tournament called the Battle by the Bay.
As with Super Battle Opera, contestants travel from all over the world to participate, most notably from Japan. The tournaments are completely open and use the double elimination format. The Evolution Championship Series, commonly known as Evo, is an American annual esports event that focuses exclusively on fighting games.