The Big 10 #7 - Formal Cat (Min-Min)

Ambassadors are essential to the growth of any community and this title definitely suits Formal Cat (Twitter: @TheFormalCat) to a T. A regular participant in online tourneys and Discord groups he's quickly made a name for himself as an all around nice guy. But don't be fooled Formal Cat is also has a deadly Min-Min up his sleeve! As a result of this getting hold of him for a TB10 interview was a no-brainer! As always you can find our interview after the page break.

Question 1

APC: Please tell us a little about yourself?

FC: My name is Formal Cat, but I mostly just go by Cat. I’m an ARMS player from the U.S and am currently living in Indiana. My gaming interests include RPGs and fighting games. I’m also a member of Fellows in Arms which is run by Defur, who was also interviewed on this very website!

Question 2

APC: When would you say you fell in love with competitive fighting games/eSports?

FC: I’ve had an interest in competitive gaming ever since I first saw high-level Super Smash Bros being played. I had always had some kind of admiration for competitive fighting game players but never quite got into the action myself. Until now that is! Also, a while back my dad took me to Pokémon Nationals which definitely sparked some kind of passion for competitive gaming.

Question 3

APC: What gaming achievement are you most proud of in your career so far?

FC: This is a tough question to answer as I’ve only been playing a competitive game online for a little over a month now. I have scored quite high in multiple ARMS tournaments and I’m happy with my skill level but I’d have to say that my proudest achievement is finally getting myself involved in some sort of gaming community. Hell, getting involved in any community is an achievement for me. I haven’t such a kind group of friends to game with for a few years now and I’m beyond hyped.

Question 4

APC: What was it about ARMS that made you decide to take it seriously on a competitive level?

FC: Well, whenever the Nintendo Switch had its first big presentation and ARMS was revealed, I didn’t really think much of it. I don’t think anyone did. Sure, it looked pretty rad and the colorful super-hero-esque character designs looked fantastic but other than that I had no expectations. The day of the first Global Test Punch was when I got hooked. Something clicked and playing this game just felt natural. Pretty early on I got a good feel of the controls and mechanics and I was performing far better than I ever thought I would in a fighting game. I had wanted to get into some sort of eSport and I knew that this was the one for me.

Question 5

APC: What made you pick your main over the other characters in the game?

FC: So during the Nintendo Direct that was mainly focused around ARMS, they revealed Min Min. She has noodles for arms, pasta for hair, and a ramen bowl on her head. What’s not to like? During the reveal, I was on Skype with a friend who was watching alongside me and I was basically just like: “That’s the one… that’s my main.”

Question 6

APC: What is your favourite arm loadout & stage. (Please explain why)

FC: My favorite has got to be Ramram, Bubb, and Hydra on the Mausoleum stage. Ramram is a must have for me and I’ve never even taken it out of my loadout. It’s always on my left arm in every round. There are a lot of people that are clueless when it comes to countering Ramrams and with such a large hitbox on Min Min’s dragon arm, it becomes an extremely useful tool.

The Bubb is for easily deflecting punches when blocking isn’t an option. The problem with playing double Ramrams is that deflecting punches becomes difficult due to the small hitbox of a non-dragon arm Ramram paired with its curving motion. That’s when the Bubb comes into play. 

The Hydra is a tool that I don’t like to use in most situations because of how easy it is to counter with medium weight or heavy arms but it definitely can be powerful if used carefully. Mausoleum is a great stage for Min Min in general. Right off the bat, a charge is relatively easy to get. Because of the medium size of Mausoleum, forcing your opponent into the wall and applying pressure is an effective tactic. Plus, the Ramram has wonderful wake-up potential. However, when the ground in the center of the stage crumbles, the odds are really set in Min Min’s favor. Getting a charge on her dragon arm is near guaranteed if the opponent is on the opposite side of the stage. This is also when the hydra becomes useful. If anyone gets hasty and tries to jump across the trampoline, they’re a wide target for hydras. Sidenote: You can actually get a Rush combo when an opponent falls on the trampoline. This is something I’ve barely seen anybody utilize yet.

Question 7

APC: Thoughts on custom vs standard arms for tournaments.

FC: I take the stance that most people take in that I hear and understand arguments from both sides but I have to go with customs. I hear a lot of people say that everybody is just going to use the same arms but has the community actually been using “overpowered” arm load-outs? I can’t think of any two players that use the same arm combo. Players seem to be coming up with extremely creative and unique arm combos. Especially in Japan. I’m talking like Blorbs, Guardians, Buffs, Phoenixes, all kinds of crazy stuff. Every arm is viable! As for local tournaments, defaults may be the way to go.

Question 8

APC: What advice would you give to someone just getting into the game?

FC: I see a lot of people on Reddit say something along the lines of “I’ve been at this for a few days and I still suck.” It’s not going to happen overnight. Just practice more, get a feel for the movement and general mechanics. Deflecting jabs with another jab is a skill you need to learn early on. Practice reacting faster and faster to actions such as grabs, jabs, and rushes. When this game first came out my reaction times were so slow that someone could throw a grab from the other side of the map and I’d still fall for it because I was panicking so hard. Join Discord servers and don’t be afraid to ask for advice. Practice!

Question 9

APC: What are your hopes for the future of ARMS?

FC: I truly hope that this community doesn’t fade away quickly. The people that are currently playing are extremely dedicated to ARMS and I’d hate to see people leave what is already a tiny but tightly knit community. It’s also just small enough that you can fight somebody in ranked and find them in one of the many ARMS discord servers. I also hope that more people join the community! So far most players that are well known are people who have been here since the beginning. It’d be rad if we saw some new faces as well! Also, more local tourneys would be cool too. If local game shops were to run ARMS events then that would surely introduce more people to the game!

Question 10

APC: Where can people find out more about you?

FC: I’m most active on Twitter and lately, I’ve been talking a lot about ARMS over there! I also have a Youtube channel which is currently going unused but I will be uploading some stop motion animations + some short films and you’ll be able to find them there. I have a Twitch account as well. I’m currently debating whether or not I should get a capture card to stream ARMS. I’m also on Discord the majority of the day. I frequent the Up in Arms and Fellows in Arms Discord channels the most.

Twitter: @theformalcat

Youtube: Link

Twitch: Twitch.tv/formalcat56

Up in Arms Discord: discord.gg/VtBzjdr

Fellows in Arms Discord: discord.gg/uw8AZK6