Australian fighting game event runners and community. Hosts of BAM: Battle Arena Melbourne, Australia's largest fighting game/open entry esports event.
From our larger BAM Travel Guide, here’s some local tips for popping out for a bite to eat once you’re at the venue. Plan your schedule accordingly so you can take advantage of the food options, a short 10 minutes away from the venue. Map below!
TRAIN NETWORK DELAYS:
Note that travel from the city by train is disrupted BAM14 weekend due to works. Buses replace trains on the Craigieburn line, which takes you from the city to Moonee Ponds Station, a short walk from the venue.
Near the Moonee Valley Race Course there’s a huge range of eateries and amenities.
Moonee Ponds Central has a Coles & Aldi for snacks and groceries, several fast food and restaurants.
There’s lots of options for fast food and dining experiences. Nearby fast food restaurants include KFC, Guzman Y Gomez & Grill’d, but other options include plenty of local Greek, Italian and Asian cuisine.
Closer to the the racecourse there are restaurant and pub food options.
If you’re after a movie, whether it’s the latest blockbuster or something more artsy, the nearby Palace Penny Lane is the go.
BAM (Battle Arena Melbourne), Australia’s national fighting game community (FGC) Championship, brings the FGC together across an eclectic variety of titles, while presenting a top class competitive event attracting players from around the world. Among its returning world tour partners, this year sees BAM act as a qualifier for ESPORTS WORLD CUP
On May 31, June 1 and June 2, 2024, BAM will host nearly 50 events for gaming communities during major fighting game championships at Moonee Valley Racecourse.
ESPORTS WORLD CUP Qualifiers (Top 2 placers) for TEKKEN 8 & Street Fighter 6
TEKKEN World Tour Master Event with international ladder points and $5,000 prize
ARC World Tour Gold Event with international ladder points
Major tournaments for Super Smash Bros Ultimate, TEKKEN 8, MORTAL KOMBAT 1, STREET FIGHTER 6, GUILTY GEAR STRIVE among 47+ tournaments
Spectator seating, Casual freeplay gaming, Splatoon, Beyblade, Artist Alley and more
As a major event on the global fighting game (FGC) circuit, BAM is both a community event and an international gaming destination. By unique players, BAM is the largest esports event in Australia and will once again host TEKKEN World Tour and Guilty Gear Strive’s Arc World Tour. This year, the event causing a global sensation across esports, the ESPORTS WORLD CUP, will see an Australian qualifier at BAM.
WORLD TOUR EVENTS AND QUALIFIERS
Esports World Cup: Debuting this year, EWC has created a sensation with its Global Tournament encompassing dozens of the top competitive titles, a massive $60m USD prize pool and world finals. EWC titles at BAM this year are TEKKEN 8 and STREET FIGHTER 6
Tekken World Tourreturns to Australia as BAM hosts a Master Event, and world class Tekken players have registered to take the all important points on the TWT leaderboard and a $5,000 cash prize.
Arc World Tourat BAM will be a Gold Event for Guilty Gear Strive and Granblue VS Fantasy Rising – offering big points to qualify for the Arc World Tour finals
International players of note returning to BAM include TEKKEN masters KNEE (Last year’s BAM champion), Chanel, Rest and Ulsanfrom South Korea, and Thailand’s Book. For Guilty Gear Strive, last year’s BAM champion, IBUSHIGIN|Leo from Japan defends his title, and there are players from Malaysia, Singapore and the USA.
Australian competitors, such as Capcom Cup finalist and 2023 Street Fighter 6 champion Christian “ROF” Dedalija, will have their work cut out for them against their peers from around the country and the world.
BAM is the biggest event of the year across the ANZ fighting game community. Over 1,000 unique players have attended each event since 2019, with players coming from all over the country to claim a coveted BAM trophy and enjoy the fun and glory of competing.
Watch Live: The event will be live streamed on CouchWarriors, CouchWarriorsSmash, the official Tekken World Tour channel and multiple community channels (Schedule is found on the registration page)
Our second wave of game announcements for BAM14 is here! All of the following games have been added for registration:
SAMURAI SHODOWN
SOULCALIBUR VI
Touhou Hisoutensoku
Kamen Rider: Super Climax Heroes
Pokken Tournament DX
Vampire Savior
Yatagarasu Enter the Eastward
UNDER NIGHT IN-BIRTH II Sys:Celes
MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM EXTREME VS. MAXIBOOST ON
Brawlhalla (Singles and Doubles)
Skullgirls: 2nd Encore
BLAZBLUE CENTRALFICTION
Tatsunoko vs Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars
Granblue Fantasy Versus Rising
DRAGON BALL FighterZ
Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3
Persona 4 Arena Ultimax
The King of Fighters Maximum Impact Regulation “A”
Super Street Fighter II Turbo (30th Anniversary)
Guilty Gear XX Accent Core Plus R
Killer Instinct (2013)
Lethal League Blaze
Project+ (Singles and Doubles)
HewDraw Remix Singles
Melty Blood Actress Again Current Code
Them’s Fightin’ Herds
Mortal Kombat 1
SoulCalibur II
The King of Fighters XV
Virtua Fighter 5 Ultimate Showdown
All of these games and more can be registered for at https://start.gg/bam14
Your favourite game not there and you would like to run it? Please head on over to the registration page and fill out the tournament submission form! Keep in mind this is a submission form to run games, not a form to request games for somebody else to run.
A huge welcome back to all world warriors, local legends and online grinders joining us for CouchWarriors League 2024! The CWL is even bigger and better this summer season, tracking results from all across Australia before we ultimately crown our national champions at Battle Arena Melbourne in June.
This month will see a full schedule of ranbats, hosting fierce competition in every state, as well as some extra opportunities to pick up points through the RMIT Game Day and (at least for the Guilty Gear crowd) our monthly CWL Online showdown! Read on for the dates and sign-up links for all of March’s #CWLeague events.
Fighting Games make for an incredible live event spectacle, and anyone can join! Once again we’re teaming up with THE GAME EXPO to host tournaments for your favourite fighting games!
Whether playing to learn, for fun or for glory and prizes, all are welcome to enjoy the FGC (Fighting game community) at TGX.
The Game Expo will be at Melbourne Convention Centre on March 23-24, 2024
CouchWarriors League circuit points (Major event double points) – top players get prizes and entry support into national major BAM mid year – www.couchwarriorsleague.com.au
It’s that very special time of year again, one we’ve all been looking forward to for months. A chance to celebrate with friends and loved ones, to look back on the year’s efforts, and then to top it all off with a huge day of fighting game tournaments. That’s right, CouchWarriors Crossupreturns in a new one-day format to close out 2023!
This event will also be the CouchWarriorsLeague Winter Season Finale, where our best players land their final blows in the struggle for leaderboard supremacy. There will also be plenty of side-game tournaments, the launch of a Guilty Gear card game, and the CW Community Awards presentation! Read on for the dates and sign-up links for all of December’s #CWLeague events.
November gives us the opportunity to recharge between a convention-and-major-packed October and the holiday chaos of December. CWL Online events may have concluded for the year, but our regular state ranbats give fighters around Australia the chance to pick up a few more points before the end of the CouchWarriors League Winter Season.
Despite venue issues delaying this schedule release there are still tournaments to sign up for in many states – read on for the dates and sign-up links for all of November’s #CWLeague events.
By far the biggest month on the back half of our 2023 calendar, October brings us two massive spectacles across its first two weekends. First up, CouchWarriors will once again be representing the FGC at PAX Australia, running tournaments and friendlies out of the console gaming area all weekend!
While PAX AUS isn’t a CWL ranking event, our other marquee event will absolutely make an impact on our seasonal leaderboards. The Big Cheese 4 is the most important opportunity for our elite players since Battle Arena Melbourne – and as always, the chance to redefine the state vs. state pecking order will be a strong motivator.
The logjam of special events means that our regular ranbat schedule is subject to change – read on for the dates and sign-up links for all of September’s #CWLeague events.
With next month’s Big Cheese 4 looming as a major shakeup of the CouchWarriors League ladder, September’s ranking events will be an important warmup and scouting opportunity for top players across our featured games.
The Tekken scene in particular will have a great chance to measure the form of interstate rivals in this month’s CWL Online bracket. We’re also excited to look outside our CWL featured games and put on several prize-supported tournaments for the Brawlhalla community! That’s just a taste of the action on offer though – read on for the dates and sign-up links for all of September’s #CWLeague events.
