Fighter Profile: 2fast2fed
In the coming months we want to shine a spotlight on some of the hard-working, stylish and upcoming players making their name in CouchWarriors League.
This time, we spoke to SFV competitor Jason “2fast2fed” Barrett, who just broke through with his first CWL Online top 4 this month in a head-turning performance:
CW: First off, how would you like to introduce yourself to those in the FGC who aren’t already familiar with you? Who IS 2fast2fed??
2fast: My name’s Jason, or 2fast2fed, or PepegaSFgod. I’m a Chun main who’s been playing SFV since June 2021 – after losing interest in DOTA 2 after 7 long years.
I always liked the idea of fighting games but never played them because I literally could not do special moves. My friend actually bought me the game a year prior, but I quit out of frustration because I could just not get the characters to do what I wanted.
My CFN “PepegaSFgod” actually comes from my experiences back then, I was just so shit at the game I thought it was funny to name myself that. The 2fast2fed name has got nothing to do with fast food delivery services or my ability to eat lots of food and maintain high velocity; it simply comes from some dumb shit I said in a Dota game, and I ran with it because I don’t like spending time thinking of a gamertag.
CW: So if you didn’t gel with SFV and fighting games on that first try, how did you get to being a player capable of consistent CWL top 8’s?
2fast: Eventually I went back to SFV. My friend suggested I play a charge character as I couldn’t do motion moves, so I settled on Chun, and slowly climbed my way up the ranked ladder.
I was not naturally good at SF either; I had played around 30-40 games with my friend but still got absolutely blasted by people with 500MMR and I don’t think I pressed a light button on purpose until I hit Super Bronze.
Eventually I started getting the hang of it and I set myself what I thought was a high reaching goal to hit diamond within a year. And after hitting that goal in January, I somehow managed to hit Ultra Diamond just two weeks before my 1-year anniversary with the game.
CW: Has that intense grind up the ranks included many tournaments? What kind of event practice do you get outside of the CWL Online monthlies?
2fast: My first ever SFV tournament was Hype the Beat in December 2021, which I entered while I was still ranked in plat. It was the first time I had ever fought someone with over 14k mmr and the only person I recognised was Somniac, because he was in a Brian_F video. My first opponent was Rumours, and my second was Freeser; as you may have guessed, it was quite the uneventful run.
In my second tournament I actually did alright coming 4th in the SFA Open in March 2022, losing to Rumours and Thaz. After that I played in a number of tournaments whenever I had time: Unga Down Under, Hold Forward, CPT and more.
My CWL tourney history is actually quite short, the first one I joined was in CWL June 2022 where I managed to get 5th losing to Rumours and Destiny, for July I got 7th and in August I got 9th, with my highest placing in the most recent one in September for 4th.
2fast2fed plays with confidence and aggression, even against a juggernaut like Travis Styles.
CWL: That constant improvement has won you a lot of praise from the community, especially after breaking into the CWL Online top 4. Did it feel like this result was a level-up for you? Do you see yourself on the cusp of Australia’s SFV elite yet?
2fast: After already making it into a few top 8s, I don’t really feel much pride from the placement itself, but more so in how I played to get that placement. There have been other times I made it to top 8 when, in my eyes, I wasn’t playing that good.
While the result still does feel good, I’m mostly looking at trying to continually improve myself; and despite top 4 being a high placement, I still do not consider myself to be close to an elite player.
CWL: You’ve stayed loyal to Chun-Li throughout your breakout CWL season so far, showing a really high level of comfort and mastery. What’s your expert opinion on the character in SFV currently? Do you have any pocket picks we’re yet to see in CWL?
2fast: I’m quite a big fan of Chun, especially in this patch. I think she’s quite strong, and I like the fact that a lot of her optimal combos are harder to execute and that she has a pretty good matchup spread.
I do not have a character pool; I have a character puddle – one that only fits Chun and doesn’t leave room for anyone else! I would say the character I know 2nd best is Cammy, and I would still probably struggle to beat Platinum players with her.
Despite this I’m not fiercely loyal to Chun. I only play her as she is the character I learnt the game on, and my muscle memory is ingrained with her move set. Even changing V-Skill after the final patch was something that took me a few weeks to get used to.
Getting the 2-0 over one of QLD’s most experienced and decorated players in an elimination set was a great statement win to cap off this top 4 run.
CWL: On the plus side, that narrow focus on playing one character one way has rocketed you into CWL contention after a relatively short time playing SFV. Do you feel like you have a natural talent for fighting games which has helped your rise? Or do you just spend a lot of time in the lab?
2fast: To answer this honestly, I’m actually not sure what I consider my major strength as a player. While I am proud of my hit confirms I think my execution is actually one of my weak points, I drop combos and misinput often.
I do put a decent amount of time in the lab when it comes to Chun. I’m always on the lookout for conversions, set ups and optimal combo routes, but I probably need to lab more when it comes to the options other characters have against her.
CWL: There’s always more room for improvement, especially now that you’re consistently grappling with some of Australia’s best players. Is there anyone among your peers who you look up to and try to learn from? Any matchups you particularly hate to face in bracket?
2fast: Whilst I don’t know any of the top players on a personal level, Goldie is probably the player I look up to most gameplay-wise. I’m a big fan of his style and while I don’t try to emulate the playstyle of other players if I had to, it would absolutely be him.
I don’t really have any players I want to avoid in bracket. ROF and Travis do come to mind as I consider them the #1 and #2 players in OCE but mainly because our connections aren’t good so if/when I win it doesn’t feel as good.
CWL: What about the tournament scene more generally? You’re a bit of a latecomer even in SFV terms, while some top players have been around for decades. What’s your experience been like settling into the Queensland FGC?
2fast: I have yet to enter a single offline SFV tourney, as I missed the most recent ranbats in February simply because I did not know it was happening until weeks after it ended. I wasn’t really interested in tournaments in general until this year anyway, though I have attended 2 locals where we played casuals.
As someone who’s only recently started getting involved in the local scene, the QLD SFV community has been super welcoming. Them cheering me on in the stream chat despite not ever meeting me and hyping up my wins makes me feel so much better about my progress, especially as someone who had basically been celebrating my victories alone.
CWL: That’s awesome to hear, hopefully the QLD ranbats start up again soon (and you can keep an eye on the CouchWarriors newsletter to make sure you don’t miss them)!
One more question: have you had a look at the early SF6 builds yet? As a newer player, are you excited to get in on the ground floor of a fresh game?
2fast: I keep an eye open for SF6 stuff and so far it looks extremely promising! But at the end of the day I’m still fully focused on SFV, trying to improve myself and make a name for myself before starting the learning process all over again.
CouchWarriors would like to thank 2fast2fed for giving such a great forthright interview, and wish him luck finding his first CWL Online top 3 in October’s tournament! If you know a player you think deserves some time in the spotlight, message CouchWarriors on Twitter or your game’s CWL admin on Discord and they’ll pass it on.