Matthew “TempestNYC” Tulloch is one of the best BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle players in the world. We got the chance to talk to the recently nominated PlayStation Tournaments Open Series 2020 Year in Review MVP about playstyle, training, and mindset.

Tell me about your start with competitive gaming.

I used to netplay a lot, at first. I live in New York, and my offline scene was really good. It looked like a lot of fun and I’ve always been competitive. The first time I went offline was in 2016 at a card shop in NY. I played Central Fiction.

What drew you to Blazblue?

I’ve been playing Blazblue for a long time. My first fighting game was Persona 4 Arena. I got that and it looked cool so I started looking at other games. A friend said ‘Let’s play Blazblue Phantasma.’ I thought it was really fun. I like the characters, the differences between them, and all the things you could do. I’ve been playing since.

When did you realize you were more than just an average player?

I played a lot and started playing really strong players. Sometimes I would beat them and sometimes I wouldn’t lose too badly. I was always improving. I would play Central Fiction about 20 hours a week, even though I had school on weekdays. I never really trained. I just played a lot online or with friends.

How do you practice?

Essentially what works for me is how I view things. It’s not about how much time I put in. It's more about what I do with the time. I’ll dedicate a set amount of time to do specific things. One day I’ll say ‘I’m going to play this person in a set’ and another I’ll do training mode and find new techniques. Other days I’ll just watch videos. 

It’s a journey and I have to make sure I have a good mindset. It’s hard to improve when you don’t know where to start but you learn slowly and you learn patterns. That’s what happened to me.

How did you start playing in tournaments?

My first tournament was a local one in NY, and there was a lot of competition. I enjoyed playing in that environment, but I think the Open Series is a lot of fun.

How did it feel to get nominated for the MVP of North America?

I thought it was cool to be recognized inside the Open Series and as a player in general. I know I played well and it was a nice feeling.

Who do you main in Cross Tag Battle?

I main Narukami but the thing about that game is it’s easy to counterpick so we all have multiple characters.

The teams I play the most are Mika and Carmine, Yang and Carmine, and Narukami and Waldstein. They're all strong and they have an oppressive offense.

How would you describe your playstyle?

I’m versatile and can switch between a lot of different styles. I default to faster gameplay and am decently aggressive at times. I try to look for small openings and don’t like resetting to neutral very much.

Any advice for new players out there?

Focus more on mindset and psychological things rather than fighting game prowess. Your mindset toward the game matters, maybe more than how good you are. Not getting tilted is more important than execution errors. Focus on your mindset and be positive.

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