Check out the information below.
Last Saturday, arcade aficionados swarmed SoCal from every corner of the country to compete in Red Bull Hive Hustle, LA’s first ever Killer Queen arcade tournament at Lot 613 in downtown Los Angeles. Killer Queen, a modern arcade favorite across the country, is a well-known secret, boasting a strong, dedicated fan base as well as a burgeoning competitive community.
Forming 25 teams of 5 competitors, Killer Queen fans flew in from Portland, San Francisco, Phoenix, Chicago, New York, Kansas City, Charlotte, Minneapolis, and Fort Lauderdale. In the end, team Sad (I Promise) from Portland, Oregon conquered all, defeating team Bonus Nap in a nail-biting final match.
Please see below for a detailed breakdown of the game and the evening’s events, and find assets available to download here.
The Tournament
Lot 613 was abuzz with excitement as teammates and friends gathered for Los Angeles’ first Killer Queen tournament. While this was a tournament and the pressure was on, the room felt like a party among friends, as the national Killer Queen competitive community is known for being tight-knit. “There’s a lot of love at the center of it, people get to know each other and care for each other…that love just does nothing but allow growth of the community,” said Matt Herring, Sad (I Promise) team member. With seven of these rare cabinets in one venue for this special night, the event turned out to be “unlike any other Killer Queen event you’ve ever seen,” said Hive Hustle tournament organizer Dylan Wiggins.
Throughout the night, twenty-five teams of 5 competitors faced off in matches throughout the evening until the top 8 emerged, with teams Sad (I Promise) from Portland, Oregon and Bonus Nap from Charlotte, North Carolina topping off as the final two. When it came down for the grand final match, the crowd was roaring with excitement, waiting to see which team would end up on top. In the end, Sad (I Promise) remained undefeated and won, earning a Nintendo Switch for each competitor and the Red Bull Hive Hustle trophy.
“We’ve been playing together for a while now and we’ve put a lot of our lives into training for this game and trying to be the best we can be,” said Matt Herring, “This win feels amazing!”
Next up, the team will go to the World Championships at BumbleBash 3 in Portland where the world’s top teams will compete for glory.
About the Game
A modern indie arcade title, Killer Queen is the world’s only 10-player arcade strategy game, where two teams of five compete to protect their hive and battle enemy bees. In each game, the two teams take on 2 separate cabinets taking on the roles of workers, warriors or one Queen. A battle ensues between the two teams each aiming for victory by either carrying berries to the hive in an economic victory, riding the snail into the cage in a snail victory, or killing the enemies Queen three times in a military victory. Click here for more details on the game.
Hive Hustle was played in a Swiss format tournament format, consisting of many constantly seeding rounds player in a “straight 3” format, meaning every game counts towards or against the big win. In the last hour, the tournament broke into 8-team single elimination finals bracket based on Swiss performance to determine a final winner, in a best-of-five format.
