Some days ago, Perfect Legend asked an interesting question in twitter:
“Who are your top 5 favorite opponents?”
This is my reply:
I found the question quite interesting, and Twitter doesn’t allow me to expand to much, so I’m going to translate the question here, to the forums, so anyone can participate and expand who and why you enjoy fighting
1º- @FerasMM
Feras was one of my first and more durable KI rivals/friends. We met each other playing ranked, sometimes 2 or 3 times in a row. I enjoyed a lot our fights, and sometimes, when one of us was a bit “salty” about the outcome of the match, we invited each other into exibition to expand the set. We add each other and from time to time, we play each other. Our rivalry/friendship even surpassed KI barriers, and now we also play DBZF matches.
2º- @KevBones10
I met both Kev and Mandrill(Alien in that time XD) joining a lobby, @Fwufikins(whom I got fewer times to face) was there too. This was during S2, and although I have been around since S1, it was not until then when i decided to face forum members in casual matches. That day there was a “only Riptor” rule, since she was recently released, and I had a lot of fun.
Kev was always a menace, and every match we have puts me in the edge of my seat. I really enjoy the messages Kev and I send each other after each match, after hearthbreaking moments and weird or close outcomes. I even bought a keyboard for the XBOX so I could type faster just for Kev.
3º- @MandrillManiac
Mandrill was the forum member I faced most during S2. I fondly remember when S3 launched, and we were messing with our new tools for our characters. I showed you a setup with Riptor, using flipout after clever girl, since you weren’t using flipouts at all(who blames you, they were a totally new tool to get used!). I was super proud when I joined a lobby one week later, and there you were, using that setup and mixing it with other options, making your way to victory. Your positive attitude always made me wish for longer sets with you Mandrill
4º- @MaruMDQ
FYI, speaking in a language you are not used to, while playing a FG is pretty taxing. With Maru, at least I can forget about translating anything(although she is super hard to beat, so talking in spanish during our match stills distracts me XD). Maru and her “cachorro” are fearsome, a force to be feared. I really enjoy every set we play, our talks about the community, and the laughs we share. I wish I could be part of your local scene, because people like you push the scene forward. Also, your raging screams are the funniest I have ever heard playing a videogame XD
5º- @SonicDolphin117
The hardest to beat opponent from this list, Sonic always got the upper hand over me. I could put some difficulties, but at the end, Sonic is, hands down, better player than me. He was the first forum member I faced that I couldn’t beat regularly. But thanks to that, that superiority, I pushed myself into being better. And I managed to get better. Still not enough to get the upper hand over you, but I definetively see my improvement from the moment we fought the first time to now. Besides this, I also find hilarious how you face some stuff.
"WAIT WAKE UP THROW, ARE YOU MAD?"
But it worked
"Yeah, well, yeah… BUT YOU SHOULDN’T DO IT ANYWAY"
xD
Honorable mentions:
These people are here for good reasons, and although I had to choose 5, each of them have a place in my hearth and it hurts me to not put them on the top.
@oTigerSpirit: Another inspiring opponent. I remember how different was the first and second time I faced Tiger. The first time we face each other, I faced someone scared from Gargos(my choice then), who felt surpassed by the Shadow Lords tools. Far from being beated, the next time I faced Tiger, he was a totally different opponent. He made his homework, and he had the correct answer to anything I did. He adapted so well that was scary. Your skill to adapt is something really noticable when you play long sets Tiger, and thats a remarkable and fun thing to face
@ItzTymeToDul is a weird case. We fought each other several times in several WTF/Random tournaments, and although I got the upper hand most of the times, I always felt that I was playing wrong. Dul is what I call a “scientist” player. A player who has amazing tech, and can turn the tide in seconds, leaving you confused and dazed after pass over you like a truck. The times I won I felt it could go the other way for just one jab, and that stress is quite an experience after a close match. Also he speaks funny about my english, so I will always particularly enjoy any win I can take from him 
@DarkLrdChuckles and I have played some of the most close and fun games I can remember. His mastery on Sadira and his ability to focus and achieve impossible comebacks is something to have in mind, so never let your guard down against him
And leaving @BigBadAndy out of the top is pretty painful for me, but there is a reason: Andy is not an opponent, but a friend that I want to have at my side while watching a fight. You are by far forum/Ki related member that I talked most, and is common for us to begin a set, and after 3- 4 fights just drop the controller and talk all the time. Unlike most of the forums members I faced, whom I did after random ranked pairing or after setting a match in the GGs thread, I sent you a friend request because I liked how you interactuated with the community. Even before fighting you the first time, I knew you were someone to follow and read everything you type, since I consider you one of the smartest people around(and there are plenty of smart people around, being them guide creators or super relevant ghost-girl players, to name some). I wish everyone in the community could have your logical and intellingent approach to FGs
There are many others I would like to point out, like @Sasuke99I, @TheNinjaOstrich, @FallofSeraphs76 @HWSlenderCashew, or @STORM179, or even people who I don’t usually play with, like @Infilament or @FallibleJoker14 , but I had to choose 
Aw shucks… as you well know, I e really enjoyed all of our matches - even when we aren’t playing too much of the game. (EDIT to be honest I see you online playing DBFZ and I’ve thought about picking it up just so I could hop into your game. If I wasn’t sure the online would be trash I would have done it already.)
I’m not a great person to contribute to this thread because I haven’t ever done a lot of training or sets with folks from the forums or anywhere. I am only competetive enough to make killer, not to really move into the upper echelons of the game. I’ve always had really fun and relaxed sets with @FallofSeraphs76. It’s been a while now and he’s really been putting the work in and I haven’t so I have a feeling he would leave me in the dust now.
Other than that, I’ve mostly met really cool people and had good matches whenever I bump into someone who hangs out here. Ironically, I’m the super early days of SFV I played a couple of matches with @infilament and they were laggy as heck but it was fun just to listen to his early take on the game and see how he approached a real match. But I never played him in KI.
To be fair, I played against several people around(Feras, Sonic, Kev, Slender), and the game handled itself pretty well. Sometimes(rarely) we get a lag spike, but matches go smoothly most of the time
You could just rent it for one weekend and give it a try.
I don’t have much time to play lately, even during weekends, but I’m having fun with the game. Right now I’m not playing KI too much, but I would love to have one of our classic “setwhichendsbeingfriendlychat” XD
Sadly @SneerfulWater57 and @khronosix are pretty much the only people I run into online from the forums nowadays.
So they are automatically my favorite people to fight against.
However, there are several people on the forums that I cherish, like @MaruMDQ, @STORM179, @BigBadAndy, and @Infilament just to name a few people off the top of my head.
When Geek was around I used to do sets with him and a few others… That doesn’t happen too often anymore. 
Oh I have to add @TheNinjaOstrich to my list of people I like!!! His kitten memes save lives.
My favorite 5 opponents from the forums:
@TheNinjaOstrich He and I once played 124 games in a single sitting. You don’t do that unless the opponent is awesome 
One of the nicest and most genuine players and people I’ve ever met, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed all our games!
@ItzTymeToDul A really, really awesome guy and another of the forum crew that I consider a friend. I think Dul is one of the smartest players here in terms of how he thinks about and approaches the game, and because of that I’ve always loved fighting him.
@HWFREEKYJASON Anyone who’s spent any time around me in KI knows that I hate Kan-Ra. I utterly despised him in S2, and even now in S3 (where he’s quite sensibly balanced) I don’t enjoy running into him. But for whatever reason, Jason’s Kan feels different. Even when he’s absolutely dunked me (and man has he dunked me on occasion 
), I always felt like he won because he was just straight up outplaying me. It’s pretty rare for me to enjoy losing, but I have to say I’ve never been angry at a loss by Jason. He’s also a super cool dude in real life 
@SonicDolphin117 I’m pretty sure he hates fighting me, but I’ve always enjoyed fighting him. He plays characters you don’t see very often at extremely high level, so I feel like every time I play him I learn a lot. Learning is fun 
@Infilament I’m 100% sure that he’s surprised to see himself here since we’ve played KI like 4 times together, but Infil rounds out my list. I really, really hate losing in KI. Like, really hate losing When Infil and I play though, it’s always something silly like DP or throw or secondaries or “please help me work on XYZ b/c everyone on Steam is awful”, and winning and losing just really takes a backseat. Our sessions are some of the only times I’ve ever really entirely relaxed while playing KI, and because of that I really enjoyed them.
I wish I could fight you more… I think since the dawn of S3, we’ve fought all of once.
I’m down to play now if you like
I’d love that, but sadly, I’m at work.
My favorite opponent is definitely @MandrillManiac
Doesn’t matter what game we play or if we’re even playing at all. His hard working, fun loving attitude is so infectious that it doesn’t matter who wins or loses. It’s just a great time every time. A worthy opponent and a spectacular friend!
I’d also like to nominate @SonicDolphin117 , @KevBones10 , @Dayv0 , @TheNinjaOstrich , @STORM179 , and @BigBadAndy for just being awesome people to be around. Not to mention their dedication to being helpful both in Killer Instinct and other games.
I dont play many sets with friends due to timing and kids in the way but I have a few favorites…
1.Of course @BigBadAndy is #1 becasue wehave had the most sets together.
2. would be @WandaMaximoff because we always had super fun sets… its been a while though.
3. @dayvo and I had some very talkative sets last year or so.
4. Maybe @R1stormrider or @SadisticRage76…we have only played a few times but when we do they are fun.
5. Trash heavy is a good friend of mine and we have had some fun sets.
I dont really play anyone else… the one set I had with @STORM179 was really chill and I learned a lot.
I really like this post, thanks for asking the question @Dayv0
I haven’t be here as long as most of you have been, but I still have some people that come to mind.
@ItzTymeToDul A chill and friendly guy, he’s helped me so much to improve my gameplay, giving me constant advice and always advocating for me to improve. Fighting against him is always a treat. His Kanra is extremely crazy and playing against him always gets me excited. Wish I could meet him irl. He seems to be awesome as well irl from what I’ve heard. He saw my potential and helped me gain some of it and for that he’s my favorite opponent.
@oTigerSpirit Those two sets we had are one of the most replayed sets I’ve watched. It was such an exciting and back and forth matches. The challenge you gave me really helped me to push myself and become a better player. Those two times we fought were one of the most heart-racing sets I’ve had. I can’t wait to play more with you. I really want you to become stronger then me so that we can have better fights in the future. Ggs again man!
@STORM179 This is kinda a special case. A one way rivalry if you will. Ever since he beat me in the WTF tourney, I’ve made it my goal one day dominate him in a set and therefore, fighting against him is always a nervous yet intense time. His setups, resets, and neutral really make me think on how I play and watching his sets with other players help me to understand how to approach him. He is still better then me lol but I’ll get there eventually. He also helped me a lot to grow as well so that’s another thing.
@MaruMDQ. We haven’t played a lot, mostly due to locations, but not only did you give me a challenge with your amazing Saberwulf but playing against you always ended up making me laugh. It’s fun sometimes just enjoy the game and I can do that we I play with you. It’s also interesting to talk with another Spanish speaker with it being my second language. Hope we could play more often in the future. You earned my respect as well with all the videos and posts you have done on the forums.
@BubbRubb4Real The sets we had were pretty chill. Would love to play again sometime.
Honorable Mentions too…
ThrashHeavy and my lil Brother (BoicriedShark). Always a good time
Hehaaaah i deserve it
Yeah, I contributed on Twitter, I’ll post that here but also elaborate on it.
@TheNinjaOstrich is undoubtedly the reason I took the incentive to understand KI to the fullest and value the interactions amongst players. This opened the door for me to embrace the FGC and analyze most of the features it encompasses. I asked for help and Ninja showed me the way. We have a running joke about our status as “Masters”, but I truly do find some truth in calling him my master, as it was his Jago and patience to teach that allowed me to discover my potential.
Aside from that, Ninja is an incredibly chill person, he values friendship and it resonates once you play with him. Truly, this guy is a huge reason my playstyle is the way it is, minus the odd shortcomings. Funny thing, I honored Ninja with my custom outfits by devoting one to his Jago. No one understand the reference and the color/accessory choice is god awful hah, but it’s a tribute to my former master.
@FallibleJoker14 Boy, does this guy get on my nerves, lol; well, his Eagle does. Regardless, that doesn’t stop me from appreciating him as a worthwhile opponent. I wish I were much better at the matchup to consider myself a rival, but a worthy opponent will do. Eagle and Jago is, well, it’s like going to an automatic carwash for the fourth time on that day. It’s pretty interesting, but after a while it becomes tedious seeing a similar pattern and the job getting done, the job being my Jago eating dirt. Nah, this guy is great. He teaches me without even saying anything. Actually, come to think of it, I don’t believe we ever talked. Nonetheless, his teachings come from forcing me to adapt and show patience, because if I don’t, I lose. Aside from that, he certainly earned my respect and showed me how capable someone is of improving. I actually have to thank him because he is a byproduct of my pro-star. After our set I went onto rank to prove myself. Cheers dude.
@KevBones10 Love yah dude, don’t hate me lol. I don’t think I could be equal parts frustrated and amused. I got that with Kev. Look, we all get frustrated, whether it’s by someone absolutely brutalizing us or by our own faults. When I get frustrated with Kev, it always comes from his unique combo choices, setups and spectacular mixups. I’m sitting there taking a string of combos from Killgore saying, “dude this is some bullsh!t… some pretty cool bullsh!t though”. Even so, I’ve fought Kev a few times now and each time it always left me with enjoyment of the match. Whether it was Killgore, Arbiter or Eyedol, I always found myself having a great time. Even when he does clobber me. It’s fun though, for the most part, which is why I keep playing KI, because of people like Kev.
@Dayv0 We fought twice I believe, but in both of those instances it was enjoyable. It was actually one of the few times I decided to throw on my mic and chat with him. I didn’t ever consider how difficult it is to constantly translate your words while in the heat of a typical KI bout, but that’s pretty amazing all things considered. He’s still a solid and amazing player while speaking outside of his native language. That’s actually pretty cool that he can simultaneously kick my teeth in while speaking fluently in a second language. I remember his Gargos vividly. I hated fighting him because I was so afraid of what I didn’t understand and how difficult it was for me to acclimate to a character like Gargos at the time. I let my fear hinder my understanding amongst other players. Dayvo helped me overcome that barrier and so I got better. I remember his Killgore also, though I haven’t played him recently unfortunately. Fun fact, I actually never knew we shared the same first name until recently when I looked back that the “Behind the Gamertag” thread.
@CrazySkateNate I never played this guy. I shouldn’t even consider him for this list because it contradicts the purpose of the meaning of opponent. Though, when I consider the aspects of an opponent which comes as a teacher, benchmark and even barrier, I realized Nate was just that. When I had questions, he answered, when I needed to understand how to dynamically utilize the underrated moves of Jago, I watched. As a person, he is incredibly chill, and he seems like a standup guy. I parenthesized “dream match” because it is just that, a dream to face his Jago. At one point I fought Thompxson, my previous dream match, I did surprisingly well, though I was too nervous. I’m sure Nate would be willing to play against me, but I was hesitant before because I would just bore him. Though, I think I have learned enough now to be considered a worth adversary.
A handful of shoutouts even if you aren’t on the list.
@ItzTymeToDul, for helping me grow early on and showing me I can be just as competitive as I could be laid back. @STORM179 for being a valuable teacher and inspiration; also for being dubbed the Captain America of KI from both Dragon and me. @MaruMDQ for being an absolute badass, lol. Seriously though, you are great at inspiring people to keep pushing to be better. I want to play your Wulf more, it’s a match I severly struggle with. There are tons of others that I wish to tag, but at some point I will be reach the limit and don’t want to seclude anyone in particular, unless I genuinely don’t like you, lol.
Sure am! lol
My 5 favorite opponents from the forums:
@STORM179. This man I met in early Season 2 talking on the forums occasionally for matchup advice and tech on the Season 2 forums. It wasn’t until late Season 2 did we start talking and actively playing each other. He has helped me break a lot of barriers in fighting games, and reach some i didnt know I had. He’s a major reason I took a huge step going to a tournament with a competitive mindset. (Which was awesome too because i got to meet a cool guy I call friend now ) He always gives his best when im fighting him, and its always a blast playing with him in any game. As for those 124 matches we had, it still surprises me today that we played that much. Learned a lot though from all those beat downs. Definitely need to play again soon. It’s been a while.
@ItzTymeToDul. Another person I met around the end of Season 2. He gives his all, with a smile. One of the more interesting people I’ve fought, he really makes you think and adapt quickly and I like his thinking and different approach to the game. Got to meet him at CEO Last year, and it was a memorable one. He is a great guy I’ve gotten to know on a personal basis as well, and hope to keep playing with him.
@oTigerSpirit. The Jago man himself. Everytime I play with this guy, its like he went deep into meditation in exile and came back awakened with new power lol. He surprises me everytime we play, to the point I’ll have to give my best and only my best in order to beat him. He has vastly improved over the seasons and I’m glad to fight him. It’s crazy because I didn’t think I could influence and help a person that much just by helping him with Jago. But I could tell he really wanted to learn, so I taught him what I knew, and he continued on by himself. A really good player I hope to see in other fighting games as well. I really want to see his growth as a player.
As for the costume he tributes to me, it’s Retro Green Jago, with the Keytar and Sneakers. Way back in Season 2 I wanted to stand out, so i made that costume and it stuck
@KevBones10. Such a phenomenal player, and one that forces me to push past my limits to beat him. A super cool guy I’ve had the pleasure of knowing, and really appreciate playing with.
@Dayv0. My friend from across the world! I love playing Davy0 because he makes it fun. He’s a solid player who knows his stuff, and has fun while playing which i appreciate. I still find it amusing that Dayv0 sometimes speaks Spanish and he forgets I can understand him.
Finu, si salme poneme a largar en bable no caces ni papa, dante la vuelta los gueyus!
@Dayv0
Maru(does anyone know her twitter?
I don’t use twitter . I’m just not into it so I unistalled it like 2 years ago. I think I used it for three months only 
Me encanta tu acento! 
For real. Talking with you about the game and forums, even we hardly do it, felt really cool and familiar. Also you always gave me a lot of trouble with your characters and the “verbal taunting” XD (yeah, I get distraccted a lot too).
You are a very good player indded, I didn’t know what to expect before knowing you. But you do give me a hard challenge O.o
It’s always nice spending time playing and talkig with you.
And about my raging, people find it funnny or so I’ve heard 
Me too, and sadly I haven’t played most. But the ones I play and are still here game really nice fights. I appreciate it. Though I must add that when we played I felt bad because of the rollback. It’s something that kind of spoils the good moment, even if we talk about a figthing game full of salt (because one of us is going to lose eitherway and may feel the salt)
Lol, it’s fun ideed 
And speaking Spanish is less draining than focusing on playing and speaking in other language at the same time. Which is fine, but harder to do. I also wouldn’t mind more Eagle MU practice 
Playing you is fun, and I don’t mind when you zone me honestly. This is because I like your overall playstyle, despite the character you use, making fights enjoyable.
Thanks Tiger! I really appreciate it 
I enjoyed our fights a lot, but I was worried you took them too seriously (I think US players are soooo competitive, at least most of the ones I fought. But the way they cope with the challenge feels serious, for real). That I feel like if I win they are going to hate me or something 
But I like the spirit, it’s encouraging to keep on getting better and / or having fun. Which most players here have shown me. I’ve bee seen lots of improvements, but better, I see love and passion for the game, even we don’t have to agree about every aspect of it.
And I’ll also mention @TheNinjaOstrich , @SneerfulWater57 and @ItzTymeToDul I enjoyed our fights!!
For the record, when I’m having friendly matches I don’t mind speaking or listening the other player. But when we are going for FTs or serious play I prefer not to listen or talk, because with online gaming I became spoiled and sometimes I just don’t enjoy hearing the other person trashtalking (unless they aren’t trashtalking, and sometimes they are so nice that I don’t want to beat them, but that’s not ok in a fighting game or whatever competitive no-cop game 
)
Other mentions who aren’t here: Either my boyfriend and my other teammate, we had incredible sets and practice with a mix of healthy salt and fun. However, my boyfriend thends to deal with most of my salt, poor soul (no joke!) 
Seeing myself getting tagged fills my heart. Make me want to make a top 5 list. Oh well…