The annual Evolution Champion Series (Evo) is getting ready to launch this summer in Las Vegas as the “largest and longest-running” tournament for fighting games in the world. The event hosts over 15,000 people among a series of different games including Tekken 7, Street Fighter 5, Super Smash Bros. Melee, and many more. Typically the security there is light, however, after an Evo 2018 mass shooting threat on Twitch, that may change.

The threat was made March 1oth on yungmushu_‘s Twitch in the viewers chat by a user who goes by quackquackhonks during a stream. In a conversation on Twitter, a fan brought the Evo 2018 mass shooting threat to light in a conversation about tournament security. Given that security is often lax, many fans are concerned about issues arising given the current atmosphere in America surrounding gun violence.

https://twitter.com/Dankadillas/status/972563585011347456

The Tweet regarding the Evo 2018 mass shooting prompted event organizer Joey Cuellar (aka Mr. Wizard) to action. Cuellar notified both the livestream platform and FBI about the threat, seeking to not only secure the event, but also bring the user to justice. Here is what Cuellar had to say about it on Twitter:

https://twitter.com/MrWiz/status/972583732388380672

With a string of shootings occurring annually in the United States, many event planners are rightly nervous about the prospect of an incident occurring. To augment the situation, political influences are focusing on the gaming industry as the cause of gun violence in America and seek to make changes that are as of yet unclear. Whether or not the Evo 2018 mass shooting threat will affect those decisions remains uncertain, however it is good to know that event planners take these threats seriously and took swift action to keep tournament goers safe.

Are conventions and tournaments doing enough to keep their patrons safe? Join in on the conversation in the comment section below! Don’t forget to follow DFTG on Twitter for live gaming and entertainment news 24/7!