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For Rent

“A View from the Top” with Kris Perovic
By: Bryan Camareno, 4.15.05
 

Hey everyone! Before I get to the interview, I’ve got some news for you all about Fire & Ice (The team I’m on). Team Fire & Ice has got a new Team website up with Pics, Bios, and where we qualified and such. This website will be constantly updated with news about our team progress at events and updates on our info. If you would like to find out more about my teammates and I, go check it out at:

http://www.fireniceanime.com/teamindex.html

I’m back this time with Kris Perovic. He’s another member of Team Overdose from the New England area of the U.S.; like Mike Pianka. This time around this interview features a lot more insight than previous interviews; through reading his info you’ll find that he and I are very alike in some ways. It’s an interesting read and I encourage you all to read it and email me with your opinions.

Bryan [10:21 PM]: Where are you from originally?

Kris [10:22 PM]: Jersey, been here all my life.

Bryan [10:22 PM]: jersey?

Bryan [10:22 PM]: I'm a new yorker :D

Kris [10:23 PM]: I spend a lot of time in NY, and I like it, no doubt…but Jersey is home, and you can't really substitute anything for home.

Bryan [10:23 PM]: No doubt man :)

Bryan [10:23 PM]: Where do you go to school?

Kris [10:24 PM]: For the time being, Clifton High...

Bryan [10:24 PM]: for the time being...? Not liking it huh?

Kris [10:26 PM]: School's a touchy subject right now -- problems and whatnot, with getting sick this year and missing a lot of days, I won't be able to graduate with my class. I'll probably wind up with something else besides my Clifton High Diploma before moving onto college in the fall.

Bryan [10:27 PM]: oh wow dude, that sucks...and I thought college was bad lol

Kris [10:27 PM]: Yea, it REALLY does…but it's a LOT better then graduating with my brother’s friends.

Bryan [10:28 PM]: yea true so don't sweat it man, at least you're gonna graduate anyway :)

Bryan [10:28 PM]: for the fans...what's your ranking in NJ?

Kris [10:29 PM]: Bleh -- I've got a problematic account…one without a name, an email, a password, a state affiliation.

Kris [10:30 PM]: If I WERE to have a state affiliation, I'd probably be, I THINK, 9th…maybe 8th, in NJ…but unlike all the higher ranked people, I don't play in a regular local tournament. I reserve myself for serious competition, if even at the sacrifice of points…


Kris [10:30 PM]: It's more competitive IMO, and more worth my time.

Bryan [10:31 PM]: very true, i find that you have that same trait in common with Mike

Bryan [10:32 PM]: I've gotten a couple emails about that, some say it's weird and some say it shows your real competitive nature

Bryan [10:33 PM]: :)

Kris [10:33 PM]: Yea, but Pianka does his own thing... I just think those 'smaller' tournaments are boring, like I walk into it knowing that in a few hours, I'll win, but not really have accomplished anything…when I could've been at the movies or something with my girl, and well.. I'd have a better time.

Bryan [10:34 PM]: lol well put. I see you like to make constructive use of your time. Looks like we share something in common after all lol; Gotta talk to you about that later.

Bryan [10:35 PM]: Next question...what are your credentials? Top 8 finishes, qualifications, etc...

Kris [10:35 PM]: This season?

Bryan [10:35 PM]: yes

Kris [10:37 PM]: Well, as you know, I qualified this past weekend…finally. After it being my 6th out of 7 Top 8s in a Regional, it was a relief to finally get my invite.

Bryan [10:38 PM]: nice, 7 Top 8s...I only have 2 lol.

Bryan [10:38 PM]: How long have you been playing YuGiOh?

Bryan [10:41 PM]: I'll beat 7 by Nationals you'll see :)

Kris [10:42 PM]: I've got 6…out of 7 Regionals…I think it was the first or second regional of the season that I got 9th and just missed the cut.

Bryan [10:42 PM]: ouch...bummer man

Kris [10:43 PM]: Meh, I'm not disappointed…Don't really care right now…an invite kinda turns your frown upside down.

Bryan [10:44 PM]: lol

Bryan [10:44 PM]: What's your favorite card?

Bryan [10:44 PM]: and why?

Kris [10:45 PM]: Without a doubt, it would have to be Dark Magician.

Kris [10:47 PM]: It's the card that convinced me to play this game. It was the card that made this game fun when I used to play with my brother, Yugi Starter Deck vs. Kaiba Starter Deck…It's probably the only LOB card that I own that I have had since the beginning...

Bryan [10:48 PM]: lol that's awesome, that's definitely the most original response for that question to date :)

Kris [10:49 PM]: Well, I was going to say Ookazi, but I can't miss an opportunity to give props to the DM…

Bryan [10:49 PM]: lol

Bryan [10:50 PM]: Favorite deck archetype?

Kris [10:51 PM]: Chaos…I guess…and mixed variants of it. From Machines to Polymerization, I’ve put that Soldier in anything.

Bryan [10:51 PM]: lol Soldier is a beast man

Kris [10:52 PM]: Yup…He's been my main man since he was released… I was one of the few people that ran him, alone, over the Dragon back in the day.

Bryan [10:53 PM]: I've always thought Soldier was better in terms on control, but I like Dragon because he deals ENORMOUS amounts of damage for almost nothing.

Kris [10:55 PM]: Oh, don't get me wrong…I'm not saying the Dragon wasn't a beast either...It's just…I'm a considerably conservative player…I hated to blow away everything I've kept in my hand, etc, just for LP damage.

Bryan [10:55 PM]: That LP damage meant game 90% of the time lol

Kris [10:58 PM]: Meh…I guess...but I'm infamous for my bad luck, and running both the Dragon and the Soldier led to a lot of draws without fodder…and if I had to choose between establishing control, and eventually getting my opponent to hit 0 from that control…or just hoping that there was enough cards on the field and in the hand to pop for game…I choose the control.

Bryan [10:59 PM]: Geez; am I the only one who plays aggressively these days? lol

Kris [11:01 PM]: I've found that an aggressive play style can lead to top decking kinda easy…mass removal, especially with Vortex released and Mirror Force back, can really screw a aggressive player up...and rather then screw myself by top decking with my bad luck, I'll conserve my resources until I get that opportunity, even if it's 15 turns into the game, to either win or get such a grasp of control on the game that my opponent can't do anything but lose.

Bryan [11:02 PM]: well playing aggressively doesn't necessarily mean playing your cards like an idiot

Bryan [11:03 PM]: some conservative players conserve too much and leave themselves open for a big push

Kris [11:03 PM]: I know, I know…and I don't mean it like that.

Bryan [11:05 PM]: well of course not :)

Kris [11:05 PM]: Like I said, most things in this game are based on preference...

Kris [11:06 PM]: I was an aggressive player for the longest time, but I tried altering my play style, to you know, get a better understanding of this game…and it's paid off every time.

Bryan [11:07 PM]: that's good, I originally started as a conservative player and moved more towards aggressive; I think the conservative style is so easy to break in serious competitions.

Kris [11:09 PM]: I think most players are aggressive by nature, can't help but attack if they can…I'd rather exploit that then conform to that…play head games with my opponent, make them think they've got something against me when I'm just baiting them in, making them waste their resources and whatnot.

Bryan [11:11 PM]: that's easily a part of the head games. Wasting resources is something a player should never do at all. However, I do feel that conservative player’s construct their decks way fitted to their conservative style, hence the 3 goats, controllers, and all that nonsense these days...

Bryan [11:15 PM]: K let's get a bit more serious...What sets you apart from all the other top players in the world?

Kris [11:21 PM]: Well, what do you mean, 'top players'? CO players, Nats qualifiers, people who played at Worlds?

Bryan [11:21 PM]: the big boys man, CO, Nationals Qualifiers...whatever :)

Kris [11:26 PM]: That's a tough question... I understand that a match is more then summoning and attacking, setting and defending, and using the cards simply as they come to me…Most 'good' players I've run into are on a lucky streak, such as with Nationals last year -- IMO, at LEAST 3/4 of the players there didn't deserve to be there. I look at those that did and I say to myself, "That's my competition." I expect the same for this season -- qualifiers who think they're part of the 'big boys', but really aren't.
I look at all of this and more, and I consider my realizations about this game, the players in it, somewhat unique to me and that factor is what separates me from them…but at the same time, makes me one of the 'big boys'..

Kris [11:27 PM]: I don't know if that made much sense, but hopefully you get the idea.

Bryan [11:27 PM]: I got the idea.

Bryan [11:28 PM]: Give me a little detail on your insight about the game.

Kris [11:29 PM]: Er…I've got a lot to say on such a general subject -- any way you can be more specific?

Bryan [11:29 PM]: k for example: Your strategy, are you conservative or aggressive, mindset, attitude...along those lines.

Kris [11:38 PM]: Like I said, I'm leading towards the conservative play style…I walk into a Regional and see so many aggressive players, because like I said, people play aggressively by nature. When two people come into a duel playing the same way, it's just who draws the better cards first... which means, the winner is whoever's luckier. And every time, at every Regional, it's the same Top 8 with a fluke 1-2 people…It always winds up being me and my teammates from Team Overdose, who, for the most part, play conservatively. I look at CO, too, for example, and have had people tell me they play the same way -- play defensively until turn 12 if they need to. I look at all that, the coin-flip-like results from the aggressive play style, as opposed to the consistency of the conservative play style, and I can't help but be attracted to the latter.

Kris [11:44 PM]: My mindset during a match is, basically, to know what I'm doing. Self-awareness is key for any good player, IMO. Know what you're telling your opponent by your actions, by your movements…like poker, kinda, in that you have to be in your opponents head and make them think what you want them to, and, at the same time, know what they thinking. Check the graveyards, count cards. If you've been summoning for the last 10 turns, and he hasn't used Snatch, chances are you can summon BLS without worry he'll have it in his hand. If you've been setting for the last 10 turns, and he hasn't used NoC, chances are, you can set that MoF without worry.

Kris [11:45 PM]: Given, ANY player can lose to the dreaded lucky top deck, and that's how the better players DO wind up losing…

Bryan [11:48 PM]: You can't help the top deck...that's the beauty of this game really. Luck is a part of the game and part of being a great player is dealing with that accordingly lol. I've seen TOO many "good" players go on and on about how "lucky my opponent is"... I say "It happens...deal with it man" :)

Kris [11:50 PM]: It's true -- Don't hate the player, hate the game…lol. You go into a match knowing every draw is a mystery…No need getting upset over it, especially when that doesn't change anything.

Kris [11:50 PM]: As for my attitude during a match -- stay positive. Don't be hateful, don't be disrespectful. Be courteous. Also, don't be sad, even if you're having the worst day of your life. Like I told you before, at Nats last year, not only was every hand of mine Heavy, HFD, MST... but family, relationship, and friend-wise, that day, I was having a terrible day…Your opponent will be a LOT less scared to make a move against you if you've got a sad face on. Intimidation probably won't work unless you're consistently intimidating. You probably won't psych your opponent out; you won't have a mental edge over your opponent, if you've got a frown on.

Bryan [11:52 PM]: Good point. Positivity is definitely a concept I try to teach. It's not easy mind you. There are things that people just can't stand or seem to deal with in a positive way.

Kris [11:53 PM]: It's very true -- sometimes when you lose to a top deck, when you want to stay positive, it's like smiling when you've just stomped your toe.

Bryan [11:55 PM]: Yea I hear ya.

Bryan [11:55 PM]: How often do you practice? How do you practice and with whom?

Kris [12:02 AM]: Well, YVD is my best friend… (Not really, in case my real best friend reads this.) I duel friends from time to time via YVD, but that's usually just with fun decks. For serious decks, well, I use them in serious competition for practice. (For example, the deck I qualified with this weekend never saw itself played in a tournament other then that very Regional.) Because I only duel on the serious level, I feel that's the best place the practice. On the side, between rounds and whatnot, I'll usually play against other Team Overdose members like Mike Pianka (#1 in CT), Anthony Alvarado (#4 in NJ), etc…as they are the best kind of practice around here.

Kris [12:04 AM]: For the most part, Regionals are my practice ground to prepare myself for more serious competition later on, like the SJC that comes here in June or Nationals or something.

Bryan [12:06 AM]: A good philosophy, I can see why you do it. Mike does the same thing lol. That strategy seems to work for you guys but personally I prefer to practice with any deck I make before I take it to a tournament. That way the deck will be in shape to compete with the meta-game. Well…then again if you’re playing a deck that you know instinctively how it works because you’ve been playing it so long, then it doesn’t really matter how much you practice outside of major tournaments.

Kris [12:09 AM]: Well, I'm an Administrator of a well-populated site, with members from all around the country. I get some good insight of the meta-game from there, from other sites, from friends I've made in this game all over the country... I mean, IMO, there's no point in testing a deck against someone else at a local tournament who's probably never stepped into a Regional…when you're planning on going against your meta-game…so what better practice then the meta-game itself?

Bryan [12:10 AM]: "Luck favors the well-prepared" :)

Bryan [12:10 AM]: Okay. Next question…

Bryan [12:10 AM]: How do you prepare for major tournaments; both mentally and physically?

Kris [12:15 AM]: I don't have any defined rituals or anything, but, oddly enough, I don't sleep the night before a major tournament. (I don't really plan it to work out that way, it just usually does.) Other then that and a small breathing exercise before I leave my house in the morning, I don't have any other preparations.

Bryan [12:17 AM]: Do you get nervous or anxious at serious tournaments?

Kris [12:28 AM]: Well, I get more anxious then nervous…can't wait for the next round kinda thing…I mean, at first, I was nervous, but after playing in this game on the serious level for as long as I have... it's something I've definitely become more comfortable with.

Bryan [12:29 AM]: I know exactly how you feel. You’ll see me at Nationals impatiently waiting for the next round to start lol.

Bryan [12:29 AM]: What deck will you be using at Nationals?

Kris [12:32 AM]: I've got quite a bit of time to prepare, but as it is now, I'm a bit undecided. I'm almost sure, though, it will have the Soldier in there…

Bryan [12:32 AM]: lol whos deck won’t have that guy in there?

Kris [12:32 AM]: The last place guy.

Kris [12:32 AM]: lol

Bryan [12:32 AM]: What are your predictions for Nationals? What will dominate?

Kris [12:39 AM]: Well, Warrior/Chaos was the cookie cutter during the last ban…and with CO taking the LA SJC with Zombie/Chaos, I think that will inspire a lot of net-deckers, enough to make that the new cookie cutter...but we've still got a few SJCs between now and Nationals, and that's all it takes to reshape the meta-game. I do expect, in any case, "/Chaos" to be a part of the deck archetype that wins it.

Bryan [12:40 AM]: lol I feel the same way.

Bryan [12:05 AM]: What direction do you see this game going in; a good one or a bad one?

Kris [12:08 AM]: A good one, actually -- the Shonen Jump Championships really lit a spark under this game, convincing the 'n00bs' to try to turn 'pro'…which has made this game more competitive and, frankly, fun.

Kris [12:10 AM]: I think we've still got plenty of years of worthwhile game-play ahead.

Bryan [12:11 AM]: I agree, the competitiveness has increased since Shonen Jump debuted a couple months ago. Also, what do you mean by convinced? I think newer players were initially intimidated by such large scale events, why the sudden change?

Kris [12:17 AM]: Who knows…I mean, I think newer players are getting into the game to get their names on Metagame.com or something, as opposed to the vets who didn't have that kind of original inspiration. Maybe that's why I think there's a change from 'fun competition' to 'serious competition', but I don't think I can say for sure.

Bryan [12:19 AM]: K here's the big one...

Kris [12:20 AM]: Uh oh…

Bryan [12:20 AM]: Would you like to have cash prizes offered at Regional events and National tournaments as well as at Shonen Jump Championships?

Kris [12:24 AM]: Oh, well, that's an easy one -- most definitely. I've picked up VS on the side in hopes one day I'll be really good at it, and hopefully, make a couple of dollars off of it. Don't get me wrong, laptops and uncut sheets are alright, I guess, but money can go a long way to helping out, say, someone looking at college in the near future…

Bryan [12:25 AM]: No need to be modest lol, you're telling me that college comes to mind first when you think of a prize of $5,000?

Bryan [12:25 AM]: We're not here to be politically correct ;-)

Kris [12:26 AM]: WELL.... I'm sure SOME money would go to college…:-D

Bryan [12:26 AM]: lol

Bryan [12:26 AM]: nuff said…

Kris [12:26 AM]: lol

Bryan [12:26 AM]: k last question for the interview...

Kris [12:26 AM]: Dun dun dun...

Bryan [12:27 AM]: Do you have any advice for newcomers and beginners looking to bring their game to the next level?

Kris [12:32 AM]: Actually, I do… (To anyone that reads this who IS a newcomer, I have this to say to you…) Know what you're getting into -- the game has a way of making you commit to it. Just don't forget to smell the roses every now and then.

Bryan [12:34 AM]: Interesting advice Kris.

Kris [12:35 AM]: I just tried to think of what I wish someone would've told me when I first got into the game…

Bryan [12:36 AM]: morbid...

Bryan [12:36 AM]: lol

Bryan [12:36 AM]: But true nonetheless.

Kris [12:36 AM]: lol

Bryan [12:37 AM]: well Kris, despite all the IM tag we had to play we've finally finished, it was a fun interview and I learned a lot from you as a player. As serious as you take this game I would expect nothing less than a great match from you when we play at Nationals this year.

Kris [12:38 AM]: Oh... most definitely… I wouldn't expect anything less then sweat beads on my forehead during that awaited match.

Kris [12:38 AM]: I enjoyed the interview, and I look forward to reading what other interviewee's have to say…in fact, I think YOU should be interviewed one day.

Bryan [12:39 AM]: Me? Interviewed?

Bryan [12:39 AM]: :) I guess I can find somebody to do that.

Kris [12:39 AM]: Well, you dip into the pool that is the psyche of other duelists, I think it's only fair they do the same to you.

Bryan [12:40 AM]: lol it's only fair huh? We'll see about that, I'll leave it up to the readers to decide.


That’s Kris Perovic everyone; a very serious player with an extremely competitive nature. These are the type of guys you watch out for at major events because they will be winning almost all of the time. Don’t let yourself get caught off guard because Kris will catch you and capitalize on your slip-ups. He’s got a lot of insight on the game, as mentioned, and his words come from an extensive experience in the game.

If you would like to read more about his opinions I encourage you to go read www.militate.com. It’s a forums site with members from all over the country speaking their minds about everything involving YuGiOh and anything else you may want to talk about. Also, you will find him there and his teammates from Team Overdose. As this game gets more serious higher quality teams are beginning to put up on the map, be sure to watch out for any well-known teams at any large-scale events; make sure you bring you’re A-Game with you or you’re going to be sent home packing.

That’s it for the interview; how did you like it? Email me with your opinions and we’ll talk about it. Until next time everyone, remember to practice, stay focused, and most importantly…have fun!
 

 

 


 


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