Nice scoop! Hope to read more of these over the EVO weekend!

How long have you been playing KOF and what motivated you to do so in the first place?

Kaoru: I’m a player living in in Osaka Japan who loves the KOF and the Gundam vs. series. I’ve been playing KOF since 98′. I got into it after a friend from school persuaded me into doing so.

– What made you decide to participate in the KOF13 tournament at EVO?

Kaoru: The reason why I’ve decided to enter EVO are the prize money and money matches. We don’t have those in Japan.

– About how many hours do you play or practice per day? Has that increased since you’ve decided to enter EVO?

Kaoru: The scene here isn’t that great [in Osaka] so I don’t play every day, but when my friends gather up, we do stuff like pull an all-nighter playing each other. I’ve been been putting in more hours after deciding to enter EVO, but I think I still need a lot more practice.
– KOF13 is said to be balanced. But if you were to still pick the top 5 and bottom 5 characters, who would they be?t I think I still need a lot more practice.

Kaoru: Top 5 would be Karate, Ryo, Daimon, Kim, and Maxima.  Bottom 5 would be Elisabeth, Mature, K’, Ash, and Kensou.

Read more here – http://iplaywinner.com/news/2012/7/3/kofxiii-exclusive-pre-evo-interview-with-top-japanese-player.html