The words and images that come to my mind when I think of Gameness gis are: the famous Gameness pitbull logo, good quality, thick collar, heavy duty pants.. . All positive things. My first Gameness gi was purchased in 2002 and I still have it to this day and wear it sometimes. Then in 2005, i bought a Gameness platinum that was great but I sold it to a friend after a few years. Since then I didn’t have any other Gamenesses until now.
My training partner Uros, has a white Gameness Elite and I was so impressed with the quality and the look so I got this gi about two weeks ago from Gameness Europe .The gi retails for around 160 euros which places it among the more expensive gis. It’s not as expensive though as a Machado kimonos, or Lucky gi. I believe that you get what you pay for anyway and this gi will surely last for a long time. Gameness Europe’s Tim Van der Stek provided me with great customer service, making sure that the gi I chose was the right size. The guy is a true professional. So I have been training pretty much every single day in it to be able to get a good feel for for the gi and make a solid review for you guys.
Here are the specs:
– Durable gi modeled after the Gameness Pearl. Pearl weave.
– Embroidered patches
– Lightweight RIP STOP pants
– RASH GUARD LINING.
– Reinforced knee area
– Adjusted and comfortable fit
Sizing:
A1 155-170 cm 50-62 kg
A2 170-180 cm 63-75 kg
A3 180-183 cm 76-90 kg
A4 183-192 cm 91-110 kg
A5 192-< cm > 110 kg
The gi is pre shrunk and really doesn’t shrink at all. The gi pants will shrink just a little bust just enough to fit your body.
Sizing: When I went to the Serbian post office to pick up the gi, I was more exited than a schoolboy and opened the package there in front of everybody that was waiting in line, and tried on the gi top! You should have seen the look on some peoples faces! They were probably thinking “look at this crazy foreigner trying on his disco jacket!” lol. So anyway, first impression is that it was already a perfect fit. I was a bit scared that the gi would shrink and end up being too small for me. So I washed the gi at 30 degrees and it didn’t shrink at all. It’s an A3 and I’m 1m85 and 86 kilos and it’s the same fit as my Manto Evo 2.0 which also fits me perfectly. After 2 weeks of 10 washes at 30 degrees, the size is the same.
Material and durability: The Gi top is Pearl weave and you feel that a lot of work and gi making experience has been put into this model. Everything is double and triple stitched. The material is top class, and the embroidery is very well done. I have never seen a gi with such good craftsmanship. The inner lining is made of high quality rash guard material which serves the purpose of whisking away sweat. The inner lining also makes the gi very comfortable. The only disadvantage is that it makes you feel a bit warmer (like if you were wearing a rash guard underneath. The good thing is that you can always easily remove the inner lining yourself if you want to.
The collar is averagely thick but to be honest nowadays with how strictly IBJJF are checking collar thickness, it’s better to have a averagely thick collar.
Look: I think Gameness did an excellent job in designing this gi. I was never a big fan of black gis as i preferred plain white gis, and only bought my first black gi as a brown belt Now I can’t get enough of black gis and have three models (2 Gamenesses and 1 Manto). This one for sure looks the sharpest with the classy customized embroidery and cool shoulder patches. The red lining on black is a good combination too. The gi is not too patched up and not too flashy, in my opinion it has been done with a lot of good taste.
Feeling when rolling: This isn’t as light as the Manto Evo 2.0 but that’s only because of the rash guard lining. As a A3, the gi weighs weighs in at 2.0 kilos which is around the same weight as a Koral classic or Koral MKM. I think that without the rash guard it would easily weigh in at 1.8 kilos which would place it the lightweight gi category. But this one feels much more solid than a Vulkan gi fore example. I might remove the rash guard lining over the summer, or maybe not, I haven’t decided yet.
So in my personal opinion I would give this gi a 9,5/10 rating in terms of satisfaction. I really enjoy rolling in it and with the Manto Evo 2.0, this is my favorite gi at the moment (I also have 2 manto 3.0, a koral classic, a HCK, a gameness platinum).The plus points for me are the fit, the high quality, the classy embroidery and design. It is of course very comfortable to wear The minus point is that the rash guard lining makes it a bit warmer than your regular lightweight gi but you can always remove it yourself from the gi if you don’t like it.
Here is a video review of the gi that i found on youtube:
