Money tournaments, popular streamers and casual gameplay all have paved the way for a remarkable fighting game unlike any other: “Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.” Chances are that if you’ve ever picked up a game controller, you might have played a few rounds with your friends.
But whether you’re a fan watching the pro streams or a veteran player going to local tournaments in your community, most would appreciate the platform for the competition that this game offers. The intricate history of this franchise has been sculpted and perfected over time into the beloved game that many fans know today.
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One of Nintendo’s most iconic fighting games started out of nowhere, steadily forming a community from the unpaid competitions and fans of the series. Humble beginnings lead to prosperity; the community grew from as little as 10 player events to major tournaments held in theaters that would house over 100,000 fans — all cheering for their favorites.
The most interesting part is that Nintendo did little to foster this environment, instead letting the “Smash” community bloom on its own. While other iconic games published for the sake of competitive play and sponsored leagues, Nintendo focused solely on making the best possible game they could. They accomplished the big things, and the bigger things accomplished themselves.
The Legendary Wolf, Terry Bogard, comes to Super #SmashBrosUltimate this November! His first appearance was in the SNK game Fatal Fury, which released for the Neo Geo system back in 1991.https://t.co/y7jm0Rdp4i pic.twitter.com/zcdwi6iBIv
— Nintendo Versus (@NintendoVS) October 7, 2019
Since then, “Super Smash Bros. Ultimate” has made history in the industry through four of its renowned fighting games and the thousands of countless tournaments and millions of hours accrued. Organizers of major events, tournaments of the highest stakes and pro players of genius caliber were but one factor in the whole equation. It was, as it always had been, the fans who put a name to the game.
Online forums for many of the game’s aspects were created, streams covering the major tourneys blew up and community players from around the world came to play. The gaming industry would be the first to bear witness to a revolutionary “Super Smash Bros.” franchise, and could never account for what “Ultimate” would go on to do for its eSports community.
“Super Smash Bros. Ultimate” is an outlier, even in its own franchise. As the fifth installment of the series, it’s a truly excellent game that carries forward everything successful from its predecessors and even adds its own flair to gaming. Beyond just being another fun fighting game, “Smash” has diverse characteristics, such as its encyclopedia of characters, which make games worth playing and watching.
One of the most ambitious crossovers in the game industry has Samus, Solid Snake, Mario, Cloud, Link, Lucina and 70 other characters to choose, main and experiment with. Along with the varying games comes crafted stages, customizations and music themes from the original titles — even those 30 years in the past.
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While it is fun, it’s also simple to understand: There is just nothing else like “Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.” The overwhelming content is perfect for its accessibility; you could main one character for the rest of eternity or play all of them at a lower level. You could stay casual and play at a friend’s house, or you could reach the pillars of top skill at a tournament.
Nintendo’s charm in drawing in players is just a step forward as you’re easily captivated by the higher level gameplay in pro tournaments — but it never forces anything onto you. Creating a beloved universe with favorite characters all around has established higher gaming values and community growth. The game offers you a staggering amount of options and that has led its transition into a well-natured community that has taken the mantle for one of the most popular eSports.
“Super Smash Bros. Ultimate” is well-received in eSports because the game offers motives for players to personally care. A community built around favorite pro players with personas of their own, a chance to learn combos from watching their favorite characters and even some of the most emotional moments or most hype sets captured in tourneys create the game’s rising competitive culture. Players care, and it isn’t because “Smash” is just another fighting game.
In contrast, players see the fundamental value offered in watching, learning and being entertained in pro tournaments. Then, if they’re brave, they take up their own controllers and seek to accomplish something in a local tournament for themselves. They join the eSports world to have a chance to become one of the greatest — and you don’t have to be good either, as many started out just for experience.
Players like Zero on “Smash 4” or MkLeo in the new “Smash Ultimate” are just two famed pro players that started early when “Super Smash Bros.” became a competitive game. It’s easy to see that veteran gamers can follow their favorite players and even become attached to games of the past, and that still shines as brilliantly in the newest installment, “Smash Ultimate.”
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“Super Smash Bros. Ultimate,” to veterans and casual players alike, has seen phenomenal success in its eSports revenue. The industry has created a niche for itself, introducing its name in the biggest tournaments like EVO 2019 while also staying relevant to any local tourney near you.
That’s right, you as a gamer can actively participate in competitive play yourself, and this has never been easier. If you wanted to stay home and play the online competitive mode against other players, the game is set to give you just that.
Some players wish to take it further, however, and they want to put their skills to the test. For players willing to enter the prize pool and explore competition on an official level, you could register and enter to play for money tournaments. Those who win tournament games proceed on to higher and bigger tournaments, oftentimes becoming rising stars in the pro scene.
For their many installments and their fifth game taking the world stage in eSports, the community has evolved and has learned to appreciate the platform, the game and history of “Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.”
