Making headlines this week is the announcement of Evo’s game lineup for this summer. Most noticeably, Melee, for the first time in six years will be absent for competing.
Releasing in 2001, Melee has been a mainstay in the Smash community for its technical and fast-paced gameplay. As you may guess, Melee’s absence has caused quite the buzz on social media from Melee veterans.
After the initial reactions, the community has been embracing the fact that the Melee community is still ever-strong and there are plenty of other tournaments this year for the 2001 Smash entry. If the fans continue to support the game, Melee isn’t going anywhere. It’s amazing that Melee is still relevant nearly two decades later, safe to say that it’ll have a special spot in all Smasher’s hearts.
Ultimate will be making its first appearance at Evo and you can bet there will be some Melee veterans competing in the new Smash game. In Ultimate, Leffen has dropped Pokemon Trainer for Roy and Young Link. It’ll be exciting to see how much he can grow with a few more months of training. Mang0 has also been practicing with some of the top players such as Void, Samsora, and ZeRo.
It makes sense that Evo would omit Melee in this years competition, Ultimate is fresh and exciting bringing thousands of competitors and viewers alike. With the continued support from updates and downloadable characters, Ultimate is in its infancy stages and will only continue to grow in popularity. I am thankful for the strong fan base in Melee, but I also look forward to seeing Ultimate continue to flourish.
Noah Borski
University of Wisconsin – Green Bay
Information Sciences – Game Studies
Communications
Competitive Super Smash Bros Ultimate 