Local tournaments for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate are not new to the area of Northeastern Pennsylvania. There are weekly tournaments taking place in Stroudsburg, Scranton, Carbondale, Hazleton and now also here on Wilkes campus. In today’s issue of the Icebox, I will tell you all about the “Wilkes Gold Mine” local tournament.
This tournament was named by myself but organized by Aiden West, a first-year computer science and engineering student who has a lot of interest in fighting games. Better known by his tag, Whoxm, Aiden has worked diligently to bring a local tournament to Wilkes University. It was largely inspired by the Wilkes Esports team and an unofficial rival, Lackawanna College, known for holding the event “L-Cancelled.”
You might be wondering, “What is a local tournament?” It is called a “local” because the capacity is only at a local level and players who live nearby are the ones who frequent their respective locals. Of course, any player can travel to a different area and attend the locals. They would be guaranteed a small number of players and probably a decent sense of community as a result.
The Smash scene is organized into many different components, starting at the local level and building up to the national and international levels. The local scene enables players to make a name for themselves and become published in official rankings per region. With enough recognition in a region, a player can move up to state-wide competitions and earn accolades for “Best in the State.”
Another interesting thing to note is that there are 82 playable fighters in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate; it might be fairly easy to claim a badge at the local level for your main. For example, a player might be known as “Pennsylvania’s Best Mario” or even specifically “NEPA’s Best Mario.” Lots of players gauge skill by placing in the “Top 5” for their main or “Top 50” for their region.
With all of this in mind, a player has the ability to make their way up the ranks and prove their skill by acquiring feats such as defeating a top-ranked player or placing high at an esteemed tournament. Not all tournaments are equal, however. Some brackets feature the best players in a region while other locals are more laid-back. There are even qualifications that a local tournament can meet in order for the results of that tournament to be considered for published rankings. Establishing this “certification” for a local is another duty of the tournament organizer, abbreviated as “TO.”
The Wilkes Gold Mine local was started around the beginning of this year, with just about seven events already completed. The tournament takes place every Wednesday night, with doors opening at 6:30 p.m. and the bracket beginning at 7 p.m. The format of the main bracket is best-of-three and double-elimination, with the top four rankings playing best-of-five. The stagelist is consistent with the NEPA ruleset and any number of characters are allowed per player.
There is also a side bracket at 8 p.m. centered around playing Smash casually. The bracket often has fun rulesets and bans which can really make or break anyone’s performance regardless of how skilled they are. The side bracket changes theme every week, always featuring some new game modes. For example, the side bracket has featured a doubles-team, Melee-only stagelist, exploding items galore and soon a bracket where only Ryu, Ken, Terry and Kazuya are allowed on flat stages.
If you are a casual player, I encourage you to at least participate in the side bracket. You can learn to play and practice your skills with “friendlies” against anyone at the event. Players who want to get serious make an effort to go to locals because they have been proven to be the best form of practice.
If you’re looking for a sense of familiarity, there are plenty of Wilkes students in attendance and all other players are constantly playing at different locals in the area. Some frequent names you will hear are CaillouKan, Surf, Toggers, Whoxm, Rust Spy, Melon, Cozy, Crisis, Vexguy, Puffy, Cloud and of course, Master Freeze.
Each event has a $10 venue fee with $5 per individual bracket. For Wilkes students, however, the venue fee is free. Come and join us at the Wilkes Gold Mine on Wednesday nights for a good time. It’s a great place to chill out.