As a community, is it possible to make Project M more popular? If so, how could it be accomplished?

[DPKdebator]

Hello, fellow Smashers, today I come forward to you with a topic of discussion I feel is important to bring up. Project M, to me, has seemed to have experienced a decline in popularity in comparison to years past (way before I knew it even existed). This is most likely due to Nintendo being more active with competitive Smash (many fear legal repercussions for sponsoring it) and the release of Smash 4 (not a bad thing, but took away from PM's attention). As of late, Project M's popularity is more subtle in a way, with probably at least a few thousand people still playing it, but it hasn't been featured at any major national tournaments (although it isn't uncommon at locals). I feel that PM has a lot of potential, and that it should get a little more love. My question for all of you is this- how exactly could we make Project M more popular among both the competitive and more general/casual communities, if it's even possible?

Here are some pros and cons/challenges of trying to do this (might be a tad redundant):

Pros:

• Including combined sales of SSB4 on Wii U and 3DS, Brawl has more sales than any of the other Smash games combined (12.77 million copies sold), meaning there are more potential PM users
• Project M does not require homebrew to use, and is quite accessible for many
• Several features can be used to try and persuade Brawlers to download PM, such as the faster speed, better balancing, additional content, and easy customization

Challenges:

• Nintendo has become more involved with competitive Smash since the release of Super Smash Bros. 4, and they almost certainly don't take kindly to Project M
• In tandem with the above, many sponsors would be wary of supporting a mod
• Many people would also be wary of trying to install the mod, as they might believe the game requires homebrew to run and that using it will void their warranty

Some methods I suggest for trying to spread Project M to others:

• Try to simply spread it by good word of mouth, by asking people who have a Wii if they own Brawl, and then telling them about PM
• Host local, open/outdoors tournaments to attract potential new smashers

What do you guys think of all this? Is it possible for Project M to regain some of its lost ground?

 

[Rpggames77]

I agree with u about the decline, as for spreading the great game I recommend either having friends play it at someones house or talking to T.Os about getting it bigger, if they don't have it then bring a set up and If they do then try to promote it more, and I do believe with enough of a push from the community we can gain some lost ground

 

[IronChar]

Bring the game to a LAN party

Easier way to spread game

 

[masterpad]

thank you for your topic because i think this is a bigger problem!
because even if we have an actual lack of popularity of PM in the long run this will be the same case for melee. ANd this is because they have one thing in common: Nintendo doesn't care at all.
So, i think that a concrete project to change things will be to make Nintendo cares about melee/PM's gameplay that we love.

I have to explain in details why i stress on melee even if it's very vey popular now.
The melee scene is getting old. i don't know if people understand that in general, new smash player can not stand the dated graphics of melee and whatever masterpiece of gameplay it is, graphics is the entrance, the first contact with a game.
Melee survives for decades but they were not a Smash game enough competitivly attractive (graphics and gameplay) and supported by Nintendo in tournaments to stand the comparison IN THE EYES OF A NEW SMASH PLAYER THAT IS ABOUT TO CHOOSE THE SMASHGAME HE WILL INVEST HIS TIME IN. But today there is.

People should never forget that Nintendo had to deal with melée but he have never ever supported melee. Nintendo stopped its aggressive policy against smash game in tournament and even started sponsorship because of Smash4. Nowdays, Smash4 and Melée number of entrances at tournaments are about the same. In 4/5 years Smash4 will probably dig a deeper gap.

Both Smash games are struggling to reach 5000 entrances. And the melee by its only existence in competition helped SMash4 visibility in the begining, now they are helping for eachother visibilty since they are people discovering melee through smash4 (and only a very very very few of them let smash4 to play melee) and that is useful for Nintendo.
But it is possible that in 2020 (maybe before), when Smash6 will reach 10 000 entrance at EVO after dragging the Smash5 scene (which dragged the Smash4 scene that dragged the Brawl scene), looking at melee still struggling around 5000 entrances, Nintendo will feel enough comfortable to ask tournament organisator to get completly rid of melee (perhaps for some other new nintendo's fighting IP -Hello Pokken 3- ).

The fact is Melee is not much supported as PM, it is just very popular, and popularity it is something that can decrease with time especially whith an official subtitute - ask the StreetFighter 3rd Strike community - Even the melee scene knows deep in their heart that they are still surviving especially since its parent has another child and that is the only one he care about, no wonder how sensitive they could be and react in situations like the one with ESAM (that beloved child that want to play with the denied child's toy) that negativity is Bad, but it is what it is.

I have recently watch a PM great final between Mr LZ and Lunchables ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a6Zets1rca8 ) two very very young player with top pros skills that mostly play PM and generate noticeable hype in 2015.
That makes me ask myself, where are melée's new talent?!

The point is what lessons PM community could learn from this situation?
We need a nintendo supported update Smashgame with a melee-like gameplay; Or the mode in a nintendo supported update SmashGame with a melee-like gameplay; or a HD-melee; Or a HD PM on a Nintendo console.

Sothis is nearly impossible, will hardly happen. We all ready know how Nintendo works, so there is maybe one way: pressure.
he need a way of pressure and unity. The Smash4 has Nintendo attention, PM and Melee's community will need them. Then we should all think of something like a petition or asking for a meeting.

It is very important to understand that, no matter how much you love wavedash, fastfall, edgehog play, guard stun or anything else that doesn't exist this other great game that Smash4 is, if the the game you play doesn't have a modern and reachable way to propose it , it will just fade over time.
Young players that want melee-like gameplay are all ready letting melee down for PM which is a more good-looking game aside of its other advantages.

No matter how much the StreetFighter 3rd Strike community felt about the parry and all the deepnest it brings to the gameplay, the street fighter history and its legacy in the entire competitive fighting game scene beyonds StreetFighter ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lq1ey4-ewyQ ) .
Capcom just let them down for StreetFighter4, they only had they eyes for cry and today is a forgotten story. Everybody is all ready looking at StreeFighter5.

So don't hope for miracles, be ready with a way of pressure to have Nintendo's blessing if we want a melee-like gameplay to last and spread. just making PM more popular underground is not enough, any new smash game will a drain a part of any other smash game and catch any new player. We need Nintendo support.

I think that on the long run nintendo will totally get rid of melee and PM will survive underground over melee since it will be the only smash with melee like gameplay that new generation player that looking for it will stick on.

 

[IronChar]

....melee isn't going anywhere

 

[masterpad]

....melee isn't going anywhere

as everybody wish

 

[Arcalyth]

Steps to make Project M more popular:

1. Acquire game
2. Play game
3. Enjoy game
4. Share game
5. ???
6. Profit!

Somewhere in there you can probably add "host a tournament series" for added effect, and later on "run a stream." But really what matters is that you play and enjoy the game and share it with others, who will play and enjoy and share themselves.

 

[SSG SAX GAMER]

If were talking about within a local area, the best way to make it more popular is to start making tournaments. Project M is a good game and once the people start playing it and see that then they will tell their friends and it will become more popular within the community.

 

[Uchihadark7]

I hardly play P:M, but it's sad to see it go. I really don't think P:M can get much bigger at the moment mainly because Nintendo is partnering with companies that run nationals. But if Melee leaves the mainstream again like it did before, P:M could return if there are still enough loyal fans.

 

[masterpad]

....melee isn't going anywhere

this is about mélée gameplay.
as i explained it, it is just a matter of time and generation. This year Smash4 will have even more entrance than Street Fighter 5.
Smash4 dragged Brawl scene and Smash5 will drag Smash4 scene and there will be less new player enclined to jump in a graphical dated game despite its great gameplay.
Everyone who loves melée gameplay should understand melee scene will not last without a HD game. Melee once survived because brawl wasn't popular and it is not the case anymore.
on 100 new players attracted to a nintendo characters fighting game how many do you think would be interest in a non HD game, hard to find and without an online features?

understand that in several years a Smash6 will make enought massive entrance at EVO2021 for nintendo to COMPLETLY get rid of melee. Something NIntendo tried to do multiple times. not even mentioning nintendo's power with his support to tournament organizator .

start a Petition, launch a website for a MéléeHD or a PM recognition, or ASK for a Mélée Gameply Mode in SMash4 for the NX Smash4 release...but just playing the game, attending and organizing tournament WILL NOT BE ENOUGH IN THE FUTURE.

 

[ElectroLightning]

Hello, fellow Smashers, today I come forward to you with a topic of discussion I feel is important to bring up. Project M, to me, has seemed to have experienced a decline in popularity in comparison to years past (way before I knew it even existed). This is most likely due to Nintendo being more active with competitive Smash (many fear legal repercussions for sponsoring it) and the release of Smash 4 (not a bad thing, but took away from PM's attention). As of late, Project M's popularity is more subtle in a way, with probably at least a few thousand people still playing it, but it hasn't been featured at any major national tournaments (although it isn't uncommon at locals). I feel that PM has a lot of potential, and that it should get a little more love. My question for all of you is this- how exactly could we make Project M more popular among both the competitive and more general/casual communities, if it's even possible?

Here are some pros and cons/challenges of trying to do this (might be a tad redundant):

Pros:

• Including combined sales of SSB4 on Wii U and 3DS, Brawl has more sales than any of the other Smash games combined (12.77 million copies sold), meaning there are more potential PM users
• Project M does not require homebrew to use, and is quite accessible for many
• Several features can be used to try and persuade Brawlers to download PM, such as the faster speed, better balancing, additional content, and easy customization

Challenges:

• Nintendo has become more involved with competitive Smash since the release of Super Smash Bros. 4, and they almost certainly don't take kindly to Project M
• In tandem with the above, many sponsors would be wary of supporting a mod
• Many people would also be wary of trying to install the mod, as they might believe the game requires homebrew to run and that using it will void their warranty

Some methods I suggest for trying to spread Project M to others:

• Try to simply spread it by good word of mouth, by asking people who have a Wii if they own Brawl, and then telling them about PM
• Host local, open/outdoors tournaments to attract potential new smashers

What do you guys think of all this? Is it possible for Project M to regain some of its lost ground?

Do you think we should make a petition?

 

[masterpad]

Do you think we should make a petition?

I think, and ASAP! There will be a smash game on NX we should think of a way to ask for a mode that includes mélée's physics or something like this. Or a Mélée-HD remaster for the serie annivesary!

 

[Synnett]

Do you think we should make a petition?

Sincerely, it would be a great thing. To get Nintendo to actually support competitive playing would be fantastic for the games.

I'm very aware that Nintendo seems to have its head in the clouds and never ever listen to anything from the fans, and I'm 100% sure that they are going to ignore this petition, but any pressure toward the competitive scene could make some tiny changes in Nintendo's decisions.

Smash 4's competitive scene basically saved the Wii U. With that in mind, I believe it's the perfect time to start a petition. And let them bring back PM geez I don't even care if they monetize it. Melee's mechanics are the best.

 

[Baby_Sneak]

People legit believing the only way to save melee/PM is by support of the developer is unfathomably distasteful. Graphics are important, but it doesn't have to be new-gen sublime level to catch a new player's eye.

What melee/PM (mostly PM) needs to do in order to grow is very simple

• It needs to be more accessible (easy to setup on Wii, or preferably computer, since the Wii is basically dead and becoming more and more rare. PM must not only be available on PC, it also has to have amazing and easily digestible instructions on how to play it and have most, if not all the answers to a problem a player may encounter when trying to setup PM on PC/Wii, and must guide the player on places to look for brawl ISO, programs to download to open files, etc...)
• It has to be known. TOs and content creators have to present Project M in some shape, form, or fashion with quality materials. Tournies, combo videos, character guides, players, etc... There needs to be more PM content and it has to told and presented to others either by word of mouth, or links and whatnot. Telling players about PM, where to go see it, the tournies, and stuff would help also.
• The community have to have a outlet to talk about the game on (like here and Reddit). This is where you engage with one another to talk about the game, socialize, set up matches, etc... This helps make the community more engaging to the player. The community also have to actually love, play, and actively engage in the game they hold a ton of passion for. Once, the new players see the community and the love they have for the game, for each other, the Hype, etc... They will have interest in it.

These are the core fundamentals of any projected dedicated to making any game more known. The suggestions here are only to make PM like smash 4 and while it's not bad, to present it like it's the only way is really really bad when mvc2 (2001), ST (1990s), vsav (1990s), ssb64 (1990s), Kof 98 (1990s), kof 02 (1990s), CvS2 (2000s), and other games are not only still going strong (just not main-stream), but some are growing. And what's worse from what I'm reading is that once/if smash 5 comes, smash 4 will die, which is completely and utterly dumb.

A game doesn't die until nobody plays it. It won't be exports, but there's still gonna be a people still playing it.

 

[Froggerka]

Why don't people stream PM Netplay or make YouTube videos about it? Even videos trying to straight up convince people to play Project M work. Millions of Smash fans get all of their game info on YT, so in my opinion it's one of the best places to advertise it. There are lots of Melee and Sm4sh streams, if a big streamer decides to stream PM, that's free popularity for the game.

And about a petition, YES. Pretty much anything will help spread word of the community.

 

[masterpad]

People legit believing the only way to save melee/PM is by support of the developer is unfathomably distasteful. Graphics are important, but it doesn't have to be new-gen sublime level to catch a new player's eye.

What melee/PM (mostly PM) needs to do in order to grow is very simple

• It needs to be more accessible (easy to setup on Wii, or preferably computer, since the Wii is basically dead and becoming more and more rare. PM must not only be available on PC, it also has to have amazing and easily digestible instructions on how to play it and have most, if not all the answers to a problem a player may encounter when trying to setup PM on PC/Wii, and must guide the player on places to look for brawl ISO, programs to download to open files, etc...)
• It has to be known. TOs and content creators have to present Project M in some shape, form, or fashion with quality materials. Tournies, combo videos, character guides, players, etc... There needs to be more PM content and it has to told and presented to others either by word of mouth, or links and whatnot. Telling players about PM, where to go see it, the tournies, and stuff would help also.
• The community have to have a outlet to talk about the game on (like here and Reddit). This is where you engage with one another to talk about the game, socialize, set up matches, etc... This helps make the community more engaging to the player. The community also have to actually love, play, and actively engage in the game they hold a ton of passion for. Once, the new players see the community and the love they have for the game, for each other, the Hype, etc... They will have interest in it.

These are the core fundamentals of any projected dedicated to making any game more known. The suggestions here are only to make PM like smash 4 and while it's not bad, to present it like it's the only way is really really bad when mvc2 (2001), ST (1990s), vsav (1990s), ssb64 (1990s), Kof 98 (1990s), kof 02 (1990s), CvS2 (2000s), and other games are not only still going strong (just not main-stream), but some are growing. And what's worse from what I'm reading is that once/if smash 5 comes, smash 4 will die, which is completely and utterly dumb.

A game doesn't die until nobody plays it. It won't be exports, but there's still gonna be a people still playing it.

This is a short view. you are still basicly saying to play the game and to make it easly avalaible will competively keep the game alive.
new young players are all ready playing PM over melee. Smash4 is there and very popular...you seriously thing that melee will survive 15 more years on big stages like EVO?
Players have to make a statement! for HD-melee, a legalized PM3.6 or legalized HD-PM3.6 since depite its great engine melee is still unbalanced and broken in many ways.
In fact, this is not about saving pm or melee but the melee's engine and gameplay.
If Brawl can be modded with a single file and his engine completly redesigned with ocarica codes , i don't see why nintendo wuld not be able to include a melee-or-pm gameplay mode in SMash4.

We love edgehoging, we love wavedashing, we love applying pressure with shieldstun, let start a petition NOW!!!

 

[masterpad]

may god help us

 

[Baby_Sneak]

This is a short view. you are still basicly saying to play the game and to make it easly avalaible will competively keep the game alive.
new young players are all ready playing PM over melee. Smash4 is there and very popular...you seriously thing that melee will survive 15 more years on big stages like EVO?
Players have to make a statement! for HD-melee, a legalized PM3.6 or legalized HD-PM3.6 since depite its great engine melee is still unbalanced and broken in many ways.
In fact, this is not about saving pm or melee but the melee's engine and gameplay.
If Brawl can be modded with a single file and his engine completly redesigned with ocarica codes , i don't see why nintendo wuld not be able to include a melee-or-pm gameplay mode in SMash4.

We love edgehoging, we love wavedashing, we love applying pressure with shieldstun, let start a petition NOW!!!

Melee-style gameplay doesn't have to be a main game on EVO to survive smh. Support other games similar to it like rivals of Aethur and unity each other (PM Melee RoA), so you can direct newcomers to each game and grow each scene.

And updated graphics won't make a game survive any much longer. It'll still be the same game.