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B.E.A.S.T. 7 Melee Preview: First European Major of the Year feat. Armada, Leffen, SFAT and more!

Who will win BEAST 7 singles?

  • Armada

    Votes: 7 63.6%
  • Leffen

    Votes: 3 27.3%
  • Other (leave a comment)

    Votes: 1 9.1%

  • Total voters
    11
It is the second month of a new year and that brings the first of Europe’s three regular consistently major events and the seventh installment of one of its longest running series: B.E.A.S.T. These events routinely bring the thrills hosting highlights like William "TSM | Leffen" Hjelte's first wins over Adam "[A] Armada" Lindgren and Joseph “C9 | Mango” Marquez and last year’s unforgettable Weston “G2 | Westballz” Dennis combos. This year a new set of Americans have come over to challenge the European horde.

One of the most exciting games of B.E.A.S.T 5 converted to jazz music.

How to Watch

All times in CET (UTC/GMT+1, East Coast+6, West Coast+9)

Day 1 (Saturday, February 18)
Time (PT) | Event
10:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m. | Singles Round 1 Pools
10:00 a.m - 7:00 p.m | Doubles Pools
20:00 p.m - 11:00 p.m | Singles Round 2 Pools

Day 2 (Sunday, February 19)
Time (PT) | Event
10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | Doubles Top 32
1:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. | Doubles Top 8
4:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. | Singles Top 32
7:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m. | Singles Top 8

Who To Look Out For

Adam “[A] | Armada” Lindgren :peachmelee: :foxmelee: - Despite being pushed to the brink by both Johnny “Tempo S2J” Kim and Jason “Fox MVG Mew2King” Zimmerman, Armada crushed the rest of the opposition at Genesis 4 as he continued to solidify himself as the the best player right now and of all time. Now the challenge is being brought to his back garden where he will be clear favourite despite strong opposition.

William “TSM | Leffen” Hjelte :foxmelee: - Now back in full swing after a difficult 2016, Leffen wants to make 2017 his year. At Genesis 4 he failed to reach the top 4 but here the water contains far fewer sharks. Provided he gets through the opposition, the question remains whether he is good enough to beat current Armada. In 2015 he was possibly the biggest force driving Armada away from Peach to Fox but now Armada is on top of the world and seemingly able to do it all with only the Mario princess.

Although their most recent set was a blowout in Armada's favour, a year ago the Swedish duo split grand finals at B.E.A.S.T 6.

Zac “CLG | SFAT” Cordoni :foxmelee: - After a previous attempt to enter European tournaments was scuppered last year around DreamHack Winter, SFAT is finally going to be making a European appearance. SFAT’s 2016 was a marked improvement as he leapt to a firm 7th place on the rankings but now he is faced with the real challenge of bridging the gap to the gods, something only Leffen has managed before. At the year’s first major, Genesis 4, SFAT fell to two fellow top 10 players at 9th, a solid performance but not enough for his lofty ambitions.

Mustafa “LG | Ice” Akcakaya :foxmelee: - The only player in attendance still questing for nomination to Smash Summit Spring 2017, Ice will be wanting a strong performance with at least one fiery set or dramatic upset to propel his name brand forward. Ice strung together several excellent tournament performances last year including double eliminating Leffen at Eclipse 2 and placing 3rd at The Big House 6 with which he has firmly planted himself at the forefront of the chasing pack.

The last time Ice and SFAT played was a high stakes rematch from Genesis 3 top 8 where Ice demonstrated his improved resilience and mentality.

Michael “SPY | Nintendude” Brancato :icsmelee: - Nintendude proved how much of an enormous threat he is in bracket at Shine 2016 beating Joseph “C9 | Mango” Marquez but has failed to break into top 8 of any major since DreamHack Austin in May. Seeded 5th here, this will be probably the best chance he gets all year.

Ryan “MSF | The Moon” Coker-Welch :marthmelee: - As he settles into the Misfits brand, a strong performance from The Moon here could help ease the disappointment of not making Summit 4 and show the voters just what they will be missing out on. Last year The Moon attended Heir 3 in the UK, beating out many of the best in Europe to finish second behind only Armada, suggesting he is comfortable with taking out tough PAL opponents.

The Moon has shown his ability and mentality to be too much for top Europeans in the past - but it has been close.

Sami “DruggedFox” Muhanna :foxmelee: - No longer a Summit 4 supplicant, DruggedFox is just playing for himself. Now that he has his Fox up to around the levels his previous characters reached, his ranking momentum is shifting back upward. At last week’s UK regional Smashbox 2, he took down all comers to place 1st but a series of last game best of fives suggest he is not invincible for Europe’s upper echelons.

Aaron “Professor Pro” Thomas :foxmelee: - Reaching a breakout 5th place at UGC Smash Open in December heralded the entrance of the UK’s number one into the top 25 range. A billing that has proved somewhat tough to live up to so far but Prof’s familiarity with PAL could give him any advantage needed to defend against invading Americans.

Achieving 5th place at UGC went a long way to improving Prof's perceived skill among the community.

Kyle “dizzkidboogie” Athayde :icsmelee: - dizzkid has been very consistent in performing well at the national/super-regional events including top 8s at Eden and Don’t Park on the Grass and 1st at Olympus. In that case this tournament should suit him down to the ground, with only two of the big 6 he has a good chance to continue his climb through the ranks.

Alvaro “Heir | Trifasia” Garcia :peachmelee: - The relatively newly crowned king of Spain has been placing consistently well through 2016 and turned many heads at his first American tournament Don’t Park on the Grass beating DruggedFox, Teddy “Bladewise” Seybold and Andrew “Tai” Vo and going to game 5 versus Westballz and Kevin “CLG | PewPewU” Toy. His year culminated in being the highest ranked new entry on SSBMRank at 44th.

As European players like Trifasia get more experience with the pressure of top level play, these last hit scenarios might more often work out in their favour.

Jack “EGtv | Crush” Hoyt :foxmelee: - New England’s number 1 is also making his first European appearance. Though he has been on the radar for a while he continues to be one of the hottest rising talents, achieving 17th at Genesis 4.

Anthony “Slox” Detres :foxmelee: - New England’s number 2 is someone who has been on the radar for a while longer but he is also looking to continue his upward trajectory with a renewed focus on competitive Melee.

A quick look into Slox the Melee player.

Roberto “vL | Overtriforce” Iglesias :sheikmelee: - Despite a lacklustre 25th on his return to the US at Don’t Park on the Grass, Over beat The Moon in a set and very nearly took the tournament just last month at Arcamelee 2. Over is one of a series of players jockeying for the 4th/5th best in Europe spots right now so strong wins here is a significant statement.

Amsah “Asterion | Amsah” Augustuszoon :sheikmelee: - For a while last year it seemed Amsah was about to cede the top spot in the Netherlands but he has made an excellent start to 2017 including being signed to Asterion Eports and beating Professor Pro on his way to winning last Sunday’s Kickstart 14.

Excellent, tight sets between Over and The Moon in France.
Miguel “Zgetto” Rodriguez :foxmelee: - Zgetto has had a series of disappointing placings at the biggest events, failing to place better than 25th at any of Pound, Heir, Don’t Park or Genesis 4. However, he remains a player with lots of potential to perform there with many wins over Europe’s top players at the slightly smaller events. Beating or repeating last year’s 9th place at B.E.A.S.T 6 could be a catalyst for a year of high placings for the classic Dutch Fox.

Andreas “[A] | Android” Lindgren :sheikmelee: - Android remains in the unusual position of being a near certainty in the grand finals of doubles yet having big question marks around his singles placing. He will be looking to outplace his seed to make a statement about his singles ability, though he is no longer looking for votes into Smash Summit 4, having dropped out to aid fellow European Ice.

Armada and Android of Team Alliance are the reigning doubles champs after victory at Genesis 4, but they might only be barely favourites versus team Leffen and Ice.
Brandon “HomeMadeWaffles” Collier :foxmelee: - Though known more for his commentary than his play, HomeMadeWaffles will be a fierce competitor at his first European major.

Charles “Revo | Fuzzyness” Kimmelman :foxmelee: - 2016 was an interesting chapter in Fuzzyness’ on-again-off-again relationship with competitive Melee. While he attends major European events with some regularity his performance has varied from mediocre to a dazzling 4th place at Syndicate 2016 where he showed just how far he can go when he’s on. Which Fuzzyness will we see at B.E.A.S.T?

This was one of only two sets Professor Pro dropped to fellow UK players last year.
Robby “Vanity Angel” Gee :peachmelee: - Following a strong 2016 in which VA reached top 8 at Heir 3 and arrived on SSBMRank for the first time at 96th, the next step must be closing out wins against international players. VA has a long history now of falling short in final game sets against Americans but this will be another opportunity to prove he is capable of winning.

Jaap “Jeapie” van der Zee :falconmelee: - Now ranked 4th in the Netherlands, Europe’s best flashy Falcon has fallen somewhat in perception and activity recently. However, only last year he beat Professor Pro in their only set. Whether he wins or loses, all of Jeapie’s sets will be fun and frenetic.

Returning to the theme of Melee as jazz...
Carl-Magnus “Calle W” Wall :falcomelee: - Despite not being a massive traveller these days, Calle W is still a threat at the top of level of European Melee. This tournament should help sort out just how much of a threat that is in 2017.

Manuel Däumling :icsmelee: - Europe’s best Ice Climbers has not had a big result in a while but remains comfortably in the upper echelons, expect a strong performance at the least for Germany’s number 3.

In addition to those mentioned above, look out for these players hanging out on the cusp of top 20 in Europe, each with the potential to make it far: France’s Faouzi “Baxon” Kedjam :falcomelee:, Norway’s Gaute “Zorc” Berge :falcomelee:, Denmark’s Simon “Eagle” Henrikson :drmario:, the UK’s Alex “R23” Watson :sheikmelee:, Sweden’s John “JohnnyFight” Rundlöw :icsmelee: and Lucas “Zoler” Blomgren :foxmelee:, Switzerland’s Girardin “RodG | Jah Ridin’” Yann :luigimelee: and Finland’s Ville “Mayhem” Piironen :foxmelee:.

Although previously signed up to participate, Hugo “Selfless | HugS” Gonzalez, Juan “TL | Hungrybox” Debiedma and Mahieddine “Mahie” Tsouria have each had to pull out in the lead up to the event.
 
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