Once considered a "weaker" continent compared to North America, Europe has been pushing the limits of Smash in recent years. Whether it's the reinvention of Fox in Super Smash Bros. Melee or the refinement of Sheik in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, you can always find Europeans among those pushing character development. A premier tournament such as The Big House 6 is the perfect place for their top talent to show all their most recent innovations. Next weekend from October 7–9, they'll join competitors from all over the globe in Dearborn, MI, hopefully showing everyone just what they're capable of.
Melee
One the favourites for the regional crew battle, check out the big hitters travelling across the Atlantic from Europe to compete in Melee at The Big House 6.Adam “Armada” Lindgren
- Europe’s long term overlord has been frustrated in North America recently, failing to win GOML 2016, WTFox 2 and Evo 2016, a poor summer by his high standards. For a player aiming to start an autumn-winter charge for first place on the end of year rankings, Big House may be the most prestigious and important tournament left in the calendar.William “Leffen” Hjelte
- If Leffen’s Visa situation is finally resolved, this will be his first American tournament in over a year with the anniversary of him being turned away at the door on October 1st. If we see him, the question will be whether we get EGLX Leffen where he placed 7th losing to non-gods Axe and Duck, or do we get GOML 2016 Leffen where he produced one of the most astounding performances ever seen by beating 4 gods in a row. - Ice was one of the first players successfully funded through the compendium, and rightly so. He is one of the finest players in the world, recently ranking in the top 17 for his summer performance. He won Kickstart 11 last weekend defeating personal boogeyman Westballz and asserting his dominance over the rest of the European competition. Consistently a tier above other Europeans but falling often in the 7th-13th placings at majors, can he go further this time?Aaron “Professor Pro” Thomas
- Currently the best Melee player in the UK, Professor Pro is fast rising up the ranks internationally as well with frequent trips across the Atlantic this year. After a disappointing 5th at European major Syndicate losing to fellow Englishman Fuzzyness, he will be looking to take more names on his climb to the top.Andreas “Android” Lindgren
- Brother and very successful teammate of Armada, Android is also a highly skilled singles player with wins over KirbyKaze and S2J among others. Will he be able to take more steps out of his brother's shadow this tournament? - After a soft retirement during which he became a Melee speedrunning world record holder, the former British number 1 is back with a vengeance. A very strong 4th place a Syndicate included a monstrous losers bracket run beating three of Europe’s top 10 in a row before falling to Ice in game 5.Robert “Vanity Angel” Gee
- Completing the top 3 in the UK and returning to the US for the first time since Apex 2010, VA is looking to end his streak of losing final game sets to top North Americans and he will certainly get his chance here.Be sure to look out for other skilled Europeans including visitors from Germany: Dusan “Usleon” Haro
(originally Chilean), Hans “pheX” Leo (originally Swiss), Arne “Yomi” Loos-Sillmann and Philipp “Liva” Bürkner who will be behind a controller for once, instead of the stream. Also, don't forget these travelers from the UK: Alex "R23" Watson , Elliott "Frenzy" Grossman , Vincent “BrTarolg” Tam and Rory “Soy” Wiltshire . Finally, there's Norwegian Smasher Vetle “Widl” Hovland , who stepped in for Leffen in last year’s crew battle.Note: Although Victor "Tekk" Abt is listed amongst attendees he has stated he is not attending on Twitter.
Smash 4
When it comes to Smash 4, Europe is not as heavily represented at The Big House 6. However, that’s not to say you shouldn’t expect them to make waves. Read on to see who you should watch out for:Ramin “Mr.R” Delshad
- The Netherlands’ best player needs no introduction. He’s won every EU Smash 4 tournament he’s entered, including the recent Syndicate 2016, which he took without dropping a single game. Internationally, he’s taken sets from some of the world’s best players. His hit list includes Gonzalo “TSM | ZeRo” Barrios, Nairoby “NRG | Nairo” Quezada and Samuel “Dabuz” Buzby. His trip to The Big House 6 is funded by Panda Global, on account of his victory in their online qualifier. - This top German Smasher has a reputation as an elite-level Fox main. He is one of the few players to take a set off of Mr.R in Europe, and generally finishes top 8 at large European tournaments. This summer, he travelled to the Rio de Janeiro eGames Showcase, where he finished 5th. His performance there earned him considerable international recognition. - In addition to Melee (his primary focus), Frenzy is also competing in Wii U Singles. As a space animal main in two games, you can expect that his Fox will be looking crisp. He hails from the UK.Other Countries
As one should expect, Europe will face stiff competition at The Big House 6. Smashboards writer Pikapal already reported on the Canadian talent in attendance, and stay tuned for coverage of Japan's presence as well. In addition, you can expect many more updates and lots of new content leading up to this momentous tournament. It's definitely not one you want to miss!NOTE: This article was written in conjunction with European scene expert Cyclops. You can follow him on Twitter here.
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