Wednesday's patch brought us the much-anticipated release of Bayonetta and Corrin. But equally important is the balance update released alongside them, shaking up the metagame for what is possibly the last time. Marth, Lucina, Roy, and Little Mac received notable buffs, while Sheik, Zero Suit Samus, Rosalina, and Sonic all had their weight slightly lowered. Every little change counts with a game as precise as Smash 4, and even the slight adjustments to Sheik's Vanish could mean the difference between victory and defeat. So you may be asking: when will we get to see top players compete on the new patch?
Fortunately, the answer is "almost immediately". Tomorrow, the best talent from the Netherlands will be gathering in Zoetermeer for Avalon U-II, the second Wii U-only installment of the popular and long-running Avalon tournament series. The tournament organizers have announced that although Bayonetta and Corrin will not be legal for the tournament, the event will be played on the new patch. And, as if that's not enough, Avalon U-II will be awarding circuit points towards a Round-Robin invitational of Dutch players at the end of the year. All the more reason to tune in!
For those unfamiliar with the Dutch scene, let's meet some of the top threats in this tournament:
LLL Mr. R (
) is the best player in Europe, known for his internationally threatening Sheik. Between his recent 9th place finish at Genesis 3 and his streak of victories in every previous Avalon tournament he attended, he's a favorite to win the whole thing.iStudying (
) is the second best of the Dutch players and the top Greninja main in Europe. He is known for a deep pool of pocket picks, including a Lucario, who he used at a recent tournament to take some games from Mr. R.S1-14 (
/ ) rounds out the top 3 seeds. S1-14 is a strong Ness/Mario player known to trade sets and the title of second-best with iStudying. One half of the best static doubles team in the Netherlands, he and his partner PikaForLife are the favorite to win the doubles portion of the event.Izaw (
) is known internationally for his flashy Link play, exciting YouTube videos and popularization of perfect pivoting. Hailing from Sweden, he is one of the few foreign threats coming to Avalon U-II. He also recently won a doubles tournament when teaming with Mr. R and is planning on doing so again for Avalon.Badr (
) is a strong Diddy player who has also dabbled in a bit of Sheik and Zero Suit Samus play.Cat (
/ ) rocks the surprising combination of Link and Meta Knight. Will he get to take on Izaw in the Link ditto?Gregs (
) is a teammate of iStudying and the co-founder of the GGWP tournament series, another major Dutch tournament.Meru (
) wraps up the predictions for the top 8. Having recently returned to the Netherlands after studying in Japan and attending the tournaments there, will the experience gained from the Land of the Rising Sun push him to victory?Interested in learning more about the Dutch scene? Check out their profile on Smash Europe or the official website of the Avalon series.
Be sure to tune in on GeekyGoonSquad to catch the action. Special thanks to Marc for supplying information for this article. And last but not least, remember to share some hype in the comments!
Schedule
Saturday, Feb 6
Doubles: 12 pm CET / 6 am EST
Singles: 2 pm CET / 8 am EST
Saturday, Feb 6
Doubles: 12 pm CET / 6 am EST
Singles: 2 pm CET / 8 am EST
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