Smashboards Username: Nintendude1189
Region: Tristate / Upstate NY
Primary Character(s): Ice Climbers
Secondary Character(s): Peach, Luigi, Sheik, but I don't really consider them secondaries since I don't use them in tournaments.
REQUIRED
1. Q. How long have you been playing competitive melee?
A. Started learning advanced techniques in 2003, and attended my first tournament in 2006.
2. Q. How often do you attend tournaments? How familiar are you with your local scene? Your regional scene? The national/international scene?
A. My tournament attendance has dropped off during my college years but I go to at least one local tournament during each summer / winter break. I'm fairly familiar with the upstate NY scene and very familiar with the tristate scene. I have knowledge of top players in the West, Southwest, Midwest, and Florida. I don't know much about international players besides powerhouses like Armada and Amsah.
3. Q. How would you classify yourself as a player relative to the current metagame? (beginner, average, high level, pro, etc.)
A. High Level
4. Q. Do you think the other individuals in your region would support you being a member of the MBR? Why?
A. I believe so. To quote prog from apex commentary, "[Nintendude] is like an encyclopedia of Smash." Cort, while no longer active, would definitely vouch for me since he knows I am a Stadium player, and Stadium gives you a vast knowledge of the game's mechanics and how they apply to the entire cast in a variety of situations. I've also been playing in the Tristate region longer than most of the currently active players and people see me as extremely knowledgeable and experienced. Before Apex 2010, Alex Strife consulted me privately about Wobbling. Yes, I'm aware that it's because his decision regarding Wobbling would affect me directly, but it also shows that he values my opinion and regards me as a valuable part of the local scene.
5. Q. Do you consider yourself a discussion leader? Why?
A. Not typically. I prefer to read what other people have to say and not reply unless I have a very strong opinion or I find the topic extremely interesting. I have attempted to start some discussions on data analysis in Melee but they didn't catch peoples' interest and died fairly quickly. I do, however, occasionally make posts that provoke a lot of discussion. An example would be a thread I made calling for improved commentary in Smash matches. While I didn't participate much in the actual discussion (mainly because I laid out all my thoughts in the opening post), that thread stayed afloat for a long time and caught the attention of many big names in the community.
6. Q. Are you an active Tournament Organizer? If Yes, what are some recent tournaments you have hosted? If No, what are some ways you feel you contribute to your local scene despite not being a TO?
A. I organize Melee and Brawl tournaments as part of the annual CornellCon. However, nobody around here has heard of those since they are only open to Cornell students. When I attend local tournaments, at the very least I contribute by bringing a setup. In upstate NY I help seed players from Cornell. Occasionally a TO will consult with me about rules, particularly for SSB64 side tournaments. I ended up co-TOing the Apex SSB64 side tournament.
7. Q. Do you feel that the current tier list is accurate? Why?
A. Approximately. The statistical approach helped to remove any bias in the voting. However, looking at the individual votes, you can see that there is very little consensus besides Fox being #1. This indicates to me that we are having difficulty definitively ranking the characters at this time. The categories of S through G represent a rankings system that is less resolute. Naturally, this is more accurate, but still can be improved, particularly with D tier and below since, to be honest, most people are just taking educated guesses that aren't based on much real experience. Some voters recognized that they did not have an educated opinion and abstained from voting below somewhere around C or D tier, and I bet there are some people that should have abstained but did not. If we are going to definitively rank each character accurately, we need to actually analyze data from tournaments rather than simply take a vote.
8. Q. Do you feel that the current MBR recommended stage list is fair? Why?
A. The starter stage list is fair, particularly in conjunction with the stage strike system. This helps to remove bias of the neutral stages towards certain characters since you are given enough strikes to remove all of the particularly advantageous stages. The counterpick list is a little questionable, primarily because it has stages that can, themselves, dictate the flow of the match. Particularly, on Rainbow Cruise, players will have to alter their playstyle significantly depending on what part of the stage you are on. Pokemon Stadium also has features that can dictate the flow of the match but this is typically limited to stalling until the neutral stage returns, and thus can be neglected.
9. Q. Do you feel that the current MBR recommended rule set is fair? Why?
A. Yes. These rules, for the most part, have been employed in Melee tournaments for over half a decade. History has shown these rules to be overwhelmingly agreed upon as fair and thus have gone mostly unquestioned to this day. The rule set does not ban Wobbling, and I agree with this. All bias towards my main aside, I think Wobbling is fair, but I won't go into that right now.
10. Q. What is more important to you: Tech Skill or Strategy? Why?
A. Both are very important. Most strategies cannot be executed effectively without the tech skill to back them up, but blind tech skill won't get you very far vs. experienced players. Strategy is more important overall though, since it encompasses things like stage control, adaptation, positioning, and move choice. Mastery of these fundamentals separates the high level players from the pros.
11. Q. What is more important to you: Maximizing Punishments (Combos) or Initiating Punishments (First Hits)? Why?
A. Initiating Punishments. If you are getting more first hits, you are the one in control of the match. Technically you don't even need combos to win a match if you are able to maintain control the entire time. First hits are the realization of outplaying your opponent.
12. Q. Does SSBM have a limited lifespan as a competitive community due to its age or any other factor? Why or why not?
A. Unless something big changes, yes. An easy way to see this is to just think about 50 years from now. Many, if not all, of the current players will have moved on, but who will replace them? Will gamers 50 years from now decide to start playing a game that is many generations outdated? Melee will always have a cult following, but it is unlikely that a large-scale competitive community can be sustained for an extended period of time under current circumstances.
13. Q. What do you think could be done to expand our community?
A. Outreach and "conversion" of Brawl players. Nearly every community, school, or university has at least one group of friends that plays Smash at least somewhat seriously yet is oblivious to the competitive community. The community needs to become more publicized via flyers and mainstream media, particularly on the internet, to assimilate these players. As for Brawl players, a lot of them are intimidated by the steep learning curve of the game. The Melee community has to be more inviting to those with any interest in learning. Speaking of being more inviting, we have to embrace our lower level players and make sure they keep persisting. A good way to do this would be to make pools more ubiquitous in local tournaments. This alleviates the fear of throwing away $10 just to get 2-0'd twice and go home, and it also removes local bias in seeding. Pools are very doable provided TOs adhere to a strict schedule and stop starting an hour or two late. An idea I once had was to do 3-stock pools at local tournaments but this never ended up happening.
Another really important way to expand the community is to increase our professionalism. More structured ratings and rankings, leagues (like athletic conferences, perhaps), improved commentary, etc. Increased professionalism can lead to more sponsors, which can have a positive feedback effect due to increased resources.
14. Q. What do you think the MBR could do to stimulate the community?
A. I think the MBR should publish exemplary posts in public parts of the forum. For example, let's say someone makes an excellent post on how Fox can't be #1 because of such and such strategies that counter him, and it is very well-written and informative (even if its conclusion is questionable). Well, it could be much more beneficial if everyone, not just MBR members, could read it and reply. While I'm unfamiliar with the nature of MBR discussions because I haven't been a member, I'm sure there are plenty of posts made that could be standalone discussion starters in the public forum.
Another HUGE thing the MBR can do to progress the community is to develop and institute some kind of ratings system (like in chess) and rankings based purely on data, math, and statistics. See my sample contributions for some of my own thoughts on the role of math and statistics in competitive Melee. I think that the community needs this kind of structure to keep players interested in this game, and possibly to attract the attention of non-Smash players to this spectator's sport. Competitors often need some kind of overarching goal to maintain interest. Like in college sports, you always have something concrete to work towards, from winning your conference, to winning the national championship. Followers of sports feel the same way ("Can so-and-so team repeat as regular season champions this year?"), and a more structured competitive atmosphere can go a long way towards maintaining interest. Obviously the MBR members can't be the ones who control such a system, but they can be instrumental in laying down the foundation.
Going back to tasks that the MBR is currently pursuing, match-casting is of utmost importance in influencing this community positively. I've been trying to get into Starcraft 2 and this has been invaluable in helping me improve, holding my interest, and inspiring me to keep playing the game despite getting owned repeatedly in silver league. Match casting will make our community that much more accessible to aspiring players who are overwhelmed with the learning curve of this game.
15. Q. How do you think the MBR would benefit from your input?
A. I think that I have a lot of unique ideas about the MBR's potential role in the structure of the competitive Melee community. I can also offer years of experience playing this game both competitively and in single player modes. I played Stadium for several years before going to tournaments and accumulated a lot of knowledge, both obscure and practical, about all characters in the game. I also use Ice Climbers, one of the least used high tier characters. I think that the MBR can benefit greatly from my presence because very few people can offer opinions about stuff relating to ICs that are backed up by years of experience playing them in tournaments.
OPTIONAL
1. Please provide up to 5 examples of contributions you have made to the melee community. Links to exceptional, informative posts are highly valued here.
1. Link:
http://www.smashboards.com/showthread.php?t=250970
i. Description: An attempt to redefine "matchup ratios." I think this is something that the MBR can examine more closely and even though this topic died long ago, I'd love to see the idea revised and implemented. I think it has a lot of potential and is a step towards basing a tier list on raw data in order to create absolute rankings.
2. Link:
http://allisbrawl.com/forum/topic.aspx?id=29078
i. Description: Culmination of several years of playing 10-Man Melee competitively. I know that's not a smashboards post but it is because I wrote it for the Stadium community, which resides on AiB currently.
3. Link:
http://www.smashboards.com/showthread.php?t=276267
i. Description: My take on Smash commentary and why we should strive to make it more professional.
4. Link:
http://www.smashboards.com/showthread.php?t=266809
i. Description: Preliminary thoughts on the application of pairwise comparisons for power rankings. The idea was a flop but I still believe that such a system would be a step towards professionalism for this community. The MBR can help spearhead that.
2. List up to three players you feel demonstrate good discussion ability or have outstanding contributions to the community and explain why you think they are a good example.
1. Player: Wobbles
i. Reason: He's very articulate, clear, and elaborate with his posts. He can back up his statements with a considerable amount of experience.
2. Player: Cactuar
i. Reason: I've read some really insightful stuff from this guy concerning the more "hidden" aspects of the game that separate the good from the great. Like Wobbles, he speaks from experience and offers incredibly sound advice.
3. Player: Plank
i. Reason: Plank has really poured his heart into this community. While I have not attended a Pound tournament personally, I have only heard fantastic things (ok let's forget about the Pound V finances here). I saw him in action at Apex and was really impressed with how he selflessly devoted much of his time into ensuring that the event ran smoothly, even though the event wasn't even his. It's such a shame that Pound V turned out as it did but that doesn't change the fact that he has done so much for the livelihood of this community.
4. Player: nealdt
i. Reason: So yeah I'm adding this one after writing my original application but he randomly came to mind, and after realizing how much he's done I felt like writing about him. Between developing TIO/TIA, running quality tournaments (Champ Combo series), and founding / running AIB, nealdt has done a lot to advance the quality of the competitive infrastructure of Smash. The tournament organization / results system in place on AIB is a step towards creating the organized leagues and rankings that I am an advocate of. While it is unfortunate that AIB turned into a Smashboards rival, it has brought in a lot of new players to the Smash scene as a whole. It also goes without saying that TIO was a wonderful contribution to the Smash community.
3. Have you read Sirlin's theories regarding "Play to Win"? Do you agree or disagree? Why? How do you think these theories affect and apply to the Melee community?
1. Answer: I have not read this, but I'll get around to it someday.
ADDITIONAL COMMENTS/FINAL WORDS:
I can offer years of experience playing an obscure character and a wealth of knowledge concerning mechanics of this game. I think that my engineering background has inspired me to think about Melee, and the competitive community, from a different perspective - one that is heavily influenced by statistics and mathematics. This is reflected in my ideas of reformulating the tier list and matchup analysis.
I'll admit I haven't been the most active poster here recently, but that would change if I were admitted to the MBR. I still lurk the boards regularly (once a day at least) but the reason I typically don't post is that there isn't much discussion that has piqued my interest enough for me to want to reply. I care a lot about this game and if given the opportunity to share my thoughts in a more professional setting you'll definitely see me contributing a lot more than I have been. Thank you for your consideration.