As The Big House 6 wraps up its voting phase, Smashers have the opportunity to help fund their favorite players. By purchasing items that go towards their trip, they can fund those who were voted into the rewards levels by the community at large. SmashBoards received the opportunity to speak with the nominees that were involved in the compendium to get their views on the matter. Fourteen-year-old Troy “Puppeh” Wells, a Sheik main from the MD/VA region, is among the players that have received enough votes and is fully funded to be on the compendium.
Young Origins
Puppeh’s parents exposed him and his brothers to Super Smash Bros. at a very young age. “I got introduced around the age of 2 or 3. I remember my parents got me and my brothers a Gamecube and we played Melee all the time.” Entering the competitive side of Smash wasn't so hard for Puppeh despite his young age. “I got into the competitive scene when I was 12 years old. I went to a local tournament as far as I can remember, I went 0-2 but got in lots of friendlies and could tell I was improving. I kept on practicing Melee until I was pretty good at it. Although by the time I got good at Melee, Smash 4 came out. I was still very serious about Melee and didn’t care for Smash 4.”
Despite Puppeh not taking Super Smash Bros. for Wii U seriously, he became a natural in no time. “I picked up Diddy Kong because I had some fun playing him at home. I went to my first tournament and got like 13th I believe. I was a bit salty about it but still didn’t really care about Smash 4. I had fun though so I went back the next week and somehow I won the tournament. I went from 13th to 1st in 1 week. It was quite amazing.”
The Rise
Puppeh frequently visits VGBC’s famous Smash @ Xanadu tournament whenever he can to compete with players such as Marcus “Pink Fresh” Wilson and Joseph “Seagull Joe” Raucher. Do people often ‘sleep on’ or underestimate Puppeh because of his young age? “YES! This is super common to be honest. People never expect me to beat them if they haven’t heard of me. Although I have been getting more popular so people know beforehand what they are getting into,” says Puppeh. Being the competitive person that he is, he strives for the glory that comes with being in 1st place and will settle for nothing less. “I honestly love the competition so it’s great. I am a very competitive person so I sometimes get really salty after losses because I never want anything under 1st place…”
People recognize Puppeh as a young Smasher on the rise who is full of potential with a bright future. “It feels good to be young and already on the rise because it means I have so much time to level up. I think in my 2-3 years of playing I have already gotten so much better accumulating a lot of good wins so I think I have a lot farther to go.”
The Big House 6
“I think you can learn a lot from going to a supermajor. Experience with top players, for example. It can also help out my mindset...I want to learn a lot of new things from this experience. It is going to be a great experience I am sure!” says Puppeh when explaining what he plans to learn from The Big House 6. Puppeh is no stranger to major events and tournament nerves but hopes to fully overcome them with confidence. “As far as majors, I went to Apex 2015, which was like the first Smash major back when I mained prepatch Diddy Kong. I also went to both Smash Cons, Glitch, which was a regional, and Paradigm Shift, which was a regional. Not my first, but I am still somewhat nervous for the tournament. If I can control my nerves I think I can go really far because nerves are one of my biggest issues. When I overcome that I will get a huge buff as a player.”
Having his trip fully funded and the support of the Smash community behind him is a humbling experience for Puppeh. He is preparing extensively for the event and does not want to let his supporters down. “It feels so amazing that everyone is supporting me. Honestly I can’t express it enough how much I love my fanbase. I have to think of a way to give back to the community. For now I am just going to stream/practice a lot and try to get a good showing at The Big House 6.” His recent sponsor, 7Seas eSports, also helps keep him motivated in his Smash career. “They support me a lot and are giving me a lot of perks
. It really means a lot to me how much help they have given. I plan to grow a lot with them in the future and from what I can tell, growth is already happening.”The Future
Indeed, Puppeh has a bright future ahead of him in Smash, but what is next for the young prodigy? “Some of my goals are to beat a lot of the PR players I have not beaten: Pink Fresh, Seagull Joe, Boss, etc. I also want to top 16 at a super major. I want to cause a lot more upsets to happen and I want to represent MD/VA in a great way! Hopefully I can be a role model to everyone else out there that is young and trying to improve. I want to be an inspiration to all of them and I hope I am being one!”
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If you want to support your favorite player and their travel to The Big House 6, visit the link here. Don't forget to follow Puppeh on Twitter and to follow his stream on Twitch. For more information on his sponsor, 7seas eSports, follow them on Twitter and visit their website as well. “Shoutouts to my entire fan base, everyone who voted and donated on the compendium and I love all my fans so much!”
