It is officially the Summer of Smash!
Big events every weekend are leaving players strapped for cash and spectators busy scheduling viewing parties to root for region or favorite player. Since the start of the platinum era of Super Smash Bros. Melee in 2013 every summer has been getting larger and larger. To kick it all of Melee fans are treated to a weekend of fun in the form of Smash 'N' Splash 3.
Smash 'N' Splash 3 is growing and slowly becoming a must visit tournament in the summer. For one it is being held at a water park, which no other tournament has done before. The event practically doubled in size since last year, now just shy of a thousand entrants with 848 competitors registered in Melee singles this year. In addition to the event's growth in size, this tournament series has become a staple grassroots event for the community. With many tournaments coming and going each year it is refreshing to see the consistency exhibited by the Smash 'N' Splash TO team.
3 Gods and a Godslayer
It seems that the last major held, Royal Flush, has lit a fire among the top players as Adam "Armada" Lindgren, Juan “Hungrybox” Debiedma, Joseph “Mang0” Marquez, and William "Leffen" Hjelte are in attendance. In typical Summer of Smash tradition, Royal Flush left these four players all with something to prove.
After a disappointing 5th place finish at Royal Flush, Leffen will be looking to redeem himself. Despite his surprise 0-3 lost to Sami "Druggedfox" Muhanna, Leffen is slowly getting back to his previous successes since gaining a visa. In the past, he has come close to taking sets from the other gods, only to fall short at just the last moment. Hopefully, his performance at Smash 'N' Splash 3 can mimic his incredibly dominant run in the Summer of 2015, where he took his first U.S. major and proceeded to win the following three majors in convincing fashion. Everyone wants to see the Leffen back at 100% and hopefully this weekend will mark the start of that.
Hungrybox will be going in with something to prove. He suffered arguably one-sided loses at Royal Flush to Armada and Mang0's Foxes and dropped a set last weekend to Joey "Lucky" Aldama at The Bigger Balc. Granted he convincingly took the tournament from Loser's side, getting his sweet revenge on Lucky with a quick 6-0. However, Hungrybox has clearly hit a rough patch and if he wants to replicate his early 2016 dominance and EVO win, he needs to start building momentum this weekend. Thankfully his coach is moving back to Florida to help him train and prepare for Summer and it should not be surprising if the audience sees "Clutchbox" at Smash 'N' Splash 3.
After Mang0 ended his undefeated 2017 run at Royal Flush in a game 10 thriller, Armada seems itching to battle against his peers and hopefully get the rerun on Mang0. Winning the European tournament Mission Complete 5, Armada looks ready as always to win the tournament. The loss he suffered at Royal Flush, while big, might have just added fuel to his fire. It will be interesting to see if Armada can continue to add another dominant 1st place finish as he has done so often in the past.
Last, is the kid, Mang0. His gameplay at Royal Flush reminded everyone to never sleep on his talent and skill. While he is going into Smash 'N' Splash 3 with alot of confidence, he even admitted to himself that his tournament performance can bit unpredictable, claiming at his Royal Flush interview that "the most Mang0 thing to happen at the next tournament is either he get 7th or wins it all". While this may alarm the Mang0 nation, his streams show his regular practice versus his SoCal brethren. With that and his coach by his side, it will be interesting to see which Mang0 shows up, Neo or the buster.
The Rest of the Cast
Outside of the top four, the competition remains stiff with 28 demi-gods and top players in attendance. While there are many that can cause upsets, Justin "Plup" McGrath and Weston "Westballz" Dennis stand out as the likely candidates to go far at Smash 'N' Splash 3. Plup's recent performance at Runback 2017 further cemented his spot as the best "demi-god" as it was a non-god tournament filled with top level players. His precise, fast, and intelligent play allowed him to take the tournament through Winner's side.
While Westballz's tournament results are high variant, his peaks are undoubtedly high. His second place finish at Runback 2017, beating Zac "SFAT" Cordoni twice and taking Plup to a close game 5 set reminded everyone just how good he can be. If Runback 2017 was any indicator of what is to come for this circus master, Smash 'N' Splash 3 could be his opening act.
Notable Players
Armada
| Mang0 Hungrybox
| Leffen Plup
| SFAT Axe
| Shroomed S2J
| Lucky dizzkidboogie
| Reeve PewPewU
| Ice Chillindude
| Colbol Professor Pro
| MacD None
| Slox Llod
| Kels Duck
| 4% Zain
| Android Trulliam
| HMW Nightmare
| Drephen Don't miss all the action starting June 2-4. You can tune into Unrivaled Tournaments to watch all the sets and track the progress of your favorite players on smash.gg.
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