This weekend, one of Super Smash Bros. Melee’s premier tournament series returns in Dearborn, Michigan: The Big House. Run by acclaimed tournament organizer Robin “Juggleguy” Harn, The Big House has a legacy of hype moments such as “The Return of the King” at The Big House 3, Mango’s losers run at The Big House 4 and much, much more.
With 1500+ entrants (making it the 4th largest Melee tournament ever), 60 of Melee It On Me’s Top 100 and more, The Big House 6 is shaping out to be the best Big House yet. Here’s everything you need to know going into The Big House 6, including the major player storylines and stream information.
Stream Information
All the Melee action at The Big House 6 will be streamed on VGBootCamp and VGBootCamp2. With tons of exciting stream content besides the main event and an all-star commentary cast featuring Bobby "Scar" Scarnewman, Kris "Toph" Aldenderfer, Oscar "Lovage" Nilsson, Arian "The Crimson Blur" Fathieh and many more, there's something for everyone watching from home. The brackets for the tournament can be found here. Here are the stream and commentary schedules (click to enlarge):
The Gods Clash
Juan “Hungrybox” Debiedma’s road to The Big House 6 has been interesting. After claiming the title of world champion in July at EVO 2016 in epic fashion, his results have been shaky since then. Hungrybox finished 2nd at Super Smash Con 2016 after being dominated by Mango, and went out at a disappointing 4th place at Shine 2016 – his second lowest placing of the year.
Additionally, his move to Alabama has made it more difficult for him to find regular practice partners. Nevertheless, given Hungrybox’s clutch factor, mindset, set record over the rest of the gods and overall fantastic play, he is still one of the likely favorites to win The Big House 6.
The defending Big House champion, Adam “Armada” Lindgren needs this win at The Big House 6 if he wants a strong argument for being #1 in the world going into the end-of-year ranking period. He has yet to finish 1st at a major tournament since Smash Summit 2, placing 5th at GOML 2016, 2nd at WTFox 2 and 2nd at EVO 2016. Moreover, Hungrybox and Mango have held winning records over him during that time, and Armada will likely need to beat at least one of them to win The Big House 6.
However, with plenty of time to recover from his crushing EVO loss combined with his remarkable consistency and champion mentality, Armada has a good chance to take the entire tournament and reclaim the moniker of world champion.
2016 has been a great year for Joseph "Mango" Marquez, and a victory this weekend would be his first "super major" win of the year. He clearly has the potential to take it all, as evidenced by his good set counts against Armada and Hungrybox and his dominant performances at WTFox 2 and Super Smash Con 2016 in the summer. What do those two tournament wins have in common?
Mango won both tournaments through the winners bracket. Though he usually makes lengthy losers runs, Mango has not been able to take an entire tournament this year by entering top 8 via the losers bracket. If Mango can stay in the winners side for as long as possible while igniting his electrifying Fox, Falco and Marth play, he could win his third Big House title.
Jason "Mew2King" Zimmerman is going into The Big House 6 hot off a big win at Shine 2016 and an overall strong summer season. The past three months have seen Mew2King conquer his demons in Hungrybox and the losers bracket at WTFox 2 and Super Smash Con, showing that he still has what it takes to compete at the top.
Though a win for Mew2King this weekend is improbable given his largely negative records against Armada, Hungrybox and Mango, he could still make splash -- The Big House 3 and The Big House 4 are some of Mew2King's best tournament performances, and he's looking to take it even further this Big House.
Note: Although Leffen has his visa and he is signed up for The Big House 6, we did not include a blurb for him because he has not given full confirmation that he will be at the tournament.
The Stars of the States
SoCal has been arguably the strongest region in Melee for a very long time, and they will be looking to show that this weekend.
Weston "Westballz" Dennis has been hot and cold this year. We've seen his Falco show the capacity to go toe-to-toe with the very best in the world, most recently at EVO 2016 and Syndicate 2016, where he made top 8 at the former and did very well against Armada at the latter. However, floatier characters such as Sheik and Samus have been his weak point, often ending up in early bracket losses for him. Westballz has had lots of high level practice since Shine 2016, and as long as his tech skill and mindset is on point the entire weekend, he could make top 8 at a Big House tournament for the third time.
1/4 of the Norwalk crew, fan favorite Johnny "S2J" Kim is going into The Big House 6 with mixed summer results. We saw him make history by placing top 8 at EVO 2016, but his 17th place and 13th place finishes at Super Smash Con 2016 and Shine 2016 respectively are inferior in comparison. Nevertheless, when S2J is on point, he can be unstoppable -- and he could go very far at The Big House 6 if he gets in the zone.
After spectacular performances during the spring at DreamHack Austin 2016 and GOML 2016, Joey "Lucky" Aldama had a rather uneventful summer, placing right where you expect him to be at major tournaments. The Big House 4 is famously one of his best career performances -- can Lucky gain some much needed momentum this weekend by repeating his Big House success?
After taking a short hiatus from Melee after Super Smash Con 2016, rising star Michael "Mike Haze" Pulido has come back to the game stronger than ever. His hard work has paid off all year with great, consistent results, notably beating Lucky twice to win Super Smash Sundays 52 just under a month ago. Mike Haze has only been shooting up for the past year, so expect big things from him at The Big House 6.
Skipping out on EVO 2016, McCain "MacD" LaVelle has also returned to Melee by putting in great results. His Peach did well at Shine 2016, where he made top 8 by beating S2J and Nintendude. Now that MacD is back, can he break his The Big House 13th place curse this weekend?
Hugo "HugS" Gonzalez will be looking to redeem himself after a poor 129th place finish at EVO 2016. His solid 17th place run at Shine 2016 is a sign that he is on his way to reaching the results he had in 2015, and if his mental game aligns with his patented neutral game, The Big House 6 could be one of HugS's best performances of the year.
Some more SoCal players attending The Big House 6 include Will "Reno" Hsiao, Oscar "Lovage" Nilsson, Daniel "Tafokints" Lee, Alejandro "Alex19" Ruvalcaba and Alexander "KoopaTroopa895" Plasencia.
A plethora of the best players from the very stacked Northern California region will be attending The Big House 6.
The Big House 6 is shaping out to be Zac "SFAT" Cordoni's tournament. Since his 25th place finish at EVO 2016, his results have been immaculate, double-eliminating Mango at Clutch City Clash and beating Mango and Hungrybox en route to 2nd place at Shine 2016. If SFAT can keep up his polished Fox play and mindset, The Big House 6 could be his best tournament run to date.
A hallmark of consistency, DaJuan “Shroomed” McDaniel is looking as solid as ever going into The Big House 6. He has placed 9th place or better in every tournament he has attended in the past few months, acting as a gatekeeper of sorts for Melee’s top 10. However, Shroomed has been wanting to break past his typical top 8 placements and reach new heights – and considering his extremely rock-solid play and composure, this could be the weekend it happens.
This summer was Kevin “PewPewU” Toy’s best season of the year thus far, and he will be looking to continue that success at The Big House 6. Although he had a weak performance at NorCal Loves Teams losing to The Moon and Captain Faceroll, PewPewU could easily bounce back this weekend with his “9th Place Curse” finally broken.
Michael “Nintendude” Brancato is going into The Big House 6 strong. Although he suffered losses to players such as Cyrain and Kaeon at EVO 2016 and Super Smash Con 2016, Nintendude managed to put in a fantastic performance at Shine 2016 by beating Mango. If he can avoid early upsets, Nintendude could take big names this weekend.
After a relatively quiet first 6 months of 2016, Julian “Zhu” Zhu had an incredible performance at EVO 2016, where he beat players such as Lucky and ChuDat en route to 9th place. With a new fire reignited in his play and recent sponsorship from CS:GO brand BOXR, Zhu could have another monstrous run this weekend.
Self proclaimed up-and-comer Sam “Laudandus” Rohrer has performed remarkably well at national tournaments this year, and The Big House 6 is shaping up to be no exception. He has wins over the likes of Westballz, Swedish Delight and Nintendude at majors in 2016. Don’t be surprised if Laudandus beats more of Melee’s best at The Big House 6.
Despite his character choice, Kyle “Dizzkidboogie” Athayde has been on fire this year, and he shows no signs of slowing down coming into The Big House 6. Proving himself as more than a “wobbler”, Dizzkidboogie has leveled up his game in recent months and taken sets off S2J, Lucky and more, putting him on the road for success at The Big House 6.
Additionally, keep an eye out for Frank “Frootloop” Borden, Kris “Toph” Aldenderfer, Nick “NMW” Whittier, Alan "Alan" Moore, Darrell "Darrell" White, Spark, Sheridan “Dr. Z” Zalewski, Leon "ycz6" Zhou, Ivan "gaR" Van and Bobby “Scar” Scarnewman.
Aside from Hungrybox and Mew2King, Florida is still ridiculously stacked – and they will be looking to prove it this weekend.
Leading the pack is the extremely consistent Justin “Plup” McGrath who is looking to further show he can hang with the gods. His wins over Hungrybox and Mango at EVO 2016 proved that he is a definitive top 7 player, but he surprised many at Shine 2016 by using Fox in the later parts of the bracket, doing surprisingly well by beating Lucky and being one hit away from beating SFAT. Though his Sheik will likely be his first choice at The Big House 6, expect Plup to do very well no matter which character he chooses.
Justin “Wizzrobe” Hallett’s has had an interesting journey to The Big House 6. He shocked Melee fans everywhere by 3-0ing Hungrybox at WTFox and coming close to beating Mango and Mew2King, but his performances since then have been decent at best by his standards, including losses to players such as Chillin and Porkchops. Can Wizzrobe return to form at The Big House 6?
Aside from a 33rd place finish at CEO 2016, Colin “Colbol” Green has been one of the most consistent players of 2016, rarely causing upsets but also rarely being upsettes by other players. To take it even further this weekend, Colbol will need to keep up his Fox and Marth play while overcoming the spacies matchup and keeping the SDs to a minimum.
Jason “Gahtzu” Diehl of the 20GX crew will be looking to make waves at his first tournament under the U4X eSports banner. He made a deep run at CEO 2016, and with a good bracket he could repeat that success this weekend.
Additionally, be on the lookout for Floridian players Jay "Drunksloth" Dahya, Danny "UUAA" Diaz and Matthew "Envy" Powers.
Though not all of their best players will be at The Big House 6, the Southwest is still a region to watch out for this weekend.
Pikachu connoisseur Jeffrey "Axe" Williamson has been extremely solid over the past few months, finishing top 8 at every major tournament in the summer except for EVO 2016, where he was eliminated by Shroomed and Westballz. Additionally, Axe will be looking to break his Big House curse -- he has yet to make top 8 at a Big House, losing to Midwestern players each time. With the right mindset and preparation Axe could easily make a deep run this time at The Big House 6.
Robert "Wobbles" Wright is a wild card this weekend. His marvelous 4th place performance earlier this year at Battle of the Five Gods proved that he can compete with the top tier of players. However, his performances at EVO 2016 and Shine 2016 haven't lived up to his full potential. If Wobbles can go into The Big House 6 with a clear mindset, we may just see the rise of the phoenix once again.
Also representing the Southwest are Tony "Taj" Jackson, Andrew "Tai" Vo, Ammon "Ka-Master" Styles and Justin "Syrox" Burroughs.
2016 has been James “Swedish Delight” Liu’s best year yet, and he will be looking to continue his fantastic results this weekend. This summer he cemented himself as a top 10 level player, consistently finishing 9th or better at major tournaments. At The Big House 5, Swedish Delight beat Westballz in what would be the first of many upsets to come – can his deadly Sheik shake up the bracket again at this year’s Big House?
Following a weak first half of 2016, Ryan “The Moon” Coker-Welch turned things around during the summer with strong performances at tournaments such as WTFox 2 and EVO 2016. His swift and stylish Marth is dominant in the spacies and Ice Climbers matchups -- something that is sure to take him far this weekend.
The second half of Grab N’ Go, Hendrick “DJ Nintendo” Pilar has often placed around the 17th-33rd range of major tournaments in the past year. Can his solid Fox cause some upsets and finally break into the upper echelon at The Big House 6?
Also travelling to The Big House 6 from Tristate region are Alex "Zanguzen" Shnayder, Alex "Captain Smuckers" Cottrell, Jacob "Jflex" Pinto, Nick "Stango" Stango, Alex "Beerman" Ucles and more.
Fox revolutionary Otto “Silent Wolf” Bisno has been less active as of late due to school, but that’s no reason to count him out. Though his results this year have been weak compared to what he accomplished in 2015, his technical Fox coupled with his Falco he has been using more and more have the potential to shine this weekend.
Newlywed Theodore “Bladewise” Seybold is still one of the best Peach players in the world, and he will be looking to prove it at The Big House 6. His creative play can still put in work despite minimal practice in recent months, so don’t sleep on him this weekend.
Aside from Silent Wolf and Bladewise, be on the lookout for Evan "Iceman" Tice, Vish "Vish" Rajkumar, Rustin "Rustin" Winger and Vinodh "Vinodh" Muthiah.
Although only a handful of the MD/VA region’s elite will be attending The Big House 6, expect them to put in solid performances.
Fan favorite Daniel “ChuDat” Rodriguez is looking stronger than ever going into The Big House 6. His smart and patient play yielded strong summer results for him, placing well at tournaments such as CEO 2016, EVO 2016, Super Smash Con 2016 and Heir 3. With that in mind, expect to ChuDat go far at The Big House 6.
Long time veteran Kashan "Chillin" Khan placed 17th at last year’s The Big House 5 after a year of poor results. He has kept up his consistent results since then, and his surprising win over Wizzrobe at EVO 2016 shows that he can still keep up with Melee’s new blood. Will The Big House 6 be yet another successful Big House for Chillin?
Joining ChuDat and Chillin from the MD/VA are Zain "Zain" Naghmi, Cory "SypherPhoenix" Hong, Wenbo "Wenbobular" Dou, Michael "Peanutphobia" O'Mailey and Edun "Nurok" Krief.
Defending their home region is the Midwest, who has always showed up big at The Big House.
The King of the Midwest and Michigan’s hometown hero, James “Duck” Ma could be the defender the Midwest needs at The Big House 6. His results with his lethal Samus have been stellar in the past year, always finishing 13th or higher at national events. With the weight of his state on his back, expect Duck to reach new heights at The Big House 6.
Tech-heavy Michigan Fox Kalandi “KJH” Henderson has improved significantly since last year’s Big House, and it has shown with his impressive 13th place finish at Super Smash Con among other great major placements. KJH is more than just a tech-skill monster – his Fox is very potent in a wide variety of matchups, meaning he could go far this weekend.
Chicago’s #1 Kelly “Kels” Smith will be making his Big House return after missing last year’s The Big House 5. His legendary run at The Big House 4 is evidence that he has what it takes to perform at nationals -- could Kels repeat that success, or has it just been too long for him to make a big run?
Griffin "Captain Faceroll" Williams is easily one of 2016's most improved players, and The Big House 6 could be his national to shine. Just this year he has beaten Westballz, Shroomed, Lucky, Silent Wolf and PewPewU at the regional level. If his insane reaction tech chase punishes and mentality stay consistent this weekend, he could have his best super major run yet.
Additional Midwest defenders include Abhishek "Prince Abu" Prabhu, Drew "Drephen" Scoles, Binyan "Darkatma" Lin, David "4%" Long, Avery "Ginger" Wilson, Charlie "AbsentPage" Mckinley, Chris "ORLY" Brittain and many, many more.
The Atlantic South will have a few of their best participating at The Big House 6.
Sami “DruggedFox” Muhanna’s Fox has quietly been creeping back up to the level his Sheik was at around this time last year. Taking sets of Swedish Delight and Ice over the summer, DruggedFox has proven that he can play at the top with Fox, and a strong performance at The Big House 6 will help cement that even further.
More Atlantic South players competing this weekend include Mike "$mike" Scaturchio and Tyler "Sharkz" Bass.
Last but not least, New England is going into The Big House 6 hot off their first major tournament: Shine 2016.
Anthony "Slox" Detres has consistently done well at super major tournaments this year, placing 33rd at Genesis 3 and EVO 2016. He has a wide range of character to cover matchups, and with Slox looking confident going into this weekend, he may take big names.
Self proclaimed "Last Dope Peach" James "Mafia" Lauerman has been representing New England well this year. In addition to his 2nd place finish at Apex 2016, he broke out at Super Smash Con 2016 by beating Axe and Mike Haze, demonstrating he has what it takes to shake up national brackets.
Finally, New Hampshire's best player Jason "Infinite Numbers" Gauthier will be looking to match his Pound 2016 success, where he beat MacD, Mike Haze and more. Infinite Numbers followed up that performance with strong runs at EVO 2016 and Shine 2016, giving him a good chance of going far at The Big House 6.
In addition, watch out for Tim "Swiftbass" Tilley, Luis "Crunch" Rosias and Matthew "MattDotZeb" Zaborowski.
International Threats
International talent is always one of the highlights of super major tournaments, and The Big House 6 will have no shortage of that with players coming from as far as Canada to Australia.
Europe will be bringing many fierce competitors besides Armada; here’s who you need to watch out for.
Ice needs no introduction. The German Fox has been quite consistent in North America this year, not causing too many large upsets but also almost never losing to players ranked below him. Ice’s occasional moments of brilliance show that he has the potential to rise, and if he can keep up a strong mindset and choke in-game less, he can unleash his potential at The Big House 6.
Europe’s #4 and the best player in the UK, Aaron “Professor Pro” Thomas has done well in the multitude of North American tournaments he has traveled to this year. He had a great performance at Shine 2016 beating The Moon en route to 13th place, so expect even more at The Big House 6 from the up-and-coming Fox main.
Melee speedrunner and the UK’s #2 Charles “Fuzzyness” Kimmelman is looking great going into what will be his first US major appearance of the year. Fuzzyness went on an insane run at Syndicate 2016 taking Ice to game 5 and beating Professor Pro, Amsah, Overtriforce and more, showing that any rust from his semi-retirement is gone.
Team UGS member Andreas “Android” Lindgren has been taking names in Europe after being fairly inactive for the first half of 2016. Between Heir 3 and Syndicate 2016 he has beaten Ice and Trifasia, and with good practice with Armada, Westballz and more, he is ready for his North American return this weekend.
Competing in the US for the first time since Apex 2010 thanks to the The Big House 6 Compendium, Robert “Vanity Angel” Gee rounds out the UK’s top 3. His Peach put in a very impressive performance at Heir 3 by beating Amsah and Zgetto, and if he can adapt to Fox and Sheik’s buffs in NTSC, expect him to cause upsets at The Big House 6.
To learn more about European players at The Big House 6, click here
O, Canada! Here’s some the top Canadians who will be taking the trip down south for The Big House 6.
Since The Big House 5, Captain Falcon main Edgard “n0ne” Shelby has become Canada's #1, and he will be looking to make his country proud this weekend. Although he has sustained impressive results this year with wins over Mew2King, S2J and more, he isn't immune to upsets, as shown by his surprising loss to Ares at Heir 3. With ample preparation and a collected mentality, n0ne could make another big super major run this weekend.
Coming out of a period of inactivity, David "KirbyKaze" MacDonald is looking to return to his former peaks. His creative and intelligent Sheik has the potential to take on the best in the world as shown by his Apex 2015 performance. If he can bring his mindset back up to speed, KirbyKaze could make a big return at The Big House 6.
Canadian top 3 player Ryan "Ryan Ford" Ford has been quite consistent since coming back to Melee, and he will be looking to take it further this weekend. Aside from his 17th place finish at GOML 2016, his national placements have been relatively weak, meaning he will need a good performance at The Big House 6 to show he is still one of the most fearsome Foxes around.
Announcing he would be dropping his signature Ganondorf after EVO 2016, Roustane "Kage" Benzeguir will have to make the right character choices to stay alive at The Big House 6. His newer Captain Falcon, Fox and Marth have not been as successful as his Ganondorf. With high stakes on the line at The Big House 6, will Kage opt for Ganondorf in bracket?
To learn more about Canadian players at The Big House 6, click here
After successful funding from The Big House 6 compendium, Eduardo "Eddy Mexico" Lucatero Rincón will be slip and sliding his way through The Big House 6. He did well at Genesis 3 by finishing at 25th place, but his other runs at tournaments such as EVO 2015 have been subpar in comparison. With fellow Luigi main Abate absent, Eddy Mexico could very well be the Luigi main in the spotlight at this year's Big House.
Making his super major return is Japan’s very own Daiki "Rudolph" Ideoka, who attended The Big House 5 last year as the final major tournament of his US stay. Since returning to Japan, he has dominated the scene, winning every tournament there except for KSB 2016. With massive improvements and new confidence, Rudolph is sure to take names this weekend.
To learn more about Japanese players at The Big House 6, click here
Representing New Zealand as well as Australia is young rising star Te-Tuhi “Spud” Kelly, who has been one of Melee’s fastest improving players despite living in a remote region. In less than three years, he has ascended to dominate the scene in Oceania, and his win over Alex19 at BAM 7 and his recent game 5 set with Zhu at DI Another Day 2 are proof that he will be able to go head-to-head with the deep talent pool at The Big House 6.
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