Long before players like Leonardo “MkLeo” López Pérez or Javier “Javi” Balderas Pérez started making a splash in the US Smash scene, the Mexican scene was a bit unknown. Most of the national talent was only known in their respective regions, and the communication between them was scarce. Then along came Smash Factor, which brought international players like Jason “Mew2king” Zimmerman, Gonzalo “ZeRo” Barrios, Ramin “Mr. R” Delshad, Edgar “n0ne” Sheleby and more, finally putting Mexico on the map. It was at Smash Factor 4 that the legend of MkLeo started. He would go on to become the #4 in the PGR in 2018.
For a while, Smash Factor remained as the dominant force in Mexico, continuously growing until finally being a part of the Smash Masters League circuit, a first for the Mexican community. The announcement of a new tournament series is looking to become another pillar of Mexico’s scene.
In the area known as the Yucatán Peninsula, all the way down in south Mexico, a small scene started growing in the city of Mérida. At first, they were a couple of tournaments held once or twice a year at anime conventions. While the attendance was high, most of the entrants had little to no experience in Smash Bros. Aside from those events, there were only a couple of events held at some players’ own houses. Those reunions kept growing until there were almost 50 people in one house. It was then when one member of the community decided to try and open a new gaming center, Login Station, specifically designed for the community of console players, including the fighting game community.
After the opening of the game center, weekly tournaments began. The response from the Smash community was inspiring. They all started attending the weekly events, and even those who could not always go made sure to support the scene in any way they could. Within due time, the community started organizing bigger tournaments, held once or twice a month.
Login Station Esports League, the first tournament with national talent. Photo by @RodroBeicab
After a couple of years passed, they started bringing national talent to their tournaments. Players like Alejandro “Regi Shikimi”, Arturo “Pollo” Almaguer, Salva, and many others attended the tournaments held in Mérida. While all of them had national talent and above average local attendance, it was still not enough to get them on the map, until now.
Arcane 2018, the second entry in the series, promises to be one of the most important tournaments in Mexico this year. With an improved venue over last year, more setups and impressive guest list that includes Leo, Javi, Edgar “Bedgar” Sahagún and including some international talent such as Brandon “Captain L” Trybutch, Richard “Keitaro” King and even Mr. R, Arcane 2018 is on it’s way to becoming a C-tier PGR event. It will be the first 2-day event, and including not only Smash Bros., but Street Fighter V and Dragon Ball FighterZ tournaments too, with their respective guests. With 6,000 MXN in pot bonus for Super Smash Bros. for Wii U singles (a first for the local scene), Arcane is sure to deliver a fantastic tournament experience.
Login Station Crew at Arcane 2017. Photo by @RodroBeicab
If you want to watch the birth of what could be a new national tournament series, you can do it starting on Saturday at 1:00 pm and Sunday 12:00 am EST. It will be broadcasted by local channel Login Station and guests Lugia Corp and Smash Studios. Also, you can check the Smash.gg page for the schedule.
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