Recent News

The Socal regional series is hosting the grand finale to their circuit on June 23rd 2012!  This is going to be an awesome event as always but there are a few things that are bringing some extra hype for you.

With the help of the smash community we've raised funds to help both Mr. R and Vinnie make it out to the tournament.  That's right - both the European swagmonster and East Coast grabguy will be at this event.  Neither one of these players have set foot on the West Coast before and with the high skill level at this tournament I'm positive pride will be broken.

Just to give you an idea of the difficulty here is a list of players confirmed to make it out:

Mr. R
Vinnie
Tyrant
Fow
TKD
DEHF
SK92
RichBrown
Havok
Mike Haze

OBVIOUSLY STACKED.


We're having a special promotion for new players as well.  If you're new to the offline tournament scene you can save money.  If you print out the flyer posted in this article you will receive $5 off of your 1v1 entry fee.  This won't be a tournament you'll want to miss so hopefully that will serve as an extra incentive for you.

The tournament will be hosted at a Anime/card shop in Temple City, California called Desu-Nation.  They have an awesome collection of anime merch so even if you don't enter feel free to come by and check out the event/store.  The address is as followed:

Signups for both 1v1 and 2v2 begin at 11:00AM and end at 12:00 PM.  This is running on a strict schedule so do not be late, otherwise you may not be able to enter. 

We hope you make it out to the event, this will definitely be a great one.  If you have any other questions, feel free to post here or on the tournament page!  CLICK HERE TO BE LINKED TO THE PAGE

The Socal regional series is finishing up another circuit this Saturday, December 10th Temple City, California.  

This event is being sponsored by T MOBILE |Blackberry so expect a lot of awesome all around!  The venue is at an awesome anime store called Desu Nation - Check out the tournament page for pictures.   

Here are a few reasons you should get your butt off of wifi and make it out to Champion: 

1) New Player Discounts - Players new to the offline tournament scene will receive $5 off of their Singles Entry Fee!  All you have to do is print out the flyer below and bring it to the tournament. 

2) Raffles - We will be giving away over $200 in raffle prizes!  All of this stuff is free to win - we will not be selling raffle tickets!    

You will receive a raffle ticket for entering the event. 
You will receive a raffle ticket for bringing a full setup. 
You will receive a raffle ticket for entering the cosplay contest.   

Prizes for the raffles include: SD Cards, Tri Wing screw drivers, Shirts, Anime Merch, a new White Gamecube Controller, and  much more!   

3) Cosplay Contest - You heard it right!  A full on Cosplay Contest will be taking place during the event.  The winner of the  cosplay contest will receive a copy of Skyward Sword 

4) Pools and Amateur Bracket- Pools ensure you get your moneys worth by playing a minimum of five different people, which is great because nobody likes to go 0-2 in bracket.  An Amateur Bracket will be offered to those who don't make it out of pools but still want vengeance!  The top 3 players in Amateur Bracket will receive pot money :). 

5) The Players - The best in the West will be attending and hype matches will ensue.  You won't get the same feel from watching these hype matches on computer screen.  We are expecting lots of tough competition including:  

-Tyrant  
-TKD  
-DEHF  
-Fow 
-Mikehaze  
-Havok  
-Rich Brown  
-Tearbear  
-X 

On top of the singles payout being top 8, there is also a $100 pot bonus!  

As you can see there will be a lot going on all day - this isn't an event you'll want to miss out on!   For more information, be sure to check out the tournament page or email us at MikeHazeGaming@gmail.com

It was important for us to have our first interview with the person who shocked the Smash Bros world in 2010.  This player beat every top player in his path to his extraordinary first place finish, besting not only the likes of America's greatest, but the entire world!  This west coast monster managed his way through one of the toughest brackets in tournament history, earning him the first true international title in Smash Bros!As you may have guessed (from the title of the article) joining me in our inaugural interview for Apexsmash.com is none other than the champion of the 2010 Smash Bros. Brawl bracket, DEHF!  

dmbrandon:  Larry, it's been a year since your win at Apex 2010, and in five months, you'll have a chance to defend your title.  But first, tell us a little bit about how you felt after your victory over Brood: 

DEHF:  I felt really excited and happy! The tournament itself was probably the most efficient tournament I've ever been to and it was really fun. Winning the tournament just made everything all the more better. It was the first national I've ever won and I did it going all Falco, something that a lot people said was impossible to do. 

dmbrandon:  Honestly, I still say it's impossible.  But, your innovative style with Falco has produced some serious success!  Top placings at MLG, the Pound Series, and the winner of Apex 2010:  Can we expect any new tricks this year, or do you just plan to hone your current style?

DEHF:  You can expect some new tricks from this time around. I've been thinking up new tricks that I can use to prepare for Apex. 

dmbrandon:  Did you go into the tourney expecting a 1st place finish?

DEHF:  I wasn't expecting it, but I was aiming for it. 

dmbrandon:  Unfortunately, your presence hasn't felt in such a powerful fashion since your first place finish at Apex 2010, can you give us a run down of what you're doing to ensure you keep your title as Apex Champion?

DEHF:  I intend on playing a lot more for Apex 2012. When I went to the last Apex I had been playing and practicing so much for it that I was prepared for everything thrown at me, it was the most I've ever practiced for a smash tournament in my life. After winning Apex I practiced less and less, which shows in my placings. I don't own a working Wii or a copy of brawl, but I borrowed one from my friend recently and have been practicing a good amount by playing wifi with others.

dmbrandon:  Some players swear by Wi-fi, and others won't touch it.  Do you feel Wi-fi is reliable practice?

DEHF:  I feel like Wi-fi helps in your prediction skills and gives you some knowledge in match ups that you may not run into every tournament. The lag makes it so that you won't play as well as you normally would offline, but I feel that if you think of Wi-fi more as a way to learn and improve the lag shouldn't matter that much.

dmbrandon:  Moving onto the ruleset, Apex is going for a more conservative ruleset, even going to the lengths to ban stages like Brinstar and Rainbow Cruise.  This is going against the Unity Ruleset, which has so far been a bit more liberal.  As a Falco player, where do you stand on stage lists?

DEHF:  I agree with both of those stages being banned, Rainbow Cruise more than Brinstar. I think having a stage with a moving blastzone hurts the game competitively. It's a fun stage of course, but I don't think it belongs as a competitive stage list. I would think Brinstar is a fine stage as well if not for the acid that constantly rises. We all know that both stages has some sort of competitive potential in them, if they didn't they would've been banned a lot sooner. I feel that having the stages left on are not the way to go, especially if we want to have more character diversity in our scene.

dmbrandon: Character diversity leads to one simple question:  Metaknight!  Ban?  

DEHF:  With the current stagelist we have I would say yes. With Rainbow Cruise and Brinstar banned, I'm not sure. I guess I would lean more to no.

dmbrandon:  Well, moving on a bit, a lot of players are known for playing one specific character.  I'd say you're definitely the name that comes to mind when people think of Falco!  However, Falco can be limited on in cetain situations, so have you picked up any secondaries that will benefit you on counter pick stages, or in hard matchups?

DEHF:  I have a Metaknight, that pretty much takes care of all of all of Falco's bad stages and bad match ups. I've been training up my Ice Climbers, trying to get them tournament ready. I don't know if they'll be good enough to use by the time Apex rolls along. I also have a pretty good Fox that I'll probably never use. His good and bad match ups are the same as Falco's, I don't really see a point in using him over Falco.

dmbrandon:  You mentioned you are working on Ice Climbers, what sparked the change?

DEHF:  I think they have a lot of potential. The have an inescapable 0-death with their chain grab. Even without the chain grab, they rack up damage very fast. 

dmbrandon:  Do you see having to switch off a lot; who would you switch for?  Who do you see this year as your biggest competition?

DEHF:  I'd say there's quite a few people. Esam is probably my biggest threat. He plays Pikachu and Ice Climber, Falco's two worse match ups.  Ally is a big one of course.  He was amazing before and has gotten a lot better since he decided to use more characters. There's ADHD, a player I've never beaten.  In fact, I don't think I've ever taken a game off of him in tournament. Tyrant, who I go back and forth with. If he's on his game, He's very capable of beating anyone. And of course, Mew2king. There are times when I play him and it just seems like absolutely nothing works.

dmbrandon:  Since you went ahead and mention SO MANY of East Coast's players, it begs the question: What region do you think is currently the strongest?

DEHF:  As much I hate to say it, I have to say NY/NJ is strongest region right now. Overall, most of their players out place every other region and 1st place is usually taken by someone in that region at nationals.

dmbrandon:  As a completely unbiased reporter, I would agree that your statement of New Jersey and New York being the best.     Again, Unbiased.  But, on the topic of regions, a lot of international attendance is expected, including a ton of Marth players from Europe!  How do you think the Marth onslaught from Europe is going to fare against the Metaknights of America?      
DEHF: I wouldn't be surprised if they placed very high, but I don't see them winning it all.

dmbrandon:  Are you excited to play any specific international players?

DEHF:  I'm most excited in playing Mr-R and Leon, I think it would be fun to play other high level Marth players.

dmbrandon:  Are you confident in America winning the "USA vs the World Invitational Crew Battle?"

DEHF:  I think we'll win. We have all these good Metaknights! They won't stand a chance!

dmbrandon:  Well, I hope you all put on a good show!  We're all greatly looking forward to the event, and I'm sure everyone is going be playing at a fantastic level.  But, before we talk about your expectations of the event as a whole, I wanna talk briefly about doubles.    As one of the best players in the country, I'm sure you're swarmed for teams requests.  Have you found yourself a partner, or are you still weighing your options?

DEHF:  Yes, I have a partner. I'm going to be teaming with Vex.

dmbrandon:  You guys recently both traveled to Hawaii for an event, correct?

DEHF:  Yes, we did. It was HSI 2011.

dmbrandon:  What can the world expect from you and Vex?  Team comps, predictions on placings, etc?

DEHF:  I honestly don't know, teams are hit and miss with me. I either place very high or very low. We aren't going to be able to practice until Apex since we live so far from each other, so I hope that we instantly click when we play. 

dmbrandon:  Should we expect him to play Game and Watch for bucket shenanigans, or just straight Metaknight?

DEHF:  I'd want him to go Game and Watch, I've never teamed with a good Game and Watch before.

dmbrandon:  I suppose you guys will be trying to practice over Wifi, then?

DEHF:  That's true, I forgot about that. 

dmbrandon:  Besides the tourney itself, is there anything you're excited about, in terms of attending Apex?

DEHF:  Meeting all of the players that will be there, especially the European and Japanese players.

dmbrandon:  Is there anything you'd like to add or say to the community before we finish this up?

DEHF:  See you all at Apex! It going to be amazing! If you're thinking about not going, GO! You'll be missing out on so much!

DEHF's chance to defend his international crown comes quickly, as APEX2012 is less than four months away!  Stay tuned for next week, where we'll announce our fifth final event, our streaming partner, and the launch of The Road to Apex:  Online Edition!  Don't forget:  Up to date information on the tournament, including our sponsors, can be found at www.apexsmash.com!

Genesis is in just 3 weeks! (July 15th-17th). Registration ends on June 30th! That's just tomorrow! Follow this link: http://t.co/mqJQq69 and sign up today!

Genesis 1 brought some of the most hype sets in both Brawl and Melee history. Genesis 2 will be featuring all the top players from around the nation, including household names such as M2K, Ally, Tyrant, and DEHF. In addition, RAIN and EARTH will be making a special appearance all the way from Japan! Words can't describe the amount of hype and energy that will be in the building in 3 weeks. This is a must have experience for every smasher out there.

Register today! And if transportation/housing is an issue, fear not! Here are some very helpful links which will assure that everyone who wants to go to Genesis can find a way to be there.

Transportation: http://allisbrawl.com/blogpost.aspx?id=116579 , http://allisbrawl.com/blogpost.aspx?id=116277

Housing: http://allisbrawl.com/blogpost.aspx?id=114714

Also, for those wanting to get in some last minute practice before Genesis, be sure to come out to E4J: Champion ( http://allisbrawl.com/ttournament.aspx?id=12016 ) the week before on July 9th! M2K and TKD will be in attendance!

MLG Dallas, the final tournament for the 2010 MLG Circuit, officially has its 16 top players. Throughout the MLG Circuit, 8 players have made it into the championship bracket based on their previous performances. To join them, 8 additional players have worked their way through the MLG Dallas open bracket. The final 16 seeds in order are:

Ally
ESAM
Tyrant
Lee Martin
Nick Riddle
Rich Brown
Atomsk
Fatal
Gnes
Logic
Espy
X
DEHF
MikeHAZE
Dojo
MJG

Each player's first round opponent and the general bracket is shown below.



Now, for all you spectators keeping track of what's going on at MLG, here's your chance to give your predictions for how the top 16 will place! You can send in a list of your predictions for the final rankings of these players in order as a pm to Falln, and the the people with the three closest guesses will get a badge showcasing their knowledge of the top players at MLG. In addition, our good buddy Neal has offered to award the person with the most accurate list either a Virtual Console or Steam game on the PC of $15 worth or less if we get 15 or more submissions.
     Of course, in the interests of fairness, you must submit your top 16 predictions before the start of the championship bracket, which begins at Sunday, 10:00 am central time. Good luck, and let's see who comes closest for the top 16 finishers!

Continue reading MLG DC - October 15th-17th

MLG Raleigh is just around the corner and it's time to remind everyone to register before the deadline closes! The event will kick off August 27th with the Brawl 1v1 Event and conclude on August 29th with the Brawl 2v2 event. The first two MLG events were a huge success, with all of the best players in the US in attendance. The matches were hype, the crowd was consistently going crazy, and everyone had a ton of fun. Raleigh is approaching fast, and the deadline to get in on the action is August 23rd - so make sure to click here to register for the event. Registration is only $35 ($45 including at-the-venue-only 2v2 Registration), which is a drop in the bucket compared to most Nationals.

Here is what has been said about previous MLG Events, in case there is any doubt about the amazing style and production of the largest and strongest competitive gaming company in North America:

The best tournament I have been to in my entire life! - Dojo

The tournament was run very smoothly and I had a great experience with the Refs. Really well done overall, amazing job! - MetalMusicMan

MLG was a terrific experience, probably the best tournament I will ever go to in my life.-Clowsui

Another MLG is in the books, and like Orlando, it didn't disappoint. -Mav

I would just like to say that this was the best tournament I have ever been to without a doubt. Not only will I try my best to come to Raleigh, but I think everyone else should do the same. -SnackAttack

The place is huge. It’s ten times the size of my house. They’ve got good systems, it’s very well run. Most efficient tournament I’ve ever been to. - ESAM

The venue is amazing and the crowd is a lot of fun. I’ve never had this much fun at a tournament before. I loved the crowd. It made things a lot more fun.-ADHD

This has best the best tournament I have ever been to in the history of forever. I am not kidding, real talk. -Sky

This is my first MLG...and not only has it fulfilled my dreams but it has supported everything I ever expected.-Pierce7d

I absolutely thought it was a great tournament. Seeding could have been better but I know that couldn't be helped. The event was really professionally done and it was a blast. Free Dr. Pepper. I really liked that TV's were turned off for finals to increase the hype of the event.-LeeMartin

This was one of the fastest and most efficiently ran events that I have been to in years. Amazing!-D1

MLG Orlando is one of the best tournaments I have been to. I love Brawl and I love the community.-Tyrant

Of course, maybe these testimonials aren't enough. Maybe you need even more reasons to attend MLG Raleigh this August 27th-29th. Well, lets check out the free stuff you get for just being at the event:

• Free BIC Razors
• Free Old Spice Deodorant
• Free Hot Pockets
• Free Doritos, all you can eat, all weekend long
• Free Stride Gum
• Free Jack Link's Beef Jerky
• Free Dr. Pepper, all you can drink, all weekend long
• Free MLG and Doritos branded hand towels
• Free hand massages
• Free MLG and Hot Pockets branded aluminum water bottles
• Sponsor giveaways and contests for free merchandise, including Best Buy Gift Cards
• A professional photographer taking photos of players all weekend long - pictures go up on www.mlgpro.com the very day they are taken!

Of course, free food, free drinks, free merchandise, that is just part of the experience that MLG provides. MLG has gotten together just about every top player in the country to attend the event. Just who are we talking about?

• Mew2King (Ohio) - Meta Knight
• Ally (Canada) - Snake
• TyraNt (California) - Meta Knight
• ESAM (Florida) - Pikachu
• NickRiddle (Florida) - Zero Suit Samus
• LeeMartin (Louisiana) - Meta Knight/Lucario
• Atomsk (New Jersey) - King Dedede/Ice Climbers/Meta Knight
• DEHF (California) - Falco
• Tearbear (California) - Meta Knight
• ADHD (New Jersey) - Diddy Kong
• Big Lou (Georgia) - Luigi
• mikeHAZE (California) - Marth
• CO18 (Florida) - King Dedede
• San (New York) - Ike

Throw in others like Hunger, Kismit, Reflex, Anti, Fatal, Felix, and RichBrown and the competition is stacked. If you have ever wanted to play the best in the world, while getting tons of free stuff, MLG Raleigh is where it is at.

Of course, maybe Brawl isn't the only game you are interested in. That's OK. For Raleigh only, we will be bringing in a few Melee set ups to celebrate the MLG's 50th Event. In addition to that, you can watch the best players in North America and the world go head to head in four other official tournament titles:

• Halo 3
• Starcraft 2
• Tekken 6
• World of Warcraft

Still not enough? Well, if you can hang with the Pro's, then you can get your shot at a $7,000 prize pool paid out to Top 8. That is more money than any other national except for other MLG Pro Circuit Events! Here is the prize breakdown:

1. $2,500
2. $1,500
3. $1,000
4. $700
5. $500
6. $350
7. $250
8. $200

And at the National Championships later this November in Dallas, we get to see an event with $35,000 in prizes paid to the Top 8:

1. $12,500
2. $7,500
3. $5000
4. $3,500
5. $2,500
6. $1,750
7. $1,250
8. $1,000

The best players. The best sponsors. The best gaming experience. Come to MLG Raleigh and see all that competitive gaming has to offer. You will not be disappointed. Remember to register here for only $35! Do it today. Do it right now. Don't wait.

MLG will be offering coverage in the next week leading up the event, including interviews and a preview article. The first of these articles is already up on the site: Count interviews Apex 2010 Champion and MLG Pro Player DEHF. Click here to check it out!

Here is some additional, important information regarding the event:

• Weekend Schedule (tentative)
• Ruleset
• Pro Circuit Standings
• Travel and Hotel Information (Left hand side of page, toward bottom)

Register now!

• Follow MLG on Twitter!
• Follow AlphaZealot on Twitter!
• Click "I am attending this tournament" for updates on AiB!

So as we gear up for the tournament in just a few days here lets take a look towards some storylines for SuperCon.

1. Mew2King vs. DEHF

With Mew2King coming off his first Brawl tournament in pretty much forever without a 1st place finish to show for it will he bounce back with a win? And what about the man himself, DEHF, he not only beat M2K at Apex but went on to win the tournament. Can he defend his title and post back to back wins heading into MLG Raleigh?

2. Ally

While 99% of smashers would be thrilled with a 5th place finish, AiB celebirty Ally is not one of those. Its a finish below his normal standards and this is a guy who takes loses pretty hard. Will he bring it back with a force in Colorado?

3. How will the bonus money for using only mid tier characters down impact the tournament?

There has never been a smash tournament that has put bonus money into the pot trying to throw the mid tiers down a bone. Taking the players that rocked the characters that were not at the peak of the tier list and tried to reward them for their efforts. But how will it impact things? Might you see Ally playing Falcon or other top players use this as an occasion to break out their lower tiered characters? Will the old guard of tried and true real lower tier mains represent and have one of their own take down the bonus? I know Hug's samus will have his eye on the prize for Melee, but with other strong players playing characters like Gannon and Luigi we will see if he can. And Axe certainly has his eye on it for Brawl. How will it all go down? Only time will tell.

*For the Record you may switch within this group, but if at any time in singles you use a character not on this list you become ineligible.*

Melee

Middle
Samus, Dr. Mario, Ganondorf, Luigi, Donkey Kong, Mario

Low
Link, Pikachu, Young Link, Roy, Zelda, Game and Watch

Bottom
Ness, Yoshi, Bowser, Mewtwo, Kirby, Pichu

 

Brawl

Middle

Pit, Toon Link, ZSS, Kirby, ROB, DK, Peach, Fox, Luigi, Wolf, Sheik, Pokemon Trainer, Sonic, Ness, Bowser

Low

Lucas, Ike, Yoshi, Mario, Falcon, Samus, Jigglypuff, Zelda, Link, Gannon

 

4. What is the Melee Tournament going to look like and how is the evolution of the metagame going to be on display?

Last, but certainly not least, is Melee. Its incredibly interesting to see the Melee scene and metagame continue to evolve and progress this far into the games life cycle. And especially coming off a massive tournament the week before where I am sure everyone got loads of smash in, how will this be on display at Supercon? Will big names represent? Will it impact character choices? Will we see some progression in play styles?

 

Its all going down in Denver Colorado August 13th-14th, with the AiB BBQ/Pool hang-out on Sunday the 15th.

MLG: Columbus is coming up this week! To kick off MLG week, we sat down with DEHF, the nation's top Falco, and got some of his thoughts regarding the upcoming national event.


Rich: The first question is a simple one: Why Falco?


DEHF: He was my Melee character to start with, plus I tried other characters and Falco just seemed to click with me.


Rich: You’re widely considered one of the top 10 players in the nation. This also puts a target on your back and gives everyone extra incentive to beat you. How do you handle the pressure of being such a high level player?


DEHF: You get used to it. Eventually, the pressure becomes a driving factor into what makes you play better.


Rich: How do you feel about your performance at MLG: Orlando?


DEHF: I feel I could've placed higher; hopefully I do so in Columbus.


Rich: Tell me a little about your Orlando experience. What stood out in your mind from the trip?


DEHF: I think that was one of the most fun trips I had going to a tournament.


Rich: What made the tournament fun for you?


DEHF: Hanging out with smashers like Dekar, Arturito Burrito, HRNut, GDX, and everyone else staying there.


Rich: What’s your mindset going into MLG: Columbus? What goals do you have in mind?


DEHF: My mindset is to play like it were any other tournament. My only goal for the tournament is to win.


Rich: For a lot of players, this will be their first MLG event. What advice do you have for the first time players?


DEHF: Don't take it too seriously; going to an MLG for the first time can be very overwhelming and can make you nervous. As long as you remember that it's just like any other tournament you should be fine.


Rich: Is there anyone in particular you’re looking forward to playing?
 
DEHF: I'd like to play Ally again, I really enjoy playing against him.


Rich: What do you think the top 8 will look like? Do you feel any upsets happening, much like how Chaz, Esam, and Biglou came out of nowhere to take very high placings?



DEHF: I think that an Olimar player named Rich Brown and Shugo will do well.
 
Rich: Last question: Falco’s jab is stupid.


DEHF: That's not a question.


Rich: I know, it's a FACT. Hehe. Thanks for your time DEHF, and good luck at Columbus!
 
DEHF: No problem, see you at Columbus!


Get the latest MLG updates on AllieD's twitter. AllieD will be constantly giving bracket updates throughout MLG weekend!

mikeHAZE: After writing up the last Tournament Analysis article, I quickly realized that I couldn't do this alone, so I had to bring someone with me!  Please welcome our East Coast Representative, AlliieD.
 
 
AlliieeD: Hey, what's up all?  This is Allied from New York and  I'll be reporting to you about the hottest tournaments this side of the US.
 
We're a little late this week, please forgive us; we'll be back to a normal schedule on the next article.
 
This past weekend, East Coast Brawl attended Super DSO 2, a tournament being run by ChiboSempai who is a well known host as well as a great player in the Smash community.  
 
The tournament ran Singles and Doubles for both Brawl and Brawl+.
 
Brawl Singles:
 
1: Atomsk
2: Squall
3: Ninjalink
4: Inui
5: Malcolm
5: ChiboSempai
7: MintyFlesh
7: Izumi
 
Brawl Singles had some pretty interesting results.  Atomsk placed first, which is nothing out of the ordinary, but the battle to first place is something to be talked about.
 
As you see, Squall got second place.  If you're unfamiliar with Squall then let me enlighten you.
 
Squall is considered PA's best player (I don't know if it's official yet).  Last weekend was disappointing for him: he placed 17th at Asylum, losing to Deltacod, who is New Jersey's best Yoshi. Squall was kinda depressed at DSO, questioning even entering the tournament, but with some support from Vex Kesrani and I he decided to enter. 
 
Squall had an INSANELY tough bracket.  He showed us that he's a force to reckoned with. In winners bracket, he took out players like Nasty, Will - who is considered the best Donkey Kong, Ninjalink, Inui, and then finally in Winners' Finals he took out Atomsk.
 
Stacked bracket if you ask me.  
 
In the losers' bracket, Atomsk took out Ninjalink for second place.  Ninjalink, who got 3rd, had an impressing killing spree in losers' bracket after being knocked out by Squall early on in the tournament.  In losers' he defeated Xzax, Mintyflesh, Inui, and Malcolm before losing to Atomsk. 
 
Ninjalink definitely showed off his amazing Diddy Kong once again in the tournament, as well as his surprise guest: Pikachu.
 
Surprising results, and a very fun tournament. As far as tournament hosting, let's give shout outs to Chibo! He did a very good job. And special shout outs to Alex Strife for making a guest hosting appearance. 
  
  
  
mikeHAZE: Yo guys, this is mikeHAZE and I'll be bringing you the scoop on what happened on West Coast's regional tournament this past weekend - TourneyPlay #5.
 
This was the fifth tournament being run by GCguy (Chris), owner of Gameclucks - a gamestore residing in Washington.  GCguy has been known for hosting some well run, well hyped tournaments, so it was good to see him out in Southern California running a regional outside of his comfort zone.
 
The two day tournament saw a plethora of different games: Brawl, Melee, Halo 3, Super Street Fighter 4, Call of Duty: MW2, and TVC.
 
Brawl had 79 entrants for singles, which included players from all over the West Coast, as well as a special Midwest guest - Mew2King.
 
Singles Results:
 
1: Mew2King
2: Tyrant
3: mikeHAZE
4: DSF
5: Darklink
5: DEHF
7: Rich Brown
7: Warpstatus
 
The first question you may ask yourself: Who is Darklink?  Well first, he doesn't main Link.  Darklink is a Meta Knight player, who is also considered the best player in Arizona.  In the winners' bracket, he defeated Tyrant, Erow, and was then sent to losers' bracket by mikeHAZE in Winners' Semifinals.
 
Warpstatus and Rich Brown did really well as you can see.  They actually played each other first match of Pro Bracket, with Rich Brown taking the win in a close 2-1 set.  Rich also took out Zex before being sent to losers bracket by Mew2King.
 
Warpstatus had a good run considering his loss vs. Rich in the first bracket match.  In losers bracket he took out Brent, Tearbear, FOW, and CPU before losing an intense, last match set vs. DEHF.
 
DEHF took a early loss in the winners' bracket after losing to mikeHAZE 2-1, and was later taken out by DSF when they met in losers'.
 
In winners' finals, mikeHAZE played Mew2King.  Unfortunately (yes, I'm biased) Mike lost to Mew2King 3-1. 
 
In the losers' bracket Mike faced Tyrant, who made quite a comeback in losers' bracket despite his early defeat.  After his loss vs. Darklink, he defeated: Typh, Oki, Fiction, Rich Brown, Darklink, DSF (who forfeited), then finally faced and defeated mikeHAZE in Losers' Finals 3-1.  Tyrant met Mew2King in grand finals where he lost 3-0.
 
Mew2King dominates once again.  With MLG coming up pretty soon everyone is wondering if he will be able to stay static with his wins.

After a long wait, So Cal has released its latest Power Rankings update! Here’s the list below:



 



Points of interest:


-These rankings have four MKs, along with one Falco, Marth, Olimar, Lucario, Fox, and Wario. Havok has stated he is going to use Snake until MLG: Columbus. TKD also uses MK from time to time. Overall, a very diverse list of characters.



-Tyrant reclaims the number one spot, pushing DEHF back to number two. It’s always a tossup between these two players, as they’ve never consistently beaten each other.



-The highest jump was made by TearBear, who went from the 8 spot all the way to 4.



-The biggest drop was made by Havok, who went from the 4 spot down to 6.



-Stauffy is the first ranked Lucario in So Cal since BoA back in late 2008. This is his first time on the So Cal PR. Congrats Stauffy!



-TKD and Fiction have both been ranked before, but were taken off the list due to inactivity. With some recent strong performances, however, they both found their way back on. TKD was actually ranked with his MK previously, and is now ranked with his Fox.



There you go! The next update will be roughly around mid-late summer.



If you live in So Cal and want to get ranked, start attending in person tournaments! The first tournament that will be considered towards rankings this period is TourneyPlay5 (http://allisbrawl.com/ttournament.aspx?id=8595). Every one of these pros will be in attendance, so come on down and get a chance to play these top ranked players!

Join the Official So Cal PR group page! http://allisbrawl.com/group.aspx?id=10313

Looking for a single-post wrapup of (most) everything that went down at GENESIS this past weekend? Look no further! (For full brackets and results see the AiB tournament page.)

Brawl
Top Brawl stories:

• Singles event size: 294 entrants, the second largest Brawl tournament ever.
• Ally takes Brawl singles after losing the winners finals match to Mew2King. After moving the grand finals matches back to the hotel, Ally triumphs in two sets over M2K to take top placing of GENESIS Brawl. Videos are available here!
• In similar fashion, Mew2King and Fiction come back from losers bracket to beat Ally and Sean in two sets to win doubles grand finals. (Still waiting on videos!)
• Only 3 of the top 8 placings were from Metaknight mains, and those placings were from arguably the 3 best MKs in the nation.
• A big argument/controversy over excessive stalling broke out during the losers bracket set between DEHF and Dojo. The Smash Back Room held a private discussion and held a vote to give the set to Dojo.
• Due to the delay over the DEHF/Dojo incident, the tournament did not finish at the venue. The singles and doubles grand finals had to be played out back at the hotel.
• Several crew battles were run during the 3 days but no conclusive winner was found. Pacific Northwest (OR/WA) lost to Puerto Rico and Midwest beat NorCal. SoCal and Atlantic North had to stop due to time constraints but Atlantic North later forfeitted. South demolished the International team.

Melee
Top Melee stories:

• Singles event size: 290 entrants, the largest Melee tournament in history.
• Armada lives up to the hype with flying colors, taking winners bracket sets against DaShizWiz, Mew2King, Mango, and others. His incredible Peach -- a character that no one has considered a tournament winner in a very long time -- impresses greatly and will likely inspire a new generation of Smashers.
• Mango bounces back and takes grand finals from Armada in two of the greatest sets ever played in Melee. 
• East Coast defeats West Coast in crews, Canada beats International, and South takes out Canada. EC vs. South doesn't happen because no one feels up to it after the amazing singles grand finals events.
• Mew2King and Jman come back from losers bracket to defeat Scar and Darc in doubles grand finals, giving East Coast the top 2 doubles placings and Mew2King a clean sweep of the doubles events at the tournament.
• The Mew2King/Armada winners semifinals match is marred by controversy when the two players play a best of 3 set when the rules call for a best of 5. DBR decides that the match stands, as in general any game played with improper rules can only be objected to during the game/set and not after. (This is a summary argument; both sides of the debate had excellent points and this tournament organizer is glad he did not have to make the final decision, and would also like to thank all parties involved for (mostly) keeping their cool during the discussion. Just watch out for Tonberry, that dude is scary when he's angry :))
• Zhu later defeats Mew2King in losers bracket, making him only the second West Coast player to take a set off off M2K in the modern Melee scene. Zhu ends up placing fourth overall.
• Florida represents with a ton of talent at the top of the Melee bracket, including dark horse Hungrybox at 3rd.
• Tope ruins the Silent Spectre vs. darkrain hype by defeating SS in bracket. GOOD GOING TOPE :P.
• Melee videos are slowly being released via this YouTube channel.

Community
Top community/miscellaneous stories:

• Ramada Inn Antioch is overrun by Smashers. Other guests flee the area facing the onslaught of foul-mouthed teenagers. Miraculously, no one is arrested.
• Douchebag pricks who are likely from this very community break into Idaho/Churro's car in the parking lot and steal several TVs and Wiis. Rot in hell you pieces of trash.
• CreepyFingers' prosu burgers sell like wildfire, with people having to wait up to 30 minutes for their order to come in.
• Registration for 500 people takes about 90 minutes thanks to 7 registration stations and some tio additions to support multi-laptop event registration.

Thanks to everyone who attended!

A lot is riding on the results of Genesis. Players will be flocking from all over to prove their might.
Among these players stand the best of the best, the pros. M2K, Ally, Tyrant, FICTION, NinjaLink, Typh, and many others will be attending. There will be so much talent all in one place. Anything can happen!
Will M2K once again rise above all others? Will Ally knock him down?
Today I bring you an interview with three top players. Two come from the East and one from West!

Atomsk-Don't get grabbed!
Zolga: To start things off, who are you?
Atomsk: I'm Atomsk. I'm mostly known for my King DeDeDe but I'm trying to play the Ice Climbers more because I find them more fun.
Atomsk: I still have a very good King DeDeDe though. People tell me I look like I'm thinking really hard when I play him.
Zolga: You put on your serious face; Brawl is serious business remember?
Atomsk: I guess you could say that.
Zolga: Now to a topic that we all are interested in. How do you feel about the huge amount of Brawl talent that will be attending Genesis?
Atomsk: I think it will be an interesting experience.
Even when I was just starting out, I always wanted to meet out of state players. Just to meet new people. I loved to see the difference in playstyles.
Zolga: Thats good, do you feel you made a good impression?
Atomsk:Yeah, I'm glad that most people have liked me so far.
Zolga: Spread the love Atomsk.
How do you feel the international players will do?
Atomsk: For Brawl?
Zolga: Both Melee and Brawl please.
Atomsk: I believe that the ones playing Melee will do well, but I'd expect America to out place most of them.
Japan scares me though.
Zolga: Do you think our talent will be too much for them?
Atomsk: Whenever you go into enemy territory its natural to feel overwhelmed. As long as you keep calm and play smart you will do just fine.**
Zolga: What do you think about the low tier mains?
Atomsk: To be honest I know I'll get hate for this.
Low tiers are nothing but gimmicks in this game.
Few low tier characters have potential.
Zolga: You know I main a low tier *ANGER*
Zelda/Shiek kicks butt.
Atomsk: Good, I think that they are underrated.
Zolga: Most low tier mains moan and whine about how high tiers are cheap. Personally I like the challenge.
Atomsk: Most of them are scrubs. To be honest in this game being challenged by characters like Meta Knight, Diddy Kong, Wario, and the Ice Climbers are actually really fun.
Zolga: I love playing Meta Knights actually.
Atomsk: Me too, NJ has so many scrub Meta Knights.
Zolga: I feel that to beat high tiers you just need to learn the matchup.
Atomsk: Yeah, if you don't feel like putting in the effort to learn matchups you shouldn't call anything cheap.
Zolga: My fellow low tier mains will hate me for this, Go learn a high tier! Stop crying and moaning!
Atomsk: That'd honestly be a good thing.
Zolga: What do you think about the Melee talent?
Atomsk: I think there will be a good amount of it.
I want to see M2K beat Mango for once.
I gotta believe in my East Coast buddy.
Zolga: East Coast for the win!
Zolga: Which region do you think brings the most to the tournament?
Atomsk: In Brawl, I think EC is bringing a lot of talent.
In Melee WC is bringing the skill.
Zolga: Who do you think will triumph in Brawl Singles?
Atomsk: M2K or Ally to be honest.
I hope I do well though.
Zolga: A couple more then we are done.
What do you prefer Brawl or Melee?
Atomsk: I like both equally, I'll play Brawl more only because I am better at it.
Zolga: What do you think are the chances of some unknown player rising to the top?
Atomsk: For Brawl it's possible. Often WiFi players do good in tournaments.
Zolga: Last one.
Will Genesis even finish?
Atomsk: Hell no.
Zolga: Any shoutouts?
Atomsk: I love you Mike Haze! Eggz and his "ADD"!
I'm looking forward to meeting FICTION.
Zolga: Thank you for taking time to be interviewed.

Jem-Fear the Tornado!
Zolga: Let's get this started! Who are you?
Jem: I'm Jem, a MetaKnight main from Washington.
Zolga: A MetaKnight main? How original!
Jem: PLAY TO WIN! No, I'm kidding he is just fun.
Zolga: How do you feel about the boatload of talent that is going to be at Genesis?
Jem: I think it will be really exciting. Every character has a few really good representatives. Even the low tiers, I have a feeling that a lot of the top tier players will be caught off guard. It's cool that even Australians are coming.
Zolga: What about our players?
Jem: I'm very excited for Ally/M2K/DSF/Tyrant/DEHF/Fiction and all the other pro talent to be at one tournament to see who's the best.
Zolga: How do you think the international players will adapt to our style?
Jem: I personally haven't kept up with the out of country talent. I know Japan is really good, but I'm not sure if Australia is any good. I guess we will find out. I feel that our talent will be too much for them though.
Zolga: What do you think about the low tier mains?
Jem: I think because most low tier mains study the high tier matchups, they can cause some upsets.
Zolga: I'm a low tier main myself, but even I don't think they have much of a chance agianst the high tiers.
Jem: M2K, Ally, DSF, and Tyrant are too good.
Zolga: At the top of the crop we have your very own main, MetaKnight. How do you feel the non-Meta players will do?
Jem: Everyone studies the matchup so it's hard to win even as a MetaKnight main like myself
Zolga: I just feel if you learn the matchup you have a shot at winning; don't whine about how they are so cheap
Jem: Yeah that's pretty much how I feel too. A lot of people just want tournaments to be easier. I still don't see Metaknight getting banned though even if he wins. Sure some of us play this at or near a pro-level, but there's never been a character ban in Smash before. Everyone knows Smash is considered a party game forced competitive, so I don't see it happening, its still fun.
Zolga: What do you think about the Melee talent?
Jem: I think that the Melee talent is incredible.
I personally don't see anyone beating Mango though. I am rooting for some underdogs, particularly from Washington. I hope Silent Wolf and Eggz do well. I see M2K maybe taking a set in finals if Mango sandbags, but not the final set.
Zolga: Which region do you think brings the most skill to the tournament?
Jem: California, hands down. California has the best melee player in the world, and arguably the best brawl players(s) in the world. I think most the regions showing up to Genesis are strong, considering all that's on the line. We're about to show you that Washington is a strong region too.
Zolga: Gotta represent your region.
Jem: I love Washington!
Zolga: Do you think M2K will rape singles?
Jem: I've been talking with M2K lately. I think it's fifty-fifty on if he'll win. Ally proved it's possible to beat M2K, even when he's trying. I know DSF has been practicing hard to reach the top again. I'm going to go ahead and say that I do think M2K will win singles. Though I think a few can give him a good run for his money.
Zolga: A few more questions.
Do you prefer Brawl or Melee?
Jem: I prefer Brawl but I think Melee is the better game.
I'm pretty good at Melee too and I do think it is more fun.
Zolga: I like that attitude; I feel both bring different things to the table.
Jem: Absolutely. It's too bad the communities hate each other.
I'm a big fan of both.
Zolga: I suck at Melee but I still think it's fun.
Last one.
Zolga: Do you think Genesis will even finish?
Jem: I predict it will finish at 4 AM in the morning.
Better reschedule those Sunday morning flights.
Jem: I'm confident in Sidefx and D.B.R. to do a good job.
Zolga: Thanks for taking time to talk with me. Do you have any shoutouts?
Jem: Shoutouts to Eggz, Washington, my SoCal friends, and everyone who's rooting for me! Thanks a bunch and everyone COME TO GENESIS. And come to TOURNEYPLAY in October! Tyrant/M2K/DSF are coming! You'll have fun in Washington!

Inui- Master of Doubles
Zolga: Let's get going! Who are you?
Inui: Inui (Lucas DeLorenzo), I main Meta Knight, Snake, and Ike.
Those are the characters I use in tournaments.
Zolga: I heard you prefer doubles to singles; Why is that?
Inui: I find doubles to be a lot more fun, so I'm more motivated. I think it takes a lot of actual skill instead of just abusing top tier characters and camping the whole time. I like teamwork and having a lot of things happening at once.
Zolga: Who would you say has been your best partner?
Inui: Mew2King and Atomsk by far. I almost always team with Atomsk. We have opposite play styles and know the other's style so well. It works out. I can play any role and team with anyone good and be pretty successful, though. I've been with ksizzle, ChuDat, teh_spamerer, Bum, to name a few.
Zolga: What are you excited for at Genesis?
Inui: Brawl doubles and regional crews. I'm the captain for Atlantic North, so there's a lot of pressure on me to lead my team to victory. I'm worried that if we lose, West Coast will think they're better even though we're using a lot of B team players and are deprived of many powerhouses while they won't be. In Brawl doubles, I need to make cash because I'll be far in the hole if I don't make my money back.
Zolga: What do you expect from Brawl Singles?
Inui: No idea, really...I'm going to actually try this time, even if it means camping and being all boring. I'm hoping Atomsk, NinjaLink, Mew2King, ADHD, and the other powerhouses from my region do well. I'm especially hoping they stop the Meta Knights from taking all of the top spots. I expect Mew2King to win and for Ally to place extremely well, but everything else is up for grabs between the top players.
Zolga: What about Melee Singles?
Inui: I really hope Mew2King finally beats Mango, but he probably won't because he plays way too much Brawl.  Mew2King needs to realize that his 2007 skill won't beat Mango. So, I'm expecting Mango to win and for Mew2King to take second. After that, I don't have any idea. I want to see Kage win because I love Ganondorf and admire the way Kage plays and his sportsmanship.
Zolga: What do you think of all the international players coming to Genesis?
Inui: I'm really excited about that!  I want to see how they stack up against us. I got into the SBR not too long ago and got to know and interact with some of the best minds in Europe and Australia. I'm looking forward to meeting them.  Their metagames are different, so I want to see how they play.
Zolga: Do you think that any international players will place well?
Inui: I don't really expect it, to be honest. They might, and I'm not saying they're bad, but I just believe that the skill level here is higher. Their lack of high level Meta Knight experience may hinder there ability to place.
Zolga: Speaking of Meta Knight, how do feel about his potential ban?
Inui: I'm extremely anti-ban. I'm even working hard on the anti-ban team in the SBR right now. Because I see him lose so frequently to other characters here, I don't believe he should be banned. I'm hoping that our Meta Knight slayers take out all of the Meta Knights at Genesis to prove it. Go Atomsk, ADHD, NEO, Pierce, Vex, Malcolm, and NinjaLink!
Zolga: Meta Knight slayers, the community will love that.
You don't expect any Ganondorf's to be winning?
Inui: Um...he's the worst character by far. All of his moves are slower than reaction time, meaning he can't ever win against anyone with a brain. It's really sad since he's my favourite character ever. At least he's usable in Melee.
Zolga: Which region do you feel brings more to the tournament?
Inui: West Coast because it's their home region. They will have all of their powerhouses there and have a big advantage.  Mew2King also said their top players are a bit better than ours. I'm excited to see what happens. I hope Atlantic North brings a strong anti-Meta Knight metagame to their attention and wins.
Zolga: What do you think are the chances of some unknown placing well?
Inui: It's almost impossible. The established top players are too good and too numerous
Zolga: Do you even think Genesis will finish?
Inui: Yeah. The hosts seem to really know what they're doing, and I'll gladly help them if they need it.
Zolga: Which game do you prefer?; Melee or Brawl.
Inui: I have more fun playing Melee, but Brawl has more people and more money right now.
Zolga: What do you think of people calling Brawl a party game?
Inui: It is. Just like Melee and 64. They're all party games than we limited and created rules for in order to make them competitive by our own definition of competitive.
Zolga: That was a very well thought out answer. I expected you to go into "rage mode".
Inui: I try to be logical.
Zolga: Well we are done here, do you have any shoutouts?
Inui: Well... I've already shouted out my Atlantic North homies, no? I'm looking forward to meeting people like Praxis, Fiction, SK92, and other West Coast pros. I'm super excited for this weekend.  SHOUTOUT TO THE WHOLE COMMUNITY!  LET'S MAKE THIS THE BEST TOURNAMENT EVER!

**Very Good Advice
Special thanks to UmbreonMonarchy for proofreading this.

Hey ya'll. Check out t0mmy's TourneyPlay 2 montage below. You get a cookie if you can count the number of times he lies in the vid ("Millions of people watching..." + "This is live stream..." -- that's two).

Continue reading SMASHScene: TourneyPlay 2 Montage