Some of that Capcom Cup magic has clearly rubbed off on Smash, as this weekend’s UGC Smash Open in Saint Louis has been almost as tumultuous. Acting as the penultimate major before the end of the year and with a pot bonus of $40,000 on the line, Smashers clearly brought their A-game to this clash in the Gateway City.
Even before top 8, this tournament had some absolute shockers. One player who was clearly gaining some strength from the antics over at the Capcom Cup was Darkshad, who took down multiple top level threats with his Ryu. Starting in pools, he defeated Team Elevate’s Larry Lurr with a huge 3-2 upset, sending the USA’s best Fox in the Losers’ bracket incredibly early. From there, he followed up with another close set with Smash Studios’ Mr. E, losing 3-2 but gaining some sort of power boost as he entered the lower bracket. His Ryu dragon punched its way to victory against Louisiana’s top Peach Samsora before demolishing one of the front-runners to take the whole event, Mexico’s MKLeo with a 3-1 win. Unfortunately, his range was just one fist short of top 8, losing to DMG|CaptainZack 3-0 and going out at ninth place. With giants like C9|Ally, Mr. R and DNL|Marss also placing ninth, Darkshad has put himself on the map as a future candidate for the USA’s best Ryu.
Both Winners’ and Losers’ side of top 48 was a minefield, with players like C9|Ally, CT|Salem and Ryuga already in Losers, with top contenders like IMT|ANTi, DNG|Kameme and CLG|VoiD acting as substantial roadblocks to anyone trying to crack that final eight.
While Darkshad acted as a new face to disrupt the brackets, an old face struck the tournament like a bolt from the blue. Playing out of his skin, Panda Global’s ESAM seemed to return to his prime 2015 form, with his Pikachu looking like it has spent some serious time in the Day-Care. His use of DI Thunder traps, Pikachu’s jab lock combos and overall confidence made him a force to be reckoned with, smashing through players like CT|Salem, CLG|VoiD and DMG|CaptainZack on his way to top 8. While losing out to LG|Abadango in the first round of top 8–in a player match-up we haven’t seen since Evo 2015–his Pikachu kept on trucking, double eliminating VoiD and then dispatching NRG’s Nairo to gain the runback with the Japanese fighter. Unfortunately, Abadango’s Mewtwo proved to be just that bit stronger than ESAM, sending Florida’s last hope out at an amazing third place finish. ESAM clearly wanted to get on that Panda Global Ranking before Genesis 4 and this showing should silence any doubters claiming his fall from relevance.
Nairo’s run through top 8 has to be mentioned for his mind-boggling performance with one rarely seen character. Showing this reptilian fighter during the low tier side event, Nairo’s Bowser put his Zero Suit Samus to shame, dismantling opponents with his awe-inspiring grab game. Nairo did not drop a game when he used Bowser, 3-0ing Zinoto and reverse 3-0ing Mr. E in matches which sent the crowd into a frenzy. He even managed to pull off a zero to death with the Koopa king when facing Mr. E, something which shouldn’t actually be possible when considering how badly Bowser does in the Marth matchup. While he did not win the whole event, Nairo definitely created some new Bowser mains with his tournament performance.
Yet, for all the crazy counterpicks and upsets, TSM|ZeRo marched on through the bracket. Besides a touch and go set with Mr. R just before top 8, the current number one ranked Smash 4 player showed no signs of bequeathing his crown to anyone else. ZeRo’s Diddy continued to be an absolute terror to anyone who would dare face it, locking down the stage with his use of Diddy’s banana and dominating the ledge so that any get up option seemed unfavorable. His Diddy was so smothering, it forced Abadango to cycle through two of his secondaries, first trying Megaman in Winners’ Finals to no avail, before switching back to old main Meta Knight in Grand Finals. The Meta Knight pick did look promising, with Abadango getting a foothold and finally taking two games against ZeRo in their entire set history but ZeRo’s composure just about held, resulting in a 3-2 victory for TSM’s Smash 4 representative.
With 2016’s last major being 2GGT:ZeRo Saga, the onus is on him to prove that his low placings during the middle of the year were nothing more than a fluke, and that he is still the king of Smash 4. Version 2 of the Smash 4 PGR will be decided at ZeRo Saga, so expect fierce fighting as competitors make that final dash for a place on the global rankings.
RESULTS:
1. TSM|ZeRo (Diddy/USA)
2. LG|Abadango (Mewtwo, Megaman, Meta Knight/Japan)
3. PG|ESAM (Pikachu, Mewtwo/USA)
4. NRG|Nairo (Zero Suit Samus, Bowser/USA)
5. CLG|VoiD (Sheik/USA)
5. SS|Mr. E (Marth/USA)
7. ELV|Larry Lurr (Fox, Donkey Kong/USA)
7. DMG|CaptainZack (Bayonetta/USA)
Sources: smash.gg; UnrivaledTournaments