The happiest moment of my gaming life is probably the announcement of ‘Super Smash Bros Brawl.’ The cinematics, the characters, the fights: everything was there. It was like a doorway to happiness made by Nintendo. But the company insists on closing the doors to our joy if they are not the ones manufacturing it, and 15 years after that amazing game for Wii, they have started imposing draconian regulations on their tournaments.
About that, there is more Nestea
While other developers have embraced esports as a way to grow their game beyond traditional channels, Nintendo has always resisted, especially if they are not the ones setting all the rules, for fear of turning their beloved icons into absurd statues dedicated to uncontrolled competitiveness. And now it’s the turn of one of the kings of online sports: ‘Super Smash Bros’.
From now on, the game’s tournaments must be organized without profit, effectively destroying professional tournaments. Additionally, participation is limited to 200 players, prizes exceeding $5000 are prohibited, the use of sponsors is banned, and – logically enough – modified versions of their games cannot be used.
So much so that Nintendo prohibits organizers from selling food, drinks, and merchandise, dealing a fatal blow to anyone wanting to host a tournament for more than just pure fun. It seems terrible, but the truth is, there could be commercial tournaments… if they manage to obtain special permissions directly from Nintendo. It will be the company who decides whether to grant it or not.
Is it worth hosting a ‘Super Smash Bros’ tournament if all you’re going to get is a rejection from Nintendo and frustration tied to losing money? Some have chosen to confront Nintendo until they explicitly demand a stop, while others have long abandoned the game, like Evo, which, when bought by Sony, was prohibited from showing a single image of Mario in their streams. A pity for all the kind-hearted people who pick Kirby to crush their opponents. And for the rest too. If playing without Kirby can be called playing, that is.
