Players rallied against Nintendo’s actions, causing #FreeMelee to trend across social media and throughout the gaming world. In the face of public backlash, Nintendo released a statement describing Slippi as a mod that violates their intellectual property. The Big House’s cancellation, announced after the TOs had been directly contacted by Nintendo, came as a major shock to the community. Fizzi quickly became hailed as a hero, almost single-handedly saving the scene from extinction when tournaments like the Big House chose to adopt Slippi. Slippi is a software that provides a seamless way to play online against other players. TOs and players were happy to bear this burden for nearly two decades, but in March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic hit, putting an abrupt end to in-person tournaments.Īs luck would have it, a fan named Fizzi would go on to release Project Slippi a few months into the pandemic, offering a glimpse of hope for the community. This means that TOs have been tasked with getting enough GameCubes, Wiis, copies of the game, and clunky CRT TVs to play on. Players, for most of the game’s competitive existence, have played in person.

Melee is a GameCube game that was released in 2001 unlike most competitive esports, Melee was released without any online features. The Big House Announces that Nintendo has Shut Down its Tournament via Twitter, November 19 th, 2020.

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