Twitch has become an increasingly hard-to-miss part of the video game convention landscape, with a growing presence at many of the year’s biggest events. It even launched its own event, TwitchCon,in San Francisco last September. But we’re not sure anyone, even the Smash community, was expecting last week’s PAX Arena announcement.
In case you missed it, Twitch and PAX South organizers have partnered to create the biggest PAX-related tournament series since the Omegathon.
The inaugural PAX Arena will include four Super Smash Bros. tournaments, two for Super Smash Bros. Melee and two for Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, all of which will be completed before the end of PAX South. And there’s a $10,000 prize pool to be split, in ratios that have yet to be announced, between the best performers in each bracket. Best of all, anyone with a PAX South badge is allowed to sign up for the PAX Arena tournaments, which will also feature a number of professional Smash players and other major figures from the community.
iDigitalTimes spoke with Arian “TheCrimsonBlur” Fathieh, who will provide commentary during the PAX Arena tournaments. Fathieh also serves as Twitch’s Partnerships Lead for Smash Bros. and has previously organized other competitive Smash events like the Kings of Cali tournament. Naturally, he’s pretty excited to see what fans think of PAX Arena when it debuts at PAX South.
“We actually did another Smash tournament that was called ‘Smash @ PAX [Prime]” Fathieh told iDigi. “The PAX organizers really liked it…so they decided this time we’re going to get actual main floor space.”
What he didn’t mention was the sheer size of Twitch’s next tournament. Smash @ PAX Prime was held in an off-site ballroom, at one of several hotels partnered with the convention. This time, PAX Arena will occupy 6,400 square feet on the main show floor, making the tournament easier to find for players and audience members alike. The plan is to have 64 stations ready for competition, as they did during the PAX Prime tournament, throughout the three-day event. And the primary goal, at least for Fathieh, is to spread the gospel of Smash Bros.
“A lot of industry leaders and gaming figureheads [attend] these sorts of conventions,” Fathieh says. “To have them exposed to an eSport they may not have seen before, or haven’t seen at the highest level, that can also get their blood pumping and wanting to be a part of the community themselves.”
While the tournament space isn’t that much bigger this year, only eclipsing the Westin Seattle Grand Ballroom by 400 square feet, Twitch is aware the change of venue could generate more interest among PAX attendees. Around 600 people registered for Smash @ PAX Prime and Fathieh says being on the show floor means the company could “get as many [participants] as we want.” But, for the sake of time, participation in the PAX Arena will be capped. Event organizers haven’t decided on an exact figure yet; however, Fathieh says the caps for each tournament will likely emerge this week.
“We’re going to try to reach out to the pro players to make sure they can get in,” says Fathieh. “If they don’t have a PAX badge, we’ll provide them one. The major community, the players we do want, especially from the
Texas team, we’ll make sure they get in despite the cap.”
Sign-ups for PAX Arena will begin on the first day of PAX South and will continue until the cap is reached for each tournament. Competition likely won’t begin until Saturday, traditionally the busiest day of any PAX event, and wrap up with championship matches on the final day of the convention. Twitch says additional information on the event will continue to trickle out as we get closer and closer to the start of PAX South. But substantial prize support and the promise of a sizable audience has been more than enough to invigorate most corners of the Smash community.
“At the top level, I know a lot of the pros have asked for invites to get in,” Fathieh says. “And the local Texas team is particularly happy about it because it kind of got sprung on them like ‘Oh, I guess we have a major tournament coming up this month, in our own region.’ So it seems like everybody is really happy about it. I’m particularly excited because there’s a little bit of a lull after [Genesis 3]…So I’m happy to give the Smash community and Smash Bros. scene a little more content in the coming weeks.”
When asked which players we should watch out for, Fathieh said he expects a Dallas native, Robert “Wobbles” Wright, to do quite well in the tournament. Having previously taken tournament sets off four of The Five Gods, Wobbles was known as a tough opponent prior to his retirement. Now that Wright has rejoined the competitive scene, Fathieh says the opportunity to compete in his home state could prove beneficial to Wobbles. Wright is considered one of the best Ice Climbers players alive and is one of eight competitors already invited to the PAX Arena, alongside other professionals like Gonzalo “ZeRo” Barrios and Joseph “Mango” Marquez.
Of course, not everyone who takes part in the PAX Arena tournaments will be an established competitor from the Smash Bros. scene. If that were the case, PAX Arena probably wouldn’t need nearly as much space on the show floor. The folks at Twitch expect more than a few newcomers to take part in the PAX South event and, as a longtime player himself, Fathieh offered words of wisdom for anyone thinking about making PAX Arena their first competitive gaming experience.
“My number one piece of advice, for anyone who is attending their first tournament, is to first go out there and try to meet friends,” Fathieh told iDigitalTimes. “Find out more about your local scene. Wherever you are, there’s probably a tournament or Smash bets or some other person to play against. Try to meet friends.”
Finding local Smash communities is only the first step, though. Like most any competitive endeavor, those hoping to rise through the ranks of amateur and/or professional Super Smash Bros. players will need to devote significant amounts of time to their new hobby. After all, nobody becomes an expert overnight. The world’s best Smash players practice on a daily basis. And anyone hoping to join them will likely need to do the same. But Fathieh also believes participation in events like PAX Arena can be key to personal growth, both as a competitive gamer and in the local/global Super Smash Bros. scene.
“Don’t worry, too much, about winning or losing. Just try to go out and have fun.” Fathieh says. “When the finals come around, just try to soak it all in. I think that often catapults people to the drive they need to get better at the game and be a greater part of the community.”
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Be sure to check back with iDigitalTimes.com and follow Scott on Twitter for additional PAX South coverage, including more on the PAX Arena, in the coming weeks.
