Welcome to Day 6 of SSBMRank! We now delve into the top 50. Today features some Midwest heroes and some European Sheiks. Share your thoughts about today’s 10 with the hashtag #SSBMRank2015.


Photo Credits to Kels

Rank
Rating
SSBMRank 2014
50
6.175
28
Tournament Results
Apex2015 ceo2015 evo2015 bh5
49
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
Summary
“The Man, The Myth, Kelly Smith” was less active in 2015 – and with good reason. The new dad and seasoned veteran still maintains Smash when he can, and he’s still a force to be reckoned with in the Midwest. Who knows, maybe his newly found dad strength will only lead him and his technical Fox further in 2016.
– Louis Torracinta

 


Photo Credits to SleepyK (@sleepike)

Rank
Rating
SSBMRank 2014
49
6.178
99
Tournament Results
Apex2015 ceo2015 evo2015 bh5
N/A
17
33
N/A
N/A
Summary
Originally from Wisconsin, Frank “Frootloop” Borden is a talented Falco main who recently relocated to the San Francisco Bay Area. Since moving, he has attained several impressive placings and set wins over highly ranked players. He earned 33rd place at EVO 2015, 17th place at both CEO 2015 and FC Return, along with an impressive 9th place finish at HTC Throwdown, being eliminated by Leffen and Shroomed. He has taken sets off of Darrell (CEO 2015), MacD (HTC Throwdown), and HomeMadeWaffles (HTC Throwdown).
– Bryan Rapp (@Mithrintia)

 


Photo Credits to Michael Hathaway (@tl_peanuts)

Rank
Rating
SSBMRank 2014
48
6.197
N/A
Tournament Results
Apex2015 ceo2015 evo2015 bh5
49
N/A
N/A
25
9
Summary
Unfortunately often overshadowed by his older brother, Armada, Andreas “Android” Lindgren is a strong Swedish Sheik main in his own right, placing 7th at BEAST 5, DreamHack London 2015, and Eclipse, 9th at DreamHack Winter, and 25th at The Big House 5. He has claimed set wins over players such as S2J and KirbyKaze in 2015. With his strong placings overseas and set wins over international competition, he has proven himself to not only be a top European competitor, but an international force as well. He also has shown exceptional prowess in doubles competition, winning several doubles tournaments including The Big House 5 with his brother Armada.
– Bryan Rapp (@Mithrintia)

 


Photo Credits to SleepyK (@sleepike)

Rank
Rating
SSBMRank 2014
47
6.224
N/A
Tournament Results
Apex2015 ceo2015 evo2015 bh5
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
17
Summary
Roberto “Overtriforce” Iglesias is currently the best player from Spain as well as 7th best in Europe on smashranking.eu. While he has not traveled out of Europe this year except for Tipped Off 11, his results in Europe have been very strong, finishing 9th at Heir II the Throne, 5th at Dreamhack London, 4th at Helix, 5th at Eclipse, and 17th at Dreamhack Winter.
– David Tyler(@flossy_tas)

 


Photo Credits to SleepyK (@sleepike)

Rank
Rating
SSBMRank 2014
46
6.234
N/A
Tournament Results
Apex2015 ceo2015 evo2015 bh5
33
N/A
97
17
N/A
Summary
While he may be known on Twitter for his intense dislike of Falco, Kalindi “KJH” Henderson is no joke as a player. Hailing from Michigan, KJH is one of the most technical Fox mains today and his skills have led him to impressive placings such as 33rd at Apex 2015, 13th at Super Smash Con, and 17th at The Big House 5. He also gained recognition for his performance in the regional crew battle versus Europe at The Big House 5, where he took Armada’s final stock in spectacular fashion and very nearly defeated Ice.
– David Tyler(@flossy_tas)

 


Photo Credits to Thomas Tischio (@Tischphotos)

Rank
Rating
SSBMRank 2014
45
6.240
78
Tournament Results
Apex2015 ceo2015 evo2015 bh5
65
17
97
65
N/A
Summary
A founding member of the 20GX Captain Falcon movement, Jason “Gahtzu” Diehl has proved his worth with a top 8 finish at Super Smash Con and a strong showing at MVG Sandstorm, along with local wins against Florida’s best. His capacity for optimized grab follow-ups paired with a strong dash dance game has launched him into the upper echelon of Melee.
– Louis Torracinta

 


Photo Credits to Old Abbot (@OldAbbot)

Rank
Rating
SSBMRank 2014
44
6.421
45
Tournament Results
Apex2015 ceo2015 evo2015 bh5
N/A
N/A
65
25
N/A
Summary
The Warrior; first rising to prominence in 2009 when he defeated Mango at Revival of Melee 2, Roustane “Kage the Warrior” Benzeguir is a top Ganondorf main from Montreal, Canada. After his stunning 5-0 sweep of Bizzaro Flame at the EVO 2015 Salty Suite, Kage is widely considered to be one of, if not the best Ganondorf player in the world. More recently well-known for being a monster in crew battles, notably against NorCal at The Big House 5, Kage outperformed expectations in crew battles at both The Big House 5 and at Smash Summit. His singles highlights include 25th at The Big House 5, and 4th at the Canadian tournament McSmashter 4. Kage also managed to be voted in to Smash Summit as the first round pick of popular vote from the community. He boasts set wins over players such as Bizzarro Flame (EVO 2015) and The Moon (TBH5).
– Bryan Rapp (@Mithrintia)

 


Photo Credits to Tekk

Rank
Rating
SSBMRank 2014
43
6.426
N/A
Tournament Results
Apex2015 ceo2015 evo2015 bh5
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
17
Summary
Undoubtedly the best ‘Rondoudou’ main in Europe, fan favourite and French citizen, Victor “Tekk” Abt, has taken his play to the next level in 2015 with wins including Eikelmann (Heir II), Duck (DHW), Amsah (DHL), Android (DHL, Heir II), and Zhu (HFL). With his unique aggressive style of Jigglypuff, he has been gaining popularity on both sides of the Atlantic with his ability to breath new air into a character that has only been played at a top level by Hungrybox. With a trip to Genesis 3 looking increasingly likely, expect to see a lot more from Tekk in 2016.
– Bradley Stafford (@bradcobra)

 


Photo Credits to Santiago

Rank
Rating
SSBMRank 2014
42
6.434
67
Tournament Results
Apex2015 ceo2015 evo2015 bh5
N/A
N/A
17
N/A
N/A
Summary
Previously known as “Lil Fumi”, Santiago “Santiago” Pinon is regarded as a hidden boss of SoCal. Training with Liquid’s Ken throughout the year, Santiago was able to rise his fox to being one of the most feared in SoCal, with intense technical skill. Santiago has had few appearances at national level events, but those appearances came with fantastic placings: 13th at I’m Not Yelling, 13th at Press Start, and 17th at EVO 2015. Unfortunately at the end of 2015 Santiago announced his retirement from competitive Smash. His last tournament will be at Evo 2016.
– David Tyler(@flossy_tas)

 


Photo Credits to Old Abbot (@OldAbbot)

Rank
Rating
SSBMRank 2014
41
6.446
39
Tournament Results
Apex2015 ceo2015 evo2015 bh5
25
25
25
25
N/A
Summary
Along with The Moon, DJ Nintendo makes up half of New York’s infamous Grab’n’Go duo. In 2015, DJ Nintendo spent much this year in 25th place while experimenting with his Pikachu (CEO, EVO, Super Smash Con). Once the low tier hero of SSBM, DJ Nintendo traded his DK and Bowser for Fox throughout the last few years. 2015 saw him head back towards his roots as he began playing Pikachu more and more in both doubles and singles. While the change didn’t bring immediate success it shows promise as one could argue the electric mouse fits DJ’s slow and patient style better than Fox could. While Pikachu may be the future for the 30 year-old Bronx native, his Fox remains a force to be reckoned with at any tournament.
– Nick Buckman (@ngbuckman)

Panelists

42 Panelists

(More Panelists were asked from each region, but did not turn in a ballot in a timely manner)

Socal (6)
– HugS
– s2j
– MacD
– MikeHaze
– Kira
– Reno

Norcal (4)
– TarheelJKS
– Laudandus
– Toph
– Shroomed

Midwest (5)
– Juggleguy
– FendrickLamar
– Duck
– Webs
– DarkAtma

New England (3)
– Mafia
– MattDotZeb
– Gtown Tom

Maryland/Virginia (4)
– Nintendude
– Redd
– Chillindude
– Wife

Pacific Northwest (5)
– Silent Wolf
– Bladewise
– Vish
– eBay
– Fat Goku

Arizona (3)
– Axe
– Tai
– DarkDragoon

South (5)
– s0ft
– Flow
– Chi Wong
– Gahtzu
– Hungrybox

Tri-State (2)
– Zhu
– Swedish Delight

Canada (2)
– Idea
– n0ne

Europe (3)
– MikeHaggar (w/ Armada)
– Imperfect
– Mahie

Rest Of The List

12/21/2015 – SSBMRank #100-91
12/22/2015 – SSBMRank #90-81
12/23/2015 – SSBMRank #80-71
12/24/2015 – SSBMRank #70-61
12/25/2015 – SSBMRank #60-51

12/28/2015 – SSBMRank #50-41
12/29/2015 – SSBMRank #40-31
12/30/2015 – SSBMRank #30-26
12/31/2015 – SSBMRank #25-21
1/1/2016 – SSBMRank #20-16

1/4/2016 – SSBMRank #15-11
1/5/2016 – SSBMRank #10, #9, #8, #7
1/6/2016 – SSBMRank #6, #5, #4
1/7/2016 – SSBMRank #3, #2, #1
1/8/2016 – SSBMRank Recap

Other Information

Acknowledgements

SSBMRank is a big undertaking every year. We could have not done this without the help of HTC, who generously helped us out with this year’s production values. Nick, Darkdragoon, was a workhorse with the formatting and the graphics this year as well. We also had countless volunteers that helped out with numerous tasks.

Photographers
Robert Paul (@tempusrob)
Michael Hathaway (@tl_peanuts)
Thomas Tischio
Old Abbot (@oldAbbot)
Itsjustatank (@itsjustatank)
Ludwig Ahgren
/u/BirdUPSSBM
Big Blue eSports (@BigBlueES)
SleepyK (@sleepike)
Alex Baldwin
Meowth

Blurb Writers
Eli Schoop
Bradley Stafford (@bradcobra)
Louis Torracinta
Sawyer Frey (@ssbm_tm)
Derek Zhang (@DZhang4)
Matt Deslatte (@pantsnameguy)
Matthew Reed (@Matthew__Reed)
Jack McDonald (@KezzupReviews)
Luke Geldart (@Haksause)
Andrew Blessington (@AJawesome07)
Nick Gow (@ssbm_Song)
Anthony Bruno (@slime_machine)
Bryan Rapp (@Mithrintia)
David Tyler (@flossy_tas)
Josh Kassell (@roboticphish)
Solomon McMurphy (@HFMSmash)

Fact Finders
Eli Schoop
Bradley Stafford (@bradcobra)
Louis Torracinta
Derek Zhang (@DZhang4)
Matt Deslatte (@pantsnameguy)
Matthew Reed (@Matthew__Reed)
Jack McDonald (@KezzupReviews)
Luke Geldart (@Haksause)
Andrew Blessington (@AJawesome07)
Bryan Rapp (@Mithrintia)
David Tyler (@flossy_tas)
Solomon McMurphy  (@HFMSmash)

Editors
Sheridan Zalewski (@sheridactyls)
Louis Torracinta
Scott Zeng
Andrew Blessington (@AJawesome07)
Nick Gow (@ssbm_Song)
Andrew Nestico (@PracticalTAS)
Anthony Bruno (@slime_machine)
Bryan Rapp (@Mithrintia)
David Tyler (@flossy_tas)
Josh Kassel (@roboticphish)

Picture Finders
Bradley Stafford (@bradcobra)
Louis Torracinta
Scott Zeng
Sawyer Frey
Derek Zhang (@DZhang4)
Matthew Reed (@Matthew__Reed)
Luke Geldart (@Haksause)
Nick Buckman