Welcome to Day 7 of SSBMRank! The talent pool in 2015 is incredibly deep. Today’s 10 feature a slew of long-standing veterans and a few players who have been putting in the work to rise up the ranks with great placings and upsets. Share your thoughts about today’s 10 with the hashtag #SSBMRank2015.


Photo Credits to Thomas Tischio (@Tischphotos)

Rank
Rating
SSBMRank 2014
40
6.449
N/A
Tournament Results
Apex2015 ceo2015 evo2015 bh5
65
N/A
49
25
N/A
Summary
MikeHaze has proven to be an incredibly fast learner and adaptable player throughout 2015, with several breakout performances this year. As a SoCal Fox main, he participates in many of the massive locals in and around the area, and gets to learn from and play with many of the world’s best. In 2015 MikeHaze placed 17th at Paragon Orlando 2015 and HTC Throwdown, 13th at PAX Prime and I’m Not Yelling!, 9th at Super Smash Con, and most notably, 3rd at Smash The Record 2015. He has taken sets off of notable players such as Bladewise (SSC), Reno (several occasions), Colbol (TBH5), and The Moon (STR 2015). Easily one of the most improved players of 2015, expectations are high for him going into next year.
– Bryan Rapp (@Mithrintia)

 


Photo Credits to Old Abbot (@OldAbbot)

Rank
Rating
SSBMRank 2014
39
6.759
33
Tournament Results
Apex2015 ceo2015 evo2015 bh5
25
N/A
65
33
N/A
Summary
Theodore “Bladewise” Seybold is one of the best and most innovative Peach players in the world. He has an offbeat but creative style, making seemingly eccentric move choices work, and has helped pioneer Peach’s options to escape combos. As the second best player in Washington, he often stands in the shadow of his rival, Silent Wolf, but has had a strong 2015 himself. Bladewise placed 25th at Apex 2015, 13th at Super Smash Con, and 17th at Paragon Los Angeles. His strongest performance of the year was 4th at PAX Prime, where he sent Zhu to losers and eliminated Rudolph, Nintendude, and Hugs. He has also taken sets from players such as Eddy Mexico (Paragon Los Angeles), Redd (Super Smash Con), and Silent Wolf (multiple Washington tournaments).
– Bryan Rapp (@Mithrintia)

 


Photo Credits to SleepyK (@sleepike)

Rank
Rating
SSBMRank 2014
38
6.762
17
Tournament Results
Apex2015 ceo2015 evo2015 bh5
33
N/A
65
N/A
N/A
Summary
Once a lock for Top 10 of SoCal’s stacked PR, Shephard “Fiction” Lima took a step back from competitive Melee in 2015. He’s had to manage hand problems and the time demands of creating his own game, but his Marth and Fox are still the real deal. After a quiet start to the year, in May Fiction beat HugS 2-0 and Mango 3-2 on his way to a 3rd place finish at Mayhem, a Socal monthly. He also appeared at Paragon Los Angeles, where he earned a strong 2-0 victory over CLG | PewPewU. Fiction’s strong placings in limited events have shown that the #17 ranked player in 2014 remains capable of beating top players despite taking his focus off of Melee for now.
– Nick Buckman (@ngbuckman)

 


Photo Credits to Thomas Tischio (@Tischphotos)

Rank
Rating
SSBMRank 2014
37
6.836
42
Tournament Results
Apex2015 ceo2015 evo2015 bh5
17
33
49
17
N/A
Summary
Charles “Cactuar” Meighen joined the scene in 2007 and has become one of its most respected players, commentators, and analysts. He is also known as one of the premier coaches in Melee. Having worked with top players like Mew2King and PPMD, Cactuar provides detailed, thorough analysis for players of all levels, helping them improve drastically in specific matchups, general ability, and the overall learning process. He has partnered with his fellow Philadelphia player, Zhu, to form Smash Practice, which is dedicated to teaching and providing resources for lower-level players. Cactuar plays primarily Marth and Fox. He has had a strong 2015, placing 17th at Apex 2015 and The Big House 5, 13th at Paragon Orlando, and 9th at PAX Prime and HTC Throwdown. He has taken sets from Laudandus (Paragon Orlando), Kalamazhu (Apex 2015), S2J (HTC), Wizzrobe (HTC), Professor Pro (The Big House 5), and Android (The Big House 5).
– Bryan Rapp (@Mithrintia)

 


Photo Credits to Robert Paul (@tempusrob)

Rank
Rating
SSBMRank 2014
36
6.840
31
Tournament Results
Apex2015 ceo2015 evo2015 bh5
25
N/A
25
N/A
N/A
Summary
Along with Abate, Eduardo “Eddy Mexico” Lucatero Rincon is widely considered to be one of the top 2 Luigi mains in the world. Hailing from Mexico, he often travels to SoCal to participate in the Super Smash Sunday series, among other major tournaments in the area, and is occasionally included as part of their Power Ranking. He is well-known for his impressive performances at Evo, where he has always earned a Top 32 finish. This year he placed 25th at Apex 2015, Evo 2015, and Paragon Los Angeles, beating notable players such as Westballz, SFAT, The Moon, dizzkidboogie, and Captain Faceroll at these tournaments.
– Bryan Rapp (@Mithrintia)

 


Photo Credits to Michael Hathaway (@tl_peanuts)

Rank
Rating
SSBMRank 2014
35
7.004
32
Tournament Results
Apex2015 ceo2015 evo2015 bh5
25
25
7
N/A
N/A
Summary
Daniel “ChuDat” Rodriguez is mostly known for his legacy as a player and chronicling his meals on Twitter, but he has shown this year that legacy isn’t all he has left. While Chu frequently placed 25th this year, such as at Apex 2015, CEO 2015, and Paragon Los Angeles, he also continued the tradition of an Ice Climbers main reaching Top 8 at Evo. In winners, he beat KirbyKaze and Laudandus before losing to Ice. In losers bracket, he shocked everyone by defeating Swedish Delight, Laudandus again, Silent Wolf, Westballz, and HugS to get 7th place at what had been the largest Melee tournament to date. He was picked up by ROOT Gaming in October of 2015, and will continue to compete in the coming year.
– Solomon McMurphy (@HFMSmash)

 


Photo Credits to Thomas Tischio (@Tischphotos)

Rank
Rating
SSBMRank 2014
34
7.207
N/A
Tournament Results
Apex2015 ceo2015 evo2015 bh5
81
N/A
N/A
33
17
Summary
Aaron “Professor Pro” Thomas is at the top of the UK Power Rankings. He and his Fox have quickly risen up the ranks in Europe this year, with wins over most major European competitors besides the Top 2: Leffen and Armada. To complement his work in Europe, he has also proven his merit in the United States, most notably during his run at Paragon Los Angeles. In winners bracket there, he defeated Hungrybox in a stunning upset, sent Nintendude to losers in a convincing 2-0, and earned 9th place. At other U.S. tournaments, he has taken sets off Fly Amanita (Tipped Off 11), Kels (Kings of the North 4), and The Moon (Kings of the North 4).
– Bryan Rapp (@Mithrintia)

 


Photo Credits to Thomas Tischio (@Tischphotos)

Rank
Rating
SSBMRank 2014
33
7.276
34
Tournament Results
Apex2015 ceo2015 evo2015 bh5
N/A
13
N/A
7
N/A
Summary
Stephen Abate is the top player in Pittsburgh and arguably the best Luigi main in the world. This year he only attended two major tournaments: CEO 2015 and The Big House 5. He was also flown out to SSS 32 through the SoCal Fraudulent Player Fund. Despite his scarce appearances, Abate showed at these events that he was no slouch, placing 13th at CEO and 7th at The Big House 5. This latter result was especially notable, as he defeated Axe, S2J, and Duck on his way to the highest placing ever for a Luigi at a national.
– David Tyler (@flossy_tas)

 


Photo Credits to SleepyK

Rank
Rating
SSBMRank 2014
32
7.293
N/A
Tournament Results
Apex2015 ceo2015 evo2015 bh5
33
N/A
129
N/A
N/A
Summary
After a short hiatus Robert “Wobbles” Wright, one of the founding fathers of the modern Ice Climbers metagame, has returned to competitive Melee in 2015. While he may not be placing second at supermajors anymore, the top player of Texas shows he is still a force to be reckoned with, placing 9th at MVG Sandstorm and beating both Mew2King and Axe to win Low Tier City 3. In addition to being sponsored by FX Game Exchange in Dallas, Wobbles also signed with Panda Global in late 2015, which led to him traveling more, specifically with a focus on commentating. It is unclear whether “The Phoenix” will return to his elite placings at nationals, but if his wins over SFAT and Westballz at December’s Forte 3 have shown us anything, Wobbles is back as a threat to anyone in the Smash community, and that is something we can all be happy about.
– Nick Buckman (@ngbuckman)

 


Photo Credits to Big Blue eSports (@BigBlueES)

Rank
Rating
SSBMRank 2014
31
7.303
56
Tournament Results
Apex2015 ceo2015 evo2015 bh5
17
N/A
33
13
N/A
Summary
Despite his recent accomplishments, James “Swedish Delight” Liu might still be the most underrated Sheik in the U.S. Swedish is known for his “death touch” versus fastfallers. With Mew2King long gone, he is the clear best in New Jersey and contends with the other top players of Tristate, such as The Moon and DJ Nintendo, at the Nebulous tournament series. Swedish began 2015 by beating Plup and placing 17th at Apex. At EVO 2015, he defeated KirbyKaze on his way to 33rd, and at The Big House 5, he beat Westballz, Wizzrobe, and Zhu before being eliminated at 13th place. He was then voted into the Smash Summit. Many underestimate him because he does not travel much, but hopefully his strong finish this year will encourage him to attend more in 2016.
– Derek “DZ Rei” Zhang (@DZhang4)

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