November is historically a very strong month for Melee: coming into 2014, it boasted 13 tourneys of 100+ entrants all-time, tied with August for most of any month. November has usually been carried by the Revival of Melee tournament series, but without a ROM installment this fall, other tournaments will have to step up to fill that void.

Last month, The Big House 4 shattered the Midwest Melee attendance record with 574 entrants, good for fourth biggest Melee tournament of all-time. Justice 4 and Mayhem also brought in very respectable turnouts for one-day events. As suspected, the arrival of Smash 4 3DS did not make a significant dent in any Melee tourneys, either positively or negatively. It appears that the two games attract different crowds, and the intertwining of dual-game events may have to wait until the console version of Smash 4 comes out. This month, the arrival of Smash 4 Wii U and the continuing Apex World Circuit have the potential to shake things up.

November 1

Fight Pitt V headlines the first weekend of November, having just surpassed the 200-entrant mark through online paid pre-registration before the start of the event. The Pittsburgh and Northeast Ohio scene has taken attendance to the next level this year, having gone from a region which hadn’t ran a 100-entrant tourney in the post-Brawl era to one that has now hosted four of them in the last ten months alone, including this 200-entrant whopper coming up. This fifth installment of the series brings something new to the table: the first two-day Melee event held by the current Pittsburgh community. Attendees have responded favorably, driving registration numbers sky high and gaining top player starpower such as Hungrybox, Hax, and Colbol. The marketing plan has been on point, the organization solid, and the VGBootCamp platform as credible as ever. PGH, welcome to the 200-entrant tournament club. Prediction: 200 entrants (registration closed).

[…]