Apex
GameSuper Smash Bros.
Founded2009
FounderJohnathan Lugo (resigned)
CountryUnited States
Most recent
champion(s)
  • SSBM: Masaya "aMSa" Chikamoto
  • SSBWU: reflection
  • SSB64: KD3
  • SSBB: Cody “Cody” William
  • PM: Adam "Armada" Lindgren (discontinued after 2014)
Most titlesAdam "Armada" Lindgren (3 titles) (SSBM: 2012, 2013) (PM: 2014)
Official websiteApex

Apex is an annual esports tournament held in New Jersey that is focused on Super Smash Bros. The event's first incarnation was in 2009 with Jesus "Jman" Fernandez as the champion of Super Smash Bros. Melee and Elliot "Ally" Carroza-Oyarce as champion of Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Each year the event grew with more competitors entering. Apex 2014 garnered 629 entrants and was the 2nd largest tournament for Melee at the time after EVO 2013. Though the tournament initially focused on Brawl, the feature game has since switched to Melee due to its popularity.[1] In 2010, an event for Super Smash Bros. for the Nintendo 64 was added. In 2014, the fan modification of Brawl, Project M was added for singles only. Project M has recently been removed as an official event out copyright concerns under Nintendo of America[2] sponsorship and Third Party relations.

Apex 2015 was officially sponsored by Nintendo of America[2] and was the largest tournament for Super Smash Bros. in history until it was surpassed by EVO 2015.[3][4] Apex has been described as the "Super Bowl of 'Super Smash Bros.'" by Ben Lindbergh of sports website Grantland.[5]

History

Apex was founded in 2009 by Johnathan Lugo, known by his alias "Alex Strife", as a Super Smash Bros. tournament. The tournament also hosts side events which include fighting games such as Street Fighter, Marvel vs. Capcom, Tekken, and others.

2009

Apex 2009 was hosted at the Clarion Hotel Palmer Inn in Princeton, New Jersey. The tournament featured Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Melee, and Brawl+. Melee singles was won by Jman and doubles was won by Mew2King and Jman. Brawl singles was won by Ally and doubles was won by Ally and Mew2King. Brawl+ singles was won by ChuDat. In Brawl crews, MD/VA won.

Super Smash Bros. Melee Singles (52 entrants)
Place Player Alias Character(s)
1st United States Jesus Fernandez Jman Fox
2nd United States Jason Zimmerman Mew2King Marth, Sheik, Fox
3rd United States Daniel Rodriguez ChuDat Ice Climbers
4th United States Aziz Al-Yami Hax Captain Falcon
5th Canada Roustane Benzeguir Kage Ganondorf
5th United States Charles Meighen Cactuar Fox
7th United States Bobby Scarnewman Scar Captain Falcon
7th United States Hazz Fox
Super Smash Bros. Brawl Singles (210 entrants)
Place Player Alias Character(s)
1st Canada Elliot Carroza-Oyarce Ally Snake
2nd United States Jason Zimmerman Mew2King Meta Knight
3rd United States lain Ice Climbers
4th United States Jason Bates Anti Meta Knight
5th United States Trevor Hirschen Atomsk King Dedede
5th United States Kelvin Quezada Ksizzle Meta Knight
7th United States Wyatt Beekman ADHD Diddy Kong
7th United States Antoine Sledge Anther Pikachu

2010

Apex 2010 was hosted in New Brunswick, New Jersey at Rutgers University–New Brunswick's College Avenue Student Center. It featured Melee, Brawl, and Super Smash Bros. 64. It also featured the Brawl mods Brawl+ and Brawl-.

Super Smash Bros. Melee Singles (220 entrants)
Place Player Alias Character(s)
1st United States Juan Debiedma Hungrybox Jigglypuff
2nd Sweden Adam Lindgren Armada Peach
3rd United States Jason Zimmerman Mew2King Sheik, Marth, Fox
4th United States Kevin Nanney Dr. PeePee Falco
5th United States Jeffrey Williamson Axe Pikachu
5th United States Robert Wright Wobbles Ice Climbers
7th United States Jesus Fernandez Jman Fox
7th United States Julian Zhu Zhu Falco
Super Smash Bros. Brawl Singles (269 entrants)
Place Player Alias Character(s)
1st United States Larry Holland DEHF Falco
2nd Japan Brood Olimar
3rd United States Jason Zimmerman Mew2King Meta Knight
4th United States Lee Martin Lee Martin Lucario, Meta Knight
5th Canada Elliot Carroza-Oyarce Ally Snake
5th United States lain Ice Climbers
7th Japan Tetsuhisa Kosaka RAIN Falco, Meta Knight
7th United States Trevor Hirschen Atomsk King Dedede, Ice Climbers, Wario
Super Smash Bros. Singles (22 entrants)
Place Player Alias Character(s)
1st United States Will Engel Sensei Fox
2nd United States Michael Brancato Nintendude Captain Falcon
3rd United States Joe Franks m3gav01t Captain Falcon
4th United States Jerry Liu valoem Pikachu

2012

After a one-year hiatus, Apex 2012 returned to New Brunswick, New Jersey at Rutgers University's College Avenue Student Center. It featured Melee, Brawl, and 64. Melee Singles was won by Armada and doubles by Armada and Mew2King. Brawl was won by Otori in singles and Otori and Kakera in doubles. Smash 64 was won by SuPeRbOoMfAn and doubles was won by Isai and Nintendude. In Melee USA v the World, USA won by a massive 8 stocks. Brawl was set to have a crew battle, but it was cancelled due to time constraints. The tournament was criticized because Brawl did not have enough setups, causing delay in pool matches and necessitating the cancellation of the crew battle.

Super Smash Bros. Melee Singles (318 entrants)
Place Player Alias Character(s)
1st Sweden Adam Lindgren Armada Peach, Young Link
2nd United States Juan Debiedma Hungrybox Jigglypuff
3rd United States Joseph Marquez Mango Falco, Fox
4th Mexico Javier Ruiz Javi Fox
5th United States Kevin Nanney Dr. PeePee Falco
5th Canada David MacDonald KirbyKaze Sheik
7th United States Aziz Al-Yami Hax Captain Falcon
7th United States DaJuan McDaniel Shroomed Dr. Mario
Super Smash Bros. Brawl Singles (400 entrants)
Place Player Alias Character(s)
1st Japan Ishikawa Kenta Otori Meta Knight
2nd Japan Yuta Uejima Nietono Olimar
3rd United States Nairoby Quezada Nairo Meta Knight
4th United States Eric Lew ESAM Ice Climbers, Pikachu
5th Canada Elliot Carroza-Oyarce Ally Snake
5th Japan Ishikawa Shota Kakera Meta Knight
7th United States Timothy Campos UltimateRazer Snake
7th United States Wyatt Beekman ADHD Diddy Kong
Super Smash Bros. Singles (64 entrants)
Place Player Alias Character(s)
1st Canada Daniel Hoyt SuPeRbOoMfAn Captain Falcon, Fox
2nd United States Isai Alvarado Isai Link
3rd Mexico Jaime Rodriguez JaimeHR Captain Falcon, Fox, Samus
4th United States Kefit Pikachu
5th United States Michael Brancato Nintendude Pikachu, Mario
5th United States Will Engel Sensei Pikachu, Fox
7th United States Joe Franks m3gav01t Captain Falcon
7th Denmark Julius Vissing King Funk Captain Falcon

2013

Apex 2013 was again hosted in the College Avenue Student Center at Rutgers University featuring Melee, Brawl, and 64. It also featured USA v The World crew battles for both Melee and Brawl. In addition, Melee had The Links v The Stinks crew battle, in which a team of seven Links challenged team of six well known low tier mains and were joined by "The Final Boss," Kage, to a crew battle.

Super Smash Bros. Melee Singles (336 entrants)
Place Player Alias Character(s)
1st Sweden Adam Lindgren Armada Peach, Young Link
2nd United States Kevin Nanney Dr. PeePee Falco, Marth
3rd United States Jason Zimmerman CT.EMP|Mew2King Marth, Sheik
4th United States Joseph Marquez Mango Fox, Falco
5th United States Juan Debiedma Hungrybox Jigglypuff
5th United States DaJuan McDaniel Shroomed Dr. Mario
7th United States Aziz Al-Yami Hax Captain Falcon
7th Canada David MacDonald KirbyKaze Sheik
Super Smash Bros. Brawl Singles (338 entrants)
Place Player Alias Character(s)
1st United States Saleem Young Salem Zero Suit Samus
2nd United States Jason Zimmerman CT.EMP|Mew2King Meta Knight
3rd Japan Ishikawa Kenta Otori Meta Knight
4th United States Nairoby Quezada Nairo Meta Knight
5th United States Jason Bates Anti Meta Knight
5th Japan Takeshi Gomota Mikeneko Marth
7th United States Samuel Buzby Dabuz Olimar
7th Netherlands Ramin Delshad Mr. R Marth
Super Smash Bros. Singles (96 entrants)
Place Player Alias Character(s)
1st Japan Nico Watanabe Kikoushi Kirby
2nd United States Isai Alvarado Isai Mario
3rd Canada Daniel Hoyt SuPeRbOoMfAn Captain Falcon, Fox, Pikachu
4th Japan Akio Tamowo Ruoka Dancho Captain Falcon, Luigi
5th Mexico Jaime Rodriguez JaimeHR Captain Falcon, Fox
6th United States Hugo Morgan Sensei Pikachu, Fox, Captain Falcon
7th United States Dennis Keith Kefit Pikachu
8th Japan Nangoku Ness

2014

Apex 2014 was hosted at the DoubleTree hotel in Somerset, New Jersey featuring Melee, Project M, Brawl, and 64.

Super Smash Bros. Melee Singles (629 entrants)
Place Player Alias Character(s)
1st United States Kevin Nanney VGBC|Dr. PeePee Falco, Marth
2nd United States Jason Zimmerman CT.EMP|Mew2King Sheik, Marth, Fox
3rd United States Joseph Marquez MIOM|Mango Falco, Fox
4th Sweden William Hjelte Leffen Fox
5th United States Juan Debiedma CT|Hungrybox Jigglypuff
5th United States Colin Green Colbol Fox
7th United States Joshua Davis SS|s0ft Jigglypuff
7th United States Shephard Lima Fiction Fox
Super Smash Bros. Brawl Singles (370 entrants)
Place Player Alias Character(s)
1st United States Nairoby Quezada Nairo Meta Knight
2nd Chile Gonzalo Barrios CT|ZeRo Meta Knight
3rd United States Eric Lew ESAM Pikachu, Ice Climbers
4th United States Jason Zimmerman CT.EMP|Mew2King Meta Knight
5th Canada Elliot Carroza-Oyarce Ally Meta Knight, Snake
5th United States Wyatt Beekman ADHD Diddy Kong
7th United States Eric Legesse Tyrant Meta Knight
7th United States Vincent Cannino Vinnie Ice Climbers
Project M Singles (382 entrants)
Place Player Alias Character(s)
1st Sweden Adam Lindgren CT.EMP|Armada Pit
2nd United States Jason Zimmerman CT.EMP|Mew2King Fox, Marth, Mewtwo
3rd United States Larry Holland DEHF Falco, Fox
4th United States Brandon Nunnenkamp Rolex Snake
5th United States Jeremy Westfahl Fly Amanita King Dedede
5th United States Alexander Maguire Sethlon Roy
7th Canada Elliot Carroza-Oyarce Ally Ike
7th United States Rob Dickson Oracle R.O.B.
Super Smash Bros. Singles (157 entrants)
Place Player Alias Character(s)
1st United States Isai Alvarado CT|Isai Jigglypuff
2nd Japan Moyashi Pikachu, Kirby
3rd Canada Daniel Hoyt SuPeRbOoMfAn Captain Falcon, Fox, Pikachu, Kirby
4th Mexico Arturo Hernández Mariguas Captain Falcon, Pikachu
5th United States Eduardo Tovar tacos Captain Falcon, Yoshi, Kirby
5th United States Justin Hallett CT|Wizzrobe Yoshi
7th Japan Ruoka Dancho Captain Falcon, Kirby
7th Mexico Jaime Rodriguez JaimeHR Fox, Captain Falcon, Samus

2015

Apex 2015, which ran from January 30 to February 1, included Super Smash Bros. Melee, Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Super Smash Bros. 64, Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, Ultra Street Fighter IV, Guilty Gear Xrd, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, Killer Instinct. It was initially hosted at Clarion Hotel Empire Meadowlands in Secaucus, New Jersey and featured the first Melee tournament with over a thousand entrants with 1037 players participating.[6] Super Smash Bros. for Wii U included over 800 entrants.

The tournament was officially sponsored by Nintendo and included a playable demo of Splatoon.[7] Apex dropped Brawl fan mod Project M from its 2015 lineup and all of its qualifiers.[8] Streaming for fangame, Super Smash Bros. Crusade, has also been denied.[9] Lugo alleged he received death threats for the dropping of Project M from some members of the community.[10][11] In January 2015, Lugo announced he was stepping down from Apex after multiple media reports alleging sexual harassment by tournament attendees.[12][13]

After a fire alarm was accidentally set off on the morning of January 30, fire marshals discovered that parts of the hotel were in violation of safety codes. The marshals removed access to the ballrooms, which had a partially collapsed roof.[14] The main tournament was delayed for a day and was moved 40 miles away to the Garden State Convention Center in Somerset, New Jersey.[15]

Super Smash Bros. Melee Singles (1,037 entrants)
Place Player Alias Character(s)
1st United States Kevin Nanney EG|PPMD Falco, Marth
2nd Sweden Adam Lindgren [A]|Armada Peach, Fox
3rd Sweden William Hjelte Leffen Fox
4th United States Joseph Marquez C9|Mango Fox, Falco
5th Japan Masaya Chikamoto VGBC|aMSa Yoshi
5th United States Juan Debiedma Liquid|Hungrybox Jigglypuff
7th Canada David MacDonald EMG|KirbyKaze Sheik
7th United States DaJuan McDaniel Shroomed Sheik
Super Smash Bros. For Wii U Singles (837 entrants)
Place Player Alias Character(s)
1st Chile Gonzalo Barrios ZeRo Diddy Kong
2nd United States Samuel Buzby PL.XFIRE|Dabuz Olimar, Rosalina and Luma
3rd Netherlands Ramin Delshad LLL|Mr. R Sheik
4th United States Wesley Alexander 6WX Sonic
5th Japan Yuta Uejima DtN|Nietono Sheik
5th United States Jason Zimmerman PL.MVG|Mew2King Diddy Kong
7th Japan Yuta Kawamura Abadango Pac-Man
7th United States Jestise Negron AO.CT|MVD Duck Hunt, Little Mac
Super Smash Bros. Singles (188 entrants)
Place Player Alias Character(s)
1st Canada Daniel Hoyt TEG|SuPeRbOoMfAn Captain Falcon, Pikachu
2nd United States Eduardo Tovar tacos Yoshi, Kirby, Captain Falcon, Jigglypuff
3rd United States Justin Hallett COG|Wizzrobe Yoshi
4th Mexico Arturo Hernández Mariguas Pikachu, Kirby, Captain Falcon
5th United States Abacus Zilch TR3G|LD Fox
5th United States KeroKeroppi Kirby, Pikachu
7th Mexico Yoshua Castillo SF|Dext3r Pikachu
7th United States Javier Romero Fireblaster Yoshi, Mario
Super Smash Bros. Brawl Singles (176 entrants)
Place Player Alias Character(s)
1st Canada Elliot Carroza-Oyarce Boreal|Ally Snake
2nd United States Nairoby Quezada Nairo Meta Knight
3rd United States Jestise Negron AO.CT|MVD Snake
4th United States Saleem Young CT|Salem Zero Suit Samus
5th Canada Vishal Balaram V115 Zero Suit Samus
5th United States Vincent Cannino PL.XFIRE|Vinnie Ice Climbers
7th Germany Ufuk Fidan cyve Diddy Kong
7th Japan Takeshi Shimizu Shimitake Pikachu

2016

After the controversies surrounding the 2015 event, there were doubts over the future of the Apex tournament. However Andre "Bifuteki" Augustin announced that the event would continue under his leadership.[16] Apex 2016 was the seventh edition of the Apex series which took place on June 17–19, 2016 under the new management of the Bifuteki crew.[17] The event was considerably smaller the previous incarnation and even had to cancel its Brawl event due to low turnout.[18]

Super Smash Bros. for Wii U (309 entrants)
Place Player Alias Character(s)
1st United States Samuel Buzby Dabuz Rosalina
2nd United States James Makekau-Tyson CLG|VoiD Sheik, Mewtwo, Fox
3rd Japan Yuta Uejima DNG|Nietono Diddy Kong
4th United States Jason Zimmerman FOX.MVG|Mew2King Cloud
5th United States Tyler Martins Marss Zero Suit Samus
5th Canada Kelsy Medeiros Circa.HoH|SuperGirlKels Sonic
7th United States Gavin Dempsey DMG|Tweek Cloud
7th United States James Wade DMG|James Cloud, Diddy Kong, Luigi
Super Smash Bros. Melee (159 entrants)
Place Player Alias Character(s)
1st United States Jason Zimmerman FOX.MVG|Mew2King Sheik, Marth
2nd United States James Lauerman Mafia Peach
3rd United States Ryan Coker-Welch CT|The Moon Marth
4th United States Hendrick Pilar DJ Nintendo Fox
5th United States John Daily GG|Minty Samus
5th United States Nick Stango Stango Marth
7th United States Michael Serpico PudgyPanda Ice Climbers
7th United States Bryan Somaiah Kaeon Fox
Super Smash Bros. 64 (55 entrants)
Place Player Alias Character(s)
1st United States Tommy Speziale Koroshiyo|Stranded Pikachu, Captain Falcon, Kirby
2nd United States Maxim Korobskiy Sedda|Star King Kirby, Yoshi
3rd United States Javier Romero Fireblaster Yoshi, Mario
4th United States Rob Stone cobr Kirby, Captain Falcon, Samus, Pikachu
5th United States Steve Pisano DFX Fox, Pikachu
5th United States Gerald Thomas GIMP|NTA Captain Falcon, Mario, Samus
7th United States Keefe Mitman Nebs|Zeppelin Captain Falcon
7th United States Hernan Sedda Sedda Fox

References

  1. ^ Chris Higgins (26 January 2015). "The battle for best brawler continues at Apex 2015". Red Bull. Retrieved 2015-01-27.
  2. ^ a b Steve Watts (2015-01-09). "Nintendo Sponsoring Smash Bros. Tournament". IGN. Retrieved 2015-01-27.
  3. ^ Omar Sohail (2015-01-16). "Super Smash Bros. Tournament start date Jan. 30; : Nintendo to sponsor Apex 2015 tournament". Christian Today. Retrieved 2015-01-27.
  4. ^ Rob Crossley (2015-01-12). "Super Smash Bros Tournament Endorsed by Nintendo". GameSpot. Retrieved 2015-01-27.
  5. ^ Lindbergh, Ben (2015-02-18). "Fight Club: Catching a Beating at the Super Bowl of 'Super Smash Bros.'". Grantland. Retrieved 2015-04-07.
  6. ^ Garrett Jutte (2015-01-25). "Apex 2015 Will Be the Biggest Super Smash Bros. Melee Tournament Yet". Guardian Liberty Voice. Retrieved 2015-01-27.
  7. ^ Jason Gallagher (2015-01-21). "Rumor Patrol: Nintendo to Show Off Surprise Game at Apex 2015?". Game Rant. Retrieved 2015-01-27.
  8. ^ Joe LoGuidice (November 17, 2014). "Project M expunged altogether from Apex 2015, including Salty Suite". Esports Heaven. Archived from the original on 2015-02-02. Retrieved January 27, 2015.
  9. ^ Chris Priestman (2015-01-26). "Super Smash Bros. Fan Project Told Not To Stream During Apex 2015". Siliconera. Retrieved 2015-01-27.
  10. ^ Ian Walker (2015-01-12). "Apex 2015 Becomes Largest Super Smash Bros. Melee Tournament of All Time, Registration Extended One Day". Shoryuken. Archived from the original on 2015-01-20. Retrieved 2015-01-27.
  11. ^ Ian J. Barker (2014-11-10). "Fighting game organizer targeted with death threats". The Daily Dot. Retrieved 2015-01-27.
  12. ^ Daniel Lee (2015-01-20). "Melee It On Me – Alex Strife steps down from Apex". MeleeItOnMe. Retrieved 2015-01-27.
  13. ^ Schreier, Jason (2015-01-20). "Smash Tourney Organizer Steps Down Amid Sexual Harassment Allegations". Kotaku. Retrieved 2015-01-27.
  14. ^ Schreier, Jason (2015-01-30). "Smash Tournament Relocates After Hotel Violates Safety Codes". Kotaku. Retrieved 2015-01-30.
  15. ^ Wilson Conde (2015-01-30). "Apex 2015 video gaming tourney moved after Secaucus hotel cited for fire code violations". NJ.com. Retrieved 2015-01-31.
  16. ^ Bahn, Chris. "Why Does Everyone Still Hate Apex? An Interview with Bifuteki". PVP Live. Archived from the original on 2016-08-18. Retrieved 2016-06-22.
  17. ^ Apex Series [@apex_series] (January 25, 2016). "Apex will go down this summer June 17th - 19th" (Tweet). Retrieved 2016-02-08 – via Twitter.
  18. ^ Jurek, Steven (May 29, 2016). "Apex cancels Super Smash Bros. Brawl tournament due to lack of entrants". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on July 4, 2016.

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