Recently, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate players were treated to the reveal of the newest DLC character, Min Min from ARMS, with a new trailer that also showed off the new stage and accompanying music.
However, there continues to be an enormous group of people that insist on sticking with the GameCube title Super Smash Bros. Melee, despite that game being 18 years old now and offering less features and a much smaller roster.
Though Melee tournaments remain incredibly popular, the current COVID-19 pandemic has made it near impossible for such tournaments to be held, but a group of fans have now implemented something that the game has been missing for its entire life - online play.
Obviously, this doesn't apply to the actual physical GameCube release, but has been designed for Dolphin, a GameCube emulator. Technically, the game has always had online multiplayer, but what Dolphin offers is less than ideal.
The fan-made feature, titled Slippi, is massively superior in comparison, as it offers matchmaking, automatic replay saving, and tools for tournament organizers, such as stat tracking.
Most important of all, though, is a rollback netcode, something that is considered vital for online competitive play. In simple terms, a rollback netcode provides a much smoother experience and ultimately makes matches "fairer" as it cuts down on delays.
So far, the response to Slippi has been overwhelmingly positive, with EVO 2018 champion William “Leffen” Hjelte releasing a video showing how it works, demonstrating with a match that was played between Sweden, where he's based, and the West Coast of the United States.
Other professional Smash players have said similarly good things about Slippi. Jeffrey “Axe” Williamson even said that using it felt like he was playing offline matches.
Slippi could very well lengthen Melee's lifespan within the competitive scene and potentially draw in newcomers who may see reliable online matchmaking as the very thing they needed to give the game a shot.
As for Ultimate fans, they've still got plenty to look forward to, as Min Min will be released alongside new costumes for Mii Fighters, which include Tekken's Heihachi and Vault Boy, the mascot character from the Fallout series.
As for future DLC characters, while there are still five more to go, it's possible we have to wait quite a while for the next one to even be announced, as it was reported that the COVID-19 pandemic could have an effect on development.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is available on Nintendo Switch.
Source: Kotaku