A New Challenger Approaching: Liquid`Nairo

I can think of no player better than Nairo to set Liquid off on the right foot in Smash 4. A complete package, he is the fiercest of competitors at tournaments while remaining true to himself and deeply loyal to his fans.

For those of your who aren't so familiar with Smash 4, Nairo is widely considered one of the top four players in the world along with ZeRo, Mr. R and ESAM. He started his career playing Metaknight in Brawl when he was still young. He gained a reputation as a Smash prodigy which culminated in him taking first place at Apex 2014 at age 16, the last 'major' Brawl tournament. His win over ZeRo started a friendly rivalry between the two which continues to this day.

Upon switching to Smash 4, Nairo played a variety of characters—notably Robin and Dark Pit—but was unable to find the same level of success as he did in Brawl. Shortly after a disappointing run at Apex 2015, he focused on Zero Suit Samus and then things just started to click. It wasn't long before he dethroned Dabuz as the best player in the Tri-state area and made a serious claim as one of the best in the world. He finished 2nd, 3rd and 3rd at CEO, EVO and SSC, his last three tournaments.

In every event he attends, Nairo conducts himself as a professional fitting of the Liquid tag. He is hypercritical of his own play and never shies away from taking responsibility when things don't go as planned. He's supremely confident in his ability, and this fearlessness is evident in his playstyle.

Smash 4 is still a young game but it is evolving rapidly. The pace is getting faster; movement is growing more fluid; technical skill is increasing; and most of all, storylines are developing. Players like Nairo are at the forefront of pushing the game to its limits. In a nutshell his playstyle is 'high octane': in the blink of an eye he can go from poking in neutral to taking your stock with unrelenting and imaginative combos. Not only is his Zero Suit one of the most entertaining characters to watch, he brings the same electric playstyle to every character he touches—notably to the likes of Robin and Lucena.

What truly sealed the deal for us is how Nairo approaches his fans. He is one of the most consistent Smash 4 streamers, despite his heavy tournament schedule. The effort Nairo puts in to maintaining this stream, such as funding regular stream giveaways and cultivating better viewer interaction, showed us just how much he values his supporters. As a result, the stream is such a great environment for fans to get to know Nairo on a more personal level.

Nairo is already a veteran of the Smash scene with a wealth of competitive experience despite only being 18 years old, and we think the best is yet to come. Welcome to the team, Liquid`Nairo.