True God of Smash: Hungrybox wins SXSW

March 22 2016


The Battle of the Five Gods

The tournament was framed as a test of the Five Gods of Melee. All the mortals in attendance would be after their thrones, yet everyone expected the Gods to do battle in the brackets. Yet the Gods fell, one by one. Until only one remained.



First, PPMD succumbed in the Playoff Groups. After struggling against Westballz in the group stage, the EG player collapsed when given a chance to reach the quarterfinals. With a combined score of 2-12, he was unceremoniously dumped out with 0-4 record in matches.

That left four Gods in each of the quarterfinals, and two more were cut down. Westballz continued his hot streak by defeating Mango, and M2K narrowly lost to Plup. The two were sent to the purgatory of the lower bracket, and they would have to pass even more trials to make it back to contention.

The first clash between the eponymous Gods occurred in the Winners' Finals, where Hungrybox smashed Armada in 3 straight sets. His Jigglypuff had only dropped 3 games the entire tournament thus far and he earned his place in the event's climactic battle.

In the lower bracket, M2K proved unworthy at the first hurdle, but Mango showed his resilience by clearing 4 straight opponents. Another God stood in his way in the Losers' Finals, but Mango would prevail. After losing the first two sets in a Fox mirror, Armada resorted to his Peach to bring the series level. Fortunately for Mango, he managed to adjust in time to narrowly win the series and advance to the finals.

There, Hungrybox loomed, the only flawless record left intact. Mango was a fitting opponent for Hbox; it was The Kid that defeated him during his coming of age tournament at GENESIS 2009. Now, they would face each other for the title of the Almighty of Melee.



At first, it seemed as though Mango had figured out Jigglypuff. In three straight sets Mango looked restored and at his best, which pushed the grand finals to an ultimate best of five. It was the first time that Hungrybox had lost more than 1 game in a series all tournament, and instead of faltering, he awoke. While Mango was able to reset the bracket with his trademark aggression, Hbox was quick to figure out his attacking patterns of the weekend. The venerated Puff player utilized his strong spacing to avoid Mango and bait him into weak positions to set up devastating combos. He stamped his authority and concluded the event with a 3-1 victory, cementing his place as the One God of Smash.



With 2 titles to start 2016, Hungrybox reigns supreme. He has gone from strength to strength since his DreamHack triumph, and no one can argue that currently, he is the best in the world. In a pantheon of greats he proved immaculate, and while the Gods will continue to do battle, for now, he stands above them all.





The Path to Godhood

In the realm of esports, no one is born a god because it is a title that must be earned. Hungrybox's journey from aspiring pro to full fledged deity has been a long one, but each step has seen him tread new and greater ground. It all started in 2009 when he placed 3rd at GENESIS, and he has consistently been among the top players in Melee since his debut. Only the other four gods, and the occasional upstart, have managed to beat him since that time.

2015, however, was his best year yet. After titles at Paragon, MLG and DreamHack to end the year, Hungrybox's claim as the king of the gods has only strengthened. Mount Melee may have four other gods, but we know who's sitting on the throne.



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Writer // lichter
Graphics // shiroiusagi