The Case for Voting Chillin to Smash Summit 3

You’d never guess it, but buried deep within the lush hills posing as Los Angeles’s scenic backdrop lies one of Super Smash Bros. Melee’s most prestigious events of the year. Absent are the legions of diehard fans that cram into grandiose venues for today’s major tourneys. Rather, some of Melee’s best action occurs at Smash Summit, an invitational tucked in a Los Angeles Hills estate featuring the game’s very best. Gone are the arduous pools and early brackets that top players usually bypass with ease at majors. The stark contrast is that Summit meshes high-level competition with Smash’s polar personalities for four days, with cameras capturing all the unfiltered interaction in its full glory, from hilarious shared-controller team sets to backstabbing games of “Mafia”.

Smash Summit’s third iteration swings around this November, and as always, fan voting will allow everyone at home to select six uninvited players to attend. Of course, there are many players who make great cases for themselves. But is there anyone who truly can test the game’s top echelon “gods” while also whetting your commentating appetite AND who is kosher with pretty much every competitor in attendance? Someone who’s liable to diss any Summit participant with his notorious rap flow?

Allow me to throw out a name, or, shall we say, a staple of Smash. His name is Kashan Khan, but you probably know him as Chillindude829, and he’s as ideal a Summit party crasher as there ever will be.

Of course, Summit is a Smash tournament above all else, so it makes sense to nominate players with the potential to upset the status quo. Playing the role of spoiler has been Chillin’s game since the dawn of the scene’s inception. Back when Ken was arguably the best player in the world, Chillin took him down in tournament singles and doubles, feats that were rarely repeated by anyone else. At MELEE-FC 3, his East Coast crew took down a stacked West Coast squad in one of the greatest crew battles in Melee history. Recently, he teamed with friend ChuDat at supermajor The Big House 6, surprising Smash gods Hungrybox and Mew2King and knocking them out of the tournament, while also placing in the top 16 in singles.

For Chillin, this resurgence is a big factor in pushing for Summit this year over last. “This (sporadic performance) is part of why I didn’t campaign for Summit 2 since I didn’t think I had a good enough resume or had been improving to justify being there,” says Khan. But with recent success, Chillin feels a visit to the Summit house could ignite his career towards new frontiers: “I think I’m close to breaking through a skill barrier that I’ve struggled with for a couple of years. Getting into Summit might be the final push I need to level up and start hanging with the best.”

But much of Summit’s appeal lies in its transparent design, in how each player breaks out of the stoic shell he or she usually sports in competition, revealing unexpected and hilarious personality quirks. In this category, Chillin’s a sure bet, having already engendered Smash fans to his character in numerous ways. If you haven’t watched/listened to any of his diss-tracks aiming at fellow Smashers, you’ve truly been deprived of some creatively personal trash talk — from critiquing HugS cake baking to grilling Leffen on his infamous “Evidence.zip” suspension. He’s already promised to lob more shots at the Smash elite, so you know his presence will shake the dynamic up — even if it’s just for fun. As Chillin puts it, “I think through my stream and some of my content (such as my raps) I’ve been able to showcase my personality a good amount… that becomes a big factor for voting.” I mean, just imagine Chillin slighting Smashers as a member of the mafia (in the traditional rounds of Summit “Mafia”) or acting in Smash charades.

Beyond the emphatic music videos, Chillin has defined himself in the social media sphere. Not only does he run a prominent Twitch channel, but he is active on Twitter with over 35,000 followers. For Khan, though, embracing the greater Smash community is a priority. “I try to interact with the community as (much as) possible, not just to gain popularity but to really understand how the community views me and what I can do to improve myself in their view. Without the fans, players would be nothing, so it means a lot to me that people continue to support me after so many years in the community.” If the essence of voting is electing a man (or woman) of the people, it’s hard to argue that Chillin doesn’t fit the bill.

The reality is that Chillin would click with Summit players most because he’s friends with nearly every top player and has amassed respect from the scene from his nearly 15 years of involvement in it. He sees it the same way, noting that “Mostly everyone who is invited to Summit is a friend of mine, and many of them are actually very good friends, so I think it would be enjoyable for them and for me to have me there.” But, for Khan, Summit isn’t just an opportunity to fraternize with long-time pals. “There’s also a few top players I haven’t gotten to hang out with much that I’d love to get the chance to do so with,” he states.

If you watch Summit, you’ll notice that much of the air-time is dedicated to commentary banter. Smashers with little-to-no commentary experience are thrown into the deep end to provide a voice behind some of the sets being played. Rather than hear a neophyte commentator struggle to keep pace with the flow of a set, why not vote in someone who’s a seasoned analyst with strong experience behind the mic? Chillin’s recent foray into commentating has been met with heaps of praise from the Smash community who value his input on tech skill and player matchups. “As one of the most active commentators among potentially invited players I think I’d do great on commentary,” he adds. “I also really look forward to the opportunity to work with so many different commentators at once, and I think my commentary will actually get better while there because of this.” Whether he’s partnered with Toph, Vish, or Blur, he’s demonstrated versatility in working with different personalities on the commentator spectrum. And as someone who helped shepherd the Fox meta into what it is today, it’s obvious that there’s a wealth of knowledge to gain from his perspective.



Chillin — the viral-video vixen of Smash — can’t do much more to make his case. He’s been an influential founder of the Melee scene, he’s revered by his peers, and his play and charisma make him a must-see addition to the Summit dynamic. “I’ve pursued my love for Melee for 15 years now,” he says, “and it’s not stopping anytime soon. I would love to have the chance to compete at one of the premier Smash events, not only for the practice, but to hang out with friends and entertain the community.” If you’re at home, stuck with a few votes and pondering whom to place them on, one thing is certain: you want the best bang for your buck. If you vote Chillin in, you’re getting someone who satisfies nearly everything you’d want out of a Summit contestant. Plus, he’s already got some interesting ideas for the tournament that fans are sure to appreciate.

“I promise I’ll release a special edition Summit diss track if I get in. Also, at long last, the Leffen rematch can take place since he will definitely be there. Please vote for me to make it happen!”
To vote for Chillin for Smash Summit 3, log-in (or create) a Smash.gg account, then cast your ballot here:

Liquid`Chillin