It has come to this: The last-ever Beyond The Summit event. Beginning on March 23, 16 of the world’s best Smash Ultimate players will compete in an invitational tournament to crown the final Summit champion.
The Smash world was shocked at the end of 2022 as the Smash World Tour was canceled and Panda Cup was postponed in the wake of Nintendo’s decision to not grant a license to the former.
Sadly, 2023 has had more casualties. BTS announced they would be closing its doors due to financial reasons after Ultimate Summit 6, thus making the tournament the final event.
Despite Ultimate Summit 6 being a bittersweet tournament, the show must go on and it’s shaping up to be one of the wildest spectacles in Smash history.
Who is competing in Smash Ultimate Summit 6?
The event will feature a total of 16 players, eight of which who qualified through their placements at events while four were invited and the rest were crowdfunded.
FaZe Sparg0, Tweek, Big D, Moist Light, ApolloKage and Karmine Corp Kurama qualified through their placements at Mainstage. However, Light has had to drop out due to getting COVID before the event.
MuteAce made it through because of his amazing second-place run at Genesis 9 and Team Liquid’s fighting game character specialist Riddles advanced by emerging victorious at Collision.
VoiD, Moist Aaron, NaetorU and Team Liquid Hungry Box crowdfunded their way into the event.
Finally, Smash GOAT MkLeo, Glutonny, Acola and Ultimate Summit 5 winner ProtoBanham were all invited.
How to watch Smash Ultimate Summit 6
You can check out all the action on Beyond The Summit’s Twitch channel, but you can also tune in via the embed below.
The mayhem begins on Thursday, March 23 and will conclude on Sunday, March 26 with the final bracket.
On Thursday, there will be a series of side events including Squad Strike, 4v4 and a reaction time contest. Plus, a very important Best of 5 set between Lui$ and Skyjay to determine who will take Light’s place.
Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest updates on Esports, Gaming and more.
The open spot for Ultimate Summit 6 will be determined by a Best of 5 set between Lui$ and Skyjay after Squad Strike tomorrow. Both of them were runners up for qualifying spots at Mainstage and Collision respectively, and were already planning on attending as VIPs.
— Beyond the Smash (@BTSsmash) March 22, 2023
The next day, the main battle begins with all four groups competing at 11 am PST, a live Tweek Talks podcast, and more.
On Saturday, the final group matches will take place followed by tie-breakers at 11 am PST and the gauntlet stage a bit later at 5 pm .
Sunday’s finals bracket will kick off at 11 am PST with a whopping 23 matches to close out the event and crown the last-ever Summit champion.
Who are the favorites to win Smash Ultimate Summit 6?
Although Smash Ultimate Summit 6 features 16 of the best players in the world, there can only be one winner.
Between eight Americans, two Japanese, two Canadians, two Mexicans and two Frenchmen, there will be a lot of big matches and room for plenty of upsets.
Despite a poor finish at Colission, Leonardo ‘MkLeo’ Lopez Perez is still the favorite to take the crown given his consistent placements and dominant victories over his career.
FaZe’s Edgar ‘Sparg0’ Valdez and recent free agent Gavin ‘Tweek’ Dempsey could also pull off a huge win as the two continue their rivalry.
Let’s not forget about Japan, though. Steve prodigy Mashita ‘acola’ Hayato is looking to finally best Leo and secure his place in Smash history despite the controversy with his character being banned in some events. Plus, you shouldn’t count out reigning champion Naoto ‘ProtoBanham’ Tsuji to defend his title.
Of course, upsets do happen. Could Hungrybox surprise the world with his Jigglypuff? Will Big D’s Ice Climbers leave everyone frozen in disbelief? Or perhaps NaetorU’s Pichu will show why France is a force in the Smash world.
Be sure to tune into Smash Ultimate Summit 6 as all the action unholds and a final champion is crowned.