SSBMRank 2023: 80–71
Melee Stats is proud to present SSBMRank 2023! Since Melee It On Me started SSBMRank in 2013, the Smash community has kicked off the year by celebrating and recognizing some of the greatest talents in the game. This year’s rankings reflect the grit and perseverance that our competitors have embodied over the last twelve months, and we hope you’ll join us in honoring those players and moments that have made 2023 such an incredible year.
We polled 29 community figures to rate each ballot-eligible player based on their performances throughout 2023. These panelists span a wide range: top players, tournament organizers, writers, analysts, and more. Each panelist rated each player with a value between 1 and 120, and then each player’s rating was aggregated to a single value based on their distribution of votes.
#80: Asashi | Rating: 42.15
Devean “Asashi” Pech always offers something new in his gameplay. Whether it’s his trademark Falco, his Fox, or his brutal Marth-slayer Sheik, he’s been one of SoCal’s most promising talents. And yet the Smash community at large just rarely got a chance to see it on the big stage. However, thanks to The Yard, Asashi finally got his chance to compete out of state at Super Smash Con 2023.
Most players struggle under that amount of pressure, and it looked like the same might happen to Asashi with an early loss in round two pools. But what came next is one of the best losers runs of the year, with Asashi stomping his way through DrLobster, TheRealThing, essy, and Zamu to place 13th at a bona fide major. Combined with his other performances, including his Sheik defeating Azel at Wavedash 2023 and clinching out a Top 64 finish at The Big House 11, Asashi also had his best year yet. With any luck, the once-hidden gem will get another chance to do it again in the coming year — and perhaps earn himself a neat appearance on his sponsor’s show.
-Danny “s-f” Levy
#79: essy | Rating: 42.97
Over the last seven years, one player has consistently put Cincinnati on the map: Claire “essy” Daughtery. Since her sudden burst onto the scene back in 2017, she’s only gotten better and more versatile. Adding a newly refined Marth to her arsenal of Sheik and Fox, essy is a terrifying opponent in battle. She’s unambiguously been dominant at the regional and local level, besting top players from both her state and the broader Midwest, all with multiple characters. Strangely, her character choices don’t always neatly align with traditional counterpicks. She seems to choose whomever she feels like playing in the moment, no matter the matchup, and you almost never know what she’s going to bring to the table.
If history’s any indication, players like essy are practically due for a huge major breakout. As impressive as her year was, it speaks volumes to her skill and long-term commitment to Melee that she remains capable of a surprising strike and deep run. It’s only a matter of time before she takes her results to an even higher level.
-Melissa Blight
#78: null | Rating: 43.90
Gio “null” Rossi wasn’t as active as he was in 2022, but his most recent season still involved strong results. For example, he snagged wins over Kürv and Chango at Wavedash 2023, only to then do well a few weeks later at the LACS 5 last chance qualifier, where he beat Lucky. At the seven majors and regionals he attended this year, he beat ten players listed on the Top 100 ballot. Contrary to what you might imagine for someone who took a step back in activity, null was actually one of the most safe bets you could make for doing well at an event.
Let’s be honest though: when it comes to discussing null’s year of accomplishments, nothing stands out more than the monumental achievement he hit in ending Fiction’s legendary, nearly year-long win-streak at Verdugo. It took just a little under a year, but null finally accomplished the seemingly impossible in defeating Mr. Shephard Lima twice in his figurative kingdom. If you can beat Fiction at Verdugo, you can defeat anyone in the world.
-Darren “krakhead” Lynch
#77: ckyulmiqnudaetr | Rating: 44.13
Michigan Melee thrived this year, and amid its resurgence has been the unexpected rise of Andrew “ckyulmiqnudaetr” Quang: one of the quiet leaders of 2023’s Donkey Kong revolution. With a new tag that doesn’t quite roll off the tongue, the longtime iron man legend experienced a rebirth with a new character, using Donkey Kong to take sets over Asashi, Kalvar, bobby big ballz, Khryke, and even Soonsay over the last year. How the mid-tier gorilla became his character of choice is particularly funny too — it started off as a low-maintenance quarantine experiment before unexpectedly becoming his strongest character.
In addition to standing out because of DK, ckyulmiqnudaetr also serves as the glue bridging the Michigan scene’s different eras, having began competing when Duck was active, and nowadays undeniably a pillar of the Michigan community. At The Big House 11, ckyulmiqnudaetr tirelessly worked the check-in desk, seamlessly assisted with TOing, and convincingly made Top 64 with Donkey Kong. Most remarkably, 2023 marked his third time Top 64’ing Big House with a different character, accomplishing the feat with solo Fox and Ice Climbers in previous years. ckyulmiqnudaetr represents the spirit of Melee: play who you have fun with, and contribute to your community.
-Justin “DarkGenex” Cohen
#76: Voo | Rating: 44.48
It’s CEO 2023, and the Melee community is stunned at what appears to be a big upset: Vaughn “Voo” Brown 3–0'ing the Jmook-slayer MOF. Except, it’s not really an upset. In fact, Voo would go on to beat MOF over 20 times in 2023. Even more impressively — Voo himself estimates that, in-region, the two played at least 300 sets lifetime, with him winning over 250 of them. These statistics, in addition to Voo’s spot atop the South Florida scene, merely scratch the surface of his potential.
Voo doesn’t travel often, but he’s a spectacle when he does. He cleanly eliminated n0ne at a rare out-of-region appearance at Tipped Off 14, and then nabbed a win over Grab at The Big House 11. Weeks later, he competed in more familiar territory, defending his South Floridian turf at Luminosity Makes Moves Miami. Between the pre-local and the event itself, he 3–0’d Chem, beat Mekk twice, and added yet another victory to his head-to-head count versus MOF to boost his already strong résumé. Voo’s status as a regional titan is unquestionable; with more appearances on the national stage, he can continue rising in global prominence and further put South Florida on the map.
-Justin “DarkGenex” Cohen
#75: Mot$ | Rating: 45.26
Once Matt “Mot$” Gaydos has your number, consider yourself cooked. Over the years, he’s instituted dictatorial dominance over the usually embattled territory of New Jersey, with overwhelmingly positive records over would-be challengers like Bbatts (5–1) and 404Cray (6–1). He’s lately found success at the national level over familiar faces too; for the second year in a row, Mot$’s highlight wins came against the same two players: Mekk and SluG. Jigglypuff players, watch out too: Mot$ boasts a 5–1 record against top 100 Jigglypuffs this year, which includes a perfect 3–0 set count against Dawson.
Every major is a chance for Mot$ to subjugate another player to his ever-growing roster of subservient subjects. Each tournament, he grows more comfortable in the highest halls of Melee competition. As someone who performs best on familiar territory and is also one of the most nationally active players in the world, Mot$ has a great chance to break out further in the years to come.
-Zane “epengu” Bhansali
#74: Kalvar | Rating: 45.92
Not many players embody the heart and soul of their region like David “Kalvar” Coyne does with New England. He’s attended over 65 local events over the last year, also still finding time for five majors along the way. Kalvar started the year off well at The 1st New England Melee Spartan, a reverse-Arcadian style tournament where he managed to claw a set over his nemesis DrLobster on the way to a respectable second place. When the competition came to the home field at The Trail Invitational 3 that summer, he snagged a clutch victory over Zamu before placing seventh.
Speaking of which, Kalvar had a sneaky tendency to catch top competitors off guard. In addition to defeating Skerzo and Ben, Kalvar also came within inches of defeating Mang0 at Get On My Level 2023. He’s shown time and time again that he can take the best of the best to their limit. With another year being the highest ranked New England player on the Top 100, Kalvar continues to be the region’s hero on the big stage.
-Darren “krakhead” Lynch
#73: mvlvchi | Rating: 46.31
Many Peach players stray from the image of being a “down smash spammer”, but Malachi “mvlvchi” Markos embraces it. C-stick in hand, he’s now made a glorious return to the Top 100 after debuting on the list in 2019. And he’s really active — he supports his local scene, he regularly streams Melee, and he consistently attends East Coast events. True to his reputation as a spacie-slayer, he boasts a convincing victory over Fiction at LACS 5, a nice win on Professor Pro at the Black Empowerment Melee Invitational 2023, and multiple sets versus Kevin Maples, the #1 of MDVA. It’s not like he only defeats fast fallers either; he’s taken down plenty of MD/VA floaties, Khryke, and Dawson too.
Although mvlvchi often presents himself as a goofball, the truth is he’s actually quite thoughtful. When you ask him his sincere opinion on something, he’s more than happy to express his unfiltered, yet poignant opinions. Talk to anyone who’s crossed paths with him in the Melee scene, and they’ll rave about how truly authentic and sincere he is. Passionate about life, and living the best he can, he’ll keep trudging along on his journey, down-smashing anyone who crosses his path.
-Justin “DarkGenex” Cohen
#72: Professor Pro | Rating: 46.74
Few names are more synonymous with European Melee than Aaron “Professor Pro” Thomas. A United Kingdom Fox with a decade-long legacy of domination over his home region, Professor Pro had made it clear that 2023 would be his final year of competing. Not intending to go out quietly, however, Professor Pro gave his fans quite a few performances to celebrate throughout the year. With sets over mvlvchi, MOF, n0ne, and KJH, his travels to North America came with successes that proved he could still keep up with the game’s rising stars.
Meanwhile at home, the rivalry between himself and his practically handpicked successor Frenzy reached new heights in a wild grand finals at PEAK, an invitational which celebrated Professor Pro’s career. At this same event, Professor Pro would take a set from Frenzy in grand finals, showcasing a glimpse of the magic he’s had for many years, before ultimately falling in the second set. Though his time with Melee has come to an end, he’s left behind an undeniable legacy, and whether it be his iconic, lightning quick gameplay, or his cheerful, friendly face, he will forever be celebrated as a legend of the game.
-Patrick “Kingu” King
#71: TheSWOOPER | Rating: 48.34
There are few names that strike fear in the hearts of Tristate natives like Luisangel “TheSWOOPER” Olivo. Forged in the grueling flames of New Jersey Melee, a place where even the best players in the world will just inevitably drop sets to 2–2ers, TheSWOOPER has adopted a unique flavor of Samus, one that is willing to get down and dirty with any player that dare try to enter his domain. Play as clean as you may like — eventually you’ll find yourself wrestling in the mud with him, and that’s a fight where TheSWOOPER will come out on top.
Such victims include nearly every single Falco TheSWOOPER has fought against in 2023, such as Slowking, 404Cray, and Flash. But he’s also maintained his penchant for slaying Foxes, as seen through wins over Zuppy and Skerzo. For the last several years, Melee has been in the midst of a mid-tier revolution, and TheSWOOPER has consistently been in the forefront. He’s one of the last remaining Samus players still proving that the character has what it takes to win.
-Glenn “KayB” Kim
The SSBMRank 2023 Team
Director: Brendan “GimmeDatWheat” Malone
Editing Lead: Anokh “EdwinBudding” Palakurthi
Data Lead: Eryk “Ambisinister” Banatt
Graphics Lead: Nick “DarkDragoon” Konstantino
Check out start.gg/SSBMRank to follow along with the full list as it releases
