SSBMRank Summer 2023: 20–11
Melee Stats is proud to present SSBMRank Summer 2023! Counting down the 50 best players of the year so far to determine the best player for the first half of 2023.
This year, we asked 28 panelists to rate each player based on their results so far in the year based on the following prompt:
Based on the quality of results from December 19, 2022 to July 23, 2023 rate each player on a scale of 1 to 10 (10 being best)
Exhibitions, online tournaments, and tournaments that did not complete are NOT to be counted
You may consider results at locals and invitationals, but understand that the environment surrounding these events may not always be the most serious in nature
If you as a panelist are a player who is on the ballot, you may give yourself a score as a placeholder, but any score you use for yourself will NOT be counted
Each panelist gives each player a score from 1 to 10. After suppressing the effect of outliers, the votes are aggregated into a single point estimate representing that player’s score. Finally, scores were rescaled to a 1–100 rating, which is displayed above each player’s blurb.
#20: Polish | Rating: 69.67
Matt “Polish” Warshaw might be the most interesting player in the Top 20. Talking to Polish, you get the sense that they aspire to exist as a being capable of beautiful gameplay; that winning and losing are just a means toward understanding what that entails. They’ve had a rollercoaster 2023 season so far, befitting of someone seemingly more interested in honing a new gameplan than using a serviceable old one.
What sticks out the most in their results is a phenomenal showing at Tipped Off 14, where they barreled through Colbol, Axe, and Cody Schwab on the way to fifth. What sticks out the most in their gameplay has to be their Fox, which has matured enough to inflict horrific beatdowns on Khalid and Dawson this year. In the chaotic murk of competition, these performances seem to form the outline of the ideal Polish is striving toward; a nascent realization of beautiful gameplay finally beginning to take shape.
-Eryk “Ambisinister” Banatt
#19: Soonsay | Rating: 70.32
Every year, there’s 30 players who Canadians try to tell me are underrated future Top 10 contenders, but the longer time goes by, the more that might actually be the case for Miles “Soonsay” Foster. Having made the Top 100 four years ago and continued his breakout through quarantine, Soonsay has had a string of strong performances to kick off 2023. With a win over Pipsqueak at Genesis 9, a win over lloD at Major Upset, and a win over moky at Battle of BC 5, Soonsay’s a safe bet to net a win over a Top 25 player at any major he attends.
While it’s tempting for the typical US-centric spectator to group every Canadian in a single bucket, Soonsay stands out as the only Top 100 player from Alberta, a province previously most famous in our community for a masked man who won a tournament under the tag “Falcomaster.” It’s no small feat that Soonsay has risen to such prominence despite a relatively high degree of geographical separation between him and other top players. He’s singlehandedly put Alberta on the map — although I’m sure if you asked the Canadians, they’d tell you there are even more players like him out there.
-Eryk “Ambisinister” Banatt
#18: Salt | Rating: 71.31
From the ashes of two years without an official ranking, 2022 marked a new generation of Melee. Among the new faces in the Top 100, Alexandra “Salt” Rennie became one of the premier names that have led this current era. It might surprise you, then, that following a number 31 debut on the list last year, she’s somehow become even better. The biggest accomplishment of the Texan’s year has been defending her home turf at Low Tide City 2023, destroying players such as Axe and lloD. It helps that Salt runs Texas like it’s her backyard, routinely beating her peers like bobby big ballz and SDJ. But her dominance doesn’t end there; wins over Polish, 2saint and Spark prove that Salt is a strong force out of region too.
For nearly a decade, Wizzrobe, S2J, and n0ne have taken turns holding the title of best Captain Falcon player in the world. To some, it may seem shocking to see a fourth player steal the title of highest ranked Falcon, but to anyone who has paid attention to Salt’s near-unparalleled drive, it was only a matter of time.
-Glenn “KayB” Kim
#17: Axe | Rating: 72.52
Rishi once declared Jeffrey "Axe" Williamson "the best Melee player in the world by far." Being that good for over a decade requires approaching the game with a sense of balance. Axe spent the first half of this year looking to figure out how to be a great competitor while still enjoying time with loved ones. It makes sense, then, that the win he told me he’s proudest of is Smash Camp 2023. Surrounded by an Arizonian crowd absolutely delirious for their hero, he defeated Spark and held off a wilderness-infused Fiction even after a bracket reset. Outside of singles, Axe continues to succeed in Melee with those dear to him. After four consecutive second place finishes, Axe and his longtime friend and doubles partner aMSa finally won a major doubles bracket at Get On My Level 2023.
Axe has also been trying to find balance within the game itself. He explained to me that one of his goals this year was to lean on how many characters he’s good at in counter-pick scenarios - not just a Fox for Hungrybox. He still believes in Pikachu, but after 16 years of competing, it makes sense to show the world even more of what the best player (by far) can do. Besides, as Axe says, "playing more characters in tournaments is just more fun."
-Jack “Jackzilla” Harmening
#16: Magi | Rating: 73.15
The Melee scene isn’t the Melee scene without a top-level solo Falco — a frenetic, no-holds-barred player who, in spite of suffering the occasional upset, can nonetheless beat anyone in the world. In 2023, it is Sasha “Magi” Sullivan who fills this crucial role as the Melee player’s consummate Melee player.
The prettiest Falco in the world has achieved some incredibly high peaks in 2023. Across multiple events, she’s defeated Joshman, Fiction, Chem, Salt, and S2J, showcasing trademark brilliance in each fast-faller matchup. On its own, many would say her brilliance in this part of the game is enough — but this year, she’s boasted excellent wins in other matchups. Along with beating Krudo and Polish at Genesis, she also defeated Spark at Wavedash 2023; and while the world will forever debate the value of Magi’s three consecutive victories over a (less than sober) Zain at Redemption Rumble, that happened too, as did a victory over the (sober) “DontTestMe.”
In one half of the year, Melee’s top woman player built up a great résumé. If current trends hold up, she seems poised to continue scaling the rankings.
-Alex “QualitySteve” Lee
#15: Zuppy | Rating: 77.65
To describe it with the glory it deserves: Blake “Zuppy” Burnham’s Collision 2023 run was one of the best breakout performances in Melee history. In that one tournament, the self-proclaimed “TAS Man” took down moky, aMSa, and lloD to place 4th at one of the year’s most stacked majors. While Zuppy’s Collision may have launched him into the Top 15, his other performances throughout the Summer have cemented him there.
Zuppy picked up big wins at almost every event he went to, including defending his home turf from Aklo twice, once at Get On My Level 2023 and once at the pre-local beforehand. With his eccentric catchphrases (“holy chills”) and fierce results, Zuppy has had the running start of his dreams this year. Powered by the Canadian crowd in his corner, he could end the year stronger than he started it.
-Justin “DarkGenex” Cohen
#14: Joshman | Rating: 78.10
Slime once tweeted "everyone [is] gonna discover how cool and funny and sick at melee joshman is[,] it’s like when lames find out about a band u rly like [sic] and it kinda hurts but u [sic] know it has to happen for them to succeed." If he wasn’t right in 2021, he’s certainly right now; this season, Joshua "Joshman" Lyras showed no indication of slowing down, beating Trif, Aklo, and Leffen. It’s not just results which earned him nearly ten thousand Twitter followers since last summer - anybody who’s tuned into one of his bizarre couch quest streams can attest to Joshman naturally possessing something countless top players work to achieve: rizz.
At every major, including ones where he isn’t present, you can find people casually playing four square and using Australian Smash lingo like "executioner’s blade" and "trickshot." Even after his recent move to Canada, Joshman continues to bring Australia’s unique Smash culture to the forefront of the entire community. Unfortunately for Slime, the lames have found out about Joshman, but fortunately for us, he’s remained his unique self.
-Eryk “Ambisinister” Banatt
#13: Trif | Rating: 80.08
For a player formerly ranked in the Top 20, Alvaro “Trif” Garcia Moral found himself ranked a relatively low #38 in 2022. It didn’t reflect a drop in skill — just sparse attendance attributed to combination of pandemic-related travel issues and his girlfriend’s battle with fibromyalgia. Despite this, the community wondered if Trif could reach the same heights he had before. In 2023, we got our answer, with Trif traveling long distances to go on even longer major runs.
Starting off with Collision 2023, he defeated Swift and Krudo and continued to ride this momentum to a ferocious losers run at Battle of BC 5, where he crushed Zuppy, Soonsay, and Axe to place Top 8. He didn’t stop there: Trif dominated in July, racking up impressive wins over aMSa, Pipsqueak and Polish between LACS 5 and his fifth place finish at Fete 3 By The Sea, all while proudly donning his signature “FM❤” tag the whole time.
-Justin “DarkGenex” Cohen
#12: lloD | Rating: 81.96
Something crazy is happening at Get On My Level 2023: Arjun “lloD” Malhotra is inches away from victory in a Top 8 qualifier against aMSa. He is about to eliminate the reigning world #2 for the second time this year — only to suddenly mess up his recovery and lose in a heartbreaker. But lloD wasn’t disappointed. In fact, he was relieved; he had to perform surgery in the morning.
lloD’s status as a doctor is one of the most well-known pieces of trivia within the Melee community, but what’s understated is that his success at juggling both. Not only does he continue revolutionizing Peach vs. the entire cast, beating 2saint and SDJ in a matchup once thought hopeless, he’s also accrued wins over the likes of KoDoRiN, Aklo, and Axe. In landscape where almost all the top players are solely invested in competing, lloD’s résumé, on and off the sticks, is inspiring.
-Glenn “KayB” Kim
#11: Aklo | Rating: 83.60
If you’ve attended The Nightclub, New York City’s premier local tournament, even a single time this year, you’ve probably been around for a Dawud “Aklo” Rahman win. Almost every Wednesday, the Fox main descends from his throne atop the local scene to steamroll his way to first place, scoring effortless wins over Tristate’s best and brightest. Since Aklo was officially anointed New York’s best player in Summer 2021, his spot on the local Power Ranking hasn’t budged an inch. When he began to burst onto the national scene two years ago, many observers wondered how high he could go if he had more opportunities to travel.
Nobody is wondering that anymore. With his stunning victories over such elite talent as Cody Schwab, moky, and KoDoRiN — two of them coming in the form of a first place finish at Redemption Rumble — it’s no shock to see Aklo make his way this high on the Summer Top 50. These days, it’s more of a surprise to see Aklo finish outside Top 8 than within it, and his results are still improving. After a middling 25th place at Genesis at the beginning of the year, Aklo went on to score a seventh place at Collision, a fifth place at Tipped Off 14, and then a third place at Wavedash. You don’t need to be a math whiz to see where that pattern could be taking him.
-Alex “QualitySteve” Lee
The SSBMRank Summer 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
