SSBMRank Summer 2023: The Top Ten
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.
#10: KoDoRiN | Rating: 85.21
To no one’s surprise, John “KoDoRiN” Ko is Mr. 10 this summer. With high placements at majors and dominant head-to-heads against the field, KoDoRiN is in a definitive tier of his own; a quantifiable spot above all but nine players in the world. Anyone else would celebrate the moments of going toe-to-toe with Melee’s elite: two decisive sets from Cody Schwab, a win over Hungrybox, and a second place finish at Redemption Rumble. But for KoDoRiN, these are mere foothills — he craves summits. He stands at the cusp of greatness, gazing up the mountain, dreaming of the peak. At this final destination, only a select few have ascended into Melee immortality through winning a major.
Behind KoDoRiN is a graveyard of those who came tantalizingly close. Their names are etched on tombstones forever commemorating them as legends who nonetheless fell short of the ultimate prize. The last part of KoDoRiN’s journey is the hardest one; the moment where he can go from making consistent top eights to becoming a threat to win the biggest tournaments. The Melee world watches, breathless, as one of its brightest stars continues the climb.
-Justin “DarkGenex” Cohen
#9: Plup | Rating: 88.89
If someone asked you to name the best players in the world, it might take you a while before you mention Justin “Plup” McGrath — and at that point, you might wonder why it took you so long. The answer is simple: he only went to three events. But it’s clear that Plup is still at the top echelon of play; he’s just a sleeping giant.
Take the two majors he attended: Genesis 9 and Major Upset. At events dominated by Jmook and Cody Schwab, Plup’s showings went under the radar, as if beating aMSa, Hungrybox, and KoDoRiN, was par for the course. What’s most bizarre, however, is when Plup actually won a tournament. At CEO 2023, his victory was overshadowed by the return of Wizzrobe, the guy who Plup unceremoniously defeated to claim the championship belt.
Because we’ve come to expect greatness from Plup, our lofty expectations for him often obscure how incredible his performances actually are. In an era when several of our best players attend events month after month, we can never discount the possibility of Plup just randomly showing up and winning it all.
-Glenn “KayB” Kim
#8: Hungrybox | Rating: 88.97
Like every great actor, Juan “Hungrybox” Debiedma has played a variety of roles: a “god” of Melee, an engineer, a heel, and a top Smash Ultimate streamer. Most recently, however, Hungrybox has embraced yet another title within the community: salesman. Last year, Hungrybox called out Nintendo at the Streamer Awards; this year, he put his words to action, partnering with FreshCut as its “Chief Smash Officer.” And that’s not to mention running Coinbox every week for both Smash games and throwing thousands of dollars toward Cody Schwab — er, top attendees.
But don’t let this face turn fool you; Hungrybox is still a ruthless shark. He placed top 8 at every major he attended this year, scoring notable wins over Leffen, aMSa, moky and Jmook along the way. If history is any indication, it’s only a matter of time until Hungrybox buckles down and threatens to become Melee’s number one player once more. However, if he can do it this time, it might just be as a hero — not a villain.
-Alex “QualitySteve” Lee
#7: aMSa | Rating: 91.17
The Melee world first heard of aMSa a decade ago, after the then-unknown Japanese Yoshi player managed to take a game from Mew2King at Evo 2013. When this happened back then, I thought to myself, “Wow, he might be a Top 100 player with Yoshi.” When he finally won The Big House 10 last year, the once impossible seemed possible: that a Yoshi player could actually be the best player in the world. The aMSa we’ve seen this year is no longer a challenger — his wins over Zain, Jmook, and Leffen have more than proven he’s a contender to win majors.
But two fellow contenders have been consistent thorns in his side: Cody Schwab and moky. More than half of aMSa’s losses at major tournaments have come at the hands of these two players. None were more heartbreaking than the two to Cody that spoiled aMSa’s otherwise brilliant second place performance at Battle of BC 5. While a major victory has eluded him so far in 2023, the same could have been said about last year. He enters the second half of this year once again with no major wins, but this time as a contender looking to overcome his obstacles and repeat history.
-Glenn “KayB” Kim
#6: Mang0 | Rating: 91.46
The sky is falling — the love Joseph “Mang0” Marquez once had for Melee is seemingly waning. After winning multiple majors in 2022, it’s easy to look at Mang0’s Dr. Mario placing 97th at Genesis 9 and see a player going through the motions. It’s not for a lack of effort; Mang0’s volatile results are a byproduct of a seasoned veteran trying to rediscover his passion for the game. Even wins over aMSa, moky, and Cody Schwab haven’t been enough for him to fully rekindle the flame.
But Mang0 is the one player who’s made a career of succeeding when the sky’s falling. At what feels like every uniquely pivotal moment in Melee history, Mang0 has been there. At Smash Summit 11 in Melee’s return from the pandemic and at Mainstage 2022 after the collapse of two circuits, Mang0 brought hope to the scene through his thrilling victories. However, this isn’t a pivotal moment for Melee, it’s one for Mang0 himself. Don’t mistake his search for his competitive spark as a lack of devotion — in fact, it speaks to how much he loves Melee that he’s not willing to just simply quit.
-Anokh “EdwinBudding” Palakurthi
#5: moky | Rating: 93.74
Through the first half of 2023, we’ve seen Kurtis “moky” Pratt ascend from rising star to major contender. With winning records against Cody Schwab, Hungrybox, and Plup, it’s clear that moky is doing far more than just farming clips — he is undoubtably an elite player. Perhaps most impressive is his dominant 6–0 record against aMSa. It really feels like moky was hand-crafted by God in a genetic engineering lab, specifically to inspire fear in the hearts of Yoshi fans.
What sets moky’s 2023 apart from his 2022 season is his newfound ability to make deep tournament runs. While he has been a mainstay top eight pick since the end of quarantine, his top three finishes at Genesis 9, Tipped Off 14 and Get On My Level 2023 represent a new era of consistency. With his victory at The Come Up 2023 over aMSa and Aklo, it’s overwhelmingly clear that moky has more available bracket paths to win a major than anyone who hasn’t already done so. At this point, it feels less like a question of “Can moky win a major?” and more of “When will he finally do it?”
-Eryk “Ambisinister” Banatt
#4: Leffen | Rating: 94.73
The mercurial William “Leffen” Hjelte started his year with a disappointing seventh-place finish at Genesis, suffering a 3–0 loss to his rival Hungrybox in the process. Then he declined to enter another major for four months, focusing instead on Guilty Gear Strive. For the first six months of 2023, Melee seemed to fall into the periphery of Leffen’s life, and he even started dabbling in the newly-released Street Fighter 6. But the break turned out to be exactly what he needed.
Upon his return at Battle of BC 5, he improved on his Genesis result, placing fifth and scoring hard-fought victories over Hungrybox and moky. And at LACS 5, Leffen’s clutch gene kicked into high gear, propelling himself to a first-place finish with wins over Zain, Cody Schwab, and Hungrybox — the latter in a resounding 3–0 of his own. Once a godslayer, Leffen has become a member of Melee’s old guard. His performances this year are proof enough to never count Leffen out.
-Alex “QualitySteve” Lee
#3: Jmook | Rating: 97.02
In Grand Finals of Genesis 8, HomeMadeWaffles said of Jake “Jmook” DiRado’s run, “You couldn’t write a better story.” Then, following a year in which a skyhigh #6 debut on the rankings somehow underplayed what everyone saw on the screen, Jmook won back-to-back majors: Genesis 9 and Collision 2023. From the world wondering if solo Sheik could ever win a major, Jmook had done it twice. At the same time, the dizzying heights he’s achieved have led to rising expectations, which make the moments where he’s fallen short stand out. But this is only the mid-point of 2023. Jmook has plenty of time to build on a resume in which he boasts more wins over Zain than anyone in the world — a far cry from once finishing 257th place at Evo 2016.
For Jmook, the long period from those days to now being a household name makes him thankful just to be part of the show. Imagine spending your first five years in Melee virtually unknown. You’re gradually improving, and you can test yourself a bit more as online tournaments become the norm. Then, when in-person tournaments return, you find yourself there, for real, on stage, and after enough times, you’re finally the last person standing. What else can you do but sit up straight and take a deep breath?
-Jack “Jackzilla” Harmening
#2: Cody Schwab | Rating: 98.46
Cody Schwab is Melee’s very own wandering samurai: a mercenary roaming the country with a controller and a sign reading “will win tournament for rent money.” Melee’s most valuable free agent has spent the first half of 2023 beating the absolute tar out of nearly every player in the world, fearlessly flying the banner of anyone willing to give him enough money. Eggdog? We love those little guys. Coffee Crisp? The most delicious thing in the world. Coinbox? Sorry, Hungrybox — Cody will be robbing you blind.
His 2023 is similar in many respects to his 2022: a season marred with personal misfortune, and an unbelievable résumé in spite of it. With the esports landscape looking rockier than ever, Cody has fought tooth and nail to support himself. Among players in the top 10, Cody has seven winning or even head-to-heads: the most of any player. You get the sense that Cody has no real demons; that he can triumph over any obstacle, in-game or out of it. Holding two major victories and three top 3 major finishes, Cody has yet again cemented himself in the absolute highest possible tier of players. Hey, did I mention this guy is a free agent? A free agent competing for rank 1 in the world? Can we get somebody on that?
-Eryk “Ambisinister” Banatt
#1: Zain | Rating: 100.00
Two months ago, it was natural to wonder if the Zain Naghmi Era was over, as Jmook and Cody Schwab led the race for number one. When Zain won Tipped Off 14, it wasn’t something that seemed to fundamentally shift the competitive landscape; instead it was treated as the one major he was due for. It was at Fete 3 By The Sea where the tides shifted — where Zain achieved victory in a personal first. Silencing all questions about his ability to win a tournament through losers’ bracket, Zain also overcame two of his biggest demons in aMSa and Jmook. Going into the end of the season, the two-person race for #1 suddenly became a three-person race. After winning Get On My Level 2023 with only one game dropped, it wasn’t even a race anymore.
The more Zain succeeds, the less we’ll think of his time atop the game as one era, and the more we’ll realize he can win anything he enters. Each major he takes home is another reason for him to join the likes of Mango, Armada, and Hungrybox as Melee’s timeless immortals. For Zain, the number one spot on SSBMRank Summer 2023 is just another step in his journey to transcend history.
-Anokh “EdwinBudding” Palakurthi
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
