The Argonauts were not the only Toronto competitors to be crowned champion in Regina this weekend.
Toronto native Michael “Riddles” Kim won $15,000 at the Path to Glory esports tournament on Saturday. The $50,000 prize pool was the largest in Canadian Super Smash Bros. Ultimate history.
Kim breathed a sigh of relief after defeating Jayjay “Ouch!?” Basilan in the grand finals. The two friends then hugged in a sign of sportsmanship.
Traditional sports fans might assume that the two would be bitter rivals, but Sam Stawarz as not surprised.
“There are rivalries that come about, but nothing ever to the point where it would [damage] someone’s friendship because at the end of the day, we’re just a bunch of guys who hang out playing video games with each other,” said Stawarz.
Stawarz has been a member of the Smash community in Regina since 2017. He helped organize the tournament, but also competed and commentated some of the sets.
“I’ve met some of my closest friends through the Smash scene and I’d say it’s a very friendly and welcoming community, especially in our city,” said Stawarz.
Regina has a passionate community that enjoys the game but are not always represented in competitive tournaments.
“Our scene is a little smaller than others so oftentimes we kind of get blown by the wayside but we really did have some fierce competitors,” said Stawarz.
He estimates that out of the two hundred competitors in the Path to Glory tournament, eighty to ninety were from Saskatchewan. Noah “2Scary” Corbett was the top placing player from Saskatchewan, finishing ninth and earning $1,000.
Corbett was one of the players who qualified through special tournaments in each of the CFL’s nine cities. The winners of these tournaments had their airfare paid for by SKL Esports, the event organizers.
Although the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate game was used for this event, a competitive scene still exists for the 2001 classic Super Smash Bros Melee.
Stawarz says that events for that game are more difficult to organize.
“We can’t always run melee events because oftentimes at big events, Nintendo will cease and desist people for running that game because they just want us to buy the new game,” said Stawarz.
Because it was part of the Grey Cup festival, the event brought in many new faces, perhaps to Nintendo’s delight.
“One nice thing was that spectating was completely free, so we had lots of young kids who probably own the game but have never really tried to play it competitively come through and try it out,” said Stawarz.
While Kim will likely be competing for years, it will be the last tournament for Stawarz. He is a student and the lead vocalist for local indie group Jake and the Kid.
Although he is sad to be done competing, Stawarz recognizes the significance of his final event.
“I’ve been doing this for five years now, so it was really special to have such an amazing [final] event,” said Stawarz.
Pictured: Kim and Basilan competing on stage at the Brandt Centre
