Photo Courtesy of Nintendo, Wikipedia
The emergence of a once underground “Super Smash Bros.” gaming community has sparked exponential growth in interest for a soon-to-be club. An assemblage of primarily freshman students began playing the smash hit Nintendo video game on the whim of mutual interest, but the casual gameplay quickly became much more.
The team of players received a great deal of attention on social media platforms, most notably on Yik Yak, the anonymous posting app that is geographically anchored, making the posts in this region Ramapo-centric. Although not officially recognized by the College, the purported “Ramapo Smash Club” or as some have proposed, the “SmashRunners,” recently went head-to-head with Montclair University’s Super Smash Bros. squad.
“One of our members reached out to Montclair and it just kind of sprang up, but all of us were eager to seize the opportunity. I think at one point our stream had at least 70 viewers. We streamed on Twitch.tv, which is like a video game broadcasting website,” said Michael Scipione, one of the potential members of the proposed club. “The room itself was packed with probably about 50 viewers, so there was a little over 100 viewers in total. It was very fun and we’ve reached out to them and plan on hosting one here soon.”
The team has hit the ground running in recent weeks, its roots beginning in a national tournament that the friends competed in while representing Ramapo. They came up short against NJIT, a much more seasoned team, but have future plans on contending again next year in “The Melee Games,” an intercollegiate tournament where colleges battle on the platform of the second installment of the “Super Smash Bros.” franchise.
The group is welcoming anybody interested in the game and playing competitively. A handful of clubs already currently established at Ramapo like the sci-fi club, Pokémon club and video game club will likely have some crossover, but the Ramapo Smash Club will be reserved only for the various versions of the game including “Project M,” a modified version of “Super Smash Bros. Melee.”
The collection of players are in the final stages of club recognition and are on track to be established as early as mid-March, excluding any setbacks. In store for members is access to a range of gear that has recently been donated, including streaming equipment, gaming consoles and a community of Smash players looking to hold tournaments on campus and converge as a solidified team to vie for wins against other schools in the area. The appearance and now development of the club has coaxed interested parties out of the woodwork and given them a community to showcase their abilities for a common goal, playing “Super Smash Bros.”
“Just within the past week we’ve gotten so much support, and we’d like to thank everyone who is interested in joining and everyone who has been positive,” Scipione, also known by his gamertag “Red,” stated.
brocha@ramapo.edu
