Nintendo is doing everything it can to show hardcore Super Smash Bros. fans that it gets them.
The Evolution 2014 fighting-game tournament took place over the weekend in Las Vegas, and Nintendo directly addressed its fans while also financially sponsoring the event. The multigame tourney featured Ultra Street Fighter IV and Marvel vs. Capcom 3 in addition to Nintendo’s Super Smash Bros. Melee. During that game’s later rounds, Nintendo presented a recorded speech from Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime where he thanked fans for continuing to support the classic GameCube fighter. The executive also took the opportunity to talk about the upcoming Super Smash Bros. games for Wii U and 3DS, which will hit later this year. Obviously, the company wants the large, dedicated fighting-game community to move to those titles to help boost sales.
You can watch Fils-Aime’s video presentation below:
Nintendo has made a major shift in terms of its support and acknowledgement of competitive Smash Bros. At last year’s Evo, the publisher not only didn’t sponsor the event, but its lawyers also tried to put a stop to the Super Smash Bros. Melee event. Only an outcry from fans had Nintendo change its mind.
Since then, and as we approach the release of the new Smash Bros. games, Nintendo has reached out directly to hardcore Smash fans. That includes holding the first ever major e-sports competition at the Electronic Entertainment Expo tradeshow in Los Angeles in June. The company invited the top Smash players in the world to compete while thousands watched live in the Nokia Theater.
While holding its own tournaments and financially supporting others reveals that Nintendo wants to nurture its Smash community, nothing shows that the company groks that group of people more than Fils-Aime saying “no Johns” about people that lose to him in Super Smash Bros. In that scene, “Johnning” is the act of always coming up with an excuse when you lose, and “no Johns” means “no excuses.” This comes from a player named John who commonly employed a variety of excuses, which I guess is better than having the king name all of the toilets after you: