Luminosity Says "No" to Sonic and Steve at LG Invitational
The Super Smash Bros. Ultimate community has resumed its debate about certain characters after the LG Invitational didn't invite pro players for who they main in tournaments.
Angel "Onin" Mireles is often considered the second-best Steve player in the world. Carrington "Wrath" Osborn is a talented player from Georgia who mains Sonic. Both players were not invited to the Luminosity Last Chance Qualifier, a closed tournament where the top players will advance to the main event in Florida.
Smash fans noted that Onin and Wrath were likely not invited due to who they main in Ultimate — Steve and Sonic. Both characters have been consistently hated in the Smash community, with many accusing these characters of being "brain dead" and "boring" to watch due to their defensive playstyle. Sonic especially avoids combat, often relying on time outs to win them the match.
Wrath and Onin not getting into the LG invitational because of the characters they play is extremely fucked up who made the decisions 😭
— SS | DDee! (@ddee_ssbu) September 14, 2024
The reactions have been mixed. Some Smash fans felt that this was unfair to the players, who were missing out on tournaments that could impact their ranks just because nobody likes the characters they play. But others argued that it's an invitational, and Luminosity clearly doesn't want to see any Steve or Sonic gameplay in their tournament — and many don't want to watch it.
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Others have noted another frequent debate about invitationals and their role in Smash — the impact that rankings have on the weight of decisions like these. A no-Steve invitational could be the best entertainment product, but how does that impact the outcome of a Steve main's season?
I know what it's like to lose opportunities for playing boring characters and sympathize with Wrath & Onin
— Liquid | Dabuz (@DabuzSenpai) September 14, 2024
But I understand LG has to make their tournament as fun as possible to watch
I wanna propose a question
would we care that much if the event didn't count for rankings?
Of course, there are many within the Smash community who are looking forward to a tournament without two of the most dominant characters in the meta game — who can also be boring to watch for some fans.
This is not the first time that these characters have been singled out by Smash tournament organizers. Past tourneys have even outright banned Steve, sometimes claiming it's due to the character having some broken combos but others just because the character is deemed OP and easy to play.
Notably, Nintendo has declared that certain tournaments can no longer discriminate against Steve, however. Another popular choice from Nintendo.
Olivia is a long-time esports journalist and editor who covers just about every game but has a deep love for the FGC. Her goal is to find community-driven stories that bring a new perspective to the esports scene. In the past, she has worked for Team Liquid, Rogue, Inven Global, Dot Esports, Upcomer, and more. Outside of esports, Olivia enjoys Kirby, Pokemon TCG, Fallout, and writing science fiction. She can be found trying out new foods, traveling, or hanging out with her two orange cats. Fun fact: Olivia can do some video game and cartoon impressions!