Nintendo fans were none too happy that the company decided to cancel their Splatoon 2 tournament livestream. This followed last month's canceling of a fan tournament featuring Super Smash Bros. Melee. Of course, Melee can't be easily streamed online with current Nintendo hardware, but no such worries exist with Splatoon 2. But, the North American Open did not get the livestream treatment that was promised this weekend. About 30% of the players in the tourney voiced their support for the Melee players with their usernames. That probably prompted the Big N to close down shop. But, it might have had the opposite effect as the company began to trend on Twitter Sunday evening. Both #FreeSplatoon and #FreeMelee are all over the platform now.
The Big House, who ran the Super Smash Bros. tourney, released a statement last month. "The Big House is heartbroken to share we've received a cease and desist from Nintendo of America, Inc. to cancel our upcoming online event. We were informed we do not have permission to host or broadcast the event, primarily due to the usage of Slippi. Sadly, all our competitions are affected. We are forced to comply with the order and cancel The Big House Online for both Melee and Ultimate. Refund information will be sent shortly. We apologize to all those impacted."
Nintendo offered an official statement shortly after the news began to spread.
"Nintendo appreciates the love and the dedication the fighting game community has for the Super Smash Bros. series. We have partnered with numerous Super Smash Bros. tournaments in the past and have hosted our own online and offline tournaments for the game, and we plan to continue that support in the future. Unfortunately, the upcoming Big House4 tournament announced plans to host an online tournament for Super Smash Bros. Melee that requires use of illegally copied versions of the game in conjunction with a mod called "Slippi" during their online event. Nintendo therefore contacted the tournament organizers to ask them to stop. They refused, leaving Nintendo no choice but to step in to protect its intellectual property and brands. Nintendo cannot condone or allow piracy of its intellectual property."
Were you looking forward to the Splatoon Tourney? Let us know down in the comments! Check out the responses down below:
Been an eventful couple of weeks
Some constructive criticism