PGstats is proud to present the latest Melee ranking, #MPGR2018, in concert with Red Bull! The #MPGR2018 ranking season spans the end of 2017 (after the Holiday Bash Smash Invitational) to December 16, 2018 (Don’t Park on the Grass 2018)

PGstats has asked 43 top players, community leaders, tournament organizers, and analysts to rate the quality of play for each qualifying player during the 2018 ranking season. They were prompted with the following statement:

“Based on quality and quantity of results in 2018, rate each player on a scale of 1 to 10. A tournament is held every weekend during the ranking period, and all players on the list are able to attend every event. Over the course of the season, who performs the best? You may give the benefit of the doubt to players who attended more events during the ranking period if you so choose.”

Each panelist gives each player a score from 1 to 10, and the ratings are compiled into one overall average after suppressing the effect of outliers. Finally, scores were rescaled to a 1-100 rating, which is displayed under each player’s graphic.

One quick note: for the players ranked 51 through 100, we’ve changed the format of their blurbs; instead of the traditional short paragraph, these players will have highlight lists under their player cards. This lets us emphasize these players’ strengths as they move into the new year.

#MPGR2018 No. 20: ARMY © Winston Zhou (@zhouphoto)

Rating: 84.9 | SSBMRank2017: 53

When Armand “ARMY” Del Duca told us what the plan was, none of us had any idea it meant becoming No. 2 in SoCal and pushing his calculated Ice Climbers to the top 20 worldwide.

It all started at Low Tier City 6, where he tore through the likes of Mang0, n0ne, and Lucky to claim an impressive 4th place. Not two weeks later, he nearly repeated the feat at Super Smash Con 2018, taking 5th place and eliminating Ice, Zain, and Rishi. To finish off the season, he scored another top 8 at GameTyrant Expo 2018, taking victories over Axe and Westballz.

Though outside the ranking period, ARMY has also carried his momentum into the new year—he won Smash Camp 2019 from winners’ side over Captain Faceroll and Axe, starting 2019 off not just with a bang, but with a wobble.

Written by: Darren Lynch | Edited by: Chris Matis

#MPGR2018 No. 19: Bananas © Chris Bahn (@bahnism)

Rating: 85 | SSBMRank2017: N/A

One year ago, Connor “Bananas” Lamb was unranked. Today, he lands the highest-ranked top 100 debut in SSBM history and cements his status as one of the best Ice Climbers in the world.

Bananas burst into the limelight at The Big House 8, upsetting Plup, HugS, and Fiction to find himself qualifying for Smash Summit 7 with a 5th place finish. At Summit, he continued to blow expectations out of the water with dominant sets over Mew2King and Mang0, only dropping a single game between the two gods. With additional sets over Axe, S2J, Lucky, Swedish Delight, and n0ne, Bananas looks to be on a warpath to the very top.

Written by: Dylan Tate | Edited by: Darren Lynch

#MPGR2018 No. 18: Lucky © Thomas Tischio (@tischphotos)

Rating: 86 | SSBMRank2017: 17

Jose "Lucky" Aldama started off the year with a new team and a phenomenal showing at Genesis 5. As the newest addition to Dignitas' line-up, Lucky demolished Zain, n0ne, SFAT, Mew2King, and fellow Dignitas player HugS en route to a 5th place finish. Not a week later, he followed that up with a solid 3rd place at Noods Noods Noods: Melee Edition, defeating Mike Haze, Westballz, and HugS once more.

Though the rest of his year may not have eclipsed his early peak, Lucky maintained a high level of performance at every event he attended. He made it to top 8 at events like Low Tier City 6 and Super Smash Con 2018, and reached top 16 at majors like Get On My Level 2018, Smash 'N' Splash 4, and EVO 2018. Along the way, he collected wins over S2J, Swedish Delight, ARMY, and PewPewU. With a resume like that, is it any surprise that Lucky finds himself returning to the top 20?

Written by: Dylan Tate | Edited by: Darren Lynch

#MPGR2018 No. 17: Crush © Aaron Dolgos (@batteryazid)

Rating: 86.6 | SSBMRank2017: 15

After years of dominating New England locals, Jack “Crush” Hoyt catapulted up the national rankings in 2018, gaining legions of fans on the strength of his precise and aggressive Fox play—and his bitingly witty Twitter presence. So it was no surprise that, when the Massachusetts native decided to step away from competitive play in early June, the Melee community mourned his retirement.

Before pulling a fade on the Melee scene, Crush put together an impressive resume during the first half of the year, defeating Zain, SFAT, Lucky, and PewPewU to secure the No. 12 spot on the midyear rankings. Though he might not be planning to enter tournaments for the foreseeable future, Crush has already established himself, not only as one of New England’s all-time greats, but also as one of the most unique foxes to ever touch the controller.

Written by: Alex Lee | Edited by: Darren Lynch

#MPGR2018 No. 16: n0ne © Winston Zhou (@zhouphoto)

Rating: 86.7 | SSBMRank2017: 20

When it comes to lightning-fast combos, explosive movement, and stellar reads, Edgard “n0ne” Sheleby’s Captain Falcon is often the first thing to come to mind. At Full Bloom 4 in March, n0ne tore through Michael, Syrox, HugS, and Wizzrobe to secure 5th place and an invitation to Smash Summit 6. At Summit, he took down 2saint in pools and the Falcon slayer Westballz in bracket.

As the summer began, n0ne continued to make waves: he took 7th at CEO 2018, 5th at Low Tier City 6, and 9th at both Shine 2018 and Evo 2018. Along the way, he secured additional wins over the likes of S2J, Swedish Delight, Lucky, Rishi, Gahtzu. and Shroomed. As 2019 starts, viewers should keep their eyes on n0ne; if you blink, you just may miss him bursting into top 8’s.

Written by: Darren Lynch | Edited by: Dylan Tate

#MPGR2018 No. 15: PewPewU © Thomas Tischio (@tischphotos)

Rating: 87.9 | SSBMRank2017: 21

2018 was a return to form for Kevin “PewPewU” Toy. The perennial top-15 player had fallen outside of the top 20 for the first time last year, but has now reclaimed his spot among Melee’s best. His peaks this year were fantastic: 3rd at Flatiron 3, 9th at EVO 2018, 7th at Smash ‘N’ Splash 4, and an incredible 4th place finish at Super Smash Con 2018, accumulating set wins over Zain, Swedish Delight, Crush, Lucky, ARMY, SFAT, and HugS.

If PewPewU’s singles bracket performance was impressive, his doubles performance was otherworldly. He and SFAT won every doubles event they entered together from Full Bloom 4 in March to the end of the year, amassing an insane 10 doubles tournament wins. Ending his year winning both singles and doubles at Wombo Combo: 10 Year Anniversary, PewPewU is going into 2019 recharged and ready to impress.

Written by: Chris Matis | Edited by: Darren Lynch

#MPGR2018 No. 14: Duck © Thomas Tischio (@tischphotos)

Rating: 88.9 | SSBMRank2017: 14

When it comes to consistent placings in 2018, look no further than James “Duck” Ma. The purple Samus has landed himself top 16 placements at almost every major he’s attended, including Genesis 5, Evo 2018, and The Big House 8. He’s also notched wins over PewPewU, Westballz, lloD, aMSa, and Zain along the way. Duck’s most impressive tournament this year was easily Canada Cup 2018: he shot down n0ne in Losers Finals and defied all odds to reset Grand Finals against Hungrybox in a stunning 3-0 before finishing 2nd.

His consistency extends even to his rank, as he retains the No. 14 spot and marks his third consecutive year in the top 15.

Written by: Chris Matis | Edited by: Darren Lynch

#MPGR2018 No. 13: Swedish Delight © Aaron Dolgos (@batteryazid)

Rating: 89.1 | SSBMRank2017: 16

This was a year full of exciting successes for Tristate’s premier Sheik player, James “Swedish Delight” Liu. It has long been known that Swedish Delight is a beast against floaty players, but a win over Melee’s greatest of all time in Armada at Evo 2018 served as a welcome surprise that only affirmed what his fans have been saying for years: on a good day, Swedish Delight has the skill to go blow-for-blow with any player in the game.

Swedish Delight’s resume for the year is peppered with impressive wins and placements. He landed top 8 appearances at both Evo 2018 and Get On My Level 2018, and boasts a laundry list of wins: Zain, Axe, S2J, Duck, n0ne, Crush, lloD, Westballz, and Gahtzu have all fallen to the Sheik. But Swedish Delight is hungry for more in 2019. The question is no long whether he can beat members of the top 6, but simply how long it'll take.

Written by: Jonah Fritz | Edited by: Darren Lynch

#MPGR2018 No. 12: SFAT © Charles Watson (@m1lkcast)

Rating: 90.7 | SSBMRank2017: 9

For Zac “SFAT” Cordoni, 2018 was a year of sheer competitive effort and spirit. He participated in at least 38 singles events during the ranking period, perhaps the most among his peers. Not only that, but he also dominated doubles with longtime teammate PewPewU at almost every tournament they attended together.

In singles, SFAT scored the top 8’s you’d expect from a player of his caliber, including Full Bloom 4, Get On My Level 2018, and Shine 2018. He also landed positive set records against aMSa, S2J, Swedish Delight, Lucky, and Westballz on the year. However, one stumbling block seems to have kept SFAT out of the top ten: despite all his attempts against the top 6 and his new nemesis Zain, SFAT didn’t take a single set from that group in 2018. But we're in a new year now, and the slate is wiped clean. The more things change, the more SFAT's work ethic stays the same.

Written by: Chris Matis | Edited by: Darren Lynch

#MPGR2018 No. 11: S2J © Zel (@monlingho)

Rating: 91.3 | SSBMRank2017: 10

Beautifully blending optimization and wild reads, Johnny “S2J” Kim finds himself once again amongst Melee’s top 20. S2J proved he was a force to be reckoned with during the summer: he scored three top 8’s at Smash ‘N’ Splash 4, Evo 2018, and Shine 2018, with wins on Wizzrobe, lloD, PewPewU, Rishi, Duck, and Shroomed in that span.

As far as Melee’s newer talent is concerned, S2J has been knocking at Zain’s door so hard it may just well have fallen off its hinges, as he boasts an impressive 3-0 set lead over the Marth. S2J has even secured himself several 1st place finishes, winning both at Don’t Park on the Grass and The Roast of Hugo Gonzalez. In the ever-changing landscape of Melee, one thing’s for sure: make sure you raise your chairs when this man enters top 8, because he’ll deliver the hype.

Written by: Darren Lynch | Edited by: Chris Matis

Administrative Team:

Head Editor and Statistician: Andrew “PracticalTAS” Nestico

Graphics: Nick “DarkDragoon” Konstantino

Fact-Checking: Brendan “GimmeDatWheat” Malone

PGstats Director: Luis “suar” Suarez