Introduction and Methods

Compiling the 2016 Slam Rank was no easy task, so before I start I’d like to take a moment to explain how this list came into being. I was first inspired to create a player ranking for our community back in the early spring of this year. Up until this point, the Shrek Super Slam community has lacked any real player ranking so new players often get lost trying to follow the tournament scene, a fact which is then compounded by the fact that many players have little to no exposure outside of their regions. TOs also have difficulty seeding events due to the fact that many good players aren’t super involved in the scene, and TOs for netplay tournaments are liable to simply overlook players with a past tournament history outside the TO’s region. All of that to say, the Slam Rank was not a task I undertook lightly and is something I tried my best to do right.

My methodology for ranking players is, I think, the most fair way to organize the list. Our community is far too segmented between regional scenes to use a typical ranking algorithm, since many players have little experience on an international scale. In a typical esports ranking algorithm, George would likely be considered top 10 since he has early wins over Kirby and Zero Suit Salt during the Warwick era, even despite the fact that he hasn’t entered a tournament in the past year. Instead, I ranked the results based on things that I could easily compare between players – tournament activity, recency of results, contributions to the metagame, and when possible, both in-region and out-of-region tournament placings. I biased my results to value Shrek-only tournaments more highly than Smash/FGC events that happened to feature Shrek as a side event. I also placed emphasis on recency as well as how many good players were in attendance. I sought input from the other members of Slam It On Me (Boasting Toast, Lord Ape and Lalzu) to try and create the most unbiased list possible. I compiled the brackets from about a dozen of the most significant tournaments over the past year and a half to inform my results. Once the full Slam Rank has been posted I’ll detail more about the results I used, my methodology, and so on, but for now I’d rather not spoil the fun.

I’ll be releasing the Slam Rank in batches of five each day, with the final five revealed one-by-one every couple of hours on the final day. Each of the top five players will have a highlight reel released alongside their name showcasing some of the best moments. The Slam Rank overall contains the thirty players, and after the rank is fully released I will also give honorable mentions to players who I feel should be ranked but aren’t due to reasons like inactivity.

Slam Rank #30-26

The first five names on the list are sleeper threats, in some sense. For the most part, these are players with one or two solid tournament results under their belt but for various reasons such as recent inactivity have a sort of shadow over their results, preventing them from being ranked higher. Without further ado, the first players on the Slam Rank are as follows:

#30 – Mr. Misfire – Dronkey

The first of several Dronkey players to make the list, Mr. Misfire made his mark with a solid 9th-place finish at Slam in the Swamp, arguably the most stacked Shrek Super Slam tournament held up to this point, tied with fellow Dronkey main Murtag. While he has yet to make any major tournament appearances since then, Mr. Misfire showcased solid fundamentals with an often-unseen character and is a player to look for at future events.

#29 – Diabolical Sloth – G-nome

The lone G-nome representative on the Slam Rank, Diabolical Sloth, is perhaps best known for a 7th-place finish at Heir II the Throne, which at the time was the largest Shrek Super Slam tournament that had been held to date. G-nome is of course a crowd-favorite character and one often viewed as “underrated” by competitive players, so this fact is perhaps unfortunate. Regardless, Diabolical Sloth earns a respectable number 29 spot on the first-ever Slam It On Me rankings.

#28 – Ultimat3Spaz – Puss In Boots

Ultimat3Spaz is an up-and-coming Puss In Boots player. His Shrek Super Slam career began with a 9th-place finish at Heir II the Throne and he would return a year later to take 5th at Heir 3. While Ultimat3Spaz may be the lowest-ranked Puss In Boots, it’s important to remember that consistency has immense value in this game, due to the rapid evolution of the meta and the ability for even top players to be upset by newcomers. Ultimat3Spaz has demonstrated his ability to achieve consistent results over the last year and for that he should be considered a serious tournament contender to look out for in any UK bracket.

#27 – Ebola – Anthrax, Fiona

With consistently solid results in Georgia tournaments and losses to only the two players from the region ranked above her, Ebola claims the number 27 spot on the first-ever Slam Rank for her stellar Anthrax gameplay. Over the course of a year of training with players like m0th64 and G1itchy she developed the solid fundamentals and decision-making to be a threat within her region, and outside it if she is ever able to travel to tournaments. Unfortunately, it is currently unclear how much on an impact she will have on the scene moving forward, as an upcoming move to the American southwest may put a damper on her tournament hopes. That said, thanks to the wonders of netplay, anything is possible now.

#26 – Geobreaker – Black Knight

The newest Slammer to make it onto the Slam It On Me rankings, Geobreaker’s first tournament appearance was at Heir 3, meaning that he just made it in time to be considered. That said, he finished 4th at the tournament, outplacing names like Dan Soup and Kitanamonk, so fans should expect great things out of him in the future. The first of many Black Knights on the Slam Rank and one of several with breakout performances at Heir 3, Geobreaker makes a convincing case for this spot on the list and we are happy to oblige. Were there not questions about the legitimacy of the Heir 3 ruleset hanging in the air above the tournament, Geobreaker might even have been ranked a little higher.