It’s no secret that the Apex tournament series is a big deal in the Smash community. Competitors across multiple games regularly push the event to the upper echelons of attendance, with Super Smash Bros. Melee in particular raising the stakes since its resurgence.

This year, however, Apex can proudly call themselves the largest Melee tournament of all time thanks to some early registration numbers.

According to statistics gathered earlier this morning by Robin “Juggleguy” Harn, Apex 2015 will see 971 unique competitors playing the classic title, one more than Evo 2014’s record-breaking participation. The series most recent release, Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, will also receive tremendous backing from the community, with 670 planning to show up and test their skills in the new game.

In response to this support, the Apex organizers have extended the registration deadline for one more day, which means you will have until 11:59 EST (UTC-5) tonight to throw your lot in for this year’s event. Be sure to visit their official website for more details should you wish to attend. They are currently experiencing some server issues due to the increased viewership, so it may take you a few tries to get through.

While Smash is the obvious focus here (one that was definitely increased by their partnership with Nintendo), nearly $11,000 in pot bonuses will be spread among the games in Apex 2015’s lineup.

Apex 2015 is scheduled for January 30 – February 1 in Seacaucus, New Jersey.

Source: Robin Harn