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. 40: Ginger © Todd Gutierrez (@TGphoto_)

Rating: 67.4 | SSBMRank2017: 49

Building on his breakout 2017, Avery "Ginger" Wilson took up the Falco mantle and pushed the bird back into the spotlight this year. His headline event was Full Bloom 4, where he went through Axe, AbsentPage, and 2saint to score an impressive 13th place finish. He followed that up with a solid 25th at The Big House 8, defeating Hax and MikeHaze. The versatile Michigander has also seen success in commentary and streaming this year, but has clarified that his passion "is still very much competing".

Written by: Darren Lynch | Edited by: Dylan Tate

#MPGR2018 No. 39: Ice © Winston Zhou (@zhouphoto)

Rating: 68.2 | SSBMRank2017: 28

Despite a fairly quiet year in 2018, Mustafa “Ice” Akçakaya still saw solid results throughout the season. On a local and regional level, Ice averaged top 2 placements with wins over the likes of Trif, Overtriforce, and Amsah. On top of that, his peaks in North America were twin 13th place finishes at Super Smash Con 2018 and Get On My Level 2018, with wins over HugS, Slox, Gahtzu, and Swedish Delight.

Written by: Rui Yang Xu | Edited by: Darren Lynch

#MPGR2018 No. 38: Hax © EvenMatchupGaming (@EvenMatchupGaming)

Rating: 68.3 | SSBMRank2017: 45

Aziz "Hax" Al-Yami started 2018 atop New York City's Power Rankings and ended the year beating people like Gahtzu, Fiction, Colbol, Westballz, KJH, and AbsentPage in its last 3 months. With his upwards trajectory and a new logo on his chest, it’s been years since Hax looked in this good a position to make top eight at a supermajor—at least, assuming he doesn't DQ himself in pools.

Written by: Darren Lynch | Edited by: Anokh Palakurthi

#MPGR2018 No. 37: Kalamazhu © Jonathan Tayag (@itsjustatank)

Rating: 69.4 | SSBMRank2017: 70

Kyle "Kalamazhu" Zhu's 2018 was his best year yet. The Peach main set a new high-water mark for his ranking, eclipsing his 2014 debut at #40 for the first time. His rise started with a phenomenal 2nd place at The Mango with sets over Fiction, SFAT, and Syrox; in the summer at Shine 2018, he he upset La Luna and Lucky en route to 13th; and it all came full circle at The Mang0: Homecoming, where he beat ARMY, S2J, and Lucky once more to finish comfortably at 7th.

Written by: Akhil Silla | Edited by: Darren Lynch

#MPGR2018 No. 36: Syrox © Rudolph Gonzalez (@Rudvgonz), AyeFilmSudio (ayefilmstudio.com), Full Bloom 4

Rating: 70.2 | SSBMRank2017: 33

Justin “Syrox” Burroughs continues to be one of Melee’s most proficient and technical Fox players. To start his year, he took 17th at Genesis 5, winning sets over Rishi and Shroomed. In the spring, he took 4th at House of Paign 18 and 3rd at The Mango, defeating Crush and SFAT. With a resume like that, it’s easy to see why Syrox has landed a spot in the top 40 once again.

Written by: Darren Lynch | Edited by: Dylan Tate

#MPGR2018 No. 35: Trif © Philipp "Liva" Bürkner (@GeekyGoonSquad)

Rating: 71.1 | SSBMRank2017: 31

Álvaro “Trif” García Moral had a quiet but successful 2018. His best showing came not from majors, but an East Coast regional—at Omega II, he went on the war path to 2nd place, defeating Darktooth, AbsentPage, Junebug, iBDW, and Swedish Delight. He also held his own against his European compatriots, scoring wins over Ice, Professor Pro, and Overtriforce. With the potential for increased national attendance this year, Trif has nowhere to go but up.

Written by: Darren Lynch | Edited by: Dylan Tate

#MPGR2018 No. 34: iBDW © Winston Zhou (@zhouphoto)

Rating: 72.9 | SSBMRank2017: 84

If there’s a word to describe Mentality’s Cody “iBDW” Schwab, it’s hungry. His Fox debuted on last year’s ranking at 84th, and has continued its rapid ascent to the top 40. Wins over players like Swedish Delight, Gahtzu, KJH, lloD, and Shroomed all failed to sate his competitive appetite—as evidenced by the start of his 2019 season, where he outright won NYXL Pop-Up, defeating 2saint, HugS, Hax, and Swedish Delight without dropping a set.

Written by: Jonah Fritz | Edited by: Darren Lynch

#MPGR2018 No. 33: Captain Faceroll © Elle O'Reilly (instagram.com/ellethoughts)

Rating: 74 | SSBMRank2017: 52

For years, Griffin "Captain Faceroll" was frequently dubbed "on the come up." We can only hope that everyone has now cancelled this insulting and frankly nonsensical cliche. Highlights of his 2018 include wins over AbsentPage, Ginger, Shroomed, Hax, n0ne, and Duck, among many others. And a win over Axe at Smash Camp 2019 teases a potential monster 2019 for the SoCal Sheik. How's that for "coming up?"

Written by: Darren Lynch | Edited by: Anokh Palakurthi

#MPGR2018 No. 32: La Luna © Winston Zhou (@zhouphoto)

Rating: 74.5 | SSBMRank2017: 19

Despite having consistency issues at majors and slipping under the radar relative to other Marth mains, Ryan "La Luna" Coker-Welch still saw moments of brilliance in 2018. Interestingly, both of his best performances came in Canada—he took down down Swedish Delight and HugS at Get On My Level 2018, and he earned wins over Moky and n0ne in a strong losers' run to 2nd place at DreamHack Montreal 2018.

Written by: Darren Lynch | Edited by: Anokh Palakurthi

#MPGR2018 No. 31: Ryan Ford © Bekah Wong (@alonelychime)

Rating: 74.9 | SSBMRank2017: 32

This year has been far from quiet for Ryan Ford. At EGLX 2018, he clawed his way through Swedish Delight, Lucky, and HugS to land comfortably at 7th place. He continued to impress a month later at Aegis, taking 2nd place by defeating Moky and double eliminating Colbol. As the new year starts, don’t be shocked to see Ryan Ford continue to take names more than a decade into his playing career.

Written by: Darren Lynch | Edited by: Dylan Tate

Administrative Team:

Head Editor and Statistician: Andrew “PracticalTAS” Nestico

Graphics: Nick “DarkDragoon” Konstantino

Fact-Checking: Brendan “GimmeDatWheat” Malone

PGstats Director: Luis “suar” Suarez