In a somewhat historic first, Nintendo is partnering with Panda Global on an officially licensed series of Super Smash Bros. esports tournaments. There will be official tournaments for Super Smash Bros Ultimate and, shockingly, GameCube classic Super Smash Bros. Melee.
Confirmed. Ready your A-game, Super #SmashBros competitors. We've partnered with @PandaGlobal to launch the first officially licensed Super Smash Bros. championship circuit in North America, coming 2022! #SmashBrosUltimate #SmashBrosMelee https://t.co/3WKbEYrMH2
— Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) November 18, 2021
The relationship between Nintendo and the Smash Bros competitive community has never been a smooth one. Throughout the years, the company has called for many cease and desist orders against various community events, giving it a bad image in the eyes of the tournament faithful. That rocky past makes this inaugural licensed tournament circuit even more monumental.
A press release from Nintendo provides some additional context on the surprise announcement. “This partnership with Panda Global is the next step in Nintendo’s efforts to create a more consistent, fun and, welcoming competitive environment for our players and fans,” says Bill Trinen, senior director of product marketing at Nintendo of America. “We are proud to stand with an organization like Panda Global to celebrate and support the ever-growing competitive Super Smash Bros. community and create a space where all players can test and hone their competitive skills.”
Panda Global also notes in the email that the tournament circuit is an open series, meaning anyone who thinks they have the skills to compete is welcome to join in on the competition. The festivities are set to begin in 2022, with more details to be revealed on Panda Global’s official website. Currently, there are no exact dates, locations, or sign-up details available on the website.
Acer’s Predator Atlas 8 finally has a US release date and price, several months after the company first showed off the handheld in May. The highlight is the Intel Arc G3 Extreme chip inside, which has been adopted by only a couple of other consoles besides the Atlas 8. This version will go on sale exclusively at Best Buy on November 1 for $1,299.99.
Acer originally said the Atlas 8 would arrive in North America in October, but left pricing open at the time. The launch came amid the ongoing DRAM crunch, which has made memory more expensive across the PC industry and complicated pricing for hardware makers.
Gaming laptops and I have a complicated relationship. One of my first gaming rigs was an Acer Predator that was already outdated when I bought it. I was a broke college kid, and that was the best I could afford. So trying out high-end gaming laptops is always fun. But ASUS' ROG Zephyrus G14 is a lot more than a laptop that can run AAA games. It is portable, so you're not lugging around a 2.5kg machine everywhere you go. It is built well, none of that plastic chassis, and can even function as a normal laptop outside of just gaming.
Google Play is borrowing one of the Nintendo Switch’s most useful little tricks. A new Sidekick tool called Playbacks captures a short clip after something interesting has already happened, sparing players from running a screen recorder throughout an entire game.
Playbacks is part of Google Play Store v53.8 and keeps saved clips on the phone. Google first announced it earlier this month, but the new Play Store update marks its arrival for players. Anyone who has watched a perfect win vanish because the record button came too late already understands the appeal.