Ninja admits Nintendo halted plans to add $500k pot to Smash at Evo

The year is 2018, amid the hype for the release of the latest Smash Bros title, Ultimate, Tyler "Ninja" Blevins promises something incredible to the entire community. Four years later, we finally know what happened to that thing he was "cooking up."

As it turns out, the promise of shocking news that would surprise Smash fans was donating a hefty sum to 2019's Evo Smash Ultimate pot. An outstanding $500k, as he mentioned to fellow content creator and former Twitch sensation, Ludwig Ahgren. 

Sadly, as it's often the case with outsiders trying to support the Smash competitive community, it seems Nintendo decided that Ninja supporting them was a no-go, according to the streamer himself. 

Ninja reveals frustrated plan to fund Smash tournaments with $500k pot

Ninja was one of the many high-profile content creators invited to Ludwig's massive poker extravaganza streamed on 1st May that also included the likes of Félix "xQc" Lengyel, Jimmy "MrBeast" Donaldson, and more. 

Ludwig, a Smash aficionado himself, being an important community member of the Melee scene long before he became Twitch's poster boy and YouTube megastar, enquired about the now-infamous "Ninja is cooking something for the Smash community meme."

"The streets are wondering," Ludwig casually said to Ninja. He responded: "That was on Nintendo, not me. All I wanted to do, I literally wanted to juice Evo, like $500k."

After revealing his plans, Ninja added that Nintendo "ghosted" him and the crew that was ready to set up the, unarguably, biggest event in Smash and FGC history. Ludwig, who's experienced first-hand how Nintendo's archaic policies have hurt the community, added: "The worst thing is I believe you a 100%"

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In the past couple of years, Ludwig has fought to support the Smash community amid the COVID-19 pandemic and Nintendo's decision to shut down online Melee tournaments due to the usage of third-party tools that allow the GameCube game to be played online. 

Just this year, when Genesis had to be postponed due to the surge of the Omicron COVID variant, Ludwig stepped up to organise a $30k online Smash event that would partially help the tournament organisers with the costs of delaying such a massive event. 

In November 2021, Panda Global announced a new partnership with Nintendo that would see Smash get its first official sponsored competitive circuit for both Melee and Ultimate. With the promise of "more information" to be shared at a later date, the entire community wonders what happened practically half a year since it was announced. 

For more on all things Smash Ultimate, including tier lists, tournament results, and more, check out our dedicated section.

Featured image courtesy of Nintendo.