Buffalo State Esports is hosting its next event this Friday, April 21, from 7-9:45 p.m. at the assembly hall in the Campbell Student Union. The event is the third tournament this year hosted by the Esports Club and a return to the selected title of Nintendo’s Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
Any Buffalo State Student is welcome to attend. It is advised to RSVP in the Buff State Esports discord via the Google forms link provided here https://forms.gle/vKVa64i1RNd9Bjvs7 or message league administrators in the discord with any questions related to attendance.

Buffalo State Esports had just started hosting in-person events in Spring of 2022. Club Administrator KJ Zielezinski said when we had talked before the St. Patrick’s Day event.
“Due to covid, all of our in-house, Buff State-only tournaments were held online, traditionally (…), to get local tournaments going and expand to titles like Madden and Mario Kart.” When choosing a title, KJ mentions that Smash is popular in the community.
Still, multiple factors go into selecting a game, such as how many people are needed for teams or the amount of equipment necessary to make the event happen. “For example, we might get around 15-20 people for a Smash tournament because it’s really accessible, people can sign up solo, and the Switch is portable, allowing more people to bring in their own equipment.”
Five vs. five games that require ten Xboxes, like Halo, to host a tournament is much more complicated than hosting a 15-person Smash tournament that only requires one or two switches. The interesting point is that the community provides most of the gaming equipment, which is a big reason why events like these can happen.
The return to campus from remote learning has been a breath of fresh air in all facets, holding for Buffalo State Esports as well.
“My game is 1v1 so I would do my weekly online matches alone. But when we were able to have local tournaments come back that completely changed.” Buffalo State Esports player Andrew DiMartino said. “Getting everyone together, regardless of what game they play or their skill level, is definitely the most impactful part of Esports.” Community engagement is a necessary part of growing clubs, and hosting events like these are an excellent way to get the community together. This semester being AJ’s last with the club, he mentioned that the growth this year alone shows that the club is in great hands.

Buffalo State Esports has been thankful for cooperating with Buffalo State’s United Students Government to provide gift cards for tournament winners and Chartwells Dining Service for catering in-person events such as the upcoming SSBU tournament on the 21st. The goal for BSE is to host one of these events monthly. Smash is a popular game that can accommodate players of various skill levels for events, creating a good balance between a competitive environment and a casual hang-out setting. It means everybody can participate, even if you have never played Smash.

I attended my first Buffalo State Esports event on March 17. I was one of about 10 to 15 people. Those who came were eager to play. The St. Patrick’s holiday means a reasonable expectation of lower attendance from previous events. The third-floor assembly hall in the Campbell Student Union was set up for the event: three setups, all with switches and a monitor for tournament use brought by the community. Playing in the matches was a great way to see how helpful the community was in getting new players acclimated to the game. As someone with minimal knowledge of Smash, I was leaning away from playing, but I signed up to play with some convincing from community members. Unsurprisingly I got 0-2, but after being eliminated, watching people who knew what they were doing and explaining it was an excellent way to learn.
“I’ve been playing for about four years, I think.” said Rafat Rahman, or “Mugzie” in the community, is the winner of the March 17th tournament and two previous games held on the Buffalo State Campus. Mugzie is looking for a successive win in the upcoming contest on the 21st. I asked Mugzie if there was much preparation that went into their practice before the tournament. “So for the first tourney, I didn’t do any prep, I went there blindly, but for the second and third, I did do a lot of prep, but I usually (just) play casually.”
Creating a fun but competitive environment had been achieved. Mugzie said they’re looking forward to the next tournament but are a bit nervous about getting the win. “Oh, the first one was easy, but the second one was the hardest by far. I’m not sure about the third tourney because there were not as many people,” Mentioning there might be more competitors. After all, it won’t be a holiday.

Join Buffalo State Esports for the Smash tournament on April 21 from 7-9:45 p.m. in the Student Union. If you want to join Buffalo State Esports, join the Discord here: https://sle.buffalostate.edu/esports. Contact league administrators with any questions. Remember to RSVP for the Super Smash Bros. tournament here: https://forms.gle/vKVa64i1RNd9Bjvs7.