On Sept. 20, the Buffalo State Esports organization held their first tournament of the 2024-2025 school year. The game of choice for this tournament was Super Smash Brothers: Ultimate, a fan-favorite fighting game on the Nintendo Switch Console.
The tournament followed a traditional winners/losers bracket format. Each match was a 1v1 with three stocks (or lives) and a seven-minute time limit. From the top 8 onward, matches were best two out of three. In this format, players compete head-to-head, with the winner advancing to the next round and the loser being sent to the losers bracket for another chance to make it to the finals.
Over 30 Buffalo State students attended the event, and 22 participated in the tournament. Prizes were awarded to the top three players, including accessories for the Nintendo Switch and dorm-related items.
Of those in attendance, a few shared their overall thoughts about the Esports organization on campus, and what it means to have events like this at Buffalo State University.
Q. How does it feel having an organization like Buff State Esports on campus hosting events like this?
Ryan “djrock900” Thompson: It feels really good to see a lot of people that apart of my community. It feels great to have people I can identify with, be in my comfort zone and just have a lot of fun playing games with. Its also great meeting new people and getting better at these games competitively. It just feels very heartwarming to have this here at Buffalo State.
Micah “noddy” Forth: It’s really nice. This is one of my special interests. I really like this game and I’m glad that we get to have a group of people that just play this game. It’s nice. I like it here, it’s comfy. It’s cool.
Kevin “the05council” Su: I definitely think it’s a good way to connect with other people, especially since it’s like games like this where you can all like just kind of relax and just like have fun and play games. I mean it’s a tournament based thing, but like at least you’re having fun. Plus my friends can also come by and watch me play and watch me game my ass kicked. But overall I would say it’s a good thing to have.
The grand finals featured two familiar faces to the campus esports scene: Benny and Mugzie. Both players were finalists in previous Buffalo State Esports tournaments, continuing their rivalry in this event as well, with Benny gaining the victory.
After the event, a short interview was held with the Buff State Esports President Ultra was held to shine a spotlight on the future of the organization.
Q1. Do you plan on setting up more events like this for Buff State?
Ultra: Yes we do! Our goal is to have such a large event at least once a month. At present, we host large events on the 3rd Friday of every month, so our next one is October 18th!
Q2. How do you want your e sports organization here at Buff State to grow?
Ultra: I would love to see more teams for each league! There are 23 titles to choose from between both leagues. If we could have one team for every title would be amazing, or even multiple teams in one title. That would be amazing to see
Q3. Is there anything else that you’d like to advertise about your org?
Ultra: I would like to advertise our Twitch channel! We are trying more and more to stream each week, showcasing the teams that we have and the fantastic players in our community
They also have a Discord Buffalo State students can join to interact with the community directly.
