Midwest
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The Midwest is a Smash region located in the United States. It is by far the largest Smash region in the United States in terms of land area, encompassing fourteen different states. Due to this, the region has sometimes been split into four additional regions: Great Lakes East, which includes Kentucky, Ohio, and west Pennsylvania, primarily the Pittsburgh metropolitan area, and sometimes includes West Virginia; Great Lakes West, which includes Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Wisconsin; Heartland North, which includes Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota; and Heartland South, which includes Iowa, Nebraska, and northern Kansas and Missouri, primarily the Greater St. Louis and Kansas City metropolitan areas. Tournament activity in the Midwest is the most active in the Chicago and Detroit metropolitan areas, although many other metropolitan areas also have notable scenes, such as Cleveland, Madison, Pittsburgh, and Kansas City.
Historically, the Midwest was a strong yet relatively secluded region. During Melee's Golden Age, the Midwest had several notable players including Darkrain, Drephen, and Vidjogamer, and several tournament series such as the long-running Show Me Your Moves series; however, the scene's overall size was less than the sizes of the other major American Smash scenes at that time. This changed around the early 2010s with the rise of The Big House series in Michigan, which eventually became Melee's premier end-of-the-year supermajor. In addition, many other large tournament series began as the decade progressed, including Frostbite in Michigan, Midwest Mayhem in Illinois, and Smash 'N' Splash in Illinois and Wisconsin, and many FGC events such as Combo Breaker and Frosty Faustings in Illinois began seeing greater entrants count for their Smash events, all the while many more Midwest players began making their mark on competitive play, such as Ginger, KJH, Lunchables, Ned, and Zinoto. At its peak, the Midwest's tournament activity rivaled some of the biggest regions in the United States.
The Midwest's impact on the competitive scene diminished in the early years of competitive play following the COVID-19 pandemic, in part due to the conclusion or hiatus of many big tournament series such as Frostbite, The Big House, and Smash 'N' Splash; Riptide was the only major tournament series active during this time, and even then several of its iteration were smaller than the aforementioned pre-pandemic series. As such, the Midwest scene in Ultimate became infamous for being unable to hold a single major between The Big House 10 in October 2022 and Riptide 2024 in September 2024, a stark contrast to the game's first year, when the Midwest held three supermajors. Nevertheless, the Midwest retained a slew of strong talent that have made strong impacts in their respective titles, including ApolloKage, Onin, and Ossify, and the region's impact gradually improved in the mid-2020s. In addition, the Midwest became one of the largest Project+ regions during this time, boasting numerous ranked players with each iteration of the PMRank.
Smashers[edit]
- See also: Category:Illinois smashers, Category:Indiana smashers, Category:Iowa smashers, Category:Kansas smashers, Category:Kentucky smashers, Category:Michigan smashers, Category:Minnesota smashers, Category:Missouri smashers, Category:Nebraska smashers, Category:North Dakota smashers, Category:Ohio smashers, Category:Pennsylvania smashers, Category:South Dakota smashers, Category:Wisconsin smashers
The following players are currently or were previously ranked. Their highest placement is listed.
Globally ranked players[edit]
| Tag | Character(s) | Best placement | Noteso |
|---|---|---|---|
 100 Grand (Minnesota) |
 |
 MPGR 2019: HM |
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| 4% (Ohio) |
  |
SSBMRank 2016: 99th |
|
| Abate (Pennsylvania) |
 |
SSBMRank 2015: 33rd |
Originally from New Jersey. |
| AbsentPage (Minnesota) |
|
MPGR 2018: 24th |
|
| Anther (Michigan) |
  |
 PMRank 2017: 18th |
Also known for creating Anther's Ladder. |
| ApolloKage (Missouri) |
 |
 UltRank 2022: 20th |
|
| ATATA (Illinois) |
  |
UltRank 2022: 91st |
|
| B33F (Indiana) |
 |
 2023 Smash 64 Power Rankings: 32nd |
|
| Balloon Day (Ohio) |
|
SSBMRank 2024: 71st |
|
| Ben (Minnesota/Wisconsin) |
 |
SSBMRank 2023: 30th |
|
| Blue (Indiana) |
|
SSBMRank 2024: 66th |
|
| Bobby Frizz (Kansas/Missouri) |
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SSBMRank 2017: 92nd PMRank 2018: 36th |
|
| Boyd (Ohio) |
 |
SSBMRank 2025: 51st |
|
| Candle (Wisconsin) |
 |
LumiRank 2024.2: 54th |
|
| Chaloopy (Illinois) |
 |
 PMRank 2025: 12th |
|
| ckyulmiqnudaetr (Michigan) |
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SSBMRank 2024: 29th |
|
| Cob (Kentucky) |
  |
MPGR 2018: 94th |
|
| coffee (Indiana) |
|
SSBMRank 2024: 78th |
|
| Comb (Illinois) |
 |
PMRank 2023: 12th |
|
| Connor (Minnesota) |
 |
PMRank 2019: 18th |
|
| Cosmos (Ohio) |
   |
 PGR v5: 7th OrionRank Ultimate: Eclipse: 11th |
Originally from Texas, but better known for his performances in Ohio. Moved to Mexico in 2024. |
| Darkatma (Missouri) |
|
SSBMRank 2013: 46th |
Originally from Northern California, he resided in Missouri until moving back to NorCal in 2016. |
| Darkrain (Kansas/Missouri) |
 |
RetroSSBMRank 2009: 8th |
|
| Darkshad (Ohio) |
  |
PGR v4: 26th OrionRank Ultimate: Six Months In: 100th |
|
| Dawn (Ohio/Pennsylvania) |
   |
OrionRank 2018: 92nd |
Also known as Midnight. |
| Daybreak (Michigan) |
   |
OrionRank Ultimate: Six Months In: 97th |
|
| Dirtboy (Michigan) |
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PMRank 2024: 3rd |
|
| Dogs_Johnson (Indiana) |
 |
2023 Smash 64 Power Rankings: 13th |
|
| Dope (Michigan) |
 |
RetroSSBMRank 2007: HM |
|
| Drephen (Ohio) |
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RetroSSBMRank 2007: 8th |
|
| Drugfreechu (Illinois) |
 |
PMRank 2019: 11th |
|
| Duck (Michigan) |
 |
MPGR 2018: 14th |
|
| dz (Illinois) |
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SSBMRank 2025: 98th |
|
| Eddie (Illinois) |
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RetroSSBMRank 2001-2003: 9th |
|
| Eduardo (Illinois) |
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RetroSSBMRank 2001-2003: 11th |
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| EG (Michigan) |
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2018 64 League Rankings: 25th |
|
| Eggy (Illinois) |
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SSBMRank 2022: 91st |
|
| Ellipsis (Michigan) |
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PMRank 2022: 24th |
|
| essy (Ohio) |
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SSBMRank 2017: 73rd PMRank 2025: 13th |
|
| evil lesbian (Illinois) |
  |
PMRank 2025: 31st |
|
| Flash (Ohio) |
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SSBMRank 2023: 43rd |
|
| Free Palestine (Ohio) |
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SSBMRank 2024: 61st |
|
| Geist (Ohio) |
 |
OrionRank 2018: 93rd UltRank 2025: 110th |
|
| Ginger (Michigan) |
|
SSBMRank 2025: 18th |
|
| Gomakenpi (Michigan) |
  |
OrionRank Ultimate: Six Months In: 61st |
Also known as Kesiel, currently going by Sweet JP. |
| goon (Michigan) |
|
2017 64 League Rankings: 62nd |
Also known as supa. |
| Gunnermaniac (Michigan) |
|
 2023 SSBBRank: 5th |
Originally from Louisiana and moved to Michigan in 2020. |
| Hanky Panky (Ohio) |
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SSBMRank 2014: 71st |
|
| HENRY LUMA (Missouri) |
 |
OrionRank Mid-Year 2022: 128th |
|
| Hoenn (Illinois) |
 |