Southern California
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Southern California, abbreviated as SoCal, is a Smash region located in the United States. "SoCal" is generally defined to include the southern half of the state of California, centered on the Los Angeles and San Diego metropolitan areas. It deliberately excludes Northern California and the San Francisco Bay Area, as the state's large size has resulted in the development of largely separate Smash scenes in its two halves.
Since the inception of competitive Melee, Southern California has been home to one of the largest and most active Smash scenes. This can be attributed to the huge population of the Los Angeles area, as well as its prominent air hub and heavy usage of the automobile facilitating transportation to tournaments, leading SoCal to have one of the largest tournament scenes in the world, hosting many iconic locals and majors thanks to the efforts of many tournament organizers and teams, including 2GGaming and Beyond the Summit. SoCal has long been considered the strongest Melee region in the world, home to both Ken, one of the strongest and most iconic players of the pre-Brawl era, and Mango, one of the Five Gods. The region is also known for being one of the two strongest Project M regions (the other being the Tristate Area), the second-strongest Brawl region in the United States (after the Tristate Area) during the game's competitive lifetime, and one of the strongest Smash 4 regions. Likewise, the region is home to many of each game's best players, including Elegant, Larry Lurr, Sosa, Tyrant, and VoiD. However, the scene had noticeably weakened in Ultimate, due to the hiatus and bans of the scene's best players and the losses of 2GGaming and Beyond the Summit leaving SoCal without a consistent major tournament series.
Smashers[edit]
- See also: Category:Southern California smashers
The following players are currently or were previously ranked. Their highest placement is listed.
Globally ranked players[edit]
Nationally ranked players[edit]
| Tag | Character(s) | Best placement | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
 Atreus |
 |
 LumiRank 2023 North America: 115th |
|
| Cless |
 |
OrionRank Ultimate: Eclipse: 80th |
|
| Cyro |
 |
OrionRank North America Top 200: 149th |
|
| Marvelous_Marco |
 |
OrionRank 2022 North America: 110th |
|
| MastaMario |
 |
OrionRank North America Top 200: 90th |
|
| Nito |
  |
OrionRank 2022 North America: 130th |
|
| Quinn |
|
OrionRank 2022 North America: 121st |
|
| Razo |
 |
OrionRank North America Top 200: 103rd |
|
| Rex |
 |
OrionRank North America Top 200: 198th |
|
| Willow |
 |
OrionRank 2022 North America: 178th |
Originally from NorCal. |
| Zan |
 |
OrionRank North America Top 200: 147th |
Tournaments[edit]
- See also: Category:Southern California tournaments
Notable tournament series[edit]
Tournament series that have achieved recognition outside their local region.
| Tournament | Games | Type | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2GGaming (including 2GGT and 2GGC) |  |
Unscheduled | Discontinued |
| Elite Four |  |
Bi-monthly | Discontinued |
| Fight For SoCal |   |
Discontinued | |
| Hollywood Action Tuesdays | |
Weekly | Discontinued |
| Kings of Cali | |
Unscheduled | Discontinued |
| Mainstage | |
Annual | Discontinued |
| Mega Smash Mondays | |
Weekly | Discontinued |
| Monday Smash Meet Zero | |
Bi-weekly | |
| Nimbus | |
Weekly | |
| Pat's House | |
Unscheduled | |
| Saving Mr. Lombardi | |
Annual | Ongoing |
| Smash Summit | |
Bi-annual | Discontinued |
| Snosa | |
Annual | Discontinued |
| SoCal Regionals | |
Annual | |
| The Balc |  |
Annual | Discontinued |
| Wavedash | |
Annual | On hiatus |
| Wednesday Night Fights | |
Weekly | Discontinued |
| Winter Game Fest | |
Annual | Discontinued |
| Zero Challenge | |
Unscheduled | Discontinued |
Notable tournaments[edit]
Tournaments that featured at least one game at a superregional level.
| Tournament | Date | Entrants | Supermajor | Major | Superregional | Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zero Challenge 1 | January 18th, 2004 | ??? | — | — | |
— |
| MLG Los Angeles 2005 | October 14th-16th, 2005 | 32+ | |
— | — | — |
| MLG Anaheim 2006 | June 23rd-24th, 2006 | 160+ | |
— | — | — |
| Zero Challenge 2 | August 15th-17th, 2006 | 200+ | |
— | — | — |
| Zero Challenge 3 | July 20th-22nd, 2007 | 228+ | |
— | — | — |
| EVO West | July 27th-29th, 2007 | 128 | — | |
— | — |
| Super Champ Combo | September 29th-30th, 2007 | 201+ | |
— | — | — |
| Winter Game Fest IV | January 17th-18th, 2009 | 243+ | — | |
— | — |
| Active Gamers | September 26th-27th, 2009 | 108+ | — | — | |
— |
| Winter Game Fest VI | January 22nd–23rd, 2011 | 140+ | — | |
— | — |
| Winter Game Fest VII | January 14th-15th, 2012 | 155+ | — | — | |
— |
| Kings of Cali | November 10th, 2012 | 120+ | — | |
— | — |
| Kings of Cali 2 | April 13th-14th, 2013 | 115+ | — | — | |
— |
| Kings of Cali 3 | December 14th-15th, 2013 | 220+ | — | — | |
— |
| SoCal Regionals 2014 | February 28th-March 2nd, 2014 | 80 | — | — | |
— |
| Pat's House 2 | May 24th-25th, 2014 | 162+ | — | |
— | — |
| MLG Anaheim 2014 | June 20th-22nd, 2014 | 325 | |
— | — | — |
| Kings of Cali 4 | July 5th-6th, 2014 | 208+ | — | |
— | — |
| Sky's Smash 4 Invitational | November 20th-22nd, 2014 | 24 | — | — | |
— |
| Final Battle | January 17th, 2015 | 252+ | — | — | |
|
| Press Start | May 9th-10th, 2015 | 222+ | — | |
— | — |
| Smash of Ages 2015 | June 6th, 2015 | 60 | — | |
— | — |
| Paragon Los Angeles 2015 | September 5th-6th, 2015 | 1,138 | |
|
— | — |
| Smash Summit | November 5th-8th, 2015 | 16 | — | |
— | — |
| 2GGT: ESAM Saga | January 9th, 2016 | 190 | — | — | |
— |
| 2GGT: The False Awakens | January 30th, 2016 | 208 | — | — | |
— |
| 2GGT: EE Saga | February 27th, 2016 | 204 | — | — | |
— |
| 2GGT: FOW Saga | March 26th, 2016 | 371 | — | — | |
— |
| Smash Summit 2 | April 21st-24th, 2016 | 16 | |
— | — | — |
| 2GGT: Fresh Saga | May 7th, 2016 | 345 | — | — | |
— |
| The Big Balc | May 27th-29th, 2016 | 201 | — | |
— | — |
| 2GGT: Mexico Saga | June 4th, 2016 | 423 | — | — | |
— |
| Snosa II | June 18th, 2016 | 96 | — | |
— | — |
| 2GGT: KTAR Saga | July 23rd, 2016 | 432 | — | — | |
— |
| 2GGT: Abadango Saga | September 24th, 2016 | 564 | — | |
— | — |
| Smash Summit 3 | November 3rd-6th, 2016 | 16 | |
— | — | — |
| 2GGC: GENESIS Saga | January 14th, 2017 | 474 | — | |
— | — |
| 2GGC: Midwest Mayhem Saga | February 11th, 2017 | 349 | — | |
— | — |
| Smash Summit Spring 2017 | March 2nd-5th, 2017 | 16 | |
— | — | — |
| 2GGC: Civil War | March 24th-26th, 2017 | 843 | |
— | — | — |
| Smash Rivalries | April 8th-9th, 2017 | 16 | — | |
— | — |
| 2GGC: Greninja Saga | May 20th, 2017 | 359 | — | |
— | — |
| The Bigger Balc | May 27th-28th, 2017 | 613 | |
— | — |
|
| 2GGC: Nairo Saga | June 10th-11th, 2017 | 570 | |
— | — | — |
| Mega Smash Mondays 100 | June 12th, 2017 | 229 | — | — | |
— |
| Snosa III | June 17th-18th, 2017 | 101 | — | |
— | — |
| 2GGC: ARMS Saga | July 8th-9th, 2017 | 218 | — | |
— | — |
| 2GGC: SCR Saga | August 19th-20th, 2017 | 430 | |
— | — | — |
| Red Bull Smash Gods and Gatekeepers | September 2nd-3rd, 2017 | 884 | — | — | |
— |
| 2GGC: West Side Saga | September 9th, 2017 | 315 | — | |
— | — |
| 2GGC: Fire Emblem Saga | October 14th-15th, 2017 | 396 | |
— | — | — |
| 2GGC: MkLeo Saga | November 4th, 2017 | 330 | |
— | — | — |
| Smash Summit 5 | November 2nd-5th, 2017 | 16 | |
— | — | — |
| IBP Masters Showdown | November 11th-12th, 2017 | 131 | — | |
— | — |
| 2GG Championship | December 1st-3rd, 2017 | 20 | |
— | — | — |
| Pat's House 3 | December 2nd-3rd, 2017 | 347 | — | — | |
— |
| SwitchFest | April 21st-22nd, 2018 | 199 | — | |
— |
|
| Smash Summit 6 | May 3rd-6th, 2018 | 16 | |
— | — | — |
| 2GG: Hyrule Saga | June 23rd-24th, 2018 | 835 | |
— | — | — |
| The Even Bigger Balc | July 6th-8th, 2018 | 523 | |
— | — |
|
| SoCal Regionals 2018 | September 14th-16th, 2018 | 144 | — | — | |
— |
| The Roast of Hugo Gonzalez | September 22nd, 2018 | 276 | — | — | |
— |
| The Mang0: Homecoming | November 10th-11th, 2018 | 394 | — | — | |
— |
| Smash Summit 7 | November 15th-18th, 2018 | 16 | |
— | — | — |
| Sky's Ultimate Invitational | December 15th, 2018 | 8 | — | — | |
— |
| SoCal Chronicles | January 5th, 2019 | 603 | — | — | |
— |
| Heart of Battle | February 9th, 2019 | 416 | — | — | |
— |
| Ultimate Nimbus | March 3rd, 2019 | 322 | — | — | |
|
| Smash Ultimate Summit | March 8th-10th, 2019 | 16 | — | |
— | — |
| Snosa IV | March 16th-17th, 2019 | 82 | — | |
— | — |
| Saving Mr. Lombardi | April 13th, 2019 | 174 | — | — | |
— |
| 2GG: Prime Saga | April 13th-14th, 2019 | 842 | |
— | — | — |
| Goodwill of Orange County's Charity Invitational | April 27th-28th, 2019 | 12 | — | — | |
— |
| Thunder Smash | May 5th, 2019 | 82 | — | — | |
— |
| The Kid, the Goat, and the Mang0 | June 8th-9th, 2019 | 503 | — | — | |
— |
| Weds Night Fights x Orange County Spring 2019 2.6 | June 12th, 2019 | 256 | — | — | |
— |
| Smash Summit 8 | June 13th-16th, 2019 | 16 | |
— | — | — |
| Thunder Smash 2 | July 28th, 2019 | 8 | — | — | |
— |
| Mega Smash Mondays 200 | July 29th, 2019 | 400 | — | — | |
— |
| The Encore | August 16th-18th, 2019 | 127 | — |  |
— |
|
| 2GG: SwitchFest 2019 | August 31st-September 1st, 2019 | 452 | — | |
— | — |
| Mainstage | September 20th-22nd, 2019 | 578 | |
|
— | — |
| Thunder Smash 3: Clash of the Pandas | October 12th, 2019 | 86 | — | |
— | — |
| Smash Ultimate Summit 2 | October 24th-27th, 2019 | 16 | |
— | — | — |
| 2GG: Kongo Saga | December 7th-8th, 2019 | 1,001 | |
— | — | — |
| Snosa 5 | January 4th, 2020 | 63 | — | |
— | — |
| Saving Mr. Lombardi 2 | February 1st, 2020 | 171 | — | — | |
— |
| Smash Summit 9 | February 13th-16th, 2020 | 18 | |
— | — | — |
| Smash Summit 11 | July 15th-18th, 2021 | 16 | |
— | — | — |
| Mega Smash Mondays 240 | August 23rd, 2021 | 320 | — | — | |
— |
| Smash Ultimate Summit 3 | August 26th-29th, 2021 | 16 | — | |
— | — |
| Jailbreak | November 13th, 2021 | 127 | — | |
— | — |
| Mainstage 2021 | November 12th-14th, 2021 | 1,330 | |
|
— | — |
| Smash Summit 12 | December 9th-12th, 2021 | 16 | |
— | — | — |
| Smash Ultimate Summit 4 | March 3rd-6th, 2022 | 16 | — | |
— | — |
| G4 Smash Ultimate Invitational | March 7th, 2022 | 8 | — | — | |
— |
| Smash Summit 13 | May 12th-15th, 2022 | 16 | |
— | — | — |
| Wavedash 2022 | August 6th-7th, 2022 | 749 | — | — | |
— |
| Smash Ultimate Summit 4 | September 15th-18th, 2022 | 16 | — | |
— | — |
| Smash Summit 14 | November 3rd-6th, 2022 | 16 | |
— | — | — |
| Mainstage 2022 | December 2nd-4th, 2022 | 866 | |
|
— | — |
| Scuffed World Tour | December 18th, 2022 | 32 | |
|
— | — |
| Smash Ultimate Summit 6 | March 23rd-26th, 2023 | 16 | — | |
— | — |
| DreamHack San Diego 2023 | April 7th-9th, 2023 | 524 | — | — | |
— |
| Wavedash 2023 | June 16th-18th, 2023 | 545 | — | — | |
— |
| Ludwig Ahgren Championship Series 5 | July 7th-9th, 2023 | 16 | |
— | — | — |
| Pat's House 4 | April 27th-28th, 2024 | 309 | — | |
— | — |
| SoCal Star League Championship - Season 1 | September 21st-22nd, 2024 | 64 | — | — | |
— |
| LACS Rivals | November 23rd-24th, 2024 | 16 | — | — | |
— |
Largest singles events[edit]
| Rank | Tournament | Date | Game | Attendance | Winner | Character(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2GG: Kongo Saga | December 7th-8th, 2019 | |
909 |  MkLeo |
|
| 2 | Mainstage 2021 | November 12th-14th, 2021 | |
830 | MkLeo |
|
| 3 | 2GG: Prime Saga | April 13th-14th, 2019 | |
804 |  Shuton |
|
| 4 | 2GG: Hyrule Saga | June 23rd-24th, 2018 | |
780 | Tweek |
 
|
| 5 | Red Bull Smash Gods and Gatekeepers qualifier bracket | September 2nd-3rd, 2017 | |
768 | — | — |
| 6 | 2GGC: Civil War | March 24th-26th, 2017 | |
753 | Dabuz |
|
| 7 | Mainstage 2021 | November 12th-14th, 2021 | |
559 | Wizzrobe |
|
| 8 | Paragon Los Angeles 2015 | September 5th-6th, 2015 | |
547 | Mango |
 
|
| 9 | 2GGT: Abadango Saga | September 24th, 2016 | |
544 |  ZeRo |
|
| 10 | Paragon Los Angeles 2015 | September 5th-6th, 2015 | |
519 | Nairo |
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