Panda Global Rankings Ultimate

The Panda Global Rankings Ultimate (PGRU) is a list compiled by Panda's PGStats team ranking the world's top 50 smashers in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Originally an algorithmic rankings similar to its Smash 4 incarnation, the rankings were overhauled to be panel-based, initially for the third season, but was first implemented for PGRContenders.

The first three seasons as well as PGRUContenders were headed by PracticalTAS, while all seasons since the third are currently being run by Barnard's Loop.

General methodology

Although the methodology has received changes with each iteration, there are several rules that remain the same. The Tournament Tier System returned, and tournaments that qualify for the PGR are given a tier based on either the number of entrants or, starting from the Fall 2019 PGRU, the number of PGR attendees present. For the latter, the higher ranked a player is, the more the player is worth. However, not all tournaments are considered when they reach the threshold: arcadians, weeklies, biweeklies, and tournaments held near another (such as pre-major locals) are excluded.

A newly-introduced mechanic is the international multiplier, which gave tournaments outside of the continental United States a higher point value. Initially, international tournaments were all given a 1.25x boost, however the multiplier was altered in the Spring 2020 season so that non-Japanese international tournaments were given an approximately 1.67x boost.

During the first two seasons, the power rankings were creating using an algorithm that factored in placements, victories and losses over PGR and non-PGR players, and outplacements to create a list of 50 players, with 5 "honorable mentions" given the Area 51 position. The subjective X-Factor survey returned as well. Starting in the cancelled Spring 2020 PGRU season, the algorithm would have been replaced with a panel that would rank the top 100 players of that season, with 5 "rising stars" chosen halfway through the season. 2021 had a pseudo-ranking in the form of a tier list decided by panelists called PGRUContenders. The third season was a panel-based ranking split by region of the top 50 players in North America and Europe and an unordered list of 50 players to watch in Japan.