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Smasher:Etika

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Etika "Etika Desmond" "Iceman Etika" "EtikaWorldNetwork"
Etika.jpg
Character info
Smash 4 main Robin
Ultimate main Ridley
Personal and other info
Real name Desmond Daniel Amofah
Birth date (aged 29)
Location Brooklyn, New York USA

Etika (May 12th, 1990 – c. June 19th, 2019) was a YouTuber and Smash 4 Robin player from Brooklyn, New York, though he was best known for his YouTube videos and Twitch streams, particularly his highly energetic reactions to Smash character reveals.

Etika disappeared on June 19th, 2019, after having uploaded a video entitled "I'm sorry" where he admitted to being suicidal.[1] His body was discovered on June 24th in the East River, with the determined cause of death being suicide by drowning.[2]

HistoryEdit

Etika's internet history dates back to 2006, where he was known as "Iceman Etika" and had a small YouTube channel that peaked at 130,000 subscribers. He participated in two Grind Time Now rap battles during 2008, one in March[3] and one in December.[4] The former, as of September 2023, has over 250,000 views. During 2011 to 2015, he also had a modelling career.

In 2012, Etika opened the "Etika World Network", a YouTube channel meant to host a variety of content creators, though such content never materialized, mainly consisting of Pokémon battles before he went viral. Etika's content at his peak consisted primarily of him reacting to the then newly formed Nintendo Direct presentations, where he would frequently experience disproportionate reactions compared to his peers, ranging from shouting to throwing objects around. Though critics often derided him for overexaggerating his reactions, Etika insisted they were genuine, for he had grown into hype culture.

Etika began gaining notoriety in the Smash community during the prerelease of Smash 4, during which every newcomer would receive an introduction trailer meant to generate hype and publicity. With the increasing popularity of watching reactions and reaction compilations to these trailers, Etika's screaming and wild movements quickly became recognizable among viewers. This included Japanese audiences, who called him "Guile-kun" due to the similarities between his hairstyle and Guile's. His reaction to the reveal of Mewtwo as a DLC fighter in the game, during which he excitedly screams "Mewtwo!" several times, merely from seeing its feet, became one of the most notorious reaction videos in the history of the community and was even retweeted by series creator Masahiro Sakurai.[5]

This publicity led to Etika becoming one of the most popular streamers in the Smash community, with him having a subscriber count of over 800,000 between his Twitch and YouTube accounts before the closure of both and a viewership of over 1,000,000. Besides his reactions to Nintendo Directs and other gaming-related media, Etika's streams consisted of him chatting to his viewers and playing a variety of video games. Besides Super Smash Bros.-related content, Etika occasionally uploaded either a livestream for playing other video games, talks about his personal life, or explore the internet accompanied by a chat group, or news videos related to Nintendo. He was not a competitive player, but he had active contact with a number of names in the community, such as ZeRo and Alpharad, and frequently discussed matters relating to tournament play, such as the events that led Apex 2015 to lose its first day.

His steady growth in popularity resulted in the creation of a fanbase that consisted of uploading clips of his livestreams on YouTube, creating memes featuring him and users from other social media, and sending donations towards other streamers with mentions of Etika. One such happened with singer and voice actress Skye Bennett, known for dubbing Pyra and Mythra in English, with a meme involving Etika's playthrough of Minecraft in the past.[6]

Even as his channel grew, his reactions remained his most notorious content, with the reveal trailer for Cloud in SSB4 involving him tossing around a string of paper towels, and the "Everyone is here" trailer for Ultimate involving him breaking his shelf. He was notably given the "Best Reaction" award at Super Smash Con's 2018 and 2019 iterations.

Disappearance and deathEdit

 
One of multiple notable murals painted following Etika's death, located at 1280 Myrtle Ave. in Bushwick, Brooklyn. Painted by BKFoxx, kestaadm, and JMZWalls.
 
A sequel mural painted by BKFoxx, located 323 Scholes St Brooklyn NY.

Etika displayed erratic behavior in the months prior to his suicide. On April 16th, 2019, he posted on Twitter stating that he was going to kill himself with a pistol he purchased in Long Island, leading to his arrest and hospitalization; his ex-girlfriend Christine Cardona later confirmed his well-being. A few days later, Etika again posted a photoshopped picture of himself holding a gun. On April 29th, he tweeted a quantity of cryptic messages, including racial slurs, and blocked his close friends, such as Sky. Later that day, he livestreamed himself being detained by police on Instagram after a concerned fan notified police of his alarming behavior on stream. In an interview with Keemstar on the YouTube channel "DramaAlert", Etika would make other disturbing remarks, such as stating that he wanted to "purge all life".[7]

On June 19th, a video titled "I'm sorry" was uploaded on Etika's old "TR1Iceman" YouTube channel. In the video, Etika admitted to suffering from mental health issues and apologized for pushing his loved ones away from him; the video description also contained a suicide note. The same day, his personal belongings were found on the pedestrian walkway of the Manhattan Bridge, and he was reported missing to the New York Police Department. Between June 24th and June 25th, his body was discovered and recovered down the East River; the Office of Chief Medical Examiner determined the cause of death to be drowning, after likely having jumped off the Manhattan Bridge.

ReactionsEdit

Following Etika's passing, a Change.org petition asked for Etika to be buried at YouTube Headquarters, which was one of his last wishes. It reached over 200,000 signatures, but allegedly could not be fulfilled due to legal issues.[8] Another Change.org petition was made asking for his YouTube Channels to be reinstated and memorialized following their disabling,[9] but as of September 2023, they remain such. However, multiple archival channels have dedicated themselves to reuploading Etika's content, most notably Library of Etika, which has over 30,000 subscribers and a large community seeking out the remaining lost media. His Instagram posts from September 2018 to June 2019 have also been documented on a channel called JoyConBoyz.

Multiple murals were painted in Brooklyn mere days following Etika's suicide, with one notably being part of an ~$11,000 USD fundraiser for the National Alliance of Mental Illness hosted on Etika's old website.[10] In Februrary 2020, said mural notably became a Pokemon GO Spot.[11] PewDiePie and actor Jack Black also collectively raised ~$40,000 USD for the National Alliance of Mental Illness.[12] In 2022, another mural was painted by BKFoxx, following the previous one's removal.[13] It is located at 323 Scholes St, Brooklyn, NY and a short film accompanied its creation.[14][15] The new mural continues to see steady visitors every year, especially on the anniversary of Etika's death.

Many YouTubers mourned Etika's death, from close friends like Lucbomber, Arora, and MightyKeef, to his ex-girlfriend, Alice Pika. On August 16, 2019, JoeBro, a contributor to the YouTube channel SiIvaGunner, held a collaboration featuring numerous YTPMVs, skits, and a original composition for Etika, of which one of the latter's friends, im salt, reacted positively.[16][17] SiIvaGunner uploaded a legacy track, "Lifelight", on December 25, 2019, as part of the "King for Another Day Tournament".[18] It was themed after "We Dem Boyz" by Wiz Khalifa, one of Etika's favourite songs, frequently used in his videos, and part of his famous "JOYCONBOYZ" meme. This follows two other songs featured the previous year.[19] As of February 2024, Lifelight has garnered over 450,000 views.

The BBC listed Etika's death as one of the biggest tech stories of 2019,[20] and NBC News's Rod Breslau believed Etika would go down in history as one of the greatest video game entertainers.[21] YouTube Creators also posted a tweet mourning his death.[22]

Later eventsEdit

 
Etika mural created on r/place in 2022.

Soon after his death, controversies happened on YouTube with people exploiting his death for money. YouTubers such as Cr1TiKaL and Pyrocynical exposed channels doing this act, of which the accused had their videos or channels taken down later.[23][24]

In August 2019, at Super Smash Con 2019's 3rd annual "Smashies Awards", a tribute was held in honor of Etika, who was meant to receive the "Best Reaction" award.[25] Various famous reactions were showcased, including the reveals of Mewtwo in Smash 4, Ultimate, and Joker, Ridley, Ken, and Incineroar's reveals for Ultimate. Coney, D1, and Austy gave commentary, and in lieu of Etika, his friends accepted the award instead.

In January 2022, AntilaHQ launched an "EtikaPunks" line of Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) on Rarible, branded after the "CryptoPunks" line of NFTs and Etika's likeness, allegedly in his memory.[26] This led to large-scale derision from Smashers, pointing out its distastefulness, the poor artistic quality, and the racism featured in some of the designs, such as one holding a banana.[27] In February, both the AntilaHQ and EtikaPunks accounts were suspended. Following backlash, the creator claimed that they made the NFTs to make back money lost through a gambling addiction. The NFTs have been removed from Rarible's public view.[28]

In April 2022, after three days of struggle, fans of Etika managed to create a mural on r/place.[29] Two were made in the following year, with one featuring Pyra and Mythra, characters Etika enjoyed.[30]

Tournament placingsEdit

Super Smash Bros. for Wii UEdit

Tournament Date 1v1 placement 2v2 placement Partner
Nebulous Smash Weekly 19 Wii U December 21st, 2014 33rd — —
Nebulous Smash Weekly 20 Wii U December 28th, 2014 33rd — —
Twitch Sub Event #1   March 7th, 2015 49th — —

Super Smash Bros. UltimateEdit

Tournament Date 1v1 placement 2v2 placement Partner
DA Gauntlet Ultimate 6 February 19th, 2019 33rd — —

TriviaEdit

  • After the reveal of the Nintendo Switch, Etika would often affectionately refer to his fanbase as "JOYCONBOYZ," notably selling merchandise relating to it. The name originated from a November 2016 live stream where Etika claimed to have a Nintendo Switch prior to the console's release, before it was shown to have been 3D printed, and is partly derived from "We Dem Boyz" by Wiz Khalifa, one of Etika's favourite songs.
    • Following Etika's death, content creator CaptnAlex produced custom joycons with the "JOYCONBOYZ" iconography. While the proceeds aimed to go to charity, the project was cancelled following a cease and desist.[31]

ReferencesEdit

  1. ^ "I'm sorry" Reupload
  2. ^ Etika's death ruled a suicide
  3. ^ March 2008 Rap Battle
  4. ^ December 2008 Rap Battle
  5. ^ Sakurai retweets Etika's Mewtwo reaction
  6. ^ Etika Reacts To Voice Actor Of Pyra/Mythra Say "Etika Loves Minecraft"
  7. ^ Keemstar's Etika interview
  8. ^ Burial Change.org Petition
  9. ^ Change.org article
  10. ^ Etika mural & Fundraiser
  11. ^ Mural that became a Pokemon GO Spot
  12. ^ PewDiePie & Jack Black fundraisers
  13. ^ [1]
  14. ^ BKFoxx's second Etika mural
  15. ^ [2]
  16. ^ JoeBro (August 16, 2019). Etika: Joycon Boyz 4 Life. YouTube.
  17. ^ im salt on Twitter. Twitter (August 17, 2019).
  18. ^ Lifelight - SiIvaGunner: King for Another Day
  19. ^ Etika Smash! - SiIvaGunner: King for a Day Tournament, Victory! Etika - SiIvaGunner: King for a Day Tournament
  20. ^ Tech 2019: Our biggest technology stories
  21. ^ NBC News Reaction
  22. ^ YouTube Creators reaction
  23. ^ Jaystation Is The Biggest Douchebag
  24. ^ let etika rest
  25. ^ Smashies Award "Best Reaction" tribute to Etika
  26. ^ NFT analysis
  27. ^ [3]
  28. ^ [4]
  29. ^ r/place 2022 atlas
  30. ^ r/place 2023 atlas; first memorial & second memorial
  31. ^ Custom Joycon C&D

External linksEdit

Gameplay videosEdit

Super Smash Bros. for Wii UEdit

Super Smash Bros. UltimateEdit

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