Michael “Riddles” Kim, the main for Kazuya in Super Smash Bros., is being defended after he hurled his controller at Genesis 9.
Team Liquid’s Riddles has established himself as Canada’s best player after consistently finishing in the top 8 at big tournaments, including winning first place at The Big House 10.
Despite being expected to perform well at Genesis 9, Riddles, 19, had a dismal outcome and was ousted very early after losing to French Lucina player Nassim “Leon” Laib. After the unanticipated defeat, Riddles lost his temper and slammed his controller to the ground. This caused some anger and sparked a discussion about “top player privilege.”
Smash expert Riddles reacts to the controller being slammed
After the controller toss, current and former Smash stars rushed to Riddles’ defense. One of the best ROB players, Zombra, questioned the “investment” that people had in Riddles spiking his controller.
“You must focus on more important matters in your lives,” he scolded, “than writing about a man expressing frustration in a game.”
ZeRo, one of Smash 4’s greatest of all-time players who recently redeemed himself, claimed that many players engage in similar or worse off-stream behavior. He also questioned why the issue was receiving such widespread attention.
Even Melee celebrity IBDW came to Riddles’ defense, saying that “nobody worries if a baseball player breaks their bat” and that similar annoyance was typical in traditional sports. After Kotaku published a story on the incident, Riddles finally spoke out, repeating that it wasn’t a big thing and criticizing the publication.
“When I get better from [my illness], I’m going to improve my life instead of wasting time conversing with people who don’t know anything. Keep it in mind,” he advised. One last time, Kotaku, f**k you.
Riddles will have to wait until March to redeem himself at Collision 2023 against the best in the world, including MKLeo, Tweek, Light, and fellow Liquid star Dabuz, as there won’t be any majors in February.
They have made all singles matches in Melee and Ultimate Best of 5, a format often reserved for the finals of a bracket, making this event truly historic.
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