The Arcadian, delivered by Beyond the Summit and Papa Johns, will give a number of up-and-coming American Super Smash Bros. Ultimate players the chance to shine on a national stage for the first time. Entrants will compete for $50,000 in prizes over the course of the circuit.
Here’s everything players need to know about the Papa Johns Arcadian, from who’s eligible, how to enter and when and where the finale will take place.
Who can participate
In the Smash community, the word “arcadian” refers to tournaments that power-ranked players are not allowed to enter. Thus, the Papa Johns Arcadian will not be open to anyone who has appeared on a global or national ranking for Smash Ultimate up to this point. However, regionally-ranked players will not be prohibited.
Players can register for this tournament series as long as they have not appeared on any of the following rankings:
- Spring 2019 PGRU
- Fall 2019 PGRU
- PGRUContenders
- OrionRank Pre-Quarantine
- OrionRank Ultimate: Eclipse
Although the third iteration of the PGRU will release in August, Beyond the Summit has not announced whether it will ban players who appear on this ranking. In addition, this tournament series is exclusive to residents of the United States.
With the #PGRU Ultimate Summer Season ending today and the #MPGR NA Melee Summer Season ending Monday, July 11th, here are the upcoming dates to look forward to: pic.twitter.com/IlbtZ23iCo
— PGstats.com (@pgstats) June 13, 2022
Papa Johns Arcadian format and schedule
The Papa Johns Arcadian will include three online qualifiers leading up to a finale event. These online qualifiers will take place on July 24, September 4 and October 23. Each qualifier will feature two separate brackets, with the East Coast bracket starting at noon ET and the West Coast bracket starting at noon PT.
The top two finishers in each bracket will qualify for the finals. This means four players will advance from each qualifier, with 12 total players qualifying through online tournaments. Players can compete for the final four slots during an in-person last chance qualifier on December 3.
Both the last chance qualifier and the finals will take place in Ontario, California, at the Mainstage 2022 venue. All of the players who qualify through the online tournaments will have their flight and hotel costs covered so they can attend the in-person finale.
On December 4, the top 16 players will compete in the Papa Johns Arcadian finals. Along with competing for prize money, the top four players will earn VIP passes for Smash Ultimate Summit 6 in 2023.
