The Australasian Open: Nintendo down under, with Smash and Splatoon 2

Splatoon 2 and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate tournaments come to Australia and New Zealand.

Nintendo recently announced two big tournaments coming to Australia and New Zealand residences. Starting this month, Nintendo is hosting a series of qualifying events for the two Switch games. The Australasian Open aims to attract pros, amateurs, and anyone with a love of Splatoon 2 and Smash Ultimate. The live finals are to take place at Supernova in Melbourne on Apr. 6-7. Supernova expos have been welcoming Australian pop culture since 2000. Fans are inspired by the imaginary worlds built from comics, sci-fi, fantasy, anime, gaming, nostalgia, and literature. It’s the perfect place to hold a Nintendo competition.

Individuals will battle it out in Timed Stock matches to determine the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Champion. All items will be on low. This includes the Smash Ball. On the Splatoon side of things, the freshest squid squad will be decided through Turf Wars and Ranked Battles. Teamwork and strategy will need to be employed to ensure victory.

Australasian Open

Online qualifiers have already begun. Over one thousand players signed up for round one of the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate tournament. First, second, and third-place winners from Australia will earn their spot in the live finals. Players con_lias, JDash, and LoneZen are the Australian representatives for Super Smash from the first online qualifiers. For New Zealand, only top place will be in the finals. Thus, Narth is your NZ rep. The second online qualifiers are set to take place next week on Mar. 9. If you’re keen to sign up, you can register to play for Australia or New Zealand. Players need to be a resident of either Australia or New Zealand to compete in the Australasian Open. If you’re thinking about playing, now is the chance to sign up. There are significantly fewer players competing in the second qualifiers.

But it’s not all about Super Smash Bros. Since it was released in 2017, Splatoon 2 has attracted global attention. Whilst fewer players are signed up to Splatoon 2, only first place in each qualifier goes through to the live finals. And there’s still plenty of time. The first online qualifier isn’t until Mar. 16, and qualifier two is on Mar. 23. Both Australian and New Zealand residents can compete in the same qualifiers. Players can use any weapons or gear they have unlocked, except the Splatfest tees. Unlike Super Smash Bros., Splatoon 2 is played in teams. No more than five players can sign up for each team. So if you’re signed up to play, you’ll still be competing against over 400 players!

Start practicing

If you’re thinking about competing, or reading about the Australasian Open is enticing you back to your games, pull out your Switch and start playing. Both games are receiving excellent feedback from the gaming community. Check out our review on Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, for all the juicy goss. And don’t forget Splatoon 2. Apparently everyone in Japan is addicted to it! But in all seriousness, the Australasian Open looks like an epic tournament.

Stay tuned with us on where to watch the live finals. Plus, we’ll be heading to the tournament ourselves, so make sure you check back for all the results.