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Vancouver’s upcoming Battle of BC 4 is proving to be one of the largest Super Smash Brothers Melee events of the entire calendar year. With most of the top 10 in attendance, there is a lot on the line in terms of wins. Here are the main storylines going into Battle of BC 4.

Will Zain and Mang0 regain their spots at the top?

Zain “Zain” Naghami and Joseph “Mang0” Marquez are the undisputed top two Super Smash Brothers Melee players in terms of skill. Before Smash’s most prestigious invitational, Smash Summit 13, he had won both Pound 2022 and Genesis 8, barely dropping a single game in the process. However, his recent 5th place finish at Smash Summit 13 was a disappointing drop for the player who is considered the current best in terms of skill. On the other hand, his main rival Mang0 has been in a rut lately. Characterized as the greatest Melee player of all time by PG Stats, Mang0 has had a tougher go of things compared to Zain. After his second-place finish at the Ludwig Aghren Championship Series, Mang0 finished either 9th or 13th in every event. Mang0 has been open about his struggles with motivation over on his stream, but Battle of BC 4 will be an opportunity for two of the most skilled players in the world to take back their rightful place at the top.

Can Hungrybox push further now that iBDW is not attending?

At one point, Juan “Hungrybox” Debiedma was the best Melee player in the world. While he took a step back during the beginning of the online era, he has returned to attending as many events as possible to regain his former glory. His biggest obstacle from that goal? Cody “iBDW” Schwab. Hungrybox has a record of 7-21 in the last 28 sets that the two players have had against each other, and most of their sets end in iBDW getting a complete sweep. Thankfully for Hungrybox, iBDW will not be attending this event, but he still has to best Zain, one of the best players in the world, in order to gain a top spot.

The Sheik mania continues

For the last few years, Sheik has not been played by a top 10 player. While there were good Sheik players like Griffin “Faceroll” Williams and Zaid “Spark” Ali, they never contested the likes of Mang0 and Zain at the top of the mountain. However, 2022 has brought a return to the tech-chasing menace in Jake “Jmook” DiRado’s breakout performance at Genesis 8. Jmook placed second out of nowhere, beating every player but Zain in convincing fashion. In addition to Jmook, William “Leffen” Hjelte, a top 10 player, recently added Sheik to his repertoire to counter the Marth matchup he has struggled with for years. With all of this Sheik hype, Battle of BC might be Sheik’s return as a top character after years in the background.