Nintendo is bringing some incredible social, competitive tournaments to this year’s E3 video game trade show. Over the course of two days, fans around the world can watch online as both pros and amateurs compete for glory in the Splatoon 2 and ARMS games, which can only be experienced on the Nintendo Switch console. Fans can watch all the action at http://e3.nintendo.com, as well as on Nintendo’s YouTube and Twitch channels.
“Splatoon 2 and ARMS are games that lend themselves perfectly to tournaments, and E3 is an ideal venue to bring people together to compete,” said Doug Bowser, Nintendo of America’s Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing. “These friendly tournaments will highlight the fun, competitive nature of these games and the Nintendo Switch hardware for people at home and on the show floor.”
2017 Splatoon 2 World Inkling Invitational – Tuesday, June 13, Approximately 2:30 p.m. PT
For the first time ever, competitors from four different global regions will compete for world dominance in Splatoon 2. The four four-person teams – “Deadbeat” from the United States, “Dynameu” from Japan, “Rising Moon” from Europe and “Blue Ringed Octolings” from Australia/New Zealand – defeated their rivals in local tournaments that occurred in recent months.
During the show in Los Angeles, teams will battle in a round-robin Turf War tournament that will decide seeding for the next round. All teams will play one another and get a chance to scope out their opponents’ strengths and weaknesses. In the next round, teams will battle in the game’s Ranked Battle modes. The semifinal stage will be a best-of-five battle, while the championship will be best-of-seven.
The winning team of the live-streamed tournament will win global bragging rights and will have their names engraved on a sweet Splatoon 2 trophy. Announcers for the Splatoon 2 tournament will be avid Splatoon player, Nintendo fan, athlete and broadcaster Jordan Kent, Ashley Esqueda of CNET and the Nintendo Treehouse’s Eric Smith.
To help kids and squids get the most out of all the tournament action, prior to E3 Nintendo will release video content highlighting the tactics, strategies and storylines behind competitive Splatoon play.
2017 ARMS Open Invitational – Wednesday, June 14, Approximately 3:30 p.m. PT
This live-streamed ARMS competition will pit four expert competitive gamers from the fighting game community against E3 attendees who qualify during the event. E3 attendees can visit the Nintendo booth between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. PT on Wednesday, June 14, for a chance to win a spot in the finals. The top four competitors will be selected to face off against four pro competitive gamers.
The eight tournament participants will do battle until a champion emerges to win the coveted 2017 ARMS Open Invitational championship belt. Announcers for the tourney include Super Smash Bros. broadcasters D1 and VikkiKitty. The participating pro players are Alex Valle of Street Fighter fame; Kelsy Medeiros, aka SuperGirlKels, a professional Super Smash Bros. for Wii U player hailing from Canada; acclaimed Super Smash Bros. player Daniel “Tafokints” Lee; and French Super Smash Bros. player Marie-Laure “Kayane” Norindr, one of the world’s most decorated professional female fighting game players in history.
For more details about Nintendo’s tournaments at E3, visit http://e3.nintendo.com.