By Liz Lanier
LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) –
Upcoming tournaments for hit Switch titles “Super Smash Bros. Ultimate” and “Splatoon 2” were announced by Nintendo on Tuesday.
The North America Inkling Open 2019 and the North America Open 2019 both start next month, and will draw players to compete in the online versions of the popular Switch titles. The select players that make it through the final rounds of the online events can win a trip to compete at PAX East, which is coming to Boston, on March 30, according to Nintendo’s events page .
There’s still some time to practice before the qualifying rounds in February, and players of all skill levels are encouraged to play in the tournaments, whether they are “a pro, amateur player, or just love watching the best of the best compete,” according to Nintendo.
The qualifying final rounds of both tournaments will be livestreamed, for those who just enjoy watching the competition.
Interested players from the Northwest, Northeast, Southwest, and Southeast Regions of North America will be eligible to participate, as long as they are at least 13 years of age (18 years in Mexico). See the map below for the breakdown of regions.
Qualifying rounds for “Super Smash Bros. Ultimate” start Feb. 2, but there will be three separate online events players can register for and possibly succeed to a subsequent final qualifying round. Check out the schedule from Nintendo below:
“Each region has a cap of 2,048 check-in players for each qualifier, for a total of 8,192 players per qualifier series across the four regions of play,” according to Nintendo.
The top player of each region’s final qualifying round gets a chance to compete in the final event.
“” will have its “Ink Pools” qualifying round on Feb. 10 at 9 a.m. PST, and the subsequent online qualifier finals on March 2, also at 9 a.m. PST.
Doug Bowser, Nintendo of America’s Senior VP of Sales and Marketing, commented on what these tournaments can mean for players.
“This inclusive pair of tournaments is a great way for anyone to show off their skills while playing two of their favorite Nintendo Switch games,” said Bowser. “Nintendo games are for everyone, and offer a unique combination of social competitive fun. That’s why we’re opening the qualifying rounds to fans of all skill levels.”
Ready to take on other players in your region? Registration for “Super Smash” via Battlefy is open now, as is “Splatoon 2.”
