SSC 2023 GRAND FINALS - Zain (Marth) Vs. Hungrybox (Jigglypuff) Smash Melee Tournament

This Smash Bros Tournament match was streamed live on: [ / vgbootcamp ]( / vgbootcamp )
Super Smash Con is a Super Smash Bros Tournament in Chantilly, VA. This Smash Bros. Tournament Took place 8/10-13/2022.
This Super Smash Bros Melee Tournament Bracket features top talent! The best Smash Melee Tournament players from around the world attended this Super Smash Bros. Melee Tournament.
This is a Super Smash Bros Melee Singles Tournament / Smash Melee 1v1 Tournament / Super Smash Bros. Melee 1vs1 Tournament / Super Smash Bros Melee 1 vs. 1 Tournament.
You can find the Tournament Brackets here: [www.start.gg/ssc](www.start.gg/ssc)
#SuperSmashBros #SmashMelee #SmashBrosMelee

[@vgbootcamp]

Super Smash Con 2023 is still live! Check it out here: "www.twitch.tv/vgbootcamp"

[@AL-lh2ht]

Fun fact: super smash con is the only major tournament series that Hbox has not yet won one tournament of yet. It’s the only one left he has not gotten a win in yet.

[@eddiestilll]

this is the best that hbox has looked in quite a while. he was going for so many rests and just playing with so much more confidence, not only in this set against zain but against moky and cody as well.

[@sharkronical]

I feel like at this point Hbox being top 1 in melee sounds like a long-lost myth. It feels surreal seeing this set.

[@Krab17]

@@sharkronical Hbox powered up after Mango coaching a couple years ago, even after being at #1. Mango said that Hbox was not hitting rests that he really should be hitting, and that his DI was trash. Anyways Hbox still isn't even near he final form. Also Zain really started to destroy Hbox after Armada gave him some secret notes about Hbox, I still wonder what those were.

[@affrun11]

​@@Krab17man's getting old

[@vtamech]

Agregar. He played outta his mind today

[@rat4992]

Good stuff to Zain but everyone knows Hbox was the star of top 4

[@LHSMeleeClub]

HE WAS SO CLOSE TO HITTING THAT FINAL REST. JUST WOW. Melee is amazing

[@navxo6053]

One frame 😅

[@NETIERRAS]

@@navxo6053 if only marths cape had a hurtbox...

[@Parpeing]

​@@NETIERRASwtf ahahah

[@adamspeiser6449]

Yeah, that was a little stupid. It was so close that it looked like it should have landed, but alas, it did not

[@joaogoncalves-tz2uj]

literally saved by fair's animation

[@Yokai_Yuri]

Damn Hbox was returning to prime. He really was on spot on everything, and he is proving once again he has always being one of melee's finest.

[@nahor88]

He finally figured how to play Ultimate and still be a God at Melee.

[@crenando288]

my heart was jumping out of my chest on game five, cannot even comprehend how tense and close this set was!

[@youngrootv]

Great finals! Zain’s face when HBox went for that rest at the end of that last match is priceless lol. It literally came down to one frame!

[@brettadiah10]

He saw his soul about to leave his body lmao. But it barely missed.

[@Parpeing]

Well hate to be that guy but technically two, he couldve got a phantom rest

[@cedricrust9953]

So great to see Hbox finding these highs again. Those edge guards and rests were on point. Hope we get to see more of it. Juan certainly seems hungry.

[@flyingtenseiken2202]

Thanks vgbootcamp for putting 37 minutes making the set ambiguous if it resets or not. Wp HBox all the way, made zain look like he has cracks. Zain wp amazing player.

[@timmasters1195]

Real shame they ruined it with so much advertising and poor placement. Gimr gonna Gim

[@saturnjr9136]

that first game makes this one of the greatest grand finals ever

[@turndownforwalt]

Melee is so sick

[@FTFP1300]

Love seeing you on commentary!

[@heyblasty8614]

was it you who screamed when zain attempted to shield break HBox or was it waff? XD thought it was funny

[@rannynihilius8481]

You and Waff were great all top 4 man ❤

[@emmbeesea]

No matter what you think about him, I was just happy to see and be amongst a whole crowd of people happily cheering for Hungrybox. As someone who became interested in watching competitive Melee as Hungrybox became a staple Top 2 player in the world and started taking major wins on the regular, I only ever heard crowds cheering against Hbox, even in his victories. Good to see things finally turning around there. Though a Smash Con win still eludes him, I can only imagine how invigorated Hbox feels after a Losers run performance like this. He defeated lloD, Zuppy, Mang0, moky in the run back, and Cody before going to a game 5 nailbiter with Zain. Absolutely nuts. Long live this beautiful game. Melee is sick.

[@cta2644]

Glad to hear that it was as just as good an event in person. I literally fell to the floor on that final stockt

[@yuvibitter]

I feel this so much. I remember watching back in 2015-2016 as he rose to #1 how toxic twitch and people online were. It was so ugly. And I thought "how are you not amazed at how talented he is". Finally he's performing like this again and now everyone sees it

[@BestSomebodyNA]

That's my thought too - he's come a long away since 2013, and I'm glad more people are recognizing that he's a really good player with time. I've been mostly neutral/rooting against him mostly b/c he's such a hard top player to beat - seeing him these days just play and be a good player is great.

[@AL-lh2ht]

Fun fact: super smash con is the only major tournament series that Hbox has not yet won one tournament of yet. It’s the only one left he has not getting a win in yet.

[@theEdmundFitzgerald]

Hbox sucks

[@zRunes]

This was such an intense Grand Finals holy hell

[@jrave5353]

I've been following Melee since 2015, and Zain is by far my favorite #1. When Zain is the best player in the world, the game is more dynamic all-around. Fantastic top 8, fantastic grand finals. GG Zain

[@codetaku]

Fully agree with everything you said. According to most of the community at the time, when mang0 was the best in the world, it was "because he's mang0, he's just built different". When Armada was the best in the world, it was because "he's just the strongest of the Gods". When HBox was the best in the world, it was "because Puff is broken". Although the reality is that in their primes, they all practiced their asses off to be the best, the community didn't see that (even though Armada didn't hide it when he was playing, at least). With Zain best in the world, it's universally recognized that he just tries harder and practices more than every other player. Which also motivates people like Cody and Jmook to try just as hard, and people lower down in the top 100 to try harder themselves.

[@itscoolthough419]

I stopped watching melee for a few years now so i just got to watch him play and from that game 1 he won me over. Dude be shmooving and i dont thin ive ever seen anybody outspace hbox as well as he does.

[@ricardoludwig4787]

This set really ran the gambit with a downright hilarious game one to the incredibly tense game 5, fantastic grands

[@mandalorianhunter1]

I almost thought they were going to do Melee GFs yesterday lol It's always fun seeing this MU and the innovations that are born from it. This was a great tournament, the biggest for SSC

[@artexartexartex]

Three Jigglypuff rests in a row without any grabs or attacks from either player in between, occurring in any tournament ever, let alone in a grand finals against Zain, is absolutely bonkers

[@thematrix3431]

Incredible Grand Finals!!! From the gameplay to the commentary... This set was legendary. I've never seen Zain play that sloppy (in the first two games). He was dropping things he normally hits left and right. His gameplay looked INCREDIBLY nervous BUT I in no way intend to discount Hbox. It was so dope to see Hbox's updated gameplay. This was the first time (to my eye) it felt like Hbox was playing fully adapted to the meta in 2023. His DI on Zain's punishes were good, his punishes were great. His mixups were tricky. Honestly, that was the most complete his game has looked (again, in my opinion) vs Zain, ever.

[@geraldson7501]

Good stuff to zain for clutching it out but hungrybox really deserves props for his unexpected and insane performance this top 8. He beat zuppy, mango (yes it counts), moky, and IBDW (3 foxes btw) to make a solid second place. Hbox has not been the same since COVID began but at least his is still able to place well and always makes top 8 minimum. Unlike mango hbox always tries his best and is able to bring out some good runs like he did today

[@notjohnnytest]

the mango win counts as what? he beat his noncompetitive secondaries.

[@colinhoeg4728]

​@@notjohnnytestmango doesn't even know you exist. Calm down.

[@AL-lh2ht]

@@notjohnnytestmango being a bitch still counts.

[@AL-lh2ht]

The ironic thing in 2022 he was winning two sets away from being ranked 1st.

[@BlueRiging]

​@@notjohnnytestthey count as wins against mango in tournament as they should. Mango is an inconsistent player who is just as likely to play sick, buster out, or sandbag like a baby and lose. He shouldn't get a pass on it.

[@polarchips]

An instant classic. Edge of your seat action. MELEE BABY

[@UnuUO]

damn that game 5 was nutty. loved watching it and Brandon and Walt meshed surprisingly well together on comms. Would love to see them commentate together more

[@beardalaxy]

as soon as i heard that hmw was gonna be commentating with walt i was like, damn this gonna be good. hmw is among my favorite commentators of all time.

[@XxChronOblivionxX]

I literally yelled in pain when that final rest whiffed. God I wanted that second set so bad.

[@il100374]

You loveeeeeee Ultimate

[@jsun1993]

One of the best sets I’ve seen this year. Awesome way to kick off second half of 2023

[@rat4992]

I’m so happy for Juan regardless. He brought so much hype this tournament!

[@JopocaJ]

This has got to be the best set i've seen yet, i could barely contain my screams at midnight

[@aydenpeele747]

What an insane finals to watch, this seriously was one of the best Grands we’ve had in a while

[@MrKing_MC]

Hbox is officially SUPER BACK

[@ojgimpson]

Hope Hbox gives us more performances like this here. Itching to see him climb up from that #8 spot and start winning again!

[@juliansanchez3399]

Really thought H-Box had that last rest. it was really hype to watch. really kept the audience on their toes.

[@vulblhotdiessfi]

one of the greatest grand finals ever

[@pnkstr]

you must not have watched much smash

[@AstroLonghorn]

Makes me happy that someone like Zain reached the pinnacle of Smash compared to someone toxic like Leffen. There was definitely a huge part in melee history where too many had a god complex.

[@GarbageSSBM]

Hard agree, it's good to see that the top 3 is full not only of great players, but great people

[@zbabyg6998]

Man that missed rest on a tumbling Marth with 20 seconds left... heartbreaking ending! Such an amazing set though.

[@btfo420]

The final rest attempt damn indeed. So close yet so far. GG to both competitors, it was such a feast.

[@zacharyh5419]

Damn hbox looked so good starting out.

[@AlexDuWaldt]

Congratulations Zain! And well played Hbox! That last stock in the last game was soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo close! Literally pixels off of a reset.

[@xmelseru]

my jaw dropped at that final missed rest

[@loganreidy7055]

Phenomenal commentary walt! Probably the best Marth vs Puff I've ever seen

[@AL-lh2ht]

Fun fact: super smash con is the only major tournament series that Hbox has not yet won one tournament of yet. It’s the only one left he has not gotten a win in yet.

[@Turnpost2552]

That is unfortunate but he is a household name though.

[@Turnpost2552]

Zain has been upset loses this close before as well.

[@kendallmonge649]

Given that he was the player who got me into competitive Melee in the first place, I was rooting so hard for Hungrybox. He played so well here. While I'm sad he lost, I'm also so happy for Zain, who played an outrageously great set and proved why he is #1 in the world. Incredible match to watch, from two of the greatest to ever play the game.

[@Drumtariano]

navigating 23:24 frame-by-frame (using command and period on your keyboard) you can see the rest was just one frame too late. Wowee, Melee is cool, sick GF

[@mrm64]

Ghad DAAAMN that was bittersweet!😂Missed rest...Zain took it, great job yall

[@TheVikthorr]

HB was on fire the first two match were crazy and the last one damn Marth is a heavy counter for Puff

[@pnkstr]

bro Marth is not a heavy counter to puff. its 55-45 hbox only recently started losing to Marth, specifically zain cuz he optimized the MU and is a better player

[@Falutia]

This gotta be the most hype grands

[@Parpeing]

🤨

[@nousernameleft999]

the rare reverse clutchbox

[@bwestbrook90]

Game 5 is the most excited I’ve ever seen a crowd for a 7+ minute puff game

[@AbigBlackcat]

Happy for Zain! But man low key would've been hype to see Hbox take it! Props to both! They're absolutely cracked!

[@erikhendrickson59]

This was a very fun watch. Very funny casters, as well.

[@Rumcake256]

oh my god... that final rest was heartbreaking, man... Incredible work by HBox, man. I'm so excited to keep watching him do well at more tournaments. He played out of his mind this tourney.

[@ThePi314Man]

He missed that rest by just ONE FRAME.

[@Emil-Roma]

"Hungrybox is DI'ng throws now?!"

[@Parpeing]

PLAYING THE VIDEO GAME?? Holy shit-

[@muqmanor]

God damn dude, this has got to be the best set these two have ever played. Absolutely phenomenal Melee

[@CanadianBaconPwnage]

Sloberknocker. Beating the hell out of each other for our entertainment. This is going down as one of the best Grand Finals. Melee is so sick.

[@fritothedemon6647]

One of the best sets of the year, holy hell

[@creamlemontart]

Why does hbox looks like he's been high since 1am

[@FinnishCraig3]

Game 1 was one of the wildest games ever!

[@BoraStreams]

Haven’t finished the set but that double rest that’s gotta feel bad for zain lmao

[@ornq8378]

I love how much Hbox has matured ♥

[@shrubble_trouble1953]

AWWWW MANNN this was so nuts to watch!!! I just came from rewatching EmpLemon’s vid again, and I was rooting so much for Hbox

[@Kawaiilolrofl]

That first match looked like a rookie match of two guys learning the game (double rest back to back, breaking hbox' shield), but damn, those two are the greatest smash players of all time. What a match. No fox. No shiek. Just the two greatest having a great match.

[@Parpeing]

No fox and no sheik is not melee Just like melee without puff isnt melee

[@janodx1]

Siempre es un placer ver competir a Hundry Box, gran jugador mejor persona

[@timmasters1195]

A great player, certainly...

[@ClassicBentobox]

This is the hypest puff has looked in years I’m in genuine disbelief

[@mikeshark8869]

If 0:50 isn't Melee in a nutshell I don't know what is

[@Zoro_Roronoa_115]

whats the matchup for jigglypuff vs marth cuz after that set it looks like its 70-30 for marth or something hbox played so damn good and still lost lol

[@pnkstr]

Even or marth slightly wins. im not exactly sure how u could see this set and think its 70-30 unwinnable. it was game 5 last hit, yeah hbox played great and lost but zain played great too

[@AL-lh2ht]

Zain really is just hyper good and well deserved is 1st rankings.

[@Parpeing]

WHAT 70-30 what have you laced your blunt with homie

[@hypedup8081]

as a puff player myself marth absolutely destroys puff theres really no advantage she has

[@no1survives]

we know who won but hbox was schmoooving so good. so much respect for the amount of rests in this match up

[@whybetrayerispoison5413]

Love thr come up and success of Zain he's beat the gods he's won so many high tourneys at this point W Zain man

[@doomyman108]

Holy snap, the song at 27:23 is Hunting Betrayal from Digital Devil Saga 2! The person doing the music for Smash Con really likes their Megaten, I remembered that they played music from Nocturne during some of the splash screen intermissions.

[@giornogiovanna836]

Thank you SSC for not forcing players to use pronouns ! 99.9% do not want to!

[@Parpeing]

99,9 do not care The rest are bitching about it on twitter (or right here) or quietly apreciating it Move along with the cringe shit please sir

[@jaltgelt1644]

What I want to know is the frame data on that last rest attempt 😅 Good stuff to both of these fierce competitors 🖤

[@bobbymcfee2974]

I think it was more so that zain used forward air and shifted his hurtbox

[@jaltgelt1644]

I actually wondered about that exact thing, man people that love this game think alike.

[@theinstinctofwar5459]

Dude the weird thing is like h box his eyes are like blood shot red and he keeps resting in game. That’s mad funny

[@rockeazymatt]

Wow that first set...INCREDIBLE

[@TheMayhemCorner]

11:26 It's the H, the B, the O, the X, HBOX!

[@thattubaguy217]

Wow. After a scary last few years, 2023 has been an extremely good year for melee sets. The old gods still running hot and the domination of the next gods with Zain, Leffen, Jmook, Amsa, and Cody

[@rgefseds]

i love how the commentators never curse as im watching going 'holy fucking shit' and hbox just goes into the mic 'i'm not fuckin' leaving 🤣

[@JD-ve6kn]

crazy how a 20+ year old game can still be this hype

[@eGambill]

Ever notice how Zain twitches during his match? Aww; and good sportsmanship with the nods.

[@dragonsymbol]

Why are all the top comments about hbox when Zain won? Congrats Zain you are masterclass and well deserving of the number 1 player in the world.

[@shinji136]

Because literally everyone expects Zain to win while Hbox has had some rough performances lately. This is a return to form that should be praised.

[@ProdMattButler]

3:35 we take those is iconic

[@foxythekiller5096]

Im so happy for hungrybox for playing like this omg!! Even if he lost he did great and this was so godamn hype, loved it! :')

[@3nzo_]

Best grands I’ve seen in a while hbox played so well this tourney

[@stanjones5341]

The fact that Hbox is still competing at this high of a level is UNREAL.

[@powerlucario]

Great set, great players, great commentary

[@jayohaychenn4305]

I have never seen so many nerds in one place! I want to go!

[@GeoMiner2]

holy crap that couldnt be closer

[@SteveStech930]

Wow. Just wow. I am still shaking with how tense this set was.

[@CristopherKiri]

The Hbox love is amazing!

[@witmilk6527]

Hbox's game has been looking so fun to watch No more actual time outs just heavy sweaty neutral, love it

[@At0micPunk90]

Now this was a Grand Finals. Ultimate, take some notes.

[@Parpeing]

One can learn but with shitty tools you cant paint the mona lisa

[@kiyotaka007]

3:22 UNO REVERSE!!

[@Spyder-Marth]

Daaaang Zain got SKILLZ. Marth ⚔️

[@LinktheCommunistWaifu]

Super Smash brothers Melee is a completely normal and stable game. I love to see how fair everyone is in it.

[@GregHuffman1987]

that first ending was like a lawl movie scene

[@Molten-Throne]

What a war between these two. Coming down the wire. Hungry almost had the reset, but Zain comes in clutch. Tons of fun to watch, and amazing job by both players

[@yalebass]

3:25 the guy popping off and recording the tragic crowd LOL

[@frogturtle]

ggs. last game had me SWEATIN

[@haku1693]

That was way more exciting than the smash ultimate finals

[@Parpeing]

No shit 😂

[@jakfosarn9257]

holy shit I'm shaking. What a set!

[@8dreadLock8]

This was an amazing set

[@KirkMillerShow]

acc how did that rest miss???

[@legendariesarecheap]

Curse of Ra

[@WorstRivenNA]

23:24 if you go frame by frame you can see Zain’s forward air come out a frame or two before the rest hits and shifts his head out of puff’s body

[@bby7630]

I was the guy saying that was the goat right there in the crowd

[@ZUUL_93]

Got to hang out with Zain in 2016 EVO, he played on my set up pretty much all morning. 🤙🏻

[@mickael1290]

Crazy entertaining commentary ❤️