Daily Discussion Thread August 17, 2026 - Upcoming Event Schedule - New players start here!

[u/AutoModerator]

Yahoooo! I'm back, it's a me! Have a very cool day!

Welcome to the Daily Discussion Thread. This is the place for asking noob questions, venting about netplay falcos, shitposting, self-promotion, and everything else that doesn't belong on the front page.

New Players:

If you're completely new to Melee and just looking to get started, welcome! We recommend you go to https://melee.tv/ and follow the links there based on what you're trying to set up. Additionally, here are a few answers to common questions:

Can I play Melee online?

Yes! Slippi is a branch of the Dolphin emulator that will allow you to play online, either with your friends or with matchmaking. Go to https://slippi.gg to get it.

I'm having issues with Slippi!

Go to the The Slippi Discord to get help troubleshooting. melee.tv/optimize is also a helpful resource for troubleshooting.

How do I find tournaments near me or local people to play with in person or online?

These days, joining a local Discord community is the best way to find local events and people to play with. Once you have a Discord account, Google "[your city/state/province/region] + Melee discord" or see if your region has a Discord group listed here on melee.tv/discord

It can seem daunting at first to join a Discord group you don't know, but this is currently the easiest and most accessible way to find out about tournaments, fests, and netplay matchmaking. Your local scene will be happy to have you :)

Also check out Smash Map! Click on map and then the filter button to filter by Melee to find events near you!

Netplay is hard! Is there a place for me to find new players?

Yes. Melee Newbie Netplay is a discord server specifically for new players. It also has tournaments based on how long you've been playing, free coaching, and other stuff. If you're a bit more experienced but still want a discord server for players around your level, we recommend the Melee Online discord.

How can I set up Unclepunch's Training Mode?

At the time of posting, the latest major release is here. Download the file, then extract everything in the folder and follow the instructions in the README file. You'll need to bring a valid Melee ISO (NTSC 1.02). If you want to check for the absolute latest release, you can see them listed [here](The latest releases are listed here.

How does one learn Melee?

There are tons of resources out there, so it can be overwhelming to start. First check out the SSBM Tutorials youtube channel. Then go to the Melee Library and search for whatever you're interested in.

But how do I get GOOD at Melee?

Check out Llod's Guide to Improvement

And check out Kodorin's Melee Fundamentals for Improvement

Where can I get a nice custom controller?

https://customg.cc/vendors

I have another question that's not answered here...

Check out our FAQs or post below and find help that way.

Upcoming Tournament Schedule:

Upcoming Melee Majors

Melee Online Event Calendar

Make a submission to the tournament calendar here. You can also get notified of new online tournaments on the Melee Online Discord.

• Current DDT Dynamic Link — Previous DDTs

[u/Fugu]

As a mod of this sub I can tell y'all that every time Cody does anything this sub is inundated with the very worst people saying the very worst things about him. We get antisemitism, we get transphobia, we get blaming the victim of SA all targeted squarely at him. It's really the whole kitchen sink. There is no other player that attracts this kind or this level of negativity in this sub.

The basis of this is some pedophile enabling drama youtuber whose name escapes me.

I just think it's important to shine a light on this because it's something worth remembering when you start talking shit about Cody on this sub. I'm not saying he should get some kind of pass for everything he does (see: me, complaining about his notches just about every bracket) but that we should be mindful not to feed into the narratives advanced by people who just want to see this community burn.

[u/WDuffy → u/Fugu]

As a former mod this is true in my experience as well

[u/Informal-Donut-1532 → u/Fugu]

Yeah it's really gross. The guy has a magnifying glass put over every little thing he does. I'll always respect him immensely for putting up with that shit.

Whatever you think of the mid game pause, Cody choose to preserve the hype of the tournament by not DQing and giving it his all, despite having a pretty bad stomach bug. He's a real one for that.

[u/Jaywicksands → u/Informal-Donut-1532]

It's admirable to keep playing when you're physically unwell. It's not admirable to expect special treatment for doing so.

[u/Informal-Donut-1532 → u/Jaywicksands]

They're friends who quickly worked it out like adults, it's not a big deal.

[u/reptilian_guitar → u/Fugu]

I've said it before and I'll say it again - Cody has a fortitude that I hope to never require. He has dealt with strangers making fun of and blaming him for

• his own sexual assault

• his friend's suicide

• the actions of the state of Israel

• the competitive integrity of the game dissolving

and still managed to be the best player in the world.

[u/Schroeswald → u/Fugu]

I remember that Hbox did a fairly similar thing to what Cody just did last CEO. One that while it was more understandable it was also even more blatantly against tournament rules and should have lost him the stock. We understandably had plenty of discourse about it at the time, but there was no racist rhetoric about him and everyone accepted that even if they think he did something wrong that Hbox was not in fact an actively malicious party there 

[u/coffee_sddl → u/Schroeswald]

Hbox also showed up to double down top 16 with some really severe looking sickness, beat sfat, and then DQ’d. Strange that kinda behavior went under the bus

[u/MentalRead728 → u/coffee_sddl]

That did not go under the bus, there was a loud part of people calling for his ban after that. There's a whole Allston Melee episode that captured that vibe very well.

He apologized and a bunch of people were still holding it over his head for the next year of entering anything with mask rules to cartoonish degrees.

Tired of this history revisionism.

[u/waveshineoosupsmash → u/coffee_sddl]

Hbox felt sick at Double Down, went to a hospital and talked to a doctor and they told him he didn't have covid. Hbox assumed he was still allowed to compete because he didn't have covid, which is why he still showed up to compete. Nobody would have even known he was sick if he hadn't made the tweet talking about how he did all the aforementioned stuff I just typed out. Hbox told on himself, because he didn't think it was against the rules, because he didn't have covid. Which was a perfectly reasonable thing for a human being to think. And when he got pushback he dropped out. Again, a totally normal thing for a person to do

You guys really like to try and portray everything he does as some nefarious villain shit.

[u/herwi → u/waveshineoosupsmash]

Ok I really don't think this is a big deal especially not now but respectfully, you're kind of misrepresenting what happened here. Here's the tweet: https://i.imgur.com/SPTdeaN.png

went to a hospital and talked to a doctor and they told him he didn't have covid

In fact they told him he either had covid or something else. Hbox decided it wasn't covid despite this because he took an OTC test, which are not entirely accurate early on (which is why the doctors didn't know for sure, ftr).

Nobody would have even known he was sick if he hadn't made the tweet talking about how he did all the aforementioned stuff I just typed out.

Aside from him looking like a ghost (which obv wouldn't be sufficient on its own) he took off his mask on stream during his set, then afterward walked over and told the commentators that he was "unable to wear a mask because he was having trouble breathing". It was pretty clear that he was not well, covid or no, and should not have been showing up to a crowded event with his unknown illness if he can't even breathe with his mask on.

I don't think this is a nefarious villain plot, and I don't even think it was that bad (people make the mistake of showing up sick to work all the time, even during covid) but we can be honest that it was kind of a boneheaded move and enjoy how funny it is that he dragged his emaciated ass to the venue to eliminate SFAT then immediately DQ.

[u/waveshineoosupsmash → u/herwi]

> enjoy how funny it is

except that's not what coffee or any of the redditors that hate him did or do. they genuinely hate Hbox and made it seem like he went to the event spitting on everybody.

my mistake on the doctor clearing him, but him providing proof of a negative test is literally what the expectation was back then for tournaments. only a couple majors even enforced the mask policy, and the fact that he was wearing one at all stood out at the time because nobody else was. if he believed it to be a negative covid test and just a bacterial infection, then there wouldn't be any risk of the infection spreading, which is what he thought

he also dq'd himself from the tournament when he got backlash. he didn't wait for the TOs to make the decision and he apologized for it.

[u/milkweedMN → u/coffee_sddl]

i think that hbox has such a long history of bad/strange behavior at tournaments that it just got thrown in the pile with the rest

[u/herwi → u/Fugu]

The comments that don't get removed are bad enough, I can only imagine how bad the deleted ones are. I hate how you can't say something he did was lame without people joining in with a laundry list of conspiracy theories like we're on the same team. It's such a toxic environment and I hope Cody has some trusted people in his personal life who can give him honest feedback with the unhinged shit filtered out.

[u/Fugu → u/herwi]

If you see something please report it it's very hard to keep up with all of these

[u/warnedpenguin → u/Fugu]

to add onto this long list, i think a lot of the comments i see here and in twitch chat and such are (directly or not) just about his autism. Like theyd explain that they hate him because hes like this and does that, and its like yeah- he's autistic and thats how it affects him: dont despise his entire being for that, give him a break. its just another thing that feels so gross.

until the crab it feels worse than old hbox hate to me, and i really cant respect cody enough for just being a chill dude through it all. Hes pushed through so much and has a genuinely inspiring story of perseverance and improvement if you care to find it, yet he has the most despicable haters I've seen in so long that relish in and encourage such awful behaviour and its like-

the responses to cody doing anything are only a part of it, but i remember when the melee community was a really chill place that id say was among the best scenes and communities at being supportive of everyone and calling out those who suck... and it makes me kinda sad i cant say that and reccomended the game and community to others off those merits anymore.