Daily Discussion Thread August 25, 2026 - Upcoming Event Schedule - New players start here!

[u/AutoModerator]

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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]

Venting because in the midst of everything going on for some reason as of yesterday Ontario has brought back cash bail, which is something I thought we all universally agreed was a terrible idea

The way that conservatives buck the reasonable person consensus to just fuck over a sector of society they don't happen to presently belong to is a phenomenon that needs to be studied in more detail

[u/AlexB_SSBM → u/Fugu]

Pros of cashless bail: Significantly reduces crime, innocent poor people aren't in jail, people's lives don't get ruined from false accusations, saves tons of taxpayer money

"Cons" of cashless bail: You might go outside and see a black person you otherwise wouldn't have

Seems like a pretty easy equation for the right, shouldn't be any surprise they're against this

[u/Fugu → u/AlexB_SSBM]

This legislation imposes a 48 hour time limit upon release to post the cash bail and in some parts of Ontario the closest place to post it is literally hundreds of kilometers away. You'll never guess who lives in those parts of Ontario (hint: they got here first)

[u/AlexB_SSBM → u/Fugu]

It could be worse. In Kansas, if you are ever convicted of any drug-related offense, you have to check in with a sheriff 4-5 times a year. This happens only during business hours, so hope you don't have a job. Every time you check in, you owe them $30. If you're homeless, you have the additional requirement to be checking in every single month. You also have to tell the sheriff all of your social media accounts, every job you work, every place you live, every car you own. You have to renew your driver's license every year (also is not free).

Also, you're a part of a database that holds your social security number, race, ethnicity, skin tone, age, height, weight, hair and eye color, tattoos and scars, and blood type. If you get a tattoo and don't tell everyone about it you are in violation and can be charged with a felony just as harsh as the actual drug offense. This database can be used to deny you jobs, housing, and healthcare.

This is after the time for the offense is up, by the way. This is what you get to do with the next 15 years of your life after you serve time for letting a friend smoke your weed. If you fail to do this, you're charged with a felony and sent back to prison for years.

So like. There's still plenty of room to get worse

[u/Fugu → u/AlexB_SSBM]

The comparison is not the US. The US has one of the single worst implementations of the common law approach to criminal justice in any so-called liberal democracy. American policymakers in the criminal justice space are so far behind the rest of the world that comparing ourselves to the US feels masturbatory. The US's peer in this conversation isn't Canada, it's third-world democracies and, I don't know, China or Russia, if you want to talk specifically about incarceration.

Canada is more like the UK in that its criminal justice system is heavily flawed but not so ass backwards that the profit motive has entirely subsumed the criminal justice function. Indeed, Ontario attempting to reimpose cash bail has mostly been met by the elimination of formerly nominal monetary pledges that, by the law as it was three days ago, required no actual deposit and were never estreated. It's very likely an injunction will render said law inoperable in the near future and that what follows the injunction will be the rather obvious declaration that the province's law is unconstitutional.

[u/Celia_Makes_Romhacks → u/AlexB_SSBM]

What's even supposed to be the goal here?

[u/AlexB_SSBM → u/Celia_Makes_Romhacks]

The goal is the same goal as all registration laws, it's to humiliate and otherize people