Perhaps the most devastating cease and desist from Nintendo yet has just ravished the Super Smash Bros. community.
A dating app for Smash players, Smash Together, was just shut down on May 13th, before it even had a chance to enter its open beta on May 15th.
Smash Really Can’t Have Anything
Smash Together was announced on June 6th, 2024, with the X post describing it as a way to ‘meet your dream Doubles partner (in and out of Smash).’ The dating app claimed to have a ‘robust matchmaking algorithm’ that was focused on Smash-related details.
Screenshots of the app showed the usual name, age, location, but also let players share their rank, main (very important to avoid Steves), recent Ws and answers to Smash-related prompts. It’s unclear if the algorithm included matching users who had mains who paired great in Doubles or stuck to the usual formula.
Earlier this month, Smash Together announced that it was going into an Open Beta after ‘months of development.’ Release-day spots could be reserved by texting a number. By May 12th, over 400 Smash players had signed up.
By May 13th, Smash Together shared that it got ‘ceased and desisted.’ The developers didn’t state that Nintendo was behind the cancellation, but Nintendo has been the culprit of nonstop cease-and-desist notices related to Smash in the past. With a track record of canceling Smash tournaments and not supporting the esports scene in any way, players were quick to believe that Nintendo was behind this latest blow to the Smash community.
Said one Smash Together supporter: “My one chance at true love, ruined by Nintendo’s protectionism of their intellectual property.”
Other Smash players praised Nintendo for ending the ‘cringe,’ urging the Smash scene to use regular dating apps. However, some suggested that Smash Together should circumvent Nintendo’s demands by creating a dating app focused on the broader fighting game community.
Smash Together has not tweeted since the sad news, so it’s unclear if the developers will switch up their strategy or just give up altogether.
Get On My Level: Forever, Supernova 2025 and Collision 2025 are the next big Smash events coming this summer. Without Smash Together, players will have to find their Doubles partners for these tournaments the old-fashioned way: Grindr.
