A crowd favorite and strong competitor that has defeated many Smash Melee gods including Mew2King, Plup, and HungryBox, the premier Yoshi player Masaya "aMSa" Chikamoto revealed his signing with RedBull at Genesis 6 last weekend.

With Super Smash Bros. Melee peaking at 155k viewers during the major tournament Oakland, it is clear that the 18-year-old Melee is still, miraculously, a major esports title.

When a competitive game is almost 20 years old, it is nearly impossible to discover something new or bring a fresh strategy to the table that also manages to be competitive. But aMSa does that consistently with a character very few competitors have ever mastered.

Changing the Tier list

Yoshi, while often respected as a potentially strong character due to various unique mechanics, has never been a widely considered "top-tier" character. In fact, until aMSa started making a name for himself with incredible Yoshi performances, the most popular tier list showed Yoshi to be ranked 18th out of the 26th characters in Melee. Now, the character hovers between the 12th and 14th spot, all thanks to one player.

With his Red Bull signing, aMSa joins the competitive elite that has managed to make a living thanks to their incredible precision and skills in Super Smash Bros. Melee. As one of the great esports that has already endured past dips in popularity, it seems that Melee is once again on the rise.