When Super Smash Bros. made its debut in 1999, it was an oddity among the Nintendo 64 library, a clear contrast from its monolithic status as a heavy hitter in the Nintendo pantheon today. Along with the now iconic N64 commercial promoting the game, Nintendo devised creative ways to get it out to its audience. That effort included a bizarre yet amusing real-life slug fest with fighters wearing Nintendo costumes called SlamFest ’99. And now, some sleuths on Reddit have uncovered high-quality photos of the event, showcasing how this early, high-concept gaming event went down.
A legendary event
The event itself has been something of a legend in online gaming communities. Vice previously reported on efforts from communities trying to find media back in 2020, but not much has come from it. Once referred to as the “melee of the millennium” on the original site (which is now lost to time), this IRL Super Smash Bros. exhibition went down in Las Vegas at the beginning of 1999 in front of a live audience. During the event, the fighters in Nintendo costumes would duke it out, with the referee determining which of the characters from the Smash Bros. lineup had the upper hand. Looking at it in retrospect, the event itself has pioneered many of the familiar convention or geek-centric spectacle events that are common today. Not only did it feature some fairly high-end cosplay for Pikachu, Mario, Yoshi, and Donkey Kong — the very same ones from the famous N64 commercial — it was also broadcast on the internet for fans to watch online.
Despite the spectacle, much of the footage for this event has yet to be recovered — something that’s common for content from the early days of the internet. However, content creators and Redditors still need to try to seek out photos or even a recording of the event. In recent years, GameXplain creator Andre Segers called for fans to find any photos or video of the showcase, which have led to some good finds. In addition to interviewing Ed Espinoza, one of the key producers behind Slamfest ’99, some Redditors have uncovered anecdotes and some stories heard about the exhibition.
Does anyone else remember the real-life Smash Bros battle (using the same costumes) that Nintendo live-streamed to promote the game? (Yep! a live stream in ’99!) I’ve never heard anyone else mention it and I can find zero evidence of it ever existing online. https://t.co/vR8gkTv3yY
— André (@AndreSegers) May 11, 2020
A new treasure trove of photos
Recently, Reddit user bozo_ssb posted a treasure trove of photos showcasing the event and what happened behind the curtain. These photos were taken by Ed Espinoza while working at the event. It is an exciting find, which showed off the growing scale of gaming events and how video games were becoming increasingly more mainstream. The photos from this SlamFest ’99 event are also an excellent time capsule from 1999. Video games, and the rest of the world, have changed a lot in the years since.
It’s fun to look back on where gaming events used to be. Hopefully, some more folks will step forward with actual footage of the event; I think any respectable Smash Bros fan would want to see footage of a real-life Pikachu make awkward swipes at Donkey Kong.
Thumbnail credit: Ed Espinoza
Alessandro Fillari is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter and Instagram @afillari.
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