Esports team Panda Global and tournament site SmashGG will be running an online Super Smash Bros. for Wii U competition called Key to the PG House on Sept. 8-11. Panda Global will fly two winners out to the premier tournament The Big House 6 to compete alongside its own players.
Panda Global and SmashGG will run two tournaments online, one in North America and one in Europe, which will cap at 3,072 entrants each. The winners of each will be flown out to Dearborn, Michigan, to compete at The Big House 6, an international tournament with thousands of attendees, on Oct. 7-9. The winners will stay with the other members of Panda Global, including professional Smash players Justin "Plup" McGrath, Robert "Wobbles" Wright, Eric "ESAM" Lew and others. These players will also become honorary members of Panda Global for that weekend.
"There's a lot of players out there dreaming of going pro who can't travel or [don't] have easy access to compete at major tournaments," Panda Global co-founder David Wu tells ESPN. "We hope this online tournament gives them a platform and a shot to showcase their skills to the world."
The top eight in each tournament will be awarded various prizes, including merchandise from both Panda Global and SmashGG.
The Key to the PG House event is similar to a recent online event called Road to Shine, whose winner was also flown out, housed and provided free entry for Boston tournament Shine 2016 on Aug. 26-28. Road to Shine, which attracted some 1,400 competitors, was run in part by SmashGG employee Bassem "Bear" Dahdouh, who also works with Panda Global as a team manager.
"Since Road to Shine was such a success, I just had to find some way to help bring this again for another tournament but evolve the concept," Dahdouh tells ESPN. "Luckily, when I brought it back to the team at Panda Global, we came up with this idea that has never been done before. The Key to the PG House will be the biggest online endeavor in Smash Bros. history if the bracket fills up."