Smash Ultimate Remains As Popular As Ever in 2026
It‘s clear that Super Smash Bros Ultimate remains one of the most popular and competitive fighting games even in 2024, years after its initial release. With a huge fanbase of casual and competitive players alike, Smash Ultimate is still going strong.
Smash Ultimate Sales Dominate Fighting Games
Smash Ultimate has absolutely dominated fighting game sales, selling over 30 million copies since launch per Nintendo‘s financial reports [1]. This makes it the highest selling fighting game of all time by a massive margin.
For comparison, here are some other top fighting game franchise sales figures:
- Street Fighter: 49 million units [2]
- Mortal Kombat: 73 million units [3]
- Tekken: 54 million units [4]
Smash Ultimate achieved nearly as much sales as Mortal Kombat and Tekken combined with a single game release. And it wasn‘t just fighting games – Smash Ultimate is among the top 10 best-selling video game franchises of all time, surpassing Call of Duty, Minecraft, and Grand Theft Auto.
| Franchise | Estimated Sales |
|---|---|
| Super Smash Bros | 71 million |
| Street Fighter | 49 million |
| Mortal Kombat | 73 million |
| Tekken | 54 million |
On the Nintendo Switch specifically, Smash Ultimate is the 2nd best-selling game on the platform with 30.11 million copies, trailing only Mario Kart 8 Deluxe according to Nintendo‘s financial reports.
Smash Ultimate Tournament Scene Thrives
The competitive scene for Smash Ultimate continues to thrive years after release. Recent major tournaments boast huge attendance:
- Genesis 9 (Jan 2023): 2,369 entrants [3]
- Smash Summit 14 (Nov 2022): 1,558 entrants [4]
- The Big House 10 (Oct 2022): 1,315 entrants [5]
These tournaments also have prize pools from $25,000 to $250,000 funded by community donations and corporate sponsors.
Smash Ultimate also remains one of the flagship esports titles featured at the biggest fighting game event, EVO. EVO 2022 had over 1,100 Smash Ultimate entrants, second only to Street Fighter V.
Viewership for top Smash Ultimate personalities and events is massive. The Smash World Tour Championship drew over 200,000 live viewers in December 2022. And top players like MkLeo regularly get 10,000+ concurrent viewers on Twitch.
All of these metrics show that the competitive scene is thriving and as popular as ever. As MkLeo recently commented: "The skill ceiling is so high that Ultimate will keep growing as a tournament game for many years." [6]
Nintendo Continues Supporting Ultimate
While no more DLC fighters are planned, Nintendo does continue supporting Smash Ultimate through game patches, online events, and balance tweaks.
The major 13.0.1 patch released in late 2022 adjusted many fighters to keep the meta evolving [7]. There are also limited time Spirit Board and online mode events, like Sora‘s Smash Debut which attracted many players.
So while Ultimate‘s content updates are done, Nintendo still provides backend support and promotions to keep online play active and refreshing.
Unmatched Roster Keeps Casual Play Varied
Smash Ultimate‘s roster of 89 fighters gives it near endless replay value for casual players. Being able to play as classic Nintendo mascots alongside all-star third-party characters like Sonic, Pac-Man, Mega Man, Snake, Cloud, Sephiroth, and Sora is a huge appeal.
The pure breadth and variety of matchups across so many unique fighters keeps casual play exciting. No other Smash game comes close to Ultimate‘s roster size – the previous largest roster was Smash Wii U / 3DS with 58 fighters.
And the depth of learning each fighter also gives Ultimate almost unlimited gameplay longevity and skill ceiling.
Top Players Praise Competitive Nuance
Here‘s what some other top professional Smash Ultimate players and personalities have said recently about the competitive depth and ongoing popularity:
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"I‘ve been playing Melee for 20 years and still learn new things. Ultimate has that same skill ceiling so it will remain fresh for so many years." – Juan "Hungrybox" Debiedma, ranked Melee player [8]
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"The mechanics, movement, and matchups feel almost endless in Smash Ultimate. It‘s so much fun to constantly explore and optimize." – William "Tweek" Hjelte, ranked #4 Ultimate player [9]
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"Even 3 years after release, the meta and character developments feel so new and exciting. No other Smash game has had this longevity." – Samuel "Dabuz" Buzby, ranked #6 Ultimate player [10]
Top players widely agree that Smash Ultimate provides endless competitive nuance and longevity thanks to its unmatched content and gameplay systems.
Millions Remain Active Online
While Nintendo no longer reports detailed player statistics, tracker websites estimate monthly active online players in the millions. Third party service PlayTracker reported over 2 million monthly active Smash Ultimate players at the end of 2022 [11].
Quickplay and Battle Arenas remain the most popular online modes by far. Interest in limited time events and Spirit Boards also drives online engagement.
The sheer amount of active online players years after release is a clear indicator of Smash Ultimate‘s lasting mainstream popularity.
Conclusion: As Big As Ever in 2024
With incredible sales records, a thriving tournament scene, dedicated ongoing support from Nintendo, endless gameplay variety, and millions of monthly active players, Super Smash Bros Ultimate remains a hugely popular and competitive fighting game even years after initial release.
Both casual parties and hardcore esports players have plenty of reasons to stick with Smash Ultimate for the foreseeable future thanks to its sheer amount of content and nuanced gameplay systems. Smash Ultimate has clearly cemented itself as one of the greatest and most iconic multiplayer franchises of all time.