If a brand wants to enter the Super Smash Bros. community in 2024, there’s a good chance they’ll do it through Luminosity Gaming.
The Toronto-based esports organization is part of Enthusiast Gaming’s broader gaming assets and is responsible for marketing the competitive scene of Super Smash Bros., a fighting game published by Nintendo and popular for decades. It has become one of the de facto entrances for many people. Unlike other major game publishers, Nintendo has largely ignored the burgeoning competitive scene for its games, creating room for companies like Luminosity to deepen and strengthen their relationship with Smash. Ability to sell the game’s competitive scenes to interested sponsors.
Luminosity’s latest foray into Smash comes on Monday, when the organization announced $10,000 invitational tournament On April 20th, supermarket brand Kroger became a sponsor. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. In an annotated Q&A, Digiday spoke with Luminosity head Alex Gonzalez to better understand why Luminosity is making a name for itself in the Smash scene and how it took the opportunity to sell Kroger. I heard the story.
This conversation has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.
Regarding the vacuum created by Nintendo’s lack of involvement in “Super Smash Bros. Ultimate”‘ e-sports:
Alex Gonzalez:
People want to be involved. The lack of an official Smash circuit leaves a gap in the market, right? People want to see all the top players together. Yes, it’s a very cool and unique opportunity for Price to host his $10,000 event and invite people. We’re still looking at ways to make it a little more accessible in the future. Clearly, we are walking a fine line. We don’t want this to make it seem like we’re a publisher.
DIGIDAY:
There are several reasons why Nintendo has traditionally disliked esports. In addition to the Japanese cultural taboos against gambling and competitive gaming, Nintendo already generates significant revenues from its successful publishing and console manufacturing businesses, making intellectual property adaptation a potential area of growth for the company. There is. Nintendo is already firing on all cylinders and doesn’t seem interested in further complicating its operations by launching a dedicated esports division.
But Nintendo’s lack of interest in esports has created an opportunity for companies like Luminosity to serve as the brand’s default entry point into gaming. Although Gonzalez would have avoided this blatant framing in his statement to Digiday, Luminosity has continued to build on its ties to the Smash scene over the past year by sponsoring major events and signing some of the game’s most popular players. The goal has been clear: to strengthen ties.
On how Luminosity pitched Smash Scene to Kroger:
Gonzalez:
This esports chart came out a while ago and says we have a very engaged community. Looking at the list, it’s just a professional esports circuit held in a huge arena, followed by a Luminosity event. It’s still big, but a little more grassroots style. We were the only esports team there and the only non-publisher organizers.
So we have data that shows people want to see this content. There’s clearly a passionate community here. We want to do more of these things because brands want to participate and players want to continue to compete.
DIGIDAY:
Fighting games have long generated more engagement than any other gaming community, with exceptions like Chipotle, which sponsored the Evolution Championship Series, an annual fighting game championship, in 2024. Brand growth has been relatively slow.
Kroger’s decision to sponsor Luminosity’s $10,000 invitation isn’t necessarily a sign that the supermarket chain’s marketers are suddenly privy to the power of Super Smash Bros. But it does mean that Luminosity has succeeded in translating the Smash opportunity into terms that are easier for marketers to understand the brand. By showing specific engagement statistics, like the graph that Gonzalez cited in a statement that tracks chat engagement levels for top esports streams, Luminosity will be able to shift brands’ marketing budgets to something that has traditionally been largely ignored by advertisers. The company succeeded in directing its efforts to the e-sports community.
On whether Luminosity’s strategy is a viable approach for other esports organizations:
Gonzalez:
Yes, I think it’s totally possible. There are brands doing similar things with other games, including OpTic and “Call of Duty,” and TSM and “League.” But within Smash, we’re in a very unique position, with top players, top creators, and events, and we’re working on everything possible. There are obviously more guardrails within ecosystems like Apex Legends and Call of Duty.
DIGIDAY:
Luminosity’s success with Smash provides a counterpoint to the idea that has been prevalent over the past decade that esports organizations need to be involved in multiple titles to be successful. In reality, competitive communities for individual games often exist in their own little worlds, and investing deeply in those individual communities can be more profitable than trying to satisfy all participants. there is.
Another esports organization that leans toward one game in particular, albeit in a different way than Luminosity, is Misfits. Misfits has prioritized its presence in Minecraft and Roblox over competing teams over the past year. As competitive gaming companies try to survive the esports winter, 2024 could see more companies focusing on specific game communities as a lifeline.
