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Panda Global releases statement on Smash World Tour shutdown

Panda has addressed Nintendo's decision and allegations against its CEO.

Donovan Erskine

December 2, 2022 11:55 AM

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The fighting game esports world took a massive hit earlier this week when it came out that Smash World Tour 2022, one of the most anticipated events of the year, had been canceled, along with the company’s planned events for 2023. While it was originally stated that Nintendo directly caused the shutdown, the Smash Bros. publisher said that it didn’t request any changes to the 2022 event. After some back and forth, Panda Global has now released a lengthy statement on the whole ordeal.

Panda Global’s statement was shared in a tweet and addresses the issues with Nintendo that led to the Smash World Tour shutdown, as well as accusations levied against the company’s CEO, and other fan concerns.

The group references the Nintendo statement that was made following the initial news that this year’s Smash World Tour Championship had been canceled. In the aftermath of that announcement, accusations began to come out that Panda Global CEO Dr. Alan was threatening to absorb other tournaments into the Panda Cup, threatening Nintendo action against them. This is also addressed in the new statement, saying that the CEO “has been one of the more vocal supporters of the broader community and the Smash World Tour organizers in internal conversations.” It goes on to acknowledge that it does regret an interaction Alan had with Beyond the Summit.

Panda Global wraps up its statement by saying that it looks forward to building a better future for Smash. If there are any additional statements surrounding the sudden cancelation of Smash World Tour, you can expect to read about it right here on Shacknews.

Donovan Erskine

News Editor

Donovan is a journalist from Maryland. His oldest gaming memory is playing Pajama Sam on his mom's desktop during weekends. Pokémon Emerald, Halo 2, and the original Star Wars Battlefront 2 were some of the most influential titles in awakening his love for video games. After interning for Shacknews throughout college, Donovan graduated from Bowie State University in 2020 with a major in broadcast journalism and joined the team full-time. He is a huge film fanatic and will talk with you about movies and games all day. You can follow him on twitter @Donimals_