It didn’t take long from the initial release of Nintendo Switch for people to start asking when the next Super Smash Bros. game would become available. Sitting through many a Nintendo Direct with no news of the next iteration, fans were starting to become anxious, with some even willing to settle for a port of the Wii U’s Super Smash Bros. 4.

All 2017 was missing is Smash Bros. Then it would have been perfection, even just a port.

— Tyke (33 days) (@Tyke665) October 2, 2017

After the much-anticipated reveal of the next Super Smash Bros. game for the Switch platform, mxdwn Games first reported on the early details of Nintendo’s upcoming invitational. Weeks after their trailer reveal, Nintendo stated:

On June 11-12 in Los Angeles, an invited group of players will gather to play Super Smash Bros., and qualified teams will compete in Splatoon 2, as Nintendo hosts an event featuring high-level gameplay on these two games for Nintendo Switch. This will be the first-ever exhibition tournament featuring the recently announced Super Smash Bros. game coming to Nintendo Switch in 2018.

Though there has been no official confirmation of this game being an all-new iteration of the franchise, some fans believe the writing on the wall clearly points to this being a new Super Smash Bros. and not just a port.

how are ppl STILL surprised that the smash bros announcement wasn’t for a port?

they literally announced the lineup for the invitational today & i’m still seeing ppl reply to small details going “:0 this pretty much means it’s confirmed as a new game & not a port!”

WE BEEN KNEW

— shannondorf (@shannondorf_) May 10, 2018

As we have reported, esteemed Super Smash Bros. director Masahiro Sakurai confirmed his involvement with the project, supporting the strong theory of this being a proper sequel to Super Smash Bros. 4.

The inaugural Super Smash Bros. Invitational took place at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles on June 10, 2014. Needless to say, the event was pure hype:

Surely, the intensity will be cranked up this year as players and fans have been left in the dark about the major details surrounding this game. Getting a peek at the game’s player roster and stages will surely draw heavy reactions.

Nintendo did announce who they’ve invited to play the new game on stage, though:

So set and reminder and save the date in your calendar because June 12 will be the first time the public can lay their eyes on the new Super Smash Bros. game for Nintendo Switch. If you can’t make it out to the Belasco Theater in Los Angeles (tickets will be sold on-site), the event will be live streaming from Nintendo’s e3 site, YouTube, and Twitch.