Jason “ANTi” Bates needs no introduction. He’s a titan of the Super Smash Bros 4 competitive scene and one of the best Mario players in the community. He was also a big name in the days of Super Smash Bros Brawl being considered among the best Meta Knight players in the world. Not only is he well known for his immaculate play but he’s also has a huge social media presence and is an all-around, well-liked dude in all of the fighting game community. Whereas many in the Smash scene call great players gods, I would definitely add him to the category of “Super Star”.
Q1: So with such a huge social media presence and is known not only as a great player but personality as well do you ever feel any added pressure during tournaments?
ANTi: I don’t feel much-added pressure due to me becoming a prominent figure in the fighting game scene, but honestly I do feel pressure but that’s placed upon myself because at times I tend to hold myself to a ridiculously high standard and I do not like failing. At times, there are moments where I am close to failure and the fear of it makes me play a tad worse but I have become better at handling and managing that handicap.
Q2: I was definitely one of the people introduced to you from that CEO 2016 entrance and I ended up watching your match and became a fan but what I really wanna know is how much money you threw out that day if you can remember?
ANTi: It was only $20 USD in singles haha. If I knew I’d win the event I would have thrown out about $70 in singles instead :p
Q3: In a scene like smash which is stereotypically seen as on the “nerdy” side of things you’re seen by lots of people as one of the cool dudes in the Smash community. Does that gas you up during play a bit? How’s it feel?
ANTi: It doesn’t really gas me up but it’s true that a lot of people in the scene and I don’t have much in common outside of our love for Smash, so at times I can be a bit distant. But if someone walks up to me and wants to converse I’ll always talk to them happily.
Q4: What’s your favorite anime and anime intro?
ANTi: Favorite anime is Slam Dunk & my favorite intro is the Yu Yu Hakusho opening, so much nostalgia and childhood memories.
Q5: Before you became big in the Smash scene did you play any other competitive games?
ANTi: I used to play Call of Duty pretty heavily but I stopped once I started getting more and more serious in Smash, but now that I am happy where I am in the Smash world I plan to play a bit of COD once again!
Q6: Speaking of other competitive games we all know you’re an SFV-head and I personally hope you keep playing it. I wanna ask how do you think the lag fix will change the game if at all?
ANTi: I believe the game’s lag fix is a good thing for everyone in the scene. It’ll keep people honest with their setups and a lot of dashes will be checked now. Players with great reactions such as Momochi will hopefully thrive in this meta.
Q7: If you could have any character from anything added to Ultimate who would it be?
ANTi: Zero from Megaman, Banjo Kazooie, and Crash Bandicoot
Q8: If you could add any mechanic to Ultimate what would it be?
ANTi: I want ledgehogging back, I don’t like the trump mechanic too much. It added more depth to Smash when they had that, but with times changing and companies wanting to make games more noob-friendly I see why they implemented ledge trumping.
Q9: Smash Ultimate isn’t too far away and lots of people want to get into it competitively. Any advice for any newcomers?
ANTi: Do not give up just because you don’t see immediate success. Rome wasn’t built in a day and you shouldn’t expect to become a top 50 player overnight. Keep grinding on your craft, notice your mistakes, and actively think of ways to become stronger.
