Latest news with #SuperSmashBros.Melee
Time of India
16 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Time of India
"He Was a Mess": Valkyrae Questions Mang0's Behavior Amid Ongoing Controversy
In the wake of a contentious and chaotic weekend livestream, esports veteran Joseph 'Mang0' Marquez is coming under fire ,not just from fans and peers, but now by industry legends such as Rachell 'Valkyrae' Hofstetter. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now A Community Favorite Crosses the Line Mang0, widely considered one of the most successful, popular, and influential Super Smash Bros. Melee players of all time, was one of 23 streamers invited to compete at the June 21 event, a raucous, booze-soaked tournament created by YouTube star Ludwig. Meant as an innocent, nostalgic nod to the original Mario Kart setup that should have been a funny and harmless throwback, the stream took a seriously gross turn almost immediately. Footage of the stream soon spread across all social media platforms and faced backlash for the action taking place as well as the normalization of high levels of drinking at creator events. Valkyrae Speaks Out: 'He Was a Disaster' Like many of us, during her June 24 livestream, Valkyrae was furious over the whole situation. She said, "'Really was fun, but the Mang0 situation was serious.' Yeah, no, Mang0 was a disaster. He was a mess. And I cannot believe the clips that I saw. I, just yeah, it is quite unfortunate. I do think that he needs to seek help for sure." Valkyrae speaks about the Mang0 Incident during Ludwig's Beerio Kart The fallout for Mang0 has been pretty swift and severe. On June 25, after facing backlash, he issued an apology on X, taking responsibility for the fact that he messed up, hurt people, and crossed a line. In his admission, he cited a recent history of alcohol-related misconduct and a willingness to change and learn from his mistakes. Even with these provisions, for many the damage was done. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Cloud9, Mang0's esports organization of many years, cut his contract in the wake of an internal investigation. In the midst of this, Ludwig personally declared that Mang0 would be banned from all future events his company runs, which would effectively remove him from most of the biggest Melee tournaments left. As the dust settles, fans and industry leaders alike are left with one inevitable question, how much is acceptable to endure in pursuit of content? One thing is for certain, Mang0's footprint on Melee can't be scrubbed clean, but whether or not he has a future in the community remains uncertain.
Time of India
17 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Time of India
"Hope You Enjoy Your Grace for Banning Mang0": Mang0's Wife Blames Ludwig After Alleged Drinking Incident
Image via: X/C9Mang0 Joseph 'Mang0' Marquez, a godfather of the Super Smash Bros. Melee esports community, has become a lightning rod for controversy after his behavior during Ludwig Ahgren's Beerio Kart stream on June 21, 2025. What started as an ill-fated gaming-and-drinking crossover concluded with a Twitch suspension, a permanent breakup from his longterm sponsor Powered by Cloud9, and now, the self-destructive drama continues to intensify, this time, from inside his own home. Lauren Points Fingers at Ludwig On June 25, Mang0's wife, Lauren Marquez, took to X (formally Twitter) in a thread of heartfelt posts, calling out event host Ludwig for pushing Mang0 to drink heavily throughout the broadcast. In another since-deleted post, she explained how to spread racial fear and division in a neighborhood: "but since i'm not bound by s*t as a 'civilian' @LudwigAhgren I f**king watched you on stream asking for mango to take shots. of course your lil teeny bopper viewer b*tch a** wants to pretend that never happened. people were VOMITING at your event & you never once decided to pull... hope you enjoy your grace for banning mango while encouraging him to get f**king wasted. F**k you lud. word for word "I need to do a shot, where's mango' Lauren, who is herself not a public figure in esports, and aware of the real-world consequences she might face for it, made clear that she felt Ludwig bore some responsibility not just for enabling Mang0's intoxication, but for ignoring or actively facilitating the broader environment. In that same announcement, she drew attention to the fact that many guests were throwing up at the event. This was a worrisome sign of a widespread lack of oversight. Public Fallout and Apology Clips from the Beerio Kart event soon circulated on social media, depicting Mang0 inappropriately touching other streamers, including lewd gestures directed at Maya Higa. In what was seen by many as an over-reaction, in the aftermath, Ludwig separated himself from the incident entirely, banning Mang0 from appearing at any future events. Mang0 returned to X with a very personal statement, confessing that he had experienced some physical and emotional turmoil since winning his latest title. He fully owned up to a long-standing problem with alcohol and said he plans to apologize individually to those hurt. Further compounding the fallout, leading esports organization Cloud9 announced that it was cutting ties with its long-time affiliate Mang0. This is a monumental conclusion to one of the most storied sourcings in Smash history. Mang0 had been with the org since 2014. Fuzzy Lines Between Fun and Duty The emergency highlights larger issues of accountability surrounding alcohol-infused creators who combine alcohol and entertainment. Lauren's tirade reveals the fault lines in the system where a culture of peer pressure and public expectation intersects with an artist's mental health. As incidents like this one grow in prevalence and more clips and conversations come to light, the balance between entertainment and danger in this new age of entertainment will be long overdue for consideration. Game On Season 1 continues with Mirabai Chanu's inspiring story. Watch Episode 2 here.
Time of India
3 days ago
- Sport
- Time of India
Cloud9 ends 11-year e-sports partnership with Mang0 over misconduct allegations
Professional e-sports organisation, Cloud9, has officially ended its 11-year partnership with Joseph "Mang0" Marquez following multiple instances of inappropriate physical actions during a recent event. The decision to drop the popular esports player was announced recently. The move comes after two days of backlash against Mang0, who reportedly engaged in multiple inappropriate actions toward other creators, including several women, during Ludwig Ahgren 's Beerio Kart World Cup . This incident led to Ludwig banning Mang0 from all future Mogul Moves events. With this decision, Cloud9 has ended one of the longest sponsorships in esports history. The company took to the social media platform X (earlier Twitter) to announce its decision. Why was Mang0 dropped by Cloud9 Cloud9 stated that it conducted an internal review over the past few days concerning the incident of drunken harassment involving Mang0, ultimately deciding to part ways with him. In the X post, the company wrote: 'We are aware of the recent incident involving Joseph 'mangO' Marquez and fully acknowledge the concerns raised by our community and partners. Following an internal evaluation, we have made the decision to release Mango from Cloud9. Regardless of tenure or accomplishments, the behaviour demonstrated is entirely unacceptable and directly conflicts with our organisation's core values. We maintain a zero-tolerance stance regarding harassment or any other form of inappropriate conduct. Our primary focus remains fostering a respectful, inclusive, and safe environment for everyone associated with Cloud. We will continue to collaborate closely with our talent, partners, and community to uphold and reinforce these standards. We wish Mango the best in his future endeavours.' by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Cặp EUR/USD: Đà Tăng? IC Markets Đăng ký Undo What Mang0 said about Cloud9's decision Before Cloud9's decision, Mang0 publicly acknowledged his actions, vowed to stop drinking, and accepted full responsibility, stating he would face any consequences, including Ludwig's response and his removal from Cloud9. Following Cloud9's official statement, Mang0 admitted the situation was his fault, issued another apology, and said he would likely take a break from being online for a while. In his X post, Mang0 wrote: 'C9 dropping me. Probably getting banned from tourneys. F**king s**t man. No one to blame but myself but man never though I could hit this low. Probably won't hear from me for a while. I'm sorry everyone. Wish I was better .I had it all and f**king tossed it in the trashcan.' Mang0 joined Cloud9 in May 2014 after already establishing himself as one of the top Super Smash Bros. Melee players. Over his 11-year tenure, he consistently ranked among the top 10, became a popular Twitch streamer , and was widely considered one of the greatest Melee players ever. His major victories under Cloud9 include Evo 2014, multiple Smash Summit wins, three Big House titles, and Supernova 2024. Realme GT 7: 7000mAh Battery, 120W Charging & Flagship Power Under Rs 40K! AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now
Express Tribune
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Express Tribune
Mang0 dropped by Cloud9 after intoxicated harassment incident at Ludwig's Beerio Kart event
Joseph 'Mang0' Marquez, a veteran in the Super Smash Bros. Melee community, was officially dropped by Cloud9 on June 23, 2025, following an incident of intoxicated misconduct during a livestreamed event hosted by Ludwig Ahgren. Cloud9, which had supported Mang0 for over a decade, released a statement citing 'unacceptable behavior' and emphasized its zero-tolerance policy for harassment or inappropriate conduct. Official Statement from Cloud9 — Cloud9 (@Cloud9) June 24, 2025 The incident took place during the Beerio Kart World Cup, a social, alcohol-themed Mario Kart tournament. Footage and witness accounts showed Mang0, visibly intoxicated, engaging in inappropriate behavior toward female attendees. This included simulating lewd gestures and pushing a cardboard cutout of himself into a woman. Ludwig responded by banning Mang0 from all future events. In a series of emotional posts on X (formerly Twitter), Mang0 expressed remorse and took full responsibility for his actions. 'No one to blame but myself… Never thought I could hit this low,' he stated. He also acknowledged his long-standing struggle with alcohol, writing, 'Everyone has coddled me… I genuinely feel so awful.' Mang0 said he had spoken to close friends and promised to quit drinking immediately. In the days following the incident, the Smash community expressed a mix of sympathy, frustration, and concern. Some fans hoped Mang0 could seek help and find rehabilitation rather than face career-ending consequences. Others emphasized that the scene has already faced too many harassment scandals and called for greater accountability. Melee pro Jeffrey 'Axe' Williamson commented, 'Very disappointed with all of the stuff I'm seeing about Mang0. I hope this is the wake-up call he needs… It's time to be responsible.' With bans and organizational consequences mounting, Mang0's future in competitive gaming remains unclear.
