Super Smash Bros. Melee joins Evo 2014 roster with Nintendo's approval

Super Smash Bros. Melee will be part of the 2014 Evo fighting games tournament, according to an announcement from Evo co-founder Tom "inkblot" Cannon.

Melee will be joining a roster of six other fighting games, including BlazBlue: Chrono Phantasma, Injustice: Gods Among Us, Killer Instinct, The King of Fighters 13, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 and Ultra Street Fighter 4. Cannon confirmed with Polygon that Evo has clearance from Nintendo to include the title this year.

"The fact that Super Smash Bros. Melee is being used to help determine champion status for competitive gamers so many years after it was released is a testament to the strong fan passion for both this individual game and the Super Smash Bros. franchise overall," a representative for Nintendo told Polygon. "Nintendo is happy to work with both Evo and Major League Gaming to help make their tournaments come to life using the game, and we hope it helps make their events enjoyable for video game fans everywhere. Nintendo will be releasing a new Super Smash Bros. game for both Wii U and Nintendo 3DS this year."

This is the second consecutive year the 2001 GameCube brawler will be part of the event. At last year's Evo, the 700-person Melee tournament — the largest in history — was won by Team Melee It On Me member and professional Melee player Joseph "Mang0" Marquez.

Melee's inclusion in Evo 2013 was the result of a charity drive that allowed the community to vote on the eighth title to be included in the event. To vote, players pledged funds in the name of their selected game to the The Breast Cancer Research Foundation. Cannon told Polygon there are no plans for a similar drive this year.

During last year's event, organizers said Nintendo tried to shut down the Super Smash Bros. Melee portion of the tournament after the company tried to stop a livestream of the matches.

Evo 2014 will take place at the Las Vegas Hotel and Casino July 11-13.