It was both a heartwarming and heartbreaking week for the Super Smash Bros. community.
Chris “SpookyWoobler” Taylor, a Smash Bros. enthusiast who was diagnosed with terminal cancer, wished to play a demo of the upcoming Super Smash Bros. Ultimate title, which is slated for release on December 7th, 2018. Taylor, who had recently announced he would stop treatment for his illness, was nervous that he’d be unable to experience the new game before passing away.
The Smash Bros. community sprang to action, with thousands of smashers, including top players, tournament organizers, and content creators, reaching out to Nintendo reps to see if they could make Taylor’s dream come true.
As luck would have, their voices were heard – on September 21st, Taylor tweeted out that Nintendo reps had come by with a copy of the E3 demo for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, and that he got to play it for three hours with his friend and family.
WE DID IT GUYS
Today two nintendo reps came down with the E3 demo of Smash Ultimate and i got to play it for 3 hours with a local friend, my brother and my mom 🙂
I got pictures incoming but still like holy shit
Thanks to everyone who did this for me, you're all the real champ
— Chris Taylor (@SpookyWoobler) September 21, 2018
The community’s efforts to make Taylor’s wish come true were not lost on him, as he wrote a heartfelt “thank you” message on Reddit while encouraging people to donate to cancer research to help in the fight against the disease.
Some pics from me, local Benjamin, and Zach playing
Thanks so much guys, this means so much to me pic.twitter.com/raxPu7QJp9
— Chris Taylor (@SpookyWoobler) September 21, 2018
Taylor passed away three days after getting his wish to play Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, on September 24th. He was surrounded by friends and family. Taylor’s brother, Zach, made the announcement while thanking the Smash community for their love and support in making his wish come true.