Popular streamer and content creator Ludwig Ahgren is no stranger to drama, and the latest bout of it involves platform fighter Rivals of Aether 2 and the EVO fighting game championship series.
EVO has long been a pillar of the fighting game community, from its grassroots beginnings to its modern iteration with its more corporate sheen and strong esports influence. But platform fighters haven’t always been a part of the annual event. The Super Smash Bros series, by far the king of platform fighters to date, has notably had a mixed history at EVO, coming and going over the years.
Rivals of Aether 2 has been positioned as a spiritual success to the Smash Bros games, one not burdened by the weight of Smash Bros publisher Nintendo and its harsh restrictions around competitions showcasing those games. And the desire to see Rivals of Aether 2 succeed led to some controversy and drama for the game at EVO 2026.
Did Ludwig pay to boost Rivals of Aether 2 registration numbers?
The crux of the drama involving Ludwig and Rivals of Aether 2 at EVO is the idea that Ludwig essentially paid to artificially inflate the game’s registration numbers, something he has essentially admitted to doing.
Ludwig has made clear that he personally invested into player registrations for the game, distributing event passes to a number of players through varied means, including but not limited to qualifier play. This boosted the game’s registrants past 1,000, a number likely significantly higher than would otherwise have been achieved.
Ludwig is interested in the success of Rivals of Aether 2 for multiple reasons. One is that Ludwig is associated with publisher Offbrand Games, which directly supports Rivals of Aether 2 and its developer Aether Studios.
Another is that Ludwig has long been a fan and proponent of platform fighting games. He is notable for his personal involvement in the Super Smash Bros competitive scene, having taken part in and even financed events in the past. So for the streamer, supporting Rivals of Aether 2 is both a business interest and a passion project.
As for why this would lead to drama, EVO registration numbers were tied to the placement and prominence of games on the event’s main and side stages. The games with the most registrants would go on last, and the least-attended games would be played earlier. With Ludwig investing into the number of registrants for the game he backs financially, some claim that he essentially purchased a more visible slot at EVO.
There aren’t any rules explicitly against companies marketing their games in this way, though it does go against the spirit of the tournament order. For his part, Ludwig has seemed unapologetic; he openly supports Rivals of Aether 2, and was willing to invest his personal finances in order to see the game promoted on a bigger competitive stage.
Ludwig had a busy EVO in 2026. In addition to his support for Rivals of Aether 2 at EVO and the drama that surrounded it, Ludwig also took part in a Street Fighter 6 showmatch versus fellow streamer Tyler1. Ludwig came out on top of that match-up with relative ease, making it an altogether successful weekend for the content creator despite the drama that flared up as a result. He’s no stranger to such controversy, and likely won’t blink twice at the latest bout of it.
