Super Smash Bros. veteran Nairoby “Nairo” Quezada has been banned from Twitch two months after admitting to engaging in a sexual relationship with a fellow competitor who was underage at the time. Quezada’s official partnership with Twitch has also been terminated.
The competitive Smash community was left reeling in July when over 50 allegations of sexual misconduct came to light against players, commentators, and tournament organizers of all stripes. The accusations included multiple alleged instances of rape, sexual assault, preying on minors, and grooming underage competitors. Zack “CaptainZack” Lauth contributed to the massive tide of complaints when, on July 2, he released a statement detailing a 2017 sexual encounter with Quezada. At the time, Lauth was 15 and Quezada was 20.
Despite both players having denied anything sexual occurred between them the day before, Quezada admitted to the incident shortly after the release of Lauth’s statement. He was dropped by his sponsor and has since been banned from several tournaments and disappeared from social media. According to TwitchMetrics, a third-party site that tracks Twitch performance, Quezada has not gone live since streaming his Super Smash Bros. Ultimate practice on June 30.
Quezada is one of several high-profile community members accused of sexual misconduct. Cinnamon “Cinnpie” Dunson, a prolific commentator who has worked with Nintendo, was said to have repeatedly engaged in sexual acts with a 14-year-old. Several women accused Super Smash Bros. for Wii U powerhouse Jason “ANTi” Bates of criminal acts including sexual assault and sex with a minor. Gonzalo “ZeRo” Barrios, one of the greatest Smash players of all time, admitted to sexual harassment and having a sexual relationship with a minor he met online.
A longtime competitor who has found success in the last several Super Smash Bros. games, Quezada’s behavior came largely as a shock to the scene. But now that these stories are out in the open, the competitive Smash community must come to grips with the atmosphere of abuse it has allowed to seep into its events. Quezada’s ban from Twitch is just a small step toward making participation in the Smash community safer for everyone involved.
Quezada did not respond to Kotaku’s request for comment.
Update (09/11/20, 1:49 p.m. ET): A Twitch representative provided the following statement:
“We do not discuss the details of cases to protect the privacy of individuals involved. The safety of our community remains our top priority, and per our guidelines we reserve the right to suspend any account for conduct that we determine to be inappropriate, harmful, or puts our community at risk.”