#competitive smash ultimate

[indagolive]

Hey gamers, goobers, neither and both.

I went fucking

2-2

Getting fucking SEVENTH

At my fucking local tonight

Going mostly Pit

Can I please get a hell yeah :D

Lost 0-2 in both sets I lost, but one was LOWKEY close as hell, so I know it's possible in the future.

Lost in Pit vs Cloud and Pit vs R.O.B for context ^^;

[tgoldwalker]

I fucking love reading the smash wiki so much.

Here’s our shitty grandpa, he sucks at everything

[dandelionsprout42]

SSB Ultimate's quad-S character in free-for-alls.

It's easy to tell that Super Smash Bros. Ultimate was balanced by default for 2-player matches only (though not quite to the miserable degree that Super Smash Bros. 4 had to the point I hated that game).

Because Ganondorf is extreme overkill in 4-player matches. Any decent player can run and jump and do →+B, ↓+B, and the occasional B-hold. Maybe some →+hold-A just for variation alone. It is very likely that those 3 attacks will hit at least 1 of the other 3 fighters, making wins by a 10-point margin in 5min free-for-all against 3 Lv. 9 CPUs very possible, and even likely.

[callmeoddity]

Letting off steam about Steve Minecraft in Super Smash Brothers Ultimate

y'all I'm gettin real annoyed at seeing the exact same thing that happened with Bayo happen with Steve but people are fully incapable of understanding that history is repeating itself. I keep saying that when the next smash game comes out Steve (if he's there) will be fixed. and everyone looks at me like I'm insane. or just say they want him gone

people said basically the same shit about Bayo when she was taking over smash "she's too strong, she's broken, she needs to be removed"

and now she's high mid tier, far as I know. and if she's higher, the fact that no-one is talking about her means she's not a problem anymore

legit the same reason Steve is too strong is the same reason Bayo was at the end of smash 4. they both released in a state that was too strong/broken, and the devs only had one or two updates to balance them, and obviously that wasn't enough

anyway, I'm having a tough time at work and I'm really angry at work. so I'm rambling at y'all about Steve cuz I needa let off some steam

thank you for in all likelihood not listening to my ted talk

[plaidos]

literally my hottest take that would have me crucified across tgirl tumblr is that super smash bros brawl is the best the franchise has ever been bar none. sorry melee, sorry ultimate, but being an Actual Competitive Fighting Game is way less important to me than fifty minutes of grainy pre-rendered cutscenes of nintendo characters going "Chhehk... not so fast [wags finger]"

[beemochi-art]

Kaaaahhh!! *falls & eats the curb and drops all of my chaos Terran doodles.* BEFORE YOU SAY ANYTHING I KNOW CARS ISN’T DREAMWORKS!! I already got erm actually-ed. Spitfire and Am my poor doomed kids.

For both their designs I took a lil spin on it. For Am this the way I like to draw him. He acts gross so now he can look gross. He also doesn’t look baby in the show so meh, No further comments.

For Spitfire I gave her features that make look stronger and meaner even tho she’s mostly supposed to look just like Twitch. To me there is no point in drawing her just like twitch because the evil twin thing can be ruled out because they are completely different colors and they also went with the body swap thing. So I think making her look stockier and emo is more fun. I should draw a side-by-side comparison sometime.

Spoiler S2 rant* I get a little bit into delulu land so bear with me.

Jokes aside. I liked the chaos Terrans and the way they were handled wasn’t right. I hope they are able to make a comeback In the future and get redeemed because they deserve it. I feel really bad for them. It’s like they were labeled as Chaos and not to be trusted from the beginning I don’t think anyone truly understood them. I get that the chaos Terrans had wronged the Malto’s multiple times from the start but I think the way they went about handling them was so laxed. They just let the decepticons have them so they could be further influenced into the wrong path. It’s like they were doomed from the start.

After all they were just kids. I’ve been labeled as the bad, dumb, asshole kid before. Most of my school days I was in special ED and I was also pretty high energy too. So I can relate, if you are already labeled as bad or dumb why try to be anything else? Or trying to be cool and hanging around the wrong crowd just to be taken advantage of in the end.

They weren’t completely chaos either. They listened to the Decepticons. Following orders till the very end, if they were chaotic like their name implying would they just not listen to anyone and do whatever they wanted without any care of anyone else? Here’s what I think. The chaos Terrans (mostly Spitfire.) we’re trying to impress what they perceived as the cooler badder bots. That’s some kid shit, most kids try to get in with the group of cool kids. Why not stay with the Maltos? Cause that’s not cool to them. Do you want to hang out with the teachers pet or steal and break shit.

In defense of Aftermath. He’s capable of playing nice, he’s not evil. Him and Jb had a relatively good day with each other. He didn’t out right attack on sight. I think he took the water cause he didn’t want to seem like a looser in his heavily flawed mindset. Am is more of an impediment of Chaos, he just smashes and breaks shit cause he can. Honestly I think if you him just take him to a rage room he’d be fine.

In defense of Spitfire (who is a wayy more complicated case.) She was literally born that morning how was she supposed to know not hurting humans was an autobot rule. I think deep down she was jealous of Twitch’s family and opportunities. She has a competitive spirit and I think she wanted that mission to impress the bigger bots (even if she was rude to them.) when she was in Twitch’s body and said things like Chaos Terrans are bad and not to be trusted I wound if she was projecting what she thought they were thinking about her already. When she was cast out and went with the decepticons was they don’t like me and they don’t like you either so I’ll just hang with you guys. With that being said she’s naive too (it’s fine BECAUSE SHES A KID.) see the way starscream tells her good job or touches her shoulder, she wants his approval and to make him just like all kids with their parents. And then when she is ultimately betrayed, she’s a deer in headlights, shocked and afraid, probably realizing that she provided the weapon needed to killer her and her brother. She looked up to Starscream. Showing her fear and shock by being betrayed like that really showed us that Spitfire is so much more than just a bad guy. It really made me sad when she was screaming and saying no, god she needed help.

None of the chaos Terrans had gotten the opportunity to really learn or get to find something they like to do. The other Terrans had plenty of time to think about an alt mode, learn lessons get nurtured and cared for. The chaos Terrans had to get their alt modes immediately both out of necessity. Most of the time Am was just wandering around bored, he wasn’t being nurtured or taught anything. The cons didn’t care about them at all, neither did the autobots or Maltos that much. 

Saying Chaos Terrans are going to chaos or decepticons are gonna do what they do. Is super incorrect. It’s just labeling and not expecting anything more from these individuals which goes against the entire point of season one.

HOLY CRAP IF YOU READ ALL THIS. Thanks for coming to my Ted talk. Hopefully Some of this made sense.

[togetherness23]

engines uniting against spencer never ceases to bring me joy

anyone watch competitive smash (i prefer ultimate to melee but ik enough abt the latter to make this edit LOL)

[jaybug-jabbers]

Gelatopod - Ice/Fairy

(Vanilla-Caramel Flavor is normal, Mint-Choco is shiny)

Artist - I adopted this wonderful fakemon from xeeble! So I decided to make up a full list of game data, moves, lore, etc. for it. Enjoy! :D

Abilities - Sticky Hold/Ice Body/Weak Armor (Hidden)

Pokedex Entries

Scarlet: Gelatopod leaves behind a sticky trail when it moves. A rich, creamy ice cream can be made from the collected slime.

Violet: At night, it uses the spike on its shell to dig into the ground, anchoring itself into place. Then it withdraws into its shell to sleep in safety.

Stats & Moves

BST - 485

HP - 73

Attack - 56

Defense - 100

Special Attack - 90

Special Defense - 126

Speed - 40

Learnset

Lvl 1: Sweet Scent, Sweet Kiss, Aromatherapy, Disarming Voice

Lvl 4: Defense Curl

Lvl 8: Baby Doll Eyes

Lvl 12: Draining Kiss

Lvl 16: Ice Ball

Lvl 21: Covet

Lvl 24: Icy Wind

Lvl 28: Sticky Web

Lvl 32: Dazzling Gleam

Lvl 36: Snowscape

Lvl 40: Ice Beam

Lvl 44: Misty Terrain

Lvl 48: Moonblast

Lvl 52: Shell Smash

Friendship Level Raised to 160: Love Dart (Signature Move)

Egg Moves

Mirror Coat, Acid Armor, Fake Tears, Aurora Veil

Signature Move - Love Dart

Learned when Gelatopod's friendship level reaches 160 and then the player completes a battle with it

Type - Fairy, Physical, Non-Contact

Damage Power - 20 PP - 10 (max 16) Accuracy - 75%

Secondary Effect - Causes Infatuation in both male and female pokemon. Infatuation ends in 1-4 turns.

Flavor Text - The user fires a dart made of hardened slime at the target. Foes of both the opposite and same gender will become infatuated with the user.

TM Moves

Take Down, Protect, Facade, Endure, Sleep Talk, Rest, Substitute, Giga Impact, Hyper Beam, Helping Hand, Icy Wind, Avalanche, Snowscape, Ice Beam, Blizzard, Charm, Dazzling Gleam, Disarming Voice, Draining Kiss, Misty Terrain, Play Rough, Struggle Bug, U-Turn, Mud Shot, Mud-Slap, Dig, Weather Ball, Bullet Seed, Giga Drain, Power Gem, Tera Blast

Other Game Data

Gender Ratio - 50/50

Catch Rate - 75

Egg Groups - Fairy & Amorphous

Hatch Time - 20 Cycles

Height/Weight - 1'0''/1.3 lbs

Base Experience Yield - 170

Leveling Rate - Medium Fast

EV Yield - 2 (Defense & Special Defense)

Body Shape - Serpentine

Pokedex Color - White

Base Friendship - 70

Game Locations - Glaseado Mountain, plus a 3% chance of encountering Gelatopod when the player buys Ice Cream from any of the Ice Cream stands

Notes

I'm not a competitive player, but I did my best to balance this fakemon fairly and not make it too broken. Feel free to give feedback if you have any thoughts!

I have a huge bias for Bug Pokemon since they're my favorite type, and at first I wanted to make it Bug/Ice, since any intervebrate could be tossed into the 'Bug' typing. But ultimately I decided to keep xeeble's original idea of Ice/Fairy. There's precedent of food-themed pokemon being Fairy type, and Ice/Fairy would be very interesting due to its rarity (only Alolan Ninetails has it). Its type weaknesses are also slightly easier to handle than Bug/Ice imo

The signature move is indeed based on real love darts, I could not resist something that fascinating being made into a Pokemon move, even if the real games may possibly shy away from the idea. (Honestly it could be argued "Love Dart" is based on Cupid's arrow so Gamefreak might actually get away with making a move like this though.) Its effectiveness on both males and females is a nod to snails/slugs being biological hermaphrodites. I can see this move also being learned by Gastrodon and Magcargo in Scarlet/Violet

[haveyouplayedthisttrpg]

Have you played DEATHMATCH ISLAND ?

By Tim Denee

A deadly game show set on a chain of mysterious islands. Armed only with their hazy memories and matching uniforms, the players compete in challenges to satisfy the demands of Production, while also exploring strange REDACTED secrets.

Deathmatch Island is a fast-paced game about a deadly gameshow on a mysterious island chain. The competitors don’t know how they got here. They have been selected and recruited, forced to risk their lives in a deadly series of games for the vague promise of a big reward for the sole survivor. The game uses the PARAGON system developed for AGON 2nd edition.Deathmatch Island explores the idea of a cruel system that uses paranoia and competitiveness to turn competitors against one another, and whether those victims will ultimately destroy each other or build the solidarity needed to smash the system together.

Welcome, Competitor.

Would you like to Play to Win or Break the Game?

[nerd-artist]

Horizon Rock Bands AU: Rock Breakers

The second (and maybe last?) band of the AU that’s been leaving no place for any other thoughts in my mind. Jem and the Holograms inspired. Ereloy implied 🧡✨

The band

The original leader of the group was Ersa, who started forming Rock Breakers with her brother Erend. However, after a tragedy left her unable to continue being part of the band, the Vanguard siblings decided that Erend should carry on with the group's formation. After what had happened, their mission was more critical than ever: to bring down Nemesis, its members, and their unfair musical dominance.

Avad, a wealthy representative with whom Ersa had a very close relationship, helped Erend in the search for other members who shared their common goal. That's how Varl, Kotallo, Drakka, and Nil joined the band, shaping the unique and diverse style that Rock Breakers is known for. Their blend of romantic and heavy sound has earned them a loyal fanbase, though, thanks to Nemesis' schemes, they've never managed to win The Proving. During the competition, they met Alpha Prime and came to the conclusion that both bands needed to support each other to defeat the evil group. Ersa became Alpha Prime's manager, ensuring that no one—not even they—would get in her little brother's way.

With Avad as their manager, Rock Breakers dominates their tour, which also serves as training for the competition. They don't have the help of any magical computers to make their shows unforgettable, but they pull it off with their creative use of fire and fireworks.

Character bios under the cut

Erend

A deep voice and deep feelings—no wonder Erend is the lead singer and main songwriter of Rock Breakers. He always performs accompanied by his guitar ‘Hammer’, though it’s rarely the same one at each show, as he gets so excited in playing ‘Weird Space Ball’ that he ends up smashing it against the stage. He started competing in music contests for the love of music, but a tragedy changed his purpose: his sister Ersa, with whom he was originally going to form the band, went deaf because of their former boss, Dervahl, who is now a member of the antagonist band Nemesis. Since then, he has devoted himself entirely to destroying that band, just as he smashes his guitars.

With this common goal, it’s no surprise that he’s gotten along well with Alpha Prime since meeting them, though that encounter didn’t just gain him allies—it also changed his heart forever, as he fell head over heels for Aloy the moment he saw her. Since then, nearly all his lyrics have been about her, though Aloy seems to be the only one who hasn’t noticed. He doesn’t hold out much hope that someone as capable and beautiful as her would be interested in him, even though the two minutes she promised him keep becoming longer and longer.

Varl

Varl met Erend at a comic con, and they instantly became friends. Coming from a strict upbringing where music had no place, he learned to play his bass, ‘Seeker,‘ in just a week, solely to join the band and experience the freedom of performing on stage. He’s always ready to carry out any plan that helps defeat Nemesis, even those that require sacrificing his own interests and beliefs. He fell for Zo, a member of Alpha Prime, the moment he met her, and unlike his friend, he did something about it—they´ve been together since, and they´re not subtle about it.

Kotallo

The unstoppable rhythm of his drum set, ‘Bulwark,‘ is unmistakable. Kotallo has been playing it his entire life, and not even the sudden loss of an arm has slowed him down—he continues to captivate the crowd with every beat. He was once a member of the band "The Ten," where he played alongside Regalla, until she defected to join Nemesis after getting Kotallo involved in a street fight that ultimately cost him his arm. Kotallo joined Rock Breakers to get a shot at revenge against his former bandmate and to prove that no matter how she tries to weaken him, he’ll always be a better musician and more honorable than her.

Drakka

He comes from barren lands, though that doesn’t reflect his character at all. Playful and cheeky, his personality shines through in his backing vocals and in the way he plays his ‘Yarra.‘ Every key he presses makes the crowd roar louder, and it ensures he’s never alone after a concert. But his purpose is more serious than it seems: to destroy the reputation of the companies owned by Nemesis members so they stop diverting water from his town for their own gain. Who says you can’t have fun while pursuing the greater good?

Nil

Little is known about his past, but it’s rumored that Nil is searching for redemption. His background is so enigmatic that even the other band members don’t quite remember how or when he became part of the group. Always mysterious, he used to cover his face during performances until he revealed it at the last concert, flashing that intense, mischievous gaze that drove the crowd wild. He found the perfect "Partner" in his guitar, which makes him stand out on stage with its unmistakable sound and with which he always puts on a good show.

Thank you for reading!!

If you want to know more about Alpha Prime, check this post.

Should I make one of these for Nemesis?

[indagolive]

AND GLUTONNY IS YOUR REGEN 2024 CHAMPION!

The french Wario specialist completes their 8th consecutive set win versus MKLeo! Demolishing the latter's Joker/Roy with solo Wario to truly state that their #2 EU Ranking last period will NOT be sticking around!

Defeating Neeroz, Crepe Salee, and MKLeo TWICE, it's fair to say Gluto's back to being the king of the European Smash Scene for now!

And in his own words!

"I'm back." - Glutonny

Alongside this I do want to real quick thank anyone who checked out this little thread I did. I'm trying to post on Tumblr more and figured this was an amazing way to introduce my Hyperfixation here, as I haven't seen many others talking about Competitive Smash here! I'll be back for more later!

Edit: also real quick gonna say don't expect everything I post to be in this style, I'm using this place to ramble as fuck. I'll post my own results probably, and a lot about my other interests :P, if enough people were to care eventually id make a side blog for this stuff tho

also god fucking damnit leo, roy? really?.

Aegis/Inkling main Space from the Netherlands is on a CRAZY run right now at REGEN (UK Super Smash Brothers Major) taking out not only one of the best fox's on Europe, but going on to take out Tournament winning THREATS such as Bloom4Eva! (Best European Bayonetta!) and Tarik! (best Greninja in the world!)

With Cosmos' win on Sparg0, MKLeo/Sparg0 playing the character again, and Acolas secondary doing well, it seems like Aegis is BACK on the rise in late 2024!

Also I'm happy because MKLeo beat Luugi again c:

[tgoldwalker]

The greatest pastime

[purplecatghostposts]

Miraculous Ladybug characters and what character in Mario Kart 8 I think they choose as well as if they’re good at the game, based on the vibes I get from them!

Marinette: Used to play Peach but now is purely loyal to Toadette and Toadette ONLY! Canonically great at video games, so Mario Kart is naturally included.

Adrien: CAT PEACH. If anyone else chooses Cat Peach, he immediately gives them a DEVASTATED look and they swap immediately. Very good at the game, he has three stars on every cup!

Alya: Daisy. She will FIGHT anyone else trying to pick Daisy. Nobody is taking Daisy from her. She’s pretty decent at the game but is mostly just here to have fun and maybe kick some ass.

Nino: Strikes me as either a Yoshi guy or Shy Guy guy, though he’s chill if other people wanna pick them. Also decent but has a grudge against certain NPC opponents.

Chloé: Pink. Gold. Peach. Threatens to sue if anyone else takes her. She’s actually pretty good at the game and tends to be VERY agro. No mercy, she needs to WIN.

Kagami: Has swapped between a lot of different people but settled on Link. Incredibly intense in-game. She’s willing to battle to the death.

Félix: Isabelle from Animal Crossing. Do not let it fool you. He wants to WIN and he will red shell you at the worst time to do it.

Luka: Claims he’ll ‘Choose anybody’ but he’ll go for Rosalina if given the choice. He’s just trying to have fun and is 90% of the reason why controllers are not thrown at the TV. Juleka claims he’s “Going easy” on everyone so less feelings will be hurt. (She’s right, he loses on purpose a lot.)

Juleka: Dry Bones or Dry Bowser, she thinks they’re both cool. Doesn’t usually get top 5 if everyone is playing but consistently gets 6-7th! Hitting people with red and blue shells is kinda cathartic for her.

Rose: Sometimes picks one of the baby versions of the characters, but other times chooses one of Bowser’s kids, like Wendy or Roy. The former is for when she’s playing to have fun, the latter is for when she’s gunning for top 3.

Zoé: Pretended to be bad at the game until she realized she didn’t need to spare anyone’s feelings. Very good at the game, knows a lot of the techniques to give herself mini boosts. She LOVES Boswer Jr., especially after becoming Kitty Noire.

Sabrina: Genuinely one of the best players… When she’s not playing with Chloé. Otherwise she’s always letting her win, aiding her the best she can, and pretty much always gets whatever rank is directly behind hers. Claims her favorite character is Baby Peach (it’s actually King Boo).

Kim: DONKEY KONG. Also occasionally Wario. He’s actually kinda terrible at the game but he tends to spams items and makes that everyone else’s problem.

Max: Chooses one of the Inkling Kids (he strikes me as someone who also probably loves Splatoon). He’s good at the game but with how many other people are also good at the game, sometimes he gets overshined. He’s better at fighting games.

Alix: Waluigi 100%. She thinks he’s hilarious and while she doesn’t actually care, she WILL bring up ‘Waluigi should’ve been in Smash Ultimate’ At some point, because she thinks it’s funny. Not great at the game, is here purely to spam items and fuck over as many people as possible.

Myléne: Terrible at the game but plays to have fun! Likes to play Boswer because Ivan has cosplayed as him before.

Ivan: Also terrible at the game but likes losing alongside Myléne. Likes to play as Luigi, though occasionally chooses Dry Boswer if no one else has.

Nathaniel: Rarely plays but will choose Rosalina or Lemmy if he does. Likes to play against other casual people but usually dips if too many competitive people are playing at once.

Marc: Surprisingly really good though isn’t always good about asking if he can have a turn or not. Loves to pick the animal crossing villagers if they haven’t been chosen.

Lila: Claims she’s won a championship before. Is actually terrible at the game with the worst luck and very rarely plays. The first time she was gonna play with the class, she selected Cat Peach. Everyone stared at her as Adrien gave her the most devastated look. She panicked and faked an injury to stop playing altogether.

[plaidos]

i definitely place brawl as like, second worst smash game (really it should be third worst but 64 didn't know better!) but i defo defo defo think that it's the BEST single player smash game by far (and this isn't just subspace emissary either!). 4 was *REALLY* disappointing on that front, and while I haven't tried to dig into ultimate's single player stuff as hard, it definitely seems way worse than brawl's too

i’m still gonna have to disagree — i think Brawl is pretty objectively the worst multiplayer fighting game in the series but also remember that you can play subspace emissary co-op and it’s literally twice as much fun that way. even as a party fighter i think it’s easily better than Melee; i understand why the competitive scene (rightfully!) hated it as an entry but idk i really respect the controversial decision to put a much greater emphasis on NOT playing it like a competitive game. it’s unbalanced as hell as a fighter because it’s from the perspective that everybody will play their favourite character who is not meta knight lol

big agree on the single player elements though; brawl is the most casual single player fun smash has ever been, easily

[smashy-headcanons]

What are the bosses doing after their story modes concluded?

I'm presuming that they're still alive except for Tabuu, Galeem, and Dharkon

Galleom had the most explicit boss death in Brawl and yet he still returned

Petey Piranha, Ridley, and Dracula returned to their usual villain crimes, Marx continued to be a mischievous yet not hostile clown back in Dreamland, and Porky... well, from what little I know of Mother 3's story, he kinda locked himself in an orb for eternity.

Giga Bowser, being a Smash-exclusive transformation of Bowser, doesn't get used outside of Bowser's final smash or a classic mode boss. Even if he could use it on command (it's an involuntary transformation, with the exception of a Final Smash), he's found no way to use it outside of the Smash Bros. universe. Plus, that much energy tends to tire him out when he transforms back.

Ganon is kinda similar, except for the fact that it has an origin from Ocarina of Time.

Rayquaza just kinda returned to its territory to nap and recover. It was never actually evil, it was just cranky at Fox and Diddy for intruding on its territory. It ended up being recruited as a stage hazard later on like Ridley did.

Giant Donkey Kong was simply, well, a giant Donkey Kong CPU, and didn't get used after Smash 64.

Unlike Giant Donkey Kong, Metal Mario would end up getting involved with other competitive events in the Mario universe, such as racing or sports. After Melee, he wouldn't return to a Smash game until Bowser's classic mode in Ultimate.

Galleom, having a Subspace Bomb in its head, could be an invention of the Isle of Ancients (who Tabuu depended on to create the Subspace Bombs), so it's possible that the Galleom in Ultimate is a different one than in Brawl. Either that, or the deactivated/broken remains of the original were discovered after the events of SSE and got repaired. Either way, Galleom was repurposed to no longer be loyal to Tabuu/the Subspace Army and instead is loyal to R.O.B.. It got controlled by Galeem for a while during World of Light, but it got reverted to normal like everyone else.

It's entirely possible that Duon was never actually constructed beyond concepts/blueprints for a robot. Duon is formed from Shadow Bugs when it's fought, which disperse and reveal Mr. Game & Watch once defeated. While it doesn't exist as anything but a spirit currently, it could potentially be built for real if R.O.B. still has the blueprints for it.

Tabuu was returned to Subspace after WoL, still weakened and wingless after his defeat in SSE.

Master Hand is in therapy for his various Issues after the Master Core business is taken care of.

The Rathalos in World of Light kinda exploded and became a spirit after being defeated, so the Hands found a new one to serve as the boss in classic mode and the assist trophy.

Galeem & Dharkon's bodies were completely destroyed, and the two only exist as spirits now.

[gayleviticus]

a lot of framing of the problem of idolatry frames it as like, competition between God and a bunch of other guys, as if they're the same category of being but God is just the best one. and it's certainly a framing that happens in the Bible, which uses a lot of strongly anthropomorphic language for God.

but in light of actual Christian belief being that God is the source of all being, goodness/perfection/beauty/life itself, something far beyond the category of being, the ultimate and sole cause of everything - it becomes quite obvious that God is not even just 'the best deity' or 'the Mary Sue of ancient near eastern gods', but something that transcends such categories.

it's not 'superman would beat batman', it's not 'the death star would beat the enterprise', it's not even 'hydrogen bomb vs coughing baby'; it's asking whether a gun could defeat the sunrise. it's a category error.

(i remember a friend once told me theyd been taught by a professor of Islam that strictly speaking that while in English God often gets used to translate Allah, in Arabic it is incorrect to actually call Allah a 'god', because Allah transcends such a category. Allah isn't on the same level as other so-called gods. Given it's thirdhand info take with a grain of salt but it's an interesting comparison to English where use of capital G-God might position us instead to think 'God is just like the mary sue of zeus, hera, odin')

and with that in mind, i think the problem of idolatry shifts from 'here are all these other guys who are competing for God's place' to 'these idols are trapping people's perception of Divinity in a dead end'. crude anthropomorphism, investing divinity in things of gold and metal, being diverted from the true Unity behind everything.

and i guess the practical difference behind this is i think it can shift some room to be more appreciative of, say, Hinduism without evacuating idolatry of any kind of actual relevance. Hinduism (generally - recognising there is much diversity in Hindu traditions) acknowledges that the myriad of gods are ways of understanding Brahman behind everything, and though there are surely still issues and problematic points from a Christian perspective, i think there are grounds to identify that Hindu polytheism can avoid the trap of idolatry in locking people to a crude understanding of divinity as just really powerful dudes.

conversely, even in Christianity there is much potential for similar dangers of trapping your perception of God with images that need to be moved past (God as old man in the clouds) or even smashed (God as old man who literally has a Son, God as literal despot governed by might makes right). and altho there is the saving grace that at least your intention is to worship the true God, it doesn't save you from blaspheming that God by what you ascribe to him.