Super Smash Bros. Brawl - 10/10
One game that had Wii fans drooling with anticipation would be Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Ever since its brief appearance at E3 in 2006, it has been on the minds of all Smash Bros veterans and curious onlookers alike, awaiting for the final day of release. And upon release it could not have received a more pleasant reception. With a bright new cast of your favourite Nintendo mascots, along with interesting and devastating items, battling on the most unstable stages to be seen, it’s no wonder people have gone Brawl crazy with the next instalment in the Smash Bros series.
As expected of a Smash Bros game, the basis of it is to pick a character of your choice, pick a stage and have an all out frenzy (or in this case, Brawl) knocking your opponents like crazy. You win by either having the most amounts of total KO’s or being the last survivor standing. Simply whack your opponents around, raising their percentage and when they have reached a certain amount, smash them off the screen. Along with the basics, there are other options which can customise the type of fights you have making the experience even more thrilling.
If you are new to the series or a veteran, there will be something for everyone. With a range of control schemes to choose from, it shouldn’t take long to find what you are comfortable with. There are 4 options, the Wii Remote, the Wii Remote with Nunchuck, the Classic controller or the Gamecube Controller. Some are harder to get use to, but it would be wise to try them all out. Once you’ve the one you’re most comfortable with, you can let the fight begin.
The roster of characters in Brawl is larger than ever, both old and new. The obvious characters ready to rumble are Mario, Link, Kirby and Pikachu to name a few while starting newcomers such as Pit from Kid Icarus, Metaknight form the Kirby series and Ike from Fire Emblem are all welcomed to the list. Like always in the series, as you progress through the game and meet certain expectations, new characters will be unlocked, a total of 35 characters. Some fans may be disappointed that a few Melee characters have received the cut from Brawl, with this said however, the new unlockable characters will definitely keep a smile on your face.
Also making their debut in the Smash Bros series are two well-known characters from third-party developers. Sonic from the obvious Sonic series and Snake from Metal Gear Solid are two unlockable newcomers and the first to join the fight outside of the Nintendo industry. They both make nice additions to the roster and are sure to excite fans of their series. This also leads to future possibilities of other third-party characters to enter the havoc that is Smash Bros.
After choosing your character, you will next choose a stage to fight on. Knowing the Smash Bros series, expect to see a wild variety of stages from across the Nintendo series such as Delfino Plaza (Super Mario Sunshine) or the Bridge of Eldin (The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess). All come with their own surprises and can even aid you with a KO or two. A new (and nice) addition to the stage selection is custom stages. With the set of tools given and a creative mind, you can make some interesting stages.
Of course there is more than just the multiplayer mode. Super Smash Bros. Brawl comes jam-packed with extras which will leave you playing for hours on end. Along with every Smash Bros. game is the Classic mode. To progress, just simply beat the enemy and continue advancing on. Although some enemies may come in packs, be ridiculously huge or metal this has been a part of the Classic mode since the beginning.
Unlike the previous titles of the game, there seems to be lacking in bonus events such as exclusion of the trophy stage and the race to finish. Instead, it has been replaced with just breaking the targets and by which are the same for all characters. There are 5 different levels of targets and depending on the difficulty of Classic mode, it varies. Like always, Master Hand (a gigantic hand with bizarre attacks) awaits you at the Final Destination where you will duke it for glory and honour!
What many people are likely to remember from the many video clips are the gorgeous cut scenes from the new Subspace Emissary mode. This mode is a very lengthy campaign mode which has a strange yet interesting storyline behind it. The story begins at a stadium where Mario and Kirby are brawling away, when suddenly a large vessel enters above the stadium riding dark clouds. This isn’t good news so Mario and Kirby unite, along with Zelda and Peach to stop this new threat.
Continue along the storyline and more characters begin falling into play. Along the way, you will find new enemies such as the Primids of all types and classics like Goombas from the Mario series. If you find yourself struggling along the way simply ask a mate to help out as it also playable in co-op mode. This is handy if you’re finding it a bit difficult on your own.
Back from the previous Super Smash Bros. Melee game, is the always entertaining Event mode, Home Run Contest, and Multi-man Brawl mode. All these modes basically remain the same with a few changes. Event mode is not as long and maybe not as inspirational as it once was. The Home Run Contest has a shield placed up around the platform to avoid it falling off. Although bouncing it off the shield will cause it to break, if you be smart about it, you can build up serious damage. Multi-man Brawl is essentially the same as well except that even now and again, an actual character will pop up and join the fight.
What is also a nice addition to these so called single-player modes is that they can be played with another player. Including Breaking the Targets, you can allow a second player to join in and help aid you in your quest for new records, higher damage percentage, etc. These records however do not replace the single player score so it may not go towards and unlockable features. Of course, some modes are unlockable so you will just need to progress to discover what they may be. But rest assured, you should enjoy these modes nonetheless.
What has seemed to an eternity since Melee is long-awaited Online Play Mode. Connect to Wi-Fi and battle it out with friends or anybody without anyone moving an inch. You have the option to fight with friends where you can customise the rules to your liking such as stock, time, items, etc. You also have the option to fight in the Multi-man Brawl and Home Run Contest. There is also options to send your snapshots, replay videos or custom stages with your friends which is a nice touch.
If by chance no one happens to be online in your friends list, you can fight with people around the world. This is much more limited since it is only a 2-minute Brawl and it can also be a while before anyone shows up. Along with this, there is Team Brawl and be a Spectator. This mode allows you to watch a replay of someone else’s Brawl and place bets on who would win. It’s quite interesting and can earn you money big-time if you place it on the right fighter.
Welcoming back to the collectible section are the trophies. Nearly double the amount as last time, you would think collecting them all would be a hassle, but before you know it, you will have a pretty large amount of them picked up or found. Also new is the Masterpiece and Nintendo Chronicle section. It shows a timeline of the many Nintendo releases from all their past systems and even allows you to play a select few. The new Coin Launcher is an entertaining way to gather those missing trophies you don’t have. Collecting the coins from playing Brawl becomes your ammunition in this mini-game as you blast objects and such to gain the new trophies and also new, stickers.
Stickers are another collectible item but are actually usable. They are simply used as power-ups for the Subspace Emissary mode. Simply choose a character and place a bunch of stickers within the space given to allow that character to increase its strength. Stickers don’t only increase strength but can increase chance. Applying certain stickers can cause a certain item to drop more frequently which can prove useful at times when you need them. They come in forms of characters of the vast Nintendo, MGS and Sonic series so finding the same one again is rare.
Trophies and stickers are just the two of the many items found across the Brawl universe. Both new and classic items appear in this version and are packing even more of a punch. Welcomed items from past games are the Beam Sword, Lip Stick and the scary Bob-ombs just to name a few. Poke Balls will release some new and old Pokemon as well and each has a unique technique they use. The Sandbag also comes along outside of the Home-Run Contest mode where whacking it during a brawl will cause items to fall out of it.
Next to the classic items are some new surprises to this large library. Things such as the Cracker Launcher, a weapon which can blast a number of firework missiles and different angles, the Gooey Bomb which sticks to your opponent and explodes after time, or the small Franklin Badge which reflects any projectile thrown at you. This is just a few of the strange items to be welcomed into Smash Bros. family.
Two Items that everyone seems to be interested in is the Assist Trophy and the Smash Ball. An Assist Trophy is very similar to a Poke Ball, but instead of a Pokemon, out will come a Nintendo character. Many of them can’t be attacked and can produce massive damage and even KO’s while others are just a hindrance on everyone as it can obscure your view. There are quite a few Assist Trophies at the beginning but during the game, more will be unlocked.
The Smash Ball is a unique ball that gives any character what is called their “Final Smash”. With it, a character can rack up a lot of damage or in most cases, a KO. Each character has their unique Final Smash, such as Link’s “Triforce Slash” where if caught, puts in between two Triforces as Link slashes away or Samus Aran’s “Zero Laser” which unleashes a devastating beam which destroys her suit and transforms her into Zero Suit Samus. Of course, it takes practice to use them right and even more practice to avoid them.
Graphically, Brawl has improved making it one the strongest looking games to get on the Wii. To the little detail in outfits, to the impressive stage designs, it is quite impressive considering Wii hardware capabilities. Characters have also been updated to the point of their last release. The obvious example would be the Zelda series where they have been taken from the Twilight Princess version.
The sound of Brawl is bigger than ever, with songs ranging from across Nintendo. From the classics to modern sounds of the game, it’s hard to hear something that you haven’t heard before. Even the sounds when some characters duck or walk makes an impression on their own which adds some effect to their characteristics. And if you thought it couldn’t have a bigger library of songs, you’re sadly mistaken. During the game, you can unlock new songs by picking up CD’s that can randomly fall in nearly any playable mode.
Sadly, there are some downsides to the new addition of Brawl. Some items can tend to be overpowered. The Bumper if been hit before it has halted can launch you fair distance and a weird angle even if you’re percentage is low. Other items that can be thrown also seemed too strong for their own good and instead of being used as they should be, they’re just thrown around which can also KO you on low damage.
Another problem would be the Smash Ball. In some cases it is much easier for one character to get due to their projectile abilities. This makes it more difficult for the ones without projectiles to break it. It could be a major disadvantage if you’re down on points or low on stock. Of course it could be an upside if you are the one with projectiles and low on points or stock.
There is also a lot of concern of the Wi-Fi problems. Even if you have a fast internet connection, the other player also needs a similar setting. At times it can lag drastically and drop out. This is also the problem with fighting random players since you do not know their setting.
Overall, Super Smash Bros. Brawl is a true success of the franchise with its long roster of characters, playable stages, many playable modes and its nearly countless amounts of unlockable content. Although there are some problems with Wi-FI, finally introducing the Smash series should not disappoint. Visually stunning with sounds to match, it would be difficult for Nintendo to top this one.
Submitted by renagadez
04/09/2008
200
10
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