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This thread has been linked to the game 'Super Smash Bros. Brawl'.
Rarely is it that I ever import a game before it hits the UK, and it’s even rarer that I do so as soon as the game hits the US shores. You could say it was a mixture of reasons as to why I got it now rather than waited for a PAL version, whether it’s the sheer excitement that I couldn’t contain wanting this game or the ridiculous attitude Nintendo has taken in not even giving us a release date for this huge title. But now I have it an have spent hours upon hours on the single, multiplayer and online modes to safely give an accurate view on whether or not the wait has (and will for those of you awaiting an eventual PAL release) been worth it.
Super Smash Bros isn’t your average fighter. Gone are health bars and long combos to learn. Instead you have a unique take on KO-ing your opponent and a simple battle system that has hidden depth as well. Basically you choose from one of over thirty Nintendo and third party mascots, then choose a themed arena and beat the living daylights out of each other for a set time or life count. Elimination is done so by inflicting enough damage on your opponent so they get blasted so far off the stage they can’t get back. Every time you punch, kick, shoot a fireball, throw, consume, whack or do any move you cause your opponent’s percentage counter to rise. The idea is the higher the percentage the further your character will fly when they get struck. For example if Mario has 13% damage he isn’t going to go very far when hit by Bowser, but say he had 123% damage one massive butt bash from Bowser will surely shoot Mario out of the arena and give Bowser a point. You can either get hit so high you disappear into the background, left or right of the stage or down below if you simply can’t make it back on after being pounded away. That is the idea of Smash Bros and it’s been that way since the first title on the Nintendo 64 so it’s great that much hasn’t changed here.
As I mentioned before long combos are not to be worried about here. You have you usual punches and kicks at the press of the A button with a direction on the analogue, special moves with the B and direction buttons and jumping with Y. Seems simple but with blocking, dodging and smash moves to master too there is actually a deep game to uncover here. Once you’ve gotten to grips with your favourite characters you’ll learn their strengths and weaknesses and master them. But it’s been that way since day one. What is new in Brawl? Well it feels the same as Melee and handles the same but has minor tweaks here and there. Final Smashes have been thrown in to up the chaos rewarding the player who destroys the floating glowing ball with a extra powerful special move. These can range from Sonic turning into Super Sonic and flying around the arena smashing anyone in sight or Samus unleashing a devastating beam before losing her famous suit. They are a fun addition and can make or break games for players. Like Pokeballs that let loose Pokemon who help and damage anyone around them items called Assist Trophies offer a similar advantage but use characters from other games. The Excitebike riders in their 2D form run down your opponents or Shadow the Hedgehog slows down time for everyone. Other new items make appearances and it feels slightly harder to eliminate opponents now but other than that it’s... well... Smash.
For the lone player there are a lot of modes at your disposal. Returning modes like Classic (where you take part in eleven or so random battles) and All-Star (which again involves fighting every character in the game with only one life) are back offering a decent challenge. If mini games are your thing than look no further as the stadium section has what you need with home run contest (beat a sandbag and hit it as far as possible with a baseball bat) and multi-man brawl (beat on as many enemies as possible) are here as well as break the targets. (which sadly only has five levels rather than one for every character) Note though any of these (apart from Classic mode) can be played with a friend in co-op which is a great addition.
The big single player experience is to be found in the Subspace Emissary. Here you’ll find an eight or so hour adventure that focuses on platforming based battling rather than static fights. Split into over thirty chapters you take control of several characters in each and make you way through jungles, mountains, boss encounters and more. It is an okay attempt at something a little different, but the platforming parts don’t feel totally right with the control scheme here causing some unwanted deaths. On the upside it is cool seeing all these gaming legends in one place fighting side by side when you’re used to only seeing them in their own titles.
It comes as no surprise that this is the greatest multiplayer experience on the Wii to date offering hours of fun if you have friends at the ready. Want to play as giant characters then go ahead. Or maybe if you’d rather have a health restriction you can. The game is so customisable you’ll be discovering new ways to play for months to come.
Brawl is also online so for the lone player it definitely adds to the games lifespan. However just how in depth is the online mode? Great for games with people you know. Not so great for stranger play. Once you’ve gone through the process of adding you friends codes you can then play pretty much any multiplayer mode and set the time/ stock/ items to whatever you please. When you play stranger mode however, all those options go out the window. Yes you can play team or free for all and set the items to what you like, but every match is under a time limit of two minutes. Pretty restricting. There is the option to view games and bet coins on a winner which is strangely addictive too as well as participate with someone in the stadium games. But where are the online leagues or tournament options? With no way of tracking any stats playing online is simply just random matches against randomly skilled players. As for lag since I’m using a US version of the game I’m more than likely playing Americans which has lead to some lag, but playing friends from UK who also have the game has fared better with little or no lag whatsoever.
There’s so much to do if you’re playing single player, co-op is offered in a majority of the modes, online, and the multiplayer is reason enough to buy this game. Then there are the collectables. Once you’ve unlocked the hidden characters and stages there are also the trophies and stickers of which there are many. The stickers are simply nothing more than character art from a range of games to collect as you play any of the games modes. (Bearing in mind there are supposedly over 800 of them) The trophies however are truly remarkable. Offering character poses and items as well as a wealth of Nintendo history ranging from the FLUDD pack from Sunshine to Rambi from Donkey Kong Country this is a dream for any Nintendo fan.
Character wise this is the best yet in a Smash fighter with 35 making the final count once everyone has been unlocked. Of course you have old favourites like Mario, Link, Donkey Kong, Pikachu and Samus who have been tweaked slightly. (Some with new moves and some with power upped or lowered to level the playing field.) But along for the ride are newcomers Diddy Kong, Ike, Metaknight and King Dedede. Not to mention unexpected fighters Solid Snake and Sonic the Hedgehog who at first worried me as to whether they would handle okay and fit in with an all Nintendo crowd. It’s safe to say though that they are great additions to the roster and offer some new methods of fighting to the mix.
There are too many stages to count in the game and each one offers a different and unique obstacle to avoid or take advantage of so it’s worth trying them all. From Mario Sunshine’s Delfino Plaza and Starfox’s battle across the Lylat System right through to the open sea of Wind Waker and even the legendary Green Hill Zone. Each offer little features that will make any past Nintendo, Sonic or Metal Gear fan smile. Whether it’s the spinning checkpoints from past Sonic games, crazy mini games that you have to complete whilst fighting during the WarioWare stage or the detailed mansion from Luigi’s Gamecube effort. But HAL haven’t stopped there. Included are around ten Melee stages and while some aren’t the best that they could have included especially since Brawl has remade some of them anyway, there are some like the Cranky’s cabin over rushing waters stage from Donkey Kong Country that are more than welcome. And again it doesn’t end there. As well as new stages and old stages thrown in is a stage creator. Here you can develop a small, medium or large level with spikes, moving platforms, ruins and more and at the moment I have to say this has grown on me and I can see many impressive stages being created by committed designers.
Visually this game is impressive. The transition from the first game to Melee was amazing and after playing Brawl it’s clear that this game beats the Gamecube version hands down. Just have a look at Mario or Link and compare them to their Melee versions. You’ll see a big difference. The bottom line is the characters visually are awesome with animations that look so fluid and smooth. But saying that it doesn’t mean the stages are a slouch since they aren’t. One complaint from Melee was that backgrounds looked a little bland and not as good as the level itself. That has been cleared up and everything looks great. Overall it’s one of the best looking games on the Wii.
Now the music. Honestly it has to be the greatest collection of tracks I have had the pleasure of hearing in any game to date. Sure HAL could have done a one or two music tracks for every stage but why not try around six, seven and more. Included in this game are well over 200 tracks that include original untouched tunes such as Rainbow Road from Double Dash or newer remixes like Angel Island Zone from Sonic 3. Basically you’ll find music for nearly every major Nintendo franchise past and present most of which are fully orchestrated.
So we come to that final verdict. Was there really any doubt as to the excellence of this title? Super Smash Bros Brawl is definitely up there with the likes of Corruption and even Galaxy. While it may not be as fresh and innovative as those two titles it seems like what HAL have done has pushed the series to its peak making for one of the most expertly crafted games on the Wii and possibly of this generation. The game has so much going for it and you’d be crazy not to buy this when it EVENTUALLY makes it over here.
97%
Super Smash Bros isn’t your average fighter. Gone are health bars and long combos to learn. Instead you have a unique take on KO-ing your opponent and a simple battle system that has hidden depth as well. Basically you choose from one of over thirty Nintendo and third party mascots, then choose a themed arena and beat the living daylights out of each other for a set time or life count. Elimination is done so by inflicting enough damage on your opponent so they get blasted so far off the stage they can’t get back. Every time you punch, kick, shoot a fireball, throw, consume, whack or do any move you cause your opponent’s percentage counter to rise. The idea is the higher the percentage the further your character will fly when they get struck. For example if Mario has 13% damage he isn’t going to go very far when hit by Bowser, but say he had 123% damage one massive butt bash from Bowser will surely shoot Mario out of the arena and give Bowser a point. You can either get hit so high you disappear into the background, left or right of the stage or down below if you simply can’t make it back on after being pounded away. That is the idea of Smash Bros and it’s been that way since the first title on the Nintendo 64 so it’s great that much hasn’t changed here.
As I mentioned before long combos are not to be worried about here. You have you usual punches and kicks at the press of the A button with a direction on the analogue, special moves with the B and direction buttons and jumping with Y. Seems simple but with blocking, dodging and smash moves to master too there is actually a deep game to uncover here. Once you’ve gotten to grips with your favourite characters you’ll learn their strengths and weaknesses and master them. But it’s been that way since day one. What is new in Brawl? Well it feels the same as Melee and handles the same but has minor tweaks here and there. Final Smashes have been thrown in to up the chaos rewarding the player who destroys the floating glowing ball with a extra powerful special move. These can range from Sonic turning into Super Sonic and flying around the arena smashing anyone in sight or Samus unleashing a devastating beam before losing her famous suit. They are a fun addition and can make or break games for players. Like Pokeballs that let loose Pokemon who help and damage anyone around them items called Assist Trophies offer a similar advantage but use characters from other games. The Excitebike riders in their 2D form run down your opponents or Shadow the Hedgehog slows down time for everyone. Other new items make appearances and it feels slightly harder to eliminate opponents now but other than that it’s... well... Smash.
For the lone player there are a lot of modes at your disposal. Returning modes like Classic (where you take part in eleven or so random battles) and All-Star (which again involves fighting every character in the game with only one life) are back offering a decent challenge. If mini games are your thing than look no further as the stadium section has what you need with home run contest (beat a sandbag and hit it as far as possible with a baseball bat) and multi-man brawl (beat on as many enemies as possible) are here as well as break the targets. (which sadly only has five levels rather than one for every character) Note though any of these (apart from Classic mode) can be played with a friend in co-op which is a great addition.
The big single player experience is to be found in the Subspace Emissary. Here you’ll find an eight or so hour adventure that focuses on platforming based battling rather than static fights. Split into over thirty chapters you take control of several characters in each and make you way through jungles, mountains, boss encounters and more. It is an okay attempt at something a little different, but the platforming parts don’t feel totally right with the control scheme here causing some unwanted deaths. On the upside it is cool seeing all these gaming legends in one place fighting side by side when you’re used to only seeing them in their own titles.
It comes as no surprise that this is the greatest multiplayer experience on the Wii to date offering hours of fun if you have friends at the ready. Want to play as giant characters then go ahead. Or maybe if you’d rather have a health restriction you can. The game is so customisable you’ll be discovering new ways to play for months to come.
Brawl is also online so for the lone player it definitely adds to the games lifespan. However just how in depth is the online mode? Great for games with people you know. Not so great for stranger play. Once you’ve gone through the process of adding you friends codes you can then play pretty much any multiplayer mode and set the time/ stock/ items to whatever you please. When you play stranger mode however, all those options go out the window. Yes you can play team or free for all and set the items to what you like, but every match is under a time limit of two minutes. Pretty restricting. There is the option to view games and bet coins on a winner which is strangely addictive too as well as participate with someone in the stadium games. But where are the online leagues or tournament options? With no way of tracking any stats playing online is simply just random matches against randomly skilled players. As for lag since I’m using a US version of the game I’m more than likely playing Americans which has lead to some lag, but playing friends from UK who also have the game has fared better with little or no lag whatsoever.
There’s so much to do if you’re playing single player, co-op is offered in a majority of the modes, online, and the multiplayer is reason enough to buy this game. Then there are the collectables. Once you’ve unlocked the hidden characters and stages there are also the trophies and stickers of which there are many. The stickers are simply nothing more than character art from a range of games to collect as you play any of the games modes. (Bearing in mind there are supposedly over 800 of them) The trophies however are truly remarkable. Offering character poses and items as well as a wealth of Nintendo history ranging from the FLUDD pack from Sunshine to Rambi from Donkey Kong Country this is a dream for any Nintendo fan.
Character wise this is the best yet in a Smash fighter with 35 making the final count once everyone has been unlocked. Of course you have old favourites like Mario, Link, Donkey Kong, Pikachu and Samus who have been tweaked slightly. (Some with new moves and some with power upped or lowered to level the playing field.) But along for the ride are newcomers Diddy Kong, Ike, Metaknight and King Dedede. Not to mention unexpected fighters Solid Snake and Sonic the Hedgehog who at first worried me as to whether they would handle okay and fit in with an all Nintendo crowd. It’s safe to say though that they are great additions to the roster and offer some new methods of fighting to the mix.
There are too many stages to count in the game and each one offers a different and unique obstacle to avoid or take advantage of so it’s worth trying them all. From Mario Sunshine’s Delfino Plaza and Starfox’s battle across the Lylat System right through to the open sea of Wind Waker and even the legendary Green Hill Zone. Each offer little features that will make any past Nintendo, Sonic or Metal Gear fan smile. Whether it’s the spinning checkpoints from past Sonic games, crazy mini games that you have to complete whilst fighting during the WarioWare stage or the detailed mansion from Luigi’s Gamecube effort. But HAL haven’t stopped there. Included are around ten Melee stages and while some aren’t the best that they could have included especially since Brawl has remade some of them anyway, there are some like the Cranky’s cabin over rushing waters stage from Donkey Kong Country that are more than welcome. And again it doesn’t end there. As well as new stages and old stages thrown in is a stage creator. Here you can develop a small, medium or large level with spikes, moving platforms, ruins and more and at the moment I have to say this has grown on me and I can see many impressive stages being created by committed designers.
Visually this game is impressive. The transition from the first game to Melee was amazing and after playing Brawl it’s clear that this game beats the Gamecube version hands down. Just have a look at Mario or Link and compare them to their Melee versions. You’ll see a big difference. The bottom line is the characters visually are awesome with animations that look so fluid and smooth. But saying that it doesn’t mean the stages are a slouch since they aren’t. One complaint from Melee was that backgrounds looked a little bland and not as good as the level itself. That has been cleared up and everything looks great. Overall it’s one of the best looking games on the Wii.
Now the music. Honestly it has to be the greatest collection of tracks I have had the pleasure of hearing in any game to date. Sure HAL could have done a one or two music tracks for every stage but why not try around six, seven and more. Included in this game are well over 200 tracks that include original untouched tunes such as Rainbow Road from Double Dash or newer remixes like Angel Island Zone from Sonic 3. Basically you’ll find music for nearly every major Nintendo franchise past and present most of which are fully orchestrated.
So we come to that final verdict. Was there really any doubt as to the excellence of this title? Super Smash Bros Brawl is definitely up there with the likes of Corruption and even Galaxy. While it may not be as fresh and innovative as those two titles it seems like what HAL have done has pushed the series to its peak making for one of the most expertly crafted games on the Wii and possibly of this generation. The game has so much going for it and you’d be crazy not to buy this when it EVENTUALLY makes it over here.
97%
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yeah,i hate to be a party pooper ummm me and my bro finished it in like idon't know about 7 3/4.
yeah,i hate to be a party pooper ummm me and my bro finished it in like idon't know about 7 3/4.
pb wrote:
> See my review of Lair in this forum for more on what I thought
> about that game!
I've already read it :) I read all or most of the reviews around here.
Rest assured, I found it informative and well balanced.
> See my review of Lair in this forum for more on what I thought
> about that game!
I've already read it :) I read all or most of the reviews around here.
Rest assured, I found it informative and well balanced.
See my review of Lair in this forum for more on what I thought about that game!
After saying all that, I only go and find Pro Evo 2008 on the Wii.
Looks fantastic! A perfect breath of fresh air :)
Looks fantastic! A perfect breath of fresh air :)
Ghost Killer wrote:
> I totally disagree. Super Mario Galaxy, Twilight Princess, No
> More Heroes, Fire Emblem, Zack and Wiki. They are some of the
> most fun games I've played in a while and it isn't always down to
> depth. Granted I do like games with a lot of depth but I've never
> bought a Wii game and regretted it. (nearly never :S) I consider
> the experience more important than anything else. Smash Bros may
> seem shallow on the outside but it's a game where you can get
> really skilled at with practice and like normal fighters string
> combos together.
Fair enough, but I'm saving my money for Mario Kart for my cheap thrills at the moment.
> ... And by the way. Wasn't Lair the game that got pretty poor
> reviews across the web?
Yeah... But I reckon that's down to the over hyping of it :) I played it and thought it was a brilliant game.
> I totally disagree. Super Mario Galaxy, Twilight Princess, No
> More Heroes, Fire Emblem, Zack and Wiki. They are some of the
> most fun games I've played in a while and it isn't always down to
> depth. Granted I do like games with a lot of depth but I've never
> bought a Wii game and regretted it. (nearly never :S) I consider
> the experience more important than anything else. Smash Bros may
> seem shallow on the outside but it's a game where you can get
> really skilled at with practice and like normal fighters string
> combos together.
Fair enough, but I'm saving my money for Mario Kart for my cheap thrills at the moment.
> ... And by the way. Wasn't Lair the game that got pretty poor
> reviews across the web?
Yeah... But I reckon that's down to the over hyping of it :) I played it and thought it was a brilliant game.
I totally disagree. Super Mario Galaxy, Twilight Princess, No More Heroes, Fire Emblem, Zack and Wiki. They are some of the most fun games I've played in a while and it isn't always down to depth. Granted I do like games with a lot of depth but I've never bought a Wii game and regretted it. (nearly never :S) I consider the experience more important than anything else. Smash Bros may seem shallow on the outside but it's a game where you can get really skilled at with practice and like normal fighters string combos together.
... And by the way. Wasn't Lair the game that got pretty poor reviews across the web?
... And by the way. Wasn't Lair the game that got pretty poor reviews across the web?
pb wrote:
> I disagree, most of the Wii games in my collection are still
> there because I still play them.
>
> You could argue that about any game on any system, really.
I'm not so sure you could, you can argue quite easily that a lot of the games on the Wii are more fun to play, but when you put them up against 360/PS3 games like Oblivion, Lair, GTA, Gran Turismo, Devil May Cry etc, I just think they fall short in terms of depth.
Sure, Wii games are fun to play, but for me, they just don't last.
> I disagree, most of the Wii games in my collection are still
> there because I still play them.
>
> You could argue that about any game on any system, really.
I'm not so sure you could, you can argue quite easily that a lot of the games on the Wii are more fun to play, but when you put them up against 360/PS3 games like Oblivion, Lair, GTA, Gran Turismo, Devil May Cry etc, I just think they fall short in terms of depth.
Sure, Wii games are fun to play, but for me, they just don't last.
I disagree, most of the Wii games in my collection are still there because I still play them.
You could argue that about any game on any system, really.
You could argue that about any game on any system, really.
It's always looked like another Wii game you regret buying after a week as, like most games on the Wii, the novelty will wear off and you'll be left with yet another pretty basic and un-involving game.
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