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"An alternative to Smash Bros"

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Sun 30/06/02 at 15:33
Regular
Posts: 787
I don't know how many of you have played Powerstone on the Dreamcast but I'm sure that those of you who have will agree that it is far superior to Smash Bros Melee.

According to NGC Mag, Melee is the best game on the GC at the moment but in my opinion, it's certainly inferior to Powerstone 2 on the DC (I've never played the first one).

Multiplayer is enormous fun on Melee I agree but it is no where near as much fun as Powerstone 2.

First off, the arenas in Melee are, what I would honestly describe as dismal. I seem to remember the ones on the N64 version being far bigger and more complicated. Most of them on Melee are just flat areas which are pretty small. These pale in comparison to Powerstone 2's much larger, more detailed arenas which change as the fight goes on. Okay so some of the arenas in Melee change after a certain amount of time but they don't make the fight much different, and because Powerstone was a fully 3D game where you could wander all around the arena, the shape and size of the arena (as well as the objects in it) had a huge effect on the fight.

The transition period also had an effect. In Melee, it's just a simple change while the fight contniues. In Powerstone on the other hand, you would actually be required to run or jump to the next stage of the arena. For example, in the tomb area after a certain time the floor would crumble. Each character would fall into a straight corridor and would have to run along it to reach the other end before the boulder that is persuing them catches up and damages them. Two skateboards would be awaiting the quickest 2 players at the beginning of the corridor and a scramble for the skateboards would always be fun. The two unfortuntae players however, would still have the chance to get a skateboard by beating another play off one. Then when the end of the corridor was finally reached, the door would close once 2 of the characters had walked through. Those two characters would emerge in the final area unharmed. The other 2 would fall from the ceiling and take some damage. This made the fights so much more fun and not all the levels followed this same structure. Another had you falling from the sky grabbing desperately at umbrellas to break the fall while another one had you jumping up a number of ledges to reach the top of a castle.

Then there was the matter of special moves. Each fighter in Melee has 4 rather unspectacular special moves which can be executed an infinite number of times throughout the entire fight, at any time. The fighters in Powerstoine on the other hand each had 2 special moves each. However, they could not be used at any time. Your power bar would have to be filled first and then you had the opportunity to perform your special moves. Different moves took a different amount off your power bar and when it was depleted, you could no longer do the moves. Again, this added another aspect to the fights as players would always be weary of their opponents' special moves. Plus, unlike Melee, these moves WERE impressive. Choosing between Dr. Mario throwing a pill or a red spaceman jumping up in the air and firing 25 missiles (each of which larger than his body!) all around him isn't the hardest of choices. Red spacedude all the way!

I have to say that I think Melee is highly over rated. It is a good game I agree but it isn't deserving of the massive 95% score it recieved in NGC. There is more to do in Melee with all the special modes and options, there are more characters and there are a lot more arenas (not surprising considering the complexity of the arena's in the two games) but Powerstone is just so much more fun. It might be due to the fact that Powerstone is fully 3D so allows more freedom when fighting, but regardless of what it is, I see Powerstone 2 as a far superior game.

Granted the GC has only be out for 2 months and the DC for 3 years, but the DC has a better multiplayer game that the GC. Oooohhhh! :-D

Anyway, better put in a good point for the GC here before I get battered. Errrr....lots of good games coming out at the end of the year. But Turok was never known for its great multiplayer and I don't believe Metroid even has a confirmed multiplayer yet!

Anyway, if you've got a DC packed away in the cupboard and you like Smash Bros, then go get yourself a copy of Powerstone 2. Tis much better.

http://includes.reserve.co.uk/ listings/extrainfo.php?co=SL3340
(Remove the space and ignore the pathetically poor box)
Mon 01/07/02 at 00:06
Regular
"Peace Respect Punk"
Posts: 8,069
Yeah, Mazza all the way!!! :D
Sun 30/06/02 at 23:15
Regular
"Rong Xion Tong"
Posts: 5,237
Strafex wrote:
> I can't simply say you're wrong because I've not played Powerstone.
> But seeing that you said that Virtua Fighter 4 was better for showing
> off and humiliating your opponent (in another post), I can't help but
> feel that you haven't seen the better side of Smash Brothers Melee.


--

I'm certainly no master at Smash Bros but I honestly can't see Smash Bros being more stylish than VF4. I mean, surely its easy for a button bashing opponent to get in a quick hit or two in smash Bros because it's so fast. Once you've become great with a character in VF4 (like Lei Fei the shaolin monk), and you learn all the different stances and moves from each stance, you usually dispose of an inexperienced opponent without being hit at all.

Getting into an evasive stance and then timing your move perfectly so as to parry an opponent's blow and then follow up with a devastating counter is just so impressive! You can't do that on Smash Bros.

I know that different people have different definitions of humiliating your opponent but for me, it's what I can do in VF4 rather what other people can do in Smash Bros.

Plus, Lei Fei's poncho thing blowing around his arms as he waves them everywhere makes you opponent look bad enough.

And that's with Lei Fei, labelled as a beginner! Just wait till I get good with Akira! I can still demolish opponents with him but I can only perform a few moves and it just doesn't look stylish.

Oh and pit Mario against Akira and there can be only one outcome!! :-D
Sun 30/06/02 at 22:18
Regular
Posts: 9,848
I haven't played Powerstone (1 or 2) so I can't go making comparations.

But I'd certainly say that even if you did take away the Nintendo characters, the Gameplay is worth that 95%.
I know that the moves a relatively limited and easy to pull off, but there's a huge amount of skill in pulling them off effectively while dodging your opponents attacks.

Also, Smash Brothers is as fast and as furious as a game where you're in control can get. I know that button bashers can fluke games quite annoyingly, but get a bit of practice with the controls and you can make mincemeat out of them (a beginner can get into it but there's plenty for an expert to master).

Putting this into 3D would either mean slowing things down or losing a lot of the control.

I can't simply say you're wrong because I've not played Powerstone.
But seeing that you said that Virtua Fighter 4 was better for showing off and humiliating your opponent (in another post), I can't help but feel that you haven't seen the better side of Smash Brothers Melee.
Sun 30/06/02 at 21:40
Regular
"Rong Xion Tong"
Posts: 5,237
I can see what you mean about the arena changes getting a bitting annoying in Powerstone and I can understand that it may do for some people, but it just didn't for me.

I never owned the game but I rented it 3 times, and then my mate bought it so whenever he came round (which was every weekend) we played it for ages.

I just thought that whatever it was you had to do was incrediblly good fun because you were always fighting at the same time, whether it be trying to knock someone off their skateboard, push them into a boulder, knock them off a ledge or steal their umbrella off them.

And I just think the fully 3D arenas made it so much more fun as well as the method of getting your special moves up.

And I also understand what you said about the Nintendo heritage and I am a great fan of Nintendo. It was good to see all the older character make an appearance. However, this didn't make the multiplayer games any more fun. Sure it was good to see Mario kicking the crap out of Peach but in the end, the gameplay just didn't match Powerstone for me.
Sun 30/06/02 at 17:59
Regular
Posts: 11,875
I agree with both of you, and Power Stone is a brilliant game. But Smash Bros is just more fun, it's fast and theres no pussying around, un-like the gimmicks of Power Stone 2. I really enjoyed Power Stone 1 & 2 on my DC, the fighing arenas were superb and the 3-D enviroment was very well excuted. However, in Power Stone 2 I did start to get a little annoyed at having to go through all those 'gimmicks' when really I just wanted to fight. Plus Smash Bros damage system, taking damage to knock you futher to try and get you off the edge, for me makes it better then Power Stone already. You can take the biggist of beatings but still manage to claw your way back. I generally don't like fighting games, the only ones I've ever enjoyed were Mortal Kombat 4 (for about 3 weeks) Smash Bros, DoA2 and the two Power Stones, and the reason is I dislike and get very bored with the 'hit them 'till they're energy bar has run out' format beat 'em ups follow.

Anyway they are still both great games, and hopefully another Power Stone will be made for the GC, then we can have three brilliant fighting games!
(Which reminds me, I liked Soul Calibar (sp?) as well)
Sun 30/06/02 at 17:49
Regular
Posts: 21,800
POwerstone 2's a great game but I don't think it's better than SSBM. It's hella good fun though and one of the best games on Dreamcast.
Sun 30/06/02 at 16:25
Regular
"Peace Respect Punk"
Posts: 8,069
Yeah, but the thing is many people may feel those arena thingies are just gimmicks if you know what I mean... and for Smash Bros. NGC actually said in multiplay it wasn't one of those games you can just win by mashing the pad, but it also wasn't a game where a novice player had absolutely no chance against a veteran... and that powerstone, although it sounds like fun, after a while I can't help but think all the changing arena and that lot must start to get in the way of the fighting...

Oh, and the 95% also took into account the fact that Smash Bros. is pretty much a piece of Ninty heritage... there's probably a character in there somewhere of just about every game the big N have ever made! Basically if you hate Nintendo the rewards won't seem like much cop, but if you're a big Ninty fan you're bound to love collecting all the trophies...

Anyhow, that's my word on the topic...
Sun 30/06/02 at 15:33
Regular
"Rong Xion Tong"
Posts: 5,237
I don't know how many of you have played Powerstone on the Dreamcast but I'm sure that those of you who have will agree that it is far superior to Smash Bros Melee.

According to NGC Mag, Melee is the best game on the GC at the moment but in my opinion, it's certainly inferior to Powerstone 2 on the DC (I've never played the first one).

Multiplayer is enormous fun on Melee I agree but it is no where near as much fun as Powerstone 2.

First off, the arenas in Melee are, what I would honestly describe as dismal. I seem to remember the ones on the N64 version being far bigger and more complicated. Most of them on Melee are just flat areas which are pretty small. These pale in comparison to Powerstone 2's much larger, more detailed arenas which change as the fight goes on. Okay so some of the arenas in Melee change after a certain amount of time but they don't make the fight much different, and because Powerstone was a fully 3D game where you could wander all around the arena, the shape and size of the arena (as well as the objects in it) had a huge effect on the fight.

The transition period also had an effect. In Melee, it's just a simple change while the fight contniues. In Powerstone on the other hand, you would actually be required to run or jump to the next stage of the arena. For example, in the tomb area after a certain time the floor would crumble. Each character would fall into a straight corridor and would have to run along it to reach the other end before the boulder that is persuing them catches up and damages them. Two skateboards would be awaiting the quickest 2 players at the beginning of the corridor and a scramble for the skateboards would always be fun. The two unfortuntae players however, would still have the chance to get a skateboard by beating another play off one. Then when the end of the corridor was finally reached, the door would close once 2 of the characters had walked through. Those two characters would emerge in the final area unharmed. The other 2 would fall from the ceiling and take some damage. This made the fights so much more fun and not all the levels followed this same structure. Another had you falling from the sky grabbing desperately at umbrellas to break the fall while another one had you jumping up a number of ledges to reach the top of a castle.

Then there was the matter of special moves. Each fighter in Melee has 4 rather unspectacular special moves which can be executed an infinite number of times throughout the entire fight, at any time. The fighters in Powerstoine on the other hand each had 2 special moves each. However, they could not be used at any time. Your power bar would have to be filled first and then you had the opportunity to perform your special moves. Different moves took a different amount off your power bar and when it was depleted, you could no longer do the moves. Again, this added another aspect to the fights as players would always be weary of their opponents' special moves. Plus, unlike Melee, these moves WERE impressive. Choosing between Dr. Mario throwing a pill or a red spaceman jumping up in the air and firing 25 missiles (each of which larger than his body!) all around him isn't the hardest of choices. Red spacedude all the way!

I have to say that I think Melee is highly over rated. It is a good game I agree but it isn't deserving of the massive 95% score it recieved in NGC. There is more to do in Melee with all the special modes and options, there are more characters and there are a lot more arenas (not surprising considering the complexity of the arena's in the two games) but Powerstone is just so much more fun. It might be due to the fact that Powerstone is fully 3D so allows more freedom when fighting, but regardless of what it is, I see Powerstone 2 as a far superior game.

Granted the GC has only be out for 2 months and the DC for 3 years, but the DC has a better multiplayer game that the GC. Oooohhhh! :-D

Anyway, better put in a good point for the GC here before I get battered. Errrr....lots of good games coming out at the end of the year. But Turok was never known for its great multiplayer and I don't believe Metroid even has a confirmed multiplayer yet!

Anyway, if you've got a DC packed away in the cupboard and you like Smash Bros, then go get yourself a copy of Powerstone 2. Tis much better.

http://includes.reserve.co.uk/ listings/extrainfo.php?co=SL3340
(Remove the space and ignore the pathetically poor box)

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