Conclusions and Final Score
SSBB is definitely one of the better titles on the Wii in the graphics department. However, much like its predecessor, the action gets rather confusing when large stages come into play. Nintendo tried to help things out by incorporating better labels to help keep track of who's who, but in the end, it still doesn't help the clutter. Smaller levels felt easier to manage visually, but once the medium-to-large arenas came into play, it's easy to get lost within the mix of other CPU or human-controller opponents. Large characters become nothing more than small sprites when the camera suddenly zooms out. Throw in additional characters that are identical to your own, and you might find yourself trying to control the wrong one.
Even in the single-player campaign, the action can get a little hairy. Here you're offered the typical side-scrolling package of platforming goodness as well as the accompanying nightmare maneuvers and situations where memorized timing is the only key to success. But what makes this different in SSBB is how arena-style fighting comes into play: if your character strays too far left or right - even if your character was just there moments before - that's considered as a "ring-out." Still, the same holds true with opponents as well and can come in right handy when overwhelmed from every direction.
Super Smash Bros. Brawl will likely the become the dominant Wii title for years to come.
Outside the brawl/platform mechanics, the single-player campaign actually featured a meatier story than Melee told through beautifully rendered cutscenes. Players take control of more than just one character, and actually get to choose the order of the team before beginning a stage. The story itself tried to pull off some "I'm your father" moments by leading you to believe who is actually transporting part of the world into Subspace, and then revealing that it's in fact someone else. In the end, the revelation of the true antagonist became secondary in interest next to actually completing the story mode in order to unlock the remaining characters. Still, it was rather neat to see Sonic make an appearance at the end alongside Pikachu and Solid Snake, showing just how intertwined once-rivals Sega and Nintendo have become. As mentioned before, expect to return to certain single-player stages in order to have a 100 percent completion and unlock all the characters available.
Overall, despite a few annoyances, SSBB is a class act game, worthy to be deemed as the game to buy on the Nintendo Wii. The pre-release hype built around the game may have generated doubt, but what you find under the cover is pure gaming gold. Already SSBB is loved by millions, offering something for everyone, for every age. Simply put, SSBB is excellent in presentation and execution. While the graphics are brighter and more fluid, fans of the series won't be taken aback by a huge upgrade. No, what you see here is a highly refined, working formula. While controls may not be for everyone, the overall package will cause gamers to overlook the quirkiness. Be forewarned, however: SSBB is highly addictive, especially if you have a Wi-Fi connection or older kids running through the house. The game offers a good butt kicking amongst friends and family without the bruises and we love that kind of abuse. Expect SSBB to be the remaining champ for years to come.
Where I Am Coming From: I was never a huge fan of the Smash Bros series, yet I have a copy of Melee in my Gamecube library. I pulled that game out and had a look and compared to what the series offers now. What I discovered is that I was once a PC gamer purebred, playing nothing but FPS games and RPGs. Now that I've become cozier with console games, I've become more open to new things. SSBB was hard to pull away from simply because I'm obsessive and I love to unlock things, but it was also addictive because it's such an awesome game on a whole.
What I Compared It To: Naturally, I compared it to the other games of the franchise. While I'm not all too familiar with the original title, I sat down and played a good chunk of Melee on the Gamecube just to have some kind of reference. What else can you compare SSBB to? Is there another game like this on the market? Leave a message on the forum and I would be more than happy to check it out.
What I Liked: I loved the entire package, but what really stood out was the fact that you can bring multiple players together without guns and gore and excessive violence. Sure, we're pounding each other with objects and special moves but the game offers clean fun both offline and online. I loved the fact that gamers could jump online to fight friends of strangers. Stage Builder is great, too; there's nothing cooler than playing user-made content. I also loved the huge amounts of unlockable content. From music to playable characters, this game has tons of content to unleash. While the single-player game was entertaining, the awesome cutscenes made the Subspace Emissary campaign worth playing (outside getting new characters). With all that said, there's just too much of what I liked to put here.
What I Didn't Like: My gripes are few and far in-between. I'm not a big fan of the controls, but they were certainly tolerable, especially when using the Gamecube controller. I can't help think that there could have been a better way to implement jumps and dashing. While I loved the Wi-Fi connection, I was a bit annoyed that I couldn't share the maps I created in the Stage Builder. And lastly, while Nintendo seemed to have attempted to address the clutter on-screen since Melee, things just get too hard to visually comprehend when the camera pulls out and you see nothing but names jumping around on the screen.
Value Meter: Is the game worth your 50 bucks? Hell yes, and then some. This is the greatest Wii game to date, packing in more surprises and content than a circus clown car. You'll play this game for years, perhaps beyond the console's shelf life much like Melee on the Gamecube and Smash Bros in the Nintendo 64. Go get it now.
Final Score: 9.5 out of 10
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