The weekend that Spring Break commenced, "Super Smash Brothers Brawl," available for Nintendo Wii, finally made its U.S. release after numerous delays, and the anticipation was palpable. For the first time, I went to a midnight launch of a game; I wanted it in my hands as soon as possible. I was not the only one. During the first week of its release, "Brawl" sold at a rate of 120 units per minute.
After spending 80 hours with the game so far, I can say with confidence that "Brawl" is easily the best game in the "Smash Bros." series, and probably the defining game of the Wii library.
"Brawl" is so perfectly sculpted because it relies on the foundation laid down by previous games in the "Smash Bros." series. At heart, it is still the same general idea: Nintendo icons, such as Mario, Link, Samus, and Kirby, battle on a series of platforms. Matches follow a sort of "King of the Mountain" approach: The winner is the last one remaining after all other competitors have been knocked off the stage beyond a point of recovery.
What makes "Brawl" so special is its impressive cast: 35 playable characters, which does not include characters who are actually several in one. Like in "Melee," Zelda can still turn into Sheik; additionally, Samus can lose her robotic look and transform into Zero Suit Samus, a character that plays entirely different from normal Samus. Among the many newcomers in "Brawl," there is a Pokemon Trainer who uses three different Pokemon that can be switched out at will. These variations buff up the robust 35 playable character list even more.
In the shift from the original "Smash Bros." to "Melee," the developers sped up the gameplay vastly. "Brawl," while not as slow as the original, has certainly been slowed down, which makes for a more fluid fighting experience. This does not mean that "Brawl" has lost the sense of randomness and chaos that defines the "Smash" series.
Many of the new items are incredibly creative and fun to use. Three related pieces, called "Dragoon Parts," randomly spawn throughout a match; one must collect all three of these pieces, resulting in the appearance of a targeting reticule on the screen. The one who has all three pieces then has free rein to attempt a one-hit K.O. on an opponent. The battle for these pieces is always frantic because someone can lose the pieces they pick up if hit strongly enough.
The "Final Smash" is the biggest addition to the item list, but unfortunately, it's also the biggest disappointment. The concept is quite cool, reminiscent of the fatalities of "Mortal Kombat" fame. A Final Smash is a move that typically allows the user to get a one-hit KO on one or multiple opponents. The problem here is that the "Final Smashes" are so unbalanced: Sonic's is nearly broken because it is so good, but other characters have a hard time getting even one kill. I would have preferred if the "Final Smashes" worked more like the aforementioned "Dragoon Parts." "Final Smashes" tend to appear too often as well, resulting in matches that are won or lost on the luck of getting the Final Smash. To tell the truth, the group that I play with has decided to turn "Final Smashes" off entirely.
Another innovation in the series that is implemented better than the "Final Smashes" is the lengthy story mode. Through a series of cutscenes, Nintendo's heroes work together to save the world?old hat for them. What's new is the cross-dimensional aspect of it all. Only in "Brawl" can Samus team up with Pikachu to wreak havoc on bad guys. The story is surprisingly dark, which is refreshing, considering Nintendo's usually lighthearted approach.
The story mode is also appreciated for its two-player co-op. Scott Lavigne '08 suggested that the co-op was similar to the way Sonic and Tails worked together in "Sonic the Hedgehog 2," the classic Sega Genesis game. The co-op aspect certainly adds a lot to the experience; over break, I played through and beat the story mode on my own, but since coming back to Bowdoin, I have been playing it co-op, and it is much better.
"Super Smash Brothers Brawl" is a culmination of everything great that the series has been in the past. With the inclusion of online multiplayer, the replay value of "Brawl" is almost infinite. Other excellent features, such as a stage builder and daily downloads of new stages available from Nintendo, ensure replayability to an even greater extent. "Brawl" is a game that will last many years. At least until the next version comes out.