Super Smash Bros Brawl

Zerieth here once more with a new game review (Might make this a hobby.)

Fighting games have been a world favorite since the time of Mortal Combat and pin ball machines. The thought of beating the shit out of a friend, however fake, just brings out the best/worst in us all. I suspect when we are toying with laser pistols fighter games will remain.

Which brings me to Super Smash Bros. Brawl, a game that is hailed as one of the best additions to the world of fighter games. The game features super advanced fighting, large stages, and lots and lots of awesome music. It even has a online play and a stage builder.

My Rating for the game will be:
Playability
Graphical/Audio
Extra's (Gallery and Such)
Online


Playability in the super smash bros franchise has been one of the widest things in the gaming industry. A newby can have a lot of fun if his friends stink or they can choose from various A.I. levels from 1 (super stupid) to 9 (OMG IT'S OVER 9000!). In this installment the A.I. actually acts with half a brain and can give most a challenge on the 9th setting. It doesn't seem very capable of performing free for all games with multiple A.I.'s as the players are inevitably targeted and you might as well have the team mode on. Not surprising, but a bit disappointing.

In Melle things were complicated. We had L Canceling, Wave dashing, and a bunch of other things that would blow your mind. In Brawl we lost these things which caused a lot of people to cry fowl. Characters were slowed making short hopping much easier and off stage combat harder. Advanced techniques still exist but it took some looking by a large community of players to find them all. Now every character has it's own special gimmicks.

A Tier list was compiled some time ago listing all the game characters. That right there makes me a little sad as a good playability would mean ALL characters were created equal. That wouldn't be achievable in every instance unless they were all blobs of glop but I admit to having some hopes.

Playability gets a 4/5

Graphical and Audio content are extremly awesome. Nothing makes a man more proud than watching his foes die in high definition complete with awesome sound effects. You even get to watch them fall screaming in the background if you hit them hard enough or even watch the screen rock as they crash into your view screen. The music in the game is great by default and only gets better as you unlock more songs. Not much needs to be said here but I will add that I was thoroughly impressed.

Graphics/Audio content 5/5

Extra's are not really a big deal for the game but they can be helpful in the games campaign, which I include in this section. While the campaing, Subspace Emissary, is not required to unlock characters, it certainly helps things along as you unlock each character you meet. Subspace was quite awesome although our characters were more the strong and silent type. The bosses were challenging and the levels were all side scrolling 8 bit mario style games. The extra content even includes free trials of the games most of the characters come from, and a history/back ground of each character.

Extra's 5/5

Online is highly demanding and your standard DSL won't cut the mustard. High speed even seems to have problems if your location sucks. The lag can be terrible. That said the community, while quiet without a chat doodad, is quite fair. Players rarely gang up on each other and it really can be a free for all. You can even watch games as opposed to fighting foes. You pick stages and items through a vote system and your vote rarely counts for anything as far as items are concerned.

Online 4/5 (I hate that lag)

When I first played this game I wasn't to happy. My beloved Roy was gone and my second best Mario played like he was stuck in tar. It took me forever to adjust. I eventually dropped mario for Pikachu which was unplayable for me back in melle as he was a high demand character. Now he's my best and I have learned to, if not love, then respect this latest installment. My personal rating would be quite terrible at first but time has healed my wounds and I am ready to give this a true rating.

So without further ado, behind door number 1, ISSSSSSSSSSSSS!

Super Smash Bros Brawl (Final Grade)

Over all 4.5/5

Playability gets a 4/5
Graphics/Audio content 5/5
Extra's 5/5
Online 4/5

Final Say: The cute bug zapper turns me on when I thunder my foes to death.

Gotta love that thunder spam.