Michael Szabo
The screen lights up, the Wii whirls and Nintendo’s masterpiece finally comes to life. Super Smash Bros. Brawl (SSBB) is the third game in its series and by far the best.
At the manufacturer’s suggested retail price of $49.99, this game is worth every penny. This latest addition, rated T, delivers the perfection that fans have come to expect.
The fighting system of the previous games comes fully intact, with new additions to moves, stages and characters.
SSBB can be accused of being a copy of its cousins, but the resemblance is only skin deep. The controls are much the same, and the game can be played with either the Wii controller or the classic GameCube controller many are familiar with.
The single-player mode involves either classic mode, the tried and true fighting style of one opponent after the other until no more are left, or the story mode.
Story mode is a little bit of a letdown with long load times, lots of cut scenes, mostly boring fights and random enemies being thrown left and right at your character of choice.
Multiplayer is what this game was created for and it shines just as brightly as the game before. Though the graphics for the fighters are marginally better, the levels and landscapes behind them have been massively upgraded.
Almost every level has something interactive to do with the stage, whether it be dodging lava or speeding karts and cars, playing mini-games during the fight, or dodging incoming fire from passing aircraft. If you’re not one of the people fighting, chances are you’re watching the beautifully designed backgrounds and music tailored to every level.
There is online play as well, but at the moment it is a bit slow, which Nintendo will hopefully fix in the coming days. Unlockables are also back in myriads, including fighters, levels, achievements and music. Each is kept track of in a separate part of the game and when you unlock one of these, you can get hints on how to unlock a few more.
This game is one that will keep both advanced players and new ones alike entertained for hours on end. SSBB is worth getting for any Wii owner, and should be looked into for anybody remotely interesting in fighting games. Let the brawl begin.
B+
(Courtesy of Nintendo America.)
