By Robert Rodriguez
I think it’s safe to say that the latest entry in the Super Smash Bros. series is one of the most anticipated games from Nintendo this year. Many of the announcements for the game revolved around additions such as new gameplay modes and more characters to choose from. The best part seemed to be that it was the first game of its series to be on a portable console (the Wii U version of the game will be released later this year). It seemed that a lot was expected for the game from fans. Did the game live up to expectations?
There are 49 playable characters, including customizable fighters you can create. That’s actually a pretty big roster when talking about fighting games. There are older characters such as Mario, Link and Kirby, who have come back to the series, and there are new characters such as Mega Man, Pac-Man, and Shulk from Xenoblade Chronicles. It was amazing to see such a variety of characters from different games both from Nintendo and third party companies such as Sega and Capcom. However, one complaint I have is that some characters are too similar. This is more of a minor complaint since the game has a good variety of characters with different fighting styles this time around.
There are a variety of modes to play through. Classic mode is the regular single-player mode. In All-Star mode, you can fight characters in order of when they first appeared in the gaming world. In Smash Run, you pick a character and fight enemies in a small over world. After beating these enemies, you earn upgrades such as higher attack, defense and special move damages. The player is in the over world for five minutes, then they face three computer controlled characters with adjusted stats. While I didn’t get too into this game mode, I did like how it was new and different to the series. It’s worth trying out just to explore the over world a bit, even if you have only five minutes to do so.
Probably the best new feature to the new Super Smash Bros. game is the Create a Fighter and Customize Fighter options. In Create a Fighter, you make a fighter out of Mii characters you have previously created. There are three types of fighters that you can make your Miis into: the Brawler, the Sword Fighter, and the Gunner. These character types are pretty self-explanatory. I can’t tell you enough about how awesome it is to create certain Miis and have them fight. For example, I created an Abraham Lincoln Mii and made him a Sword Fighter. It’s ridiculous, I know, but it’s awesome (seriously though, did you know that Abraham Lincoln was once in a duel where he and his opponent fought with broadswords? No kidding; it’s a legit fact).
You can customize any character in the game. You can adjust stats such as attacks and defense and you can change special moves which you unlock in different modes in the game. However, the stats and specials stay only in single player modes and local play with friends.
Speaking of playing with other people, that’s usually the best feature in the Super Smash Bros. games. However, online mode has its issues. For example, there seems to be a lot of lag during matches, even if it’s just two players fighting online. The gaming community has already complained about this and I hope that Nintendo will fix the problems. I’m sure online mode would be fun minus the issues with lag.
Besides minor nitpicks here and there about the game, it’s very much worth your money if you are a Super Smash Bros. fan or a 3DS owner. The huge roster of players and customizing options make this an awesome new game. As for the Wii U version, we’ll just have to wait and see.
riverobe@my.dom.edu
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