"Better than Melee? Is that even Possible?"

Circa 1999, a small-budget release known as Super Smash Brothers (Dairantou Smash Brothers in Japan) was released. From its inception as "Dragon King" to its release as a low-budget (and in Japan,) unmarketed title, the game quickly rose to stardom, featuring a cast of Nintendo heavyweights duking it out Sumo-style. Capitalizing on this success, a follow-up was released in the form of Super Smash Brothers Melee (Dairantou Smash Brothers DX), a close-to-launch game on the Nintendo GameCube. "Melee" (used as the de facto name for the remainder of this review) proved to be a huge success, scoring 6 million sales, making it the highest-selling game on the GameCube. With such a track record, it's no surprise that all eyes were set on the third title in the series. At the time of this writing, the Japanese version of Super Smash Brothers Brawl (Dairantou Smash Brothers X) has been released. How does it match up?

Gameplay
The controls are smooth, as should be expected. Things move a bit slower than in Melee, which has led to some dissatisfaction. While touting the move-set of Melee, the series has gone further back to its roots with Brawl. Fights are resolved more rapidly, and the barrier for off-screen death has been tightened, leading to a much more frenetic gameplay session in spite of the slower movement speed. The game has been more finely balanced as well -- contravening of the 35-character roster, "Heavies" no longer suffer dearly, and are actually effective this time around. Levels in general are now much more dynamic, though some classic Melee favorites have made their return in the "Past Stages" department. However, from evading killer tidal waves of lava (that's right, Lava!) to dodging explosive cannon fire from a pirate ship, "dynamic" does little justice to describe the action. Having your controls reversed, fighting upside-down, and evading killer 2-dimensional crabs doesn't even begin to describe the sadistic tendencies of director Masahiro Sakurai, not that we have reason to complain!

One of the new features in Brawl is the "Smash Ball". On occasion, it may appear floating on the screen. Given its extraordinary power, players typically make a mad dash for it in an attempt to break it. After 2~4 hits (a far more difficult task than it may seem), the player to deliver the final blow is endowed with the capacity to perform a super move, known as a "Final Smash". These moves are extremely powerful, and in spite of their extravagance, moderately well-balanced. Large, overarching Final Smashes tend to do far less damage, while the focused ones are often an instant kill. Characters with the latter types can "hold" their smashes until they get within range of use, but they risk losing their power-ups, as a sufficiently strong attack can knock the power-up out of them, bringing the ball back into play, and ensuing yet another rumble for the coveted super move. This does much to alleviate the "Mexican Standoffs" present in Melee.

One of the major changes from Melee is the reduced importance of friction. Some characters in Melee noticeably "slipped" when moving. This phenomenon is nearly non-existent in Brawl; when a character stops, he stops almost immediately. This presents much tighter control of the character, the lack of which being cited as one of the largest flaws of Melee. Additionally, directional "Air Dodges" have been removed from the game, dramatically reducing the elements of physics manipulation present in Melee. While, at the time of this writing, it remains to be seen whether new exploits will be found, the game has shifted a clear focus into more of a "party" game from the prequel's competitive nature, for better or worse.

Many new characters have been implemented into the now-35-character cast, some "clones" of existing characters with slightly-modified movesets, others of a brand new sort. Some of them even offer a completely unique playstyle all their own. All in all, the newly-introduced characters have proven exceptionally well-balanced, given their diverse playstyles and designs. Myriad new items are also introduced in this installment, from the hot-potato "Gooey Bomb" to the all-powerful "Golden Hammer", and even a portable hole (the "Pitfall"). Holding among the greatest notoriety is the Voltron-esque "Dragoon" of Kirby Air Ride fame, formed by the collection of three separate parts a la Power Stone, and culminating in a crosshair targeted One-shot kill against the player of your choice. Here, Brawl far outshines Melee's improvements over the original, with an amazing collection of new items dwarfing even the majesty of it's new character inclusions.

The game excels in its other departments as well. Notable among them, a new single-player mode known as "Subspace Emissary". The story is no narrative achievement to be sure, but it improves over the tacked-on single player modes of it's predecessors by leaps and bounds. Additionally, the game sports a bevy of partial demos, running the gamut of franchises, and offering a short but sweet distraction from a game that didn't need any distractions to begin with. Don't fret, however, as the old modes are back as well, but they too have seen a well-received upgrade; Events, the Multi-man "Melee" (now "Brawl"), and the Home Run Contest now all feature a Co-op mode. This time, the silent effigy of sandbag even appears in normal battles, in all his mouth-less glory. Beating down on him in the midst of a frenzied brawl is far more fun than it should be.

Even with all this, perhaps the greatest addition of all is that of a Level Editor. The toolset provides players with boundless ways to expound their creativity. Naturally, there's a lack of dynamism in these levels, especially when compared to the native stages of Brawl, but this is greatly offset by the freedom provided in tile placement. Everything from spikes to ladders to stairs is provided to allow the player to design them as he sees fit. What's more, the game provides us with an easy-to-use snapshot system, for those picture perfect moments when a builder's sadistic designs come to fruition in the middle of a heated smashfest.

Gameplay Score: 10/10

Music
You would be hard-pressed to find a game with a more bountiful cast of composers. From composers of such games as Wild ARMs, Devil May Cry, Xenogears, NiGHTS, and even Cho Aniki(?!), there may never be a wider strata of composers collected for one game again. The diversity of contributors shows. Immediately at the onset, you're introduced to a song with contribution by legendary Final Fantasy Composer Nobuo Uematsu himself, and the rest of the game does not disappoint. The collection of music available is simply astounding and in plenty. Throughout play, you'll constantly find yourself unlocking more music even long after doubting there was any more to be had. You'll more than once find yourself nodding your head to a catchy melody.

Sound
As is typical of any game, not much can be said of the sound. It's "there", and it's noticeable, but it's never a hugely positive advantage, and tends to become effectively inaudible in little time at all. The sounds have been retooled and are different from their Melee counterparts, and arguably sound more like their respective N64 originals, albeit at a naturally higher quality. There's little to complain about, which is fortunate, as sound can break a game, even if it can't make one.
Music/Sound Score: 10/10

Graphics
If you're expecting Crysis, you might want to look elsewhere. Brawl's graphics are, while not technically fantastic, pleasing enough to the eye. You won't be writing a dissertation on the dissemination of their pioneered graphical rendering techniques by any margin, but you certainly won't be averting your eyes either. Brawl's graphics are pleasing to look at, it's lighting is crisp, and it plays at a brisk frame rate. The models are fluidly animated, and appropriate to the characters' respective hit boxes. The color palette is rich and vibrant, and the locales are a thing of beauty. Like Melee before it, this game takes what graphics it gets, and utilizes them to an artful near-perfection rarely seen in the industry.
Graphics Score: 9/10

Replay Value
What more can be said than "It's a smash game"? Replay value is a given, and the multi-player, like melee before it, will keep you constantly coming back for more. Brawl promises to take it even further with a Wi-fi system that, while untested for this author, should provide loads of replayability beyond even it's excessive norm. If melee lasted six years (and counting), who knows how long Brawl will last?

Replay Value Score: 10/10

Overall (Not an Average): 10/10

Super Smash Brothers Brawl takes it's legendary predecessor and improves upon it by leaps and bounds. Competitive players may find the lack of technical potential disappointing, but Brawl is something that does what it does well -- beyond anything else at all, actually -- and that is frantic, chaotic battle royales of epic proportions. Do yourself a favor and buy this game. You won't regret it.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 02/11/08

Game Release: Dairantou Smash Brothers X (JP, 01/31/08)