Developer: Sora Ltd.
Publisher: Nintendo.
Available on: Wii

Prepare for another slathering of nostalgic and addictive action as Super Smash Bros. is back and most certainly bigger than ever. Nintendo have been all about the family fun of late, and for me no other series better exemplifies a Nintendo fueled all night bonding and gaming session than Super Smash Bros. The third installment of Nintendo’s mash-up fighting games comes to the Wii with online support, a new character roster and no limit on chaotic and colourful fun.

The precipice is unchanged, pit your favourite characters from a huge range of Nintendo series (and a couple of outliers) against each other and duke it out for territorial supremacy. Points are still earned by knocking your opponent out of the ring, each character still supports a variety of regular and smash attack moves, items and Pokémon are still frequent and that big booming announcer is oh ever-so-present.

It’s what’s new that makes Super Smash Bros. Brawl shine over it’s past titles. There’s a huge variety of new items, new characters from Snake to Sonic to Wario, new maps that host all sorts of interaction with the battle and the new Subspace Emissary campaign. There’s the new Smash Ball that randomly appears - waiting to be broken open to unleash specific powers for each character. There’s the new online multiplayer, new trophies and stickers, and 3 new ways to play!

Unfortunately my worst fear for Brawl was the first confirmed - it would have been pretty easy for Nintendo to take what Melee has already achieved and upgrade to Brawl, slap some new content in there and call it a whole new title and well - this feels too close to what’s been done. The gameplay is similar near identical to that of it’s predecessors with some matches looking like they could have easily been played on a copy of Melee. This is rare though and do not let it misguide - Brawl is an easily justified purchase for any fan of the series or for any fan of Nintendo. Only Nintendo could release what feels like a mere expansion of a title but pack it with so much quality content that it shines as a whole new game with that familiar action - fast, furious and addictive.

It’s hard to not sound like a fanboy while raving about Nintendo content but the true fact is, I AM a Nintendo fanboy, but also a fanboy of all gaming platforms leaving me open to get giddishly excited about anything and everything, including Brawl. So deal.

In fact recently I had the chance of briefly playing a few chaps at Brawl including Yahtzee Croshaw from Zero Punctuation and the crew from Australian Gamer. Not their prescribed gaming night, apparently I’m not cool enough for that (well of course, with PRAS taking up all the cool). Their reluctance and fragrant abuse made me realise that every person who I’ve heard of not liking Brawl (a figure in the single digits), well, they’re older than me. A lot of the speed and content in Brawl may be tough to grasp for mature gamers looking for a more sophisticated experience so you may need to open your mind a little to appreciate the simplistic yet expansive game that is Smash Bros Brawl.

The best part of Brawl is looking at the whole world of Nintendo rendered today, and it is certainly a pretty affair. Unfortunately there’s a limit to how well one can render a walking pink ball but that doesn’t stop Brawl from being a solid contender for the best visual presentation of any Wii game rivalled closely and only by Super Mario Galaxy. Each stage is a treat to watch and interact with, all levels being from the universe of a character in the line up, including Snake’s Shadow Moses Island, Sonic’s Green Hill Zone and even a new Pokemon Stadium, they all prove entertaining. The whole game is a massive blast from the past, mashing up items, worlds and characters from universes such as Mario, Zelda, Donkey Kong, StarFox, Sonic, Metal Gear Solid, Kirby, Fire Emblem, Animal Crossing and many many more. Even the vague references will enthuse Nintendo fans - including stickers from games such as Hotel Dusk and Advance Wars, or the playable character of R.O.B. the robot itself. The content from past Nintendo and third party franchises really continue to make Brawl a rewarding experience.

The single player campaign ‘The Subspace Emissary’ provides an enjoyable and much simpler route to unlocking characters than the earlier series but proves as nothing more - a sporadically repetitive romp to be completed once only and show off a lot of pre-rendered video while you’re there. New challenges are again included but the extra game modes are just getting old. The Brawl mode serves as a perfect outlet for multiplayer mayhem with a good range of customizability which is all that’s necessary, the ‘Smash The Targets!’ crap is just redundant now. With the third title using the exact game mechanics of it’s predecessors, there’s no interest in exploring this engine further with the extra game modes unless co-op with a friend. I could have sworn I’ve smashed these damn targets many a time before.

The biggest let down to Brawl by far is the similarity to the previous games, the core mechanics are still the exact same which could be a big turn off to those less enthusiastic on the series. The action is also very chaotic, not suited for those with epilepsy, senility, or the psychoactive. If you’re new to the series you have a lot to learn, and being repeatedly KO’d by your little sister could get frustrating as you learn that Diddy Kong’s final smash move is a one way jet pack ticket to hell. Don’t be fooled - Brawl uses the same simplistic attack layout consisting and somewhat limited to a special attack and regular attack button, but any amount of practice will always shine through and those not already in the know will find multiple defeats until they learn of the items and abilities throughout Brawl.

Putting solid time into Brawl definitely pays off. Whether it’s just unlocking characters, maps, stickers, songs and items or another 8 hour binge with 3 friends, Super Smash Bros Brawl is one of the best games on Wii and again continues to provide the most addictive and fun party fighting of any console game. How can you have Sonic The Hedgehog throwing a Poke Ball at Solid Snake, and not have a brilliant game? In my eyes, you can’t.

Super Smash Bros. Brawl

95%

The Good -

* Ultimately addictive.
* Fun, colourful and furious.
* Eons of Nintendo memorabilia and content to unlock.

The Bad -

* Gameplay dangerously similar to past Smash Bros. titles.
* Yet again including Target Smash and other old game modes is just tiresome now.
* Could very well be all too much for some.