Super Smash Brothers Melee


Super Smash Brothers for the N64 was one of our favourite fighting games for the system, as you will have gathered from our review. The game featured 12 popular Nintendo characters, from the omnipresent Mario to the almost-unheard-of Ness, locked in a battle for supremacy. With all the characters using their own signature moves, riotous combat and a unique fighting system, the game had bags of charm, lots of fun and a brilliant multiplayer mode.

So it seems only natural that with Nintendo's new console, the Gamecube, coming out soon (in fact, already being out in Japan), the game should get an update for the new system. And, as all fans of the game will be happy to hear, the Gamecube version of Super Smash Brothers is nearing completion, and should be released soon after the console launches in America. They'd just better hurry up and get the system and game released in the rest of the civilised world too.

Super Smash Brothers Melee is the slightly-unoriginal title for the sequel to SSB, and while even Tangy could have come up with a better name, at least it is clearly and unashamedly a title similar to the first - which can't be complained about. Super Smash Brothers Melee - or SSBM, as I shall call it - goes eight better than the original, with apparently a total of 20 characters to choose from. This will include the characters from the first game - or most of them, at least: let's hope they get rid of that useless Jigglypuff - as well as some new faces, from expected characters like Bowser and Peach, to surprise additions like Sheik from the Zelda games, and the 'Ice Climbers' from an early Nintendo game (which I've never heard of).

As with the first game, each character will attack true to their own style, but there will be a few more attacks for each character: probably a good thing, since the gameplay in the original, while superb fun, did tend to be a little simplistic owing to the shortage of moves. Old characters will be getting brand new moves, such as Link's bow and arrow, and Kirby's hammer, while the new characters will of course have entire sets of attacks of their own; for instance, Bowser has a very nasty crush attack, while Peach has an odd ice dagger.

Grappling and throwing, a big part of SSB, will be brought back for the sequel, only this time it will be a bit more flexible: when you grab hold of an enemy, you will be able to either throw them away forward or backward as before, but you can also attack them in a variety of ways while they are helplessly held. Very sporting. Whether there will be ways to counter the grapples remains to be seen.

The items make a welcome return, and, as you'd expect, there are several additions to the varied and useful powerup list from the first game. As well as old favourites like the Star Rod, Mine, Heart and Fireflower, there are new and nasty weapons to grab and use, such as a rapid fire gun which does little damage but effectively freezes the opponent with a continuous stream of shots; and a scoped weapon for accurate attacks. The items will be just as prevalent as in the first game, and presumably will be able to be turned off or even made more common, as in the original. The items will not dominate the gameplay, which will still be mostly about using your character's usual attacks to the best of their ability, but rather should make fighting an even more interesting and manic experience.

There should be far more arenas to battle in this time around, and what's more, they'll be even more interactive than the first ones. Rather than just the odd whirlwind or Arwing making a showing, this time there will be much more danger - or assistance - from your surroundings. For instance, on Captain Falcon's F-Zero arena, there will be a more or less constant stream of racing craft crossing the arena on the lower levels, ready to smash into any hapless fighters who dare to fight at the bottom. It seems that all the arenas are brand new, and all are simple enough to let the combat take centre stage, while well-designed enough to keep things interesting.

The single-player mode in SSB was a great asset to the game, and it broke the mould of most fighting games by pitting you against all sorts of challenges on your road to victory. The single-player mode in SSBM is even better, and even more unusual. While the basic premise is still to knock out an opponent, or several opponents, in each stage, in the new game you will also face a series of challenges before you even meet up with the opponent for each stage! In each stage, you must battle your way through a level filled with challenges typical of the stage character's games - for instance, before facing Link you must hack your way through a murky dungeon filled with monsters such as the infuriating Redead, before meeting up with Link himself for the bout. Presumably, if you take a lot of damage before reaching the opponent, you'll start off at a significant disadvantage against your fully-fit foe. As for the as-yet-unrevealed final boss of the game, hopefully he'll have a little bit more character than that rather useless white glove from SSB...

As far as multiplayer goes, there will be a lot more options available, including some entirely new gameplay modes. There's a tournament mode where a large number of people can have a competition; and there are also other, innovative modes such as the 'Coin Mode', where you must amass the most coins, either by grabbing them or just beating them out of other players; and also a point-scoring mode where using different techniques successfully, rather than just one or two powerful attacks, is the way to win. Standard combat, either free-for-all or team, will of course be available too.

Graphically and aurally SSBM excels, as you'd expect from a next-generation game, and all sorts of visual effects feature prominently, like reflective surfaces, amazing character detail and animation, and all manner of cute touches such as clothes blowing in the wind and background details. Battle noises are similarly excellent, and there should also be quite a bit more speech, to boot.

In short, SSBM looks to be one awesome fighting game, with some terrific gameplay, innovation and insane combat. It will definitely be one to watch out for when it finally arrives, and we're counting down the days already.

Written by: Maverik