Slusy's Full Review: Super Smash Bros Melee for GameCube
Back in days of yore (also known as 1999), Nintendo took all their flagship characters, put them all in a ring, and let them at one another. They called it Super Smash Bros., and it was an instant hit. (Pun intended.) So, what better way to usher in the GameCube than with the sequel to one of the most popular N64 games of all time?
Super Smash Bros. Melee is said sequel, and Nintendo has another blockbuster here. Basically, they took just about every aspect of the original and souped it up. You wanted more characters? There are 25 in all. You want better graphics? Melee has the best graphics of all the GameCube games released so far. More moves, great sound, more stages, more modes, more everything. Nintendo really pulled out all the stops with Melee, and it shows.
Super Smash Bros., for the uninitiated, is, at its core, a fighting game featuring Nintendo characters. Each character is given a number of regular moves, initiated with the A button, the most powerful of which is the "smash" attack, which is performed by tapping the stick forward and pressing A simultaneously. There are also four special moves per character, performed via the B button, and usual fighting game conventions such as throws, blocks, and sidesteps are also available. What makes Smash Bros. different is that, regardless of how much damage a character takes, they're still alive and kicking until they're knocked off the screen; damage becomes a means to an end rather than the goal itself, because the more hurt a character is, the farther it will fly when hit.
The big problem with the original Super Smash Bros. is that it was a limited experience. There were two modes, which were single player and multiplayer. Multiplayer was a blast, but only when friends were around to play. Single player was a series of battles against the same succession of enemies, which, needless to say, got boring quickly. It was worth playing through to unlock the four hidden characters, and not again. The general consensus was that the game was awesome, unless you were by yourself.
With Melee, it seems that Nintendo took the hint, in a big way. There are, of course, a number of multiplayer modes to play with friends, but there are around twice as many single-player modes to horse around with. The original single player mode (now called Classic) returns, but the opponents are now randomized, which adds significant replay value. There are also a few interesting mini-games, like Home Run Derby and Multi-Man Melee which should keep you occupied for a little while.
What's much more impressive, though, is Adventure Mode, which is sure to evoke a tear of nostalgia from any old-school gamer worth his salt. Basically, Nintendo has recreated 10 classic side-scrolling games in loving 3D detail, and you fight through them, Smash Bros. style. If you're looking for something to show off your GameCube, kiddies, this is it. Imagine fighting through the mazes of Zelda 2 in full 3D, with an orchestrated remake of the original theme music playing in the background. Sound impressive? It is.
The control, like the original, is a bit quirky, but fairly easy to pick up. The control is a bit looser than the original, in that a tiny tap can send your character running instead of walking, but it doesn't take too long to adjust. Just because the game is easy to pick up, though, doesn't mean it takes no skill to play. A friend of mine has basically written off Melee because his three-year-old cousin schooled him in the original. I doubt that said cousin would do nearly as well in Melee; the fighting system is surprisingly deep and there is, in fact, strategy involved, as much so as in the Street Fighter games or any other comparable fighter. If you try to play against the computer on higher levels without knowing what you're doing, you WILL get beaten down, just like you would in any good fighting game. Don't be fooled by the cutesy Nintendo characters; this game may be different by fighting game standards, but it's up there with the best of them.
Speaking of characters, there are 25 total, with 14 available initially and 11 available for unlocking. All 12 characters from the original are here, though two are locked initially, and Bowser, Zelda, Peach, and the Ice Climbers are also available from the start. I won't spoil the surprise by revealing who else is hidden, but I am kind of surprised by the choices. One character who is noticeably missing is Pitt from Kid Icarus. The other problem with the hidden characters is that some of them are essentially clones of other characters, but with minor differences, which seems like a cop out to me. That's not to say that these semi-clones aren't worth unlocking, but it seems kind of a rip-off to get a clone of another character after all the work required to unlock it.
Graphically, the game is absolutely beautiful. The characters are perfectly round everywhere they're supposed to be, and everything is rendered in loving detail. Levels are similarly beautiful, and much more dynamic than those in the original. Kraid rotates a hunk of rock in a Metroid level, forcing all the characters to compensate. A Super Mario World level comes complete with spinning blocks that give way when in motion. In short, Melee is just a beauty to behold. I will not that it is still possible to lose sight of your character when the camera is zoomed out to accommodate all four characters, but this is more of a necessary evil than anything else.
The sound is similarly impressive. All the character expressions are still done well, if not better than before. The real beauty is the background music, which is all remade and now orchestrated. Just about every Nintendo theme you could think of is represented here, and done absolutely beautifully. I actually want a soundtrack of this game, the music is so good.
So everything about Super Smash Bros. Melee is done absolutely right to make this a must-have game for the GameCube. Sure, the single-player experience may grow old after 10 or so hours of play, but just when you think you've done everything there is to do, there's another mode you haven't tried out yet. If you own a GameCube, you owe it not only to yourself but to your friends as well to go get Super Smash Bros. Melee.
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