Good, But Could Have Been So Much More...
Of all of Nintendo's Wii lineup, this game possibly had the most to live up to. Few of the Big N's games have ever been so hyped before release and subsequently been delayed so many times. The time spent should have given the creators of Super Smash Bros. Brawl time to create a quality offering with loads of new modes and things to do. It's just lacking in so many areas and missing so much of what could be there, not to mention it seems like it would be better served on a console with normal control options and the framework for solid downloadable content. Nonetheless, it is what it is, which is to say a great local multiplayer game just like the past two entries.
The strengths are exactly the same as Melee - the multiplayer is awesome, especially if you've got some Nintendo-fan friends. There are numerous combinations of things to do and many options, so it's quite full-featured. It's too bad that there are no new modes of play here - using the gameplay model to try implementing, say, capture the flag, or trying to do some sort of a take on a sport would be awesome. Alas, it lacks inspiration. There's even a few features that have been pulled out, such as scoring for certain achievements during fights.
It seems to be a recurring trend in this game: more of the same. In some cases (like the trophies and music tracks) it's a LOT more of the same. In other cases, the characters and stages are reasonable progressions from the past. The game refuses to try very many new or interesting things, unfortunately.
The online mode had a lot of fans excited, and it is bound to let them all down. No scoreboards or stat tracking means that battles against random people - especially with how much lag exists - are completely pointless. Even battles against friends from a few miles away are laden with enough lag to make the tactics in the game void, creating frustration. There's no experience system, no incentive to play it online, and really it's a throwaway feature.
Other new things, such as the stage creator, lack enough depth. Halo 3's Forge mode allows players all kinds of freedom with existing levels, even being able to create alterations on game modes and existing structures. LittleBigPlanet allows for tons of flexibility and imagination. Here, there are just a few tools and three backgrounds to choose from, and no ability to use your own music. It's fun to mess around with for a bit, but the levels always lack aesthetic quality and are rather plain.
The character selection is, more or less, as exhaustive as you could imagine. Newcomers like Pit and Wario are very welcome, while yet another Fox clone is added with Wolf, and Samus is fundamentally ruined by the terrible Zero Suit mode. Even the supposedly middle-of-the-road character Mario has been messed with and given a completely pointless new move in place of a useful old one. Modifications and balacing have been done, which is good and all, but it's still hugely unbalanced. It seems like Fox and Link are far less useful than they were in the past, and characters like Dedede and Lucas are hugely overpowered. Many of the new levels, as well, aren't very creative and are extremely annoying. It would have been nice to have all of the Melee stages available. The inclusion of third-party characters Solid Snake and Sonic the Hedgehog are baffling to say the least. Neither character is terribly useful or fun, and they don't fit with the Nintendo-centric presentation at all. If Nintendo were to go all-out and include every third-party character that made an impact on Nintendo consoles, that would have been more interesting. This half-hearted effort comes off as weak.
The most fundamental problem with SSBB is the feel of the game. The tone that is set it too self-serious, which stands out in such an absurd and goofy series. The huge "Subspace Emissary" mode (just a glorified but infinitely less-interesting iteration of the Adventure mode from Melee) creates a really lame atmosphere for all the modes. Where Melee had a quirky, self-deprecating level of humor and reveled in its own ridiculousness, Brawl is just lame. It feels like a bad Kirby game without the fun power ups, and SSE drags on WAY too long. It's a serious missed opportunity, especially with zero voiceover and extremely stupid original enemies.
Beyond that, Super Smash Bros. Brawl just doesn't channel the Wii spirit at all. There is no IR pointer support, the Wii Remote control schemes are horrific, and it just doesn't offer much that could not have been done on the GameCube. Super Mario Galaxy took an existing franchise and tailored it to the Wii with resounding success, but Brawl just doesn't have that. This just furthers the idea that the game really doesn't belong on the Wii. When the unquestionably best control option is last generation's flawed GameCube controller, which requires that you remove the flap on your Wii and get it in a position to use those cables, you know there's a problem. Both of the control schemes that use the Wii remote are functional but practically useless, and the Classic Controller is kind of a piece of garbage.
So there it is. Brawl is not flawless, but it's still fun with friends and on that front has made Melee obsolete. A lot of the direction it takes isn't good, but it is what it is. (I would totally love to be the designer of the next SSB game - I have loads of really great doable ideas. Give me a ring, Nintendo!!)
