Super Smash Bros. Brawl had so much hype, I think it took a lot of effort not to wet myself waiting for the next update every night at the Smash Dojo site, eagerly watching like an obedient little Nintendo lover, thinking to myself "*CRAG* YEAH SMASH BROS." This game had so much damn hype, I think everybody knew it couldn't possibly have met it, however much we might have hoped that it would. The game did not turn out to be the Second Coming of Santa Christ, but rather was ripe with some flaws that could have been more forgivable, but sadly drag the game down to where I consider it to be 'fair, but having had the potential to have been far better'. To me, the problems with this game are:
Subspace Emissary single-player. This was muchly hyped like any other part of the game. No dialogue except for some grunts and maybe some single words like "Yeah!" from Mario. Epic scenes with explosions, women, and Luigi. But it's clear that HAL Labs spilled Kirby on their Subspace. *crag* dem other guys, KIRBY is the real savior of the universe. And the gameplay and design of Single Player Mode shows it, too. But that would be just fine by me if the gameplay was more compelling. I actually enjoy Adventure Mode on Melee more than Subspace Emissary. Once you've beaten Subspace once, you probably don't want to play it again. I know I didn't. You watch the epic cutscenes, get through the game, and your experience is pretty much done. Well, at least it's an incredibly easy way to unlock new characters. I didn't care for that, but some may like that it was made so easy. We're an impatient species and want our lasar-robots and rock-hard Solid Snakes quickly. Playing Subspace with a friend can elevate the experience, but can also be annoying when you have to catch up with one another, and Player 2 keeps getting thrown around as a ball of blue light every minute or so. Personally, I would have liked a story or stories that changed more according to what character(s) you choose to play as.
The second big problem I have is the Online. A hugely important thing to me. A part of this game that I looked forward to probably more than anything. Clearly, they should have delayed this game even more, because myself and probably many others would be giving this game a far higher rating if they had taken whatever time they needed to perfect online playability. Being able to connect with your friends around the world and spam Kirby's taunt and/or actually fight was tantalizing. But it takes way too long to connect to a game with three other strangers in 'With Anyone', whether you're playing an all-out 'Brawl' or 'Team Brawl'. I could be waiting in a room for 20 minutes, if the game was kind. Online play is just not as smooth as it could have been. I point to Mario Kart Wii as an example of how smooth Brawl's online mode should have been. It's perfectly possible for this to have been better.
I'll end by defending the game, however. What I love the most is just how crazy it is. There's nothing funner to me than a crazy battle with some friends that has bananas, smart bombs, shells, and whatever else falling all over the place. Unlike most other games where characters kick each other around, Smash Bros. Brawl can have a funny story to just about any battle. Weird and amusing things can happen at any moment. This makes each game different to me, and just as fun and unpredictable as the last. I enjoy the large character roster. I thought Melee's was big, but Brawl has made it look rather small. The characters themselves are entertaining, and I actually like the Final Smash mechanic that was implemented. It gives the characters even more unique flavor and makes for even more amusing moments. This game is so crazy that is still manages to draw me back to it every so often despite its unfulfilled potential. It feels like they tried to stuff too much into it too quickly to make it as huge and epic as possible. If Super Smash Bros. Brawl was just now coming out, I can't help but think it would be a far better game.
{ Fair, but having had the potential to be far better }
