Super Smash Bros is one of the biggest games in Nintendo's lineup, but it is one that I had NEVER played before, until just recently. It isn't your traditional fighting game either. I am not sure what the previous games were like, but Super Smash Bros Ultimate is full of so much more than just your 1vs1 fighting experience.
Growing up, I played a lot of different fight games. I was a self proclaimed expert at Mortal Kombat 2 and I could hold my own against people in Street Fighter 2 and many of the other fighting games that came after.
Well, Super Smash Bros is nothing like any of those and it plays totally different.
To begin with, there are no life bars in the game. Instead everyone starts with 0% damage and it builds up with each successful attack you land on them. The more damage they have, the higher they will fly when you attack them, making it easier to knock them off the stage and win.
Some times I win matches before they are even at 100% and they go flying off the stage. Sometimes their damage is super high and they don't go flying anywhere. It seems a bit random to me, but I can tell there is a whole lot going on under the hood of this game for things to be random like I think they are.
I have read up on the game and it seems that the developers have made this game super easy for people to pick it up and play it, but VERY in depth for the advanced players to compete against each other and each advantage they can have over their opponent, like how fast you can turn your guy and run will help them be the winner.
Speaking of making it super easy for newcomers, there are two attack buttons. So a lot of people coming into the game seem to just mash the buttons in different sequences and I guess they can have a bit of success being a button masher.
Well it is a lot more involved than just mashing buttons to be great at this game. Here is the simple move list:
ZL - Shield
L - Grab
ZR - Shield
R- Grab
D-pad Left - Side Taunt
D-pad Right - Side Taunt
D-pad Up - Up Taunt
D-pad Down - Down Taunt
X - Jump
Y - Jump
A - Attack
B - Special
RS - Smash Attack
One thing I don't understand is why you need two jump buttons, but I guess the Nintendo nerds are smarter at designing games than I am and have a reason for it. It might be because you can push the jump and attack buttons at the same time for a different type of jumping attack and having just one jump button would make it too hard for people's little fingers to reach the buttons.
Just imagine Donald Trump trying to do jump attacks with his little hands. It would be nearly impossible for him. But with two jump buttons right above the two attack buttons, it is possible for even the tiniest hands to do jump attacks.
The Spirits mode is from what I can gather, the single player campaign. It seems to be where you also unlock all the other characters in the game.
The core game has 69 different characters to choose from and then 8 more characters that are included with DLCs. Right now there are two Fighter Passes and they each include 6 different characters and stages. The Fighter Passes are each $29.99, which seems a bit excessive, but those Nintendo nerds know what they are doing cause people are buying them up like hot cakes.
Some thing named Galeem came and stole everyone and made some dark puppets of everyone.
Now it is up to you to fight against the dark army and reclaim the light and free your friend's spirits.
Oh, and I forgot to mention that the only person that didn't get turned into a dark puppet is probably one of the worst fighters in the game.
Ya, you are Kirby... This little pink ball sucks. Literally.
The Spirits adventure is pretty in-depth. There are upgrades and different primary and secondary spirits to collect and make your character and party stronger in your quest to defeat Galeem.
One of the unique things about this game is the stage design. Each stage is handcrafted and will change your gameplay style depending on the level you are on.
There are interactive elements and other crap that you need to look out for on the different stages. Each character has its own stage to it.
The graphics in this game are pretty awesome, but the game can get pretty hectic and it is hard to follow, especially when you are doing a 4 player battle.
Overall, the game is pretty dope and I am looking forward to learning more about how to get better at it and not be a button masher. I can see why it is so successful as a franchise. There is a lot to unpack with this game and it has a very high replayability factor.
If any of you have some tips or stuff on how I can get better, let me know.
