May 19 2007 - We
all fell in love with the original Super Smash Bros. for the N64 in the late '90s, but who could easily forget the legendary
sequel for the GameCube launch in 2001?
The Super Smash Bros. series brings everything that we love about Nintendo's games into
a giant melting pot. There is nothing, and I mean nothing, more fun than fighting with your favorite Nintendo
characters against your friends for hours on end.
For that reason the third Super Smash Bros. installment is easily one of the most anticipated games
of the year, possibly outpaced only by Halo 3 and MGS 4.
Super Smash Bros. Brawl will incorporate three firsts for the legendary fighting
series. First, full online-play with worldwide Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection competition. Second, it's potentially
the first AAA Nintendo game to be specifically built for the Wii from start-to-finish. Though that doesn't make
much difference since SSB Brawl isn't using the Wii Remote for gameplay. Brawl will however take advantage of the Wii's
double-GCN graphical power and wireless online connectivity.
Third, and likely least important, is the designer's decision to begin incorporating
third-party characters from non-Nintendo development houses to diversify the roster of brawlers.
So far Hideo Kojima's Solid Snake is the only non-Nintendo characters to appear in the
game, but if persistent industry rumblings are true, at least a few more are slated to make cameo's in the new fighter, chief
among them Sonic and his trusty walnut-colored assistant Tails.
Super Smash Bros. Brawl is tentatively set for a Q4 release this year, most likely narrowed
down to an early November street date. Let's hope the veteran series director, Sakurai, is making a game strong enough
to compete against the likes of Halo 3 and MGS 4. We can only hope.
More to come Monday, May 21st...
-SCP
