(Originally published to Glitchwave on 1/23/2021)
[Image from igdb.com]
Super Smash Bros.
Developer: HAL Laboratory
Publisher: Nintendo
Genre(s): Fighting
Platforms: N64
Release Date: January 21, 1999
Nevertheless, the pinnacle of Nintendo fighting game franchises started near the turn of the millennium at the height of the Nintendo 64, an early 3D console that lacked the fighting game lineups of its competitors. How amusing it is more than 20 years later that this game that seemed like a novelty at the time would steamroll over its competition to become arguably the most consistently popular fighting game franchise of all time. It's easy to see why, and it's not because of the novel idea of pitting famous Nintendo characters from different franchises against each other. Right from the start, Super Smash Bros. was balanced, offered a large variety of play styles, and was accessible, but still required substantial effort to master.
Nintendo chose not to copy the contemporary style of 3D fighting games of the time and crafted something unique, thus creating the Super Smash Bros. gameplay formula we all know and love. Instead of the 3D top-down view common in fighting franchises like Power Stone, Super Smash Bros. was presented on a 2D plane and controlled similarly to a 2D platformer but with 3D models. This gives each character a fluid array of movements that wasn't present in any fighting game of the time. Instead of a health bar that would decline as the player got hit, SSB implemented a percentage meter that coincided with your damage taken. At a certain point, the threshold of the percentage meter would give in, and the player would be knocked off the stage resulting in a knockout. It was a unique gameplay concept for a fighting game that has served the series quite well over the years.
The lineup of playable characters in the first Super Smash Bros. seems quite obvious. Instead of digging through the archives of Nintendo's history, the first SSB offers the standard of Nintendo characters (Mario, Link, Samus, Pikachu, etc.). Even the not-so-standard unlockable characters like Ness and Captain Falcon seem essential to the Smash Bros. experience when they seemed esoteric then. Apparently, Banjo Kazooie was going to be in the game at one point, but this didn't come to fruition because of well-documented circumstances. Still, this game exclusively having Banjo Kazooie would cement this game as its own unique entry into the franchise instead of a rudimentary beta test for the following titles. Alas, all of the playable characters are in every other SSB game making the roster a little underwhelming. On the other hand, the strength of having such a small roster is that every character has their own unique move set (except for Luigi). There are only nine stages, and each of them is pretty simple as well. There is at least one for each franchise represented in the lineup (excluding unlockable characters), and each stage might have one or two level hazards. I much prefer simple stages, so the levels in this game are ideal for the way that I play Super Smash Bros. The level items aren't as overwhelming as they don't clutter the screen like they do in other games.
Besides the versus mode, classic mode involves a gauntlet of random fights fighting a boss at the very end. Master Hand, the de facto main antagonist of the Smash Bros. series, is a stamina fight that involves figuring out his arsenal of hand-related moves that do massive damage. The first game is also the only one where his inclusion doesn't seem random. The game's intro involves Master Hand placing toys that resemble each fighter in a makeshift arena, pitting them against each other. Is the idea that the players are the hands and by fighting them, the characters are breaking free from their captor? I don't remember that in Toy Story 2. Some minigames involve breaking targets and jumping onto platforms which are the closest this game gets to making the most out of its 2D platformer-like design. These modes are simple and give the player an alternative to fighting. I don't mind them, but I'd be lying if I said that trying to do all of the platform challenges with every character didn't get tedious after a while.
Overall, there is nothing wrong with the first Super Smash Bros. It's a solid fighting game on a console severely lacking them. If this is the case, why doesn't my rating reflect the praise I've given it? To be honest, I'd much rather play any other game in the franchise. Yes, even Brawl. I'm not usually one for fighting games, but Super Smash Bros. has always been the one exception. Besides the fact that every character is readily recognizable even before playing the game, the unique methods this game implements into the standard fighting game style keep me buying Nintendo consoles for the sole purpose of getting the next Super Smash Bros. game. While it has that, SSB doesn't have enough content to keep me playing it. Maybe I've been spoiled because I grew up with Melee and Brawl and retroactively played this one just to complete the series. Simplicity has its perks, but only for a short while until you hunger for more. Besides, everything presented in this game has been carried on to future installments, so I don't feel the need to come back to it. Alas, Super Smash Bros. on the N64 is merely a template for what was to come. It was a winning formula for sure, but that winning formula has definitely been perfected over time.
Nintendo chose not to copy the contemporary style of 3D fighting games of the time and crafted something unique, thus creating the Super Smash Bros. gameplay formula we all know and love. Instead of the 3D top-down view common in fighting franchises like Power Stone, Super Smash Bros. was presented on a 2D plane and controlled similarly to a 2D platformer but with 3D models. This gives each character a fluid array of movements that wasn't present in any fighting game of the time. Instead of a health bar that would decline as the player got hit, SSB implemented a percentage meter that coincided with your damage taken. At a certain point, the threshold of the percentage meter would give in, and the player would be knocked off the stage resulting in a knockout. It was a unique gameplay concept for a fighting game that has served the series quite well over the years.
The lineup of playable characters in the first Super Smash Bros. seems quite obvious. Instead of digging through the archives of Nintendo's history, the first SSB offers the standard of Nintendo characters (Mario, Link, Samus, Pikachu, etc.). Even the not-so-standard unlockable characters like Ness and Captain Falcon seem essential to the Smash Bros. experience when they seemed esoteric then. Apparently, Banjo Kazooie was going to be in the game at one point, but this didn't come to fruition because of well-documented circumstances. Still, this game exclusively having Banjo Kazooie would cement this game as its own unique entry into the franchise instead of a rudimentary beta test for the following titles. Alas, all of the playable characters are in every other SSB game making the roster a little underwhelming. On the other hand, the strength of having such a small roster is that every character has their own unique move set (except for Luigi). There are only nine stages, and each of them is pretty simple as well. There is at least one for each franchise represented in the lineup (excluding unlockable characters), and each stage might have one or two level hazards. I much prefer simple stages, so the levels in this game are ideal for the way that I play Super Smash Bros. The level items aren't as overwhelming as they don't clutter the screen like they do in other games.
Besides the versus mode, classic mode involves a gauntlet of random fights fighting a boss at the very end. Master Hand, the de facto main antagonist of the Smash Bros. series, is a stamina fight that involves figuring out his arsenal of hand-related moves that do massive damage. The first game is also the only one where his inclusion doesn't seem random. The game's intro involves Master Hand placing toys that resemble each fighter in a makeshift arena, pitting them against each other. Is the idea that the players are the hands and by fighting them, the characters are breaking free from their captor? I don't remember that in Toy Story 2. Some minigames involve breaking targets and jumping onto platforms which are the closest this game gets to making the most out of its 2D platformer-like design. These modes are simple and give the player an alternative to fighting. I don't mind them, but I'd be lying if I said that trying to do all of the platform challenges with every character didn't get tedious after a while.
Overall, there is nothing wrong with the first Super Smash Bros. It's a solid fighting game on a console severely lacking them. If this is the case, why doesn't my rating reflect the praise I've given it? To be honest, I'd much rather play any other game in the franchise. Yes, even Brawl. I'm not usually one for fighting games, but Super Smash Bros. has always been the one exception. Besides the fact that every character is readily recognizable even before playing the game, the unique methods this game implements into the standard fighting game style keep me buying Nintendo consoles for the sole purpose of getting the next Super Smash Bros. game. While it has that, SSB doesn't have enough content to keep me playing it. Maybe I've been spoiled because I grew up with Melee and Brawl and retroactively played this one just to complete the series. Simplicity has its perks, but only for a short while until you hunger for more. Besides, everything presented in this game has been carried on to future installments, so I don't feel the need to come back to it. Alas, Super Smash Bros. on the N64 is merely a template for what was to come. It was a winning formula for sure, but that winning formula has definitely been perfected over time.
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